In many early RPGs, you started at the castle. The king was just the king and he gave you money. Here, you start in a somewhat shady town and then head off to the castle. And the king has feelings. And we learn about them in an incredibly effective cut scene that not only develops two important characters, but sets up another significant plot point with Setzer later in the game. Briefly, we learn that Edgar and Sabin’s dad, the former king, was likely murdered by the Empire. Sabin’s pissed about the local apathy towards this and wants to run away and fight. Edgar wants to as well, but feels a strong responsibility to his people, even if they are naive and oblivious. So he makes a proposal to soften tensions with his brother.

Continue reading 8. Edgar Rigs a Coin Toss →

Right away after meeting Leo, one of the highest ranking generals in the Empire, we begin to identify with him.

Continue reading 12. Leo Dies →

A trend I’ve noticed with my entries so far is that I can’t help but compare Final Fantasy VI to previous games in the genre. But today, it’s in a good way. Dragon Warrior was the first I played, and you went the quest alone. You never faced more than one enemy per battle, and that eventually got stale. But Dragon Warrior II improved upon this, only having you start the game alone, forcing you to find allies. Sometimes you did run into multiple enemies, and the increase in strategy was welcome. Dragon Warrior IV played around with this as well, sometimes having you fight alone, sometimes with groups of 2, 3, or 4.

Final Fantasy VI plays around with this constantly, which is one of the reason the game doesn’t get stale for a long time. You begin the game with just a couple of people in your party, and it steadily grows. But there are several times where your group is forced to split up. The first time is after you go to the Returner’s Hideout. When I learned I’d be going to South Figaro alone with Locke, I was excited.

While there’s no battles you have to fight while alone, you certainly can. And you will almost certainly lose. The best strategy is to pull an Indiana Jones and find an enemy to help you blend in.

Continue reading 13. Breaking Celes Out →

Until the era of the Super Nintendo, final bosses in RPGs were nearly all the same. They were evil entities that loved being evil because they loved evil. Their motivations were pretty much “Mua ha ha ha!” and not much else. Not only that, they were generally heard about and not seen until the final battle.

Continue reading 15. Meeting Kefka →

While FF6 wasn’t the first RPG to have temporary playable characters, it was the first that changed my perspective on the potential of the genre. When you meet Banon, not only is he someone the protagonists look up to, he is essential to their success.

Continue reading 17. Protect Banon →

I had played many RPGs before Final Fantasy VI, and one thing never changed; everything was leisurely. You did not play an RPG if you wanted action or speed. And hey, if it took you a good hour or two to accomplish a task, that was all part of the satisfying grinding needed to advance.

Continue reading 19. Go Your Own Pace →