Topic: Final fantasy discussion thread

@nessisonett Ah I see, that's good to hear. I was kinda worried it would be like FF4 (I think it was that game) where characters would temporarily leave and come back the exact same level as when they left. Never used them again in that game because of that. At least receiving half EXP and being able to be called upon at any time on the world map are better than that.

Thanks for reminding me about Yuffie btw. Didn't know that she can be found in any forests and I just passed one while going to the next town, so it was easy for me to locate her. It's also cool that she's the ninja character, can't wait to buy some shurikens so I can properly use her Throw command. Although I do have to ask, since Throw and all these commands can be moved because they are based on materia, is there any difference in having the command on the character that specialises in it or any other character? For example, does the Throw command deal more damage if Yuffie has it rather than Cloud?

@johncalmc I agree, that's kinda the issue with most older JRPGs I think. Most modern ones I've played like Persona, Trails of Cold Steel or even Tales of Vesperia have shared EXP. FF4 is a good example of not having shared EXP while still having party members rotate out that don't get any additional EXP since leaving the team. I'm glad that FF7 at least has half EXP shared.

@LtSarge Yeah, you can get Yuffie in any forest I think but she has a higher chance of spawning in a specific one. Not sure which one from memory. I'm thinking Gongaga but I don't know why.

All the damage is based on stats but it barely makes any difference for the most part and it doesn't do special damage if the materia "fits" a certain character more. So like Throw is a Yuffie thing but it's actually less use on her than it is on most characters because the damage output is based on a) the strength of character and b) the strength of the weapon thrown. So Cloud, Barrett etc. are the best at throwing and they do most damage with the strongest weapons.

@LtSarge I seem to remember that when you do stumble across Yuffie, you need to get your dialogue choices to get her to join.

Getting it wrong doesn’t mean you’ve lost out on having her but will just have to try and find her again.

FF7 doesn’t really put too much emphasis on character roles like you said before so choosing who to have on your party is mostly based on limit breaks and which personalities you like for the out of combat stuff really.

@LtSarge I actually usually put Throw on another character like Cloud, Red or Vincent. Stat-wise, I think it matters more the stats of the item you’re throwing than the person doing the throwing. If there’s an annoying boss (Schizo I’m looking at you), I’ll usually chuck my outdated weapons at it.

@johncalmc @Thrillho @nessisonett Thanks for all the help guys. Going forward I'll just stick with one group that I find the strongest (Cloud, Barret and Red right now) and give them the materia.

Gotta say though, I think I'm liking the materia system way more than whatever was in FF6 (I think it was Relics?). It's a way more flexible system where you can move things around as much as you like and it's not too in-depth either, so you don't have to spend too much time in the menus. Not to mention that you don't have to buy new magic spells all the time, you just level up the materia and gain new spells, which is cool. It's simple, yet very satisfying.

@LtSarge The materia system is miles easier to use than basically any other Final Fantasy system. That has good points and bad. It means anyone can pretty easily get into it and enjoy it without needing to sit going through stats and tactics and stuff, but it can rub the purists the wrong way for being too easy. Personally I always liked the simplicity of it - certainly a contributing factor into how it became such a massive success.

@LtSarge Yeah, if you ever got onto FF8, then you're in for a treat with the very polarising "junction" system!

The materia system in the Remake is more complex, particularly when you play on hard mode and every character needs a couple of high level HP and MP up materia. It also has loads of new materia types but is much more stingy in other ways with no "all" materia and just one called "magnify" which is a weakened version of it.

@johncalmc not sure the materia system is easier to use than FF9 to be honest!

As for the experience share (or lack of a complete exp share) it’s basically a none issue in FF7 unless you decide to use Aeris in your squad until you.. need to pick someone else. I guess it would make a difference on the second to last boss too if you don’t have KOT. I’ve never tried taking that boss on by switching teams 😂

All I can say is that Vincent is my favorite FF7 character not named Tifa. Kind of a complicated mess to get him to join, but well worth it.

@kyleforrester87 I think IX is the most complicated of the PS1 games because of the job system. On VII you just pick a character you like and if you want them to be able to cast fire you just give them the magic fire orb. In IX you have to pick a balanced team or it can be quite tough, and who can do what is probably a bit more advanced for a beginner.

IX is my favourite Final Fantasy but I'd always recommend starting with VII because I just think it's so easy to understand and forgiving - anything you do can be undone by just switching materia.

@johncalmc I thought VIII was much more confusing with the spell drawing, junction system and weird summons. I didn't like those systems.

@johncalmc huh? There are only 4 characters to make a team out of in FF9. Zidane, Dagger, Vivi and Steiner.

@kyleforrester87 yeah but what if you go insane and accidentally pick one of the other characters? Messes the whole thing up. It can happen. I've seen people pick Quina. I've seen it.

@johncalmc are we even talking about the same game?

@Thrillho I'm actually rather excited to play FF8 simply because of its junction system. I honestly have no idea what it entails, but I do know that when previous FF titles have introduced an intricate system, such as the job systems in FF3 and FF5, that I've loved them. Doesn't necessarily mean that I'll like the system in FF8 but it could definitely end up being another FF game that I absolutely love because of that.

@LtSarge Not that I want to discourage you but I hated the junction system

@Voltan Well I have heard that a lot of people didn't like it so it does sound like a hit or miss with most players. Either they love it or they absolutely despise it. I'm curious as to see which group I'll fall into.

Btw, how necessary is it to be good at the system in order to perform successfully in battles?

@LtSarge I don't think it's something you can be good or bad at. It's not very complicated but makes battles drag on (in a boring way) longer than they should if you want to power up.

Or at least that's how I remember it - it was a pretty long time ago

The junction system is okay, and it’s not like it’s hard to use it’s just a bit weird. Once you know what you’re doing you can make yourself super OP! And it’s way better in FF8 HD when you can use speed x3 to draw magic. I just hate the level scaling and the way you earn money in FF8. And how drab the menus look.

@LtSarge It’s quite a weird system but I quite liked it.

• Summons are called “guardian forces”
• Each GF has abilities you unlock via AP
• Some of these allow you to “junction” spells to a specific ability (e.g. HP, strength etc), others might give you actions (like throw) or boost a stat.
• The more of that spell you have, the stronger the effect and certain spells are more effective for certain skills (e.g. cure spells for HP)

But to get spells you have to draw them from enemies. So in battle you use that action and obtain anything from 1-9 of that spell. Each enemy has different spells on them. So if you come across an enemy with cura for the first time, you can spend 10 minutes in the battle continuously drawing the spell.

It’s quite weird but works.

The Triple Triad card game rocks though!