Disclaimer: the game that I am reviewing is Final Fantasy 6, not Final Fantasy 3. Yes, it was released as Final Fantasy 3 in the United States, but it is actually the 6th entry in the series. And now, onto the review...
Having constantly been told that this game is the cream of the Final Fantasy crop, I went into this one with pretty high expectations. At the same time, I had a nagging feeling in the back of my mind that most of the praise was a result of nostalgia. However, after playing through the 40ish hour story (that number can go up to 60 if you uncover all the game's secrets), I can safely say that Final Fantasy 6 is a sure candidate for best Final Fantasy game. Furthermore, it almost approaches Chrono Trigger in terms of sheer 16-bit RPG goodness. Though there are a few balance issues and some other minor annoyances, Final Fantasy 6 is an immaculately paced game with a lovely story and cast and some of the most memorable scenarios you'll find in an RPG.
The story in Final Fantasy 6 is not as fleshed out as the story in, say, Final Fantasy 10, but it strikes just the right balance between simplicity and emotion. The game starts you out as Terra, a green-haired girl whose rare magical powers make her something of a hot commodity. As you can guess, she is being used by the evil empire as a kind of super weapon. However, after an encounter with a mysterious creature called an "Esper", the empire's hold over her is broken, leaving her liberated but with no idea who she is or where she comes from. I won't go any further, but I will say that the story in Final Fantasy 6 is an emotional journey through the lives of a fantastic cast of characters. There are fourteen playable characters in all and the majority of these characters have very memorable personalities and interesting back stories. I would go as far as to say Final Fantasy 6 has one of the best casts I've ever experienced in a JRPG. The developers did an admirable job weaving them all into the fabric of the overall story.
Another high point of the storytelling is the fact that the plot gives the magic you use in battle context (though to be fair, this is hardly the only Final Fantasy game to do this). There are so many RPGs that simply take the magic for granted and don't bother to explain its origin that you have to give the developers credit for providing a solid rationale. When I know that the magic I'm using is part of the game's lore, it just makes the world feel that much more believable.
Although the story is quite lovely overall and is full of moments that will stick with you, it does suffer from inconsistent dialogue. Much of the dialogue is well written and there are some lines that are very memorable, but the dialogue that isn't well written is hard to take seriously. Sometimes the characters will say something that seems distinctly out of place or oddly one dimensional given the gravity of the situation. The bulk of these lines are in the earlier stages of the game and to be fair, it does settle into a more consistent tone. That being said, I feel that some of the more emotional and serious themes would have had more power had the translation been sharper and more vibrant. In its current state, I find myself appreciating the story more for the charming characters and pitch-perfect pacing than the writing. As a final note, one of the bright spots of the story is the game's villain Kefka. He is pretty one dimensional and has little motivation behind his actions other than being an evil lunatic, but he is so much fun. He has an awesome laugh, an awesome sprite, and a flamboyant personality that instantly sets him apart. Despite his lack of depth, I can see why FF fanboys put him on such a pedestal.
Final Fantasy 6 has a solid plot, but the game's true genius lies in the way that it navigates you though the story. The pacing always feels varied, serving up scenarios that feel fresh at an astonishing rate. Cascading rivers, ghost trains, opera houses---the game has plenty of interesting and expertly-designed locales that give rise to equally interesting scenarios. I won't spoil them for you, but they ensure that the game never gets repetitive. In fact, the scenarios are so well-executed that I found myself thinking that they, not the story, were my primary motivation for continuing to play the game. This is not to say that the story will not provide ample motivation (and to be fair, the scenarios are part of the story), just that the scenarios are so good that you'll constantly want to see what new slice of creativity the developers have up their sleeve.
The battle system is also rife with creativity. Each character has a unique ability, ensuring that no two characters feel the same, and the game gives you plenty of attack options to use in battle, some of which are very cool. Between magic and special abilities, you don't have to use the same attacks in battle if you don't want to. That being said, there are certain fights in which spamming certain moves is more advantageous than varying your actions.
One of the things that makes the combat so fun is the Active Time Battle system. This same battle system can also be found in games like Final Fantasy 4 and Chrono Trigger. Basically, when you can attack is governed by a meter that is constantly filling up. When it is full, you are allowed to attack, and after the attack is complete, the meter starts filling up again. The ATB system doesn't exactly encourage strategic play (though it's not as if Final Fantasy 6 or Chrono Trigger are strategic games anyway), but it keeps the battles quick, tense and exciting. This is especially true of many of Final Fantasy 6's excellent bosses. These bosses are extremely fun to fight and they are also extremely memorable, not only because they look cool but because the game regularly varies the method through which you take them down. One later boss fight requires you to kill your own party members to win. I'm not going to explain why, but I will say that it's one of the coolest bosses I've ever fought against.
Another high point is the Espers, which acts as the game's summons. There are a ton of these creatures and most of them have some pretty cool effects. The best thing about them is that you can pair any Esper with any character, which allows for a lot of flexibility in your battle set-up.
As fun as the battle system is, the difficulty could have been more gracefully balanced. What I mean is that the game feels extremely easy for a very long time and then all of sudden the difficulty spikes, which is quite jarring and can be very annoying if you didn't buy the best armor because the game lulled you into a false sense of security for several hours. Furthermore, some of the bosses feel slightly cheap. As fun as they can be, it seems that the developers made a few of them artificially difficult by giving them unfair advantages. These advantages can be surmounted by grinding, but there were some points where I felt like I was grinding too much to defeat certain bosses.
Note: I know that it says in the review deck that the difficulty is just right, but that is only because there's no option to express that the game is not easy or hard. To be honest, it's all over the place in terms of difficulty, and while it is hardly the only Final Fantasy game not to have a smooth difficulty progression, it is still a minor annoyance.
Being the last Final Fantasy game on the SNES, Final Fantasy 6's graphics are a true marvel. The sprites are detailed and expressive and do an excellent job of conveying their character's personality; the environments are detailed and varied; and there are a lot of fancy effects, like the realistic-looking lighting found in the game's exquisitely drawn backgrounds and a quasi-3D world map that appears when you are in the game's airship or riding a Chocobo. What I liked most about the game's visual presentation is the muted, slightly dark color palette. It gives the game a slightly realistic aesthetic that does a lot to make the world feel bleak and hopeless.
The music is also fantastic. The opera scene tune is one of the most beautiful melodies of the 16-bit era and the rest of the songs range from excellent to good. Like the other parts of the game's presentation, the music goes along way in fleshing out Final Fantasy 6's lovely, mature aesthetic.
As a final note, although any JRPG fan (except for those who refuse to try older games) will enjoy what Final Fantasy 6 has to offer, I especially recommend this game to those who love a world chock full of secrets. There are tons of cool relics to find, secret bosses to vanquish, secret areas to uncover, awesome weapons to find, etc. Halfway through the story, the game really opens up, allowing you to take on the game's myriad of side quests. Although I think the pacing gets slightly weaker when the structure becomes less linear, it is a joy to be able to explore every corner of the world, indulging in the game's excellent optional content.
Final Fantasy 6 is not as polished as Chrono Trigger and it doesn't have the detailed narrative that a game like Final Fantasy 10 does (tho it is quite a bit more in-depth and mature than many of its contemporaries), but it is filled to the brim with creativity, whether that be in its scenarios, in its inventively designed dungeons, in its move set, or in its story. If you think that JRPGs are merely grindfests with no imagination, do yourself a favor and check this game out.
GAMEPLAY: 4.5/5
DESIGN: 5/5
STORY: 4.5/5
VISUALS: 5/5
PLAYABILITY: 4.5/5
VALUE: 5/5