Trombonus
A bit older, a lot wiser.
- Joined
- Jul 17, 2006
- Posts
- 15,398
Final Fantasy Tactics A2
Finally a new review! Been a long time coming!
Final Fantasy Tactics A2
System: Nintendo DS
Developer: Square-Enix
Genre: Strategy RPG
IT's a little known fact, but I went to The University of Nevada Reno for a semester. It was tough, but there were a few things that got me through the semester. Zoo Tycoon, Pokemon Sapphire and Final Fantasy Tactics Advance. I very rarely left campus since I had no car at the time, so when I went to Wal-Mart with a friend and saw a copy on sale I jumped at the chance (even though I wasn't supposed to buy anything with the money my parents gave me). I remember bringing it with me whenever I needed to do my laundry and playing it as I waited for the painfully slow machines to finish. Now, 5 years later we have a sequel.
FF Tactics A2 is not a continuation of the first story, but does use much of the same game mechanics as FFTA. You play the role of Luso, a young boy who discovers a magical book and gets trapped in its pages. It's up to you to learn how you got there, and more importantly how to get back home. When you arrive in the world of Ivalice, you are dropped in front of a huge, and quite deadly monster. Fortunately the members of Clan Gully are there to help, and offer you an invitation to join their clan.
Clans are teams comprised of the many denizens of Ivalice who undertake quests to earn experience, gold and recognition for the group. Each clan must adhere to certain rules imposed by a "Judge." These "Laws" must be obeyed or you have to endure consequences. All in all, I think this system is vastly improved over the predecessor. In FFTA, a character would be removed from the mission and sent to jail if a law was broken, and laws themselves were random. It wasn't so bad in the beginning since you only had one law to deal with, but as the game progresses there may be upwards of three laws! This was really bad because it seriously hampered your choices in battle, and the laws were semi-random. You could work the list so that you could have certain laws in effect when you entered a mission, but it was time consuming, and still limited you. Plus getting a character out of jail was a hassle. You either had to pay or let them stay there for an amount of time. Good characters were expensive to get out.
In FFTA2, the laws are no longer random, and are mission specific. Plus each mission only has one law to deal with (That I can see, I haven't played through the whole game yet). The penalty for breaking a law is much more lenient too. At the beginning of each mission you are allowed to pick a special privilege when you start, which could include increased strength, or earning more experience. If a law is broken, you can no longer gain that bonus. Also, if you complete a mission without breaking the law you receive bonus items. Finally, the only other consequence for breaking the law is not being able to revive fallen teammates.
The mission mode is still very much the same as FFTA. You check in at the pub to see what quests are available, and take them on at your own discretion. Main quests have no time limit, but other missions have a set number of in game days in which you have to complete it. You have to pay an initial fee, but there are ways to reduce that as the game progresses, and the rewards more than compensate for it. You can also undertake Clan Trials, which allow you to increase the level of your skills. There are four skills whose levels determine what mission you can undertake. If your skill level in a certain area is not up to snuff, you can't take on that mission. Of course, nothing's free. You have to complete a test, which varies for each trial. There are multiple levels to each test that vary in difficulty, and as such grant different rewards.
Finally, there is a new feature that allows you to claim the many areas of the game world as your own. The Auction House allows you to bid on certain areas in the game, and is kind of like a mini-game. You compete against other clans and winning grants certain rewards. Costs of items and quests in locations you own are lowered, and certain side quests may become available randomly. These can include a random monster battle, a battle against a rival clan, an item reward, or even a new recruit for your clan! Of course, it doesn't last forever, and after a certain amount of time you must go to an auction house and reclaim the areas.
Graphics: 95
Sound: 96
Gameplay: 98
Storyline: 95
Overall: 96
Finally a new review! Been a long time coming!
Final Fantasy Tactics A2
System: Nintendo DS
Developer: Square-Enix
Genre: Strategy RPG
IT's a little known fact, but I went to The University of Nevada Reno for a semester. It was tough, but there were a few things that got me through the semester. Zoo Tycoon, Pokemon Sapphire and Final Fantasy Tactics Advance. I very rarely left campus since I had no car at the time, so when I went to Wal-Mart with a friend and saw a copy on sale I jumped at the chance (even though I wasn't supposed to buy anything with the money my parents gave me). I remember bringing it with me whenever I needed to do my laundry and playing it as I waited for the painfully slow machines to finish. Now, 5 years later we have a sequel.
FF Tactics A2 is not a continuation of the first story, but does use much of the same game mechanics as FFTA. You play the role of Luso, a young boy who discovers a magical book and gets trapped in its pages. It's up to you to learn how you got there, and more importantly how to get back home. When you arrive in the world of Ivalice, you are dropped in front of a huge, and quite deadly monster. Fortunately the members of Clan Gully are there to help, and offer you an invitation to join their clan.
Clans are teams comprised of the many denizens of Ivalice who undertake quests to earn experience, gold and recognition for the group. Each clan must adhere to certain rules imposed by a "Judge." These "Laws" must be obeyed or you have to endure consequences. All in all, I think this system is vastly improved over the predecessor. In FFTA, a character would be removed from the mission and sent to jail if a law was broken, and laws themselves were random. It wasn't so bad in the beginning since you only had one law to deal with, but as the game progresses there may be upwards of three laws! This was really bad because it seriously hampered your choices in battle, and the laws were semi-random. You could work the list so that you could have certain laws in effect when you entered a mission, but it was time consuming, and still limited you. Plus getting a character out of jail was a hassle. You either had to pay or let them stay there for an amount of time. Good characters were expensive to get out.
In FFTA2, the laws are no longer random, and are mission specific. Plus each mission only has one law to deal with (That I can see, I haven't played through the whole game yet). The penalty for breaking a law is much more lenient too. At the beginning of each mission you are allowed to pick a special privilege when you start, which could include increased strength, or earning more experience. If a law is broken, you can no longer gain that bonus. Also, if you complete a mission without breaking the law you receive bonus items. Finally, the only other consequence for breaking the law is not being able to revive fallen teammates.
The mission mode is still very much the same as FFTA. You check in at the pub to see what quests are available, and take them on at your own discretion. Main quests have no time limit, but other missions have a set number of in game days in which you have to complete it. You have to pay an initial fee, but there are ways to reduce that as the game progresses, and the rewards more than compensate for it. You can also undertake Clan Trials, which allow you to increase the level of your skills. There are four skills whose levels determine what mission you can undertake. If your skill level in a certain area is not up to snuff, you can't take on that mission. Of course, nothing's free. You have to complete a test, which varies for each trial. There are multiple levels to each test that vary in difficulty, and as such grant different rewards.
Finally, there is a new feature that allows you to claim the many areas of the game world as your own. The Auction House allows you to bid on certain areas in the game, and is kind of like a mini-game. You compete against other clans and winning grants certain rewards. Costs of items and quests in locations you own are lowered, and certain side quests may become available randomly. These can include a random monster battle, a battle against a rival clan, an item reward, or even a new recruit for your clan! Of course, it doesn't last forever, and after a certain amount of time you must go to an auction house and reclaim the areas.
Graphics: 95
Sound: 96
Gameplay: 98
Storyline: 95
Overall: 96
It's nice to have some free time for a change. 
