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Part 3–>

Author’s Note: I was going to include the Story Analysis here, too, but that would’ve made this section way too long, defeating the purpose of breaking up the review anyway.

Story Synopsis

World of Balance
After the War of the Magi reduced the world to a scorched wasteland, magic (the equivalent of WMDs in our world) ceased to be.  People forgot it ever existed ,eventually rebuilding with technology, which is why Terra, born with the gift of magic, is a major catalyst for the narrative and the reason her existence is such a game changer for the resistance.

Terra Branford by Amano

The story opens with the fore-named without one (it’s literally ???????) and two imperial soldiers, Biggs and Wedge (eternal Star Wars reference) looking down on the mining city of Narshe.  Narshe is significant not only for narrative purposes, but also for being the one town found in a mountain crevice.  The only other such places are caves or dungeons.  The soldiers and the unnamed girl are riding what’s revealed to be Magitek Armor, granting them untold military prowess, which quickly explains how the Empire conquered so much of the world.

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Final Fantasy Reviews

<–Final Fantasy V                                                                                                           Final Fantasy VII–>

This is the part of a long-term project to play and review/analyze all the Final Fantasy games.  Whenever possible, I will play the original version, but in cases where it’s not available and/or there are time constraints, I’ll use a port and/or watch a Let’s Play, both of which contingencies will be indicated in the review.  Ideally, I will attempt to play a portion so that I can remark more accurately on the gameplay experience.  These will be long-form reviews with detailed plot analyses, so please be wary if you do not want spoilers.

Author’s Note: This took me over two years to write and edit, and it’s over 25k words, which I think is way too long for one post.  I love longform reviews, but I find them difficult to read in one sitting, so I’ve broken this up into parts with links to each.

Final Fantasy VI was my first Final Fantasy, and like the game narratives themselves, one could say I began them in media res.  When I first saw the ending at age fourteen, it was so joyful and full of promise the excess (at least for a time) rubbed off on me.  While I hold up Final Fantasy VII as my pinnacle narrative, that’s (partially) because I revel in grief.  Before that and other tragedies, FFVI represents what could have been.  Trauma muddles your memory, especially when what comes to pass happens around the time your age changes, and Final Fantasy VI makes a sharp, almost mocking, delineation dividing childhood and forced maturity, a line between hope and despair.

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