Overview

Final Fantasy Tactics is one of the most unique and essential games to any RPG fan's collection. It is complex and difficult, but rich and rewarding. The battle system is one of the most clever and engrossing class trees I've ever played, and the replay value can be rather embarrassing (I am on presently on my fifth trip through Ivalice). The story is dramatic, and the story scenes are actually quite well done for a 98 PlayStation game.

Body

I have loved RPG's ever since I played Earthbound, the first one I really got into. And just because I love them so much, I will usually play them through a second and sometimes a third time to be sure to get everything. Now having said that, let me say the first big thing that I love about Final Fantasy Tactics: the replay value is ridiculously high. My main reason in saying this is because I feel that Final Fantasy Tactics' job system is one of, if not the best skill developing trees that Square has yet created. There are an astonishing twenty different classes to choose from, and you can have five of your characters on the battlefield during non-story related fights. And as you progress in the game, eleven different story related characters can join your party, if you choose to bring them on. Considering that there is no set character structure (aside from having your main hero, Ramza Beoulve, and the guests in the party during story battles), you can quite easily get high levels of every single job class. Through the process of the game, you can form Ramza to be anything you want him to be, from a bare-handed powerful Monk, to an intimidating Summoner, or even a Samurai, who draws out the power innately hidden in their swords. And this brings me to my point: if you make it through the game, and you didn't get to really experience the Ninja class, you can play it through again using a completely different class of characters.

Another point that is incredibly rewarding and alternately frustrating is that your characters can die. And when I say die, I mean, they don't come back. When one of your non-story related characters dies, a timer is started; you only have three turns to get to your character and revive him before his spirit crystallizes and he becomes unplayable. Early in the game, this is more of a hassle if you can't get to your characters in time, but later on, once you have spent a significant amount of time developing them into a wonderful, fully-rounded character, it can be devastating to see all that progress on a pivotal member that will literally die. But having said that, maintaining the same character through the entire game is the most amazing part, because in the end, they play a key role in the strategy you've had from the beginning. The only real problem I have with this in recommending it to other gamers is the steep learning curve; the battles and the system itself is very difficult to master at first. It is complex, and requires much strategy, with different timed charges and a grid-based movement setup. As such, I do not recommend this game to novice RPG players. But to ardent Final Fantasy gamers, it shouldn't take too long to feel your way into the game.

The storyline of Final Fantasy Tactics is rather good, and flows through the entirety of the game. Ramza, the son of a deceased leader, is caught in the middle of a power struggle. We see the evolution of Ramza from the young cadet in the military all the way to the fierce and confident Knight. Corruption is spread through both military and church, and even family ties are untrustworthy. He is fighting a supernatural enemy, Lucavi, and finding his place in the world. While the game does not have the heart-breaking drama of Final Fantasy VII or the love story of Final Fantasy VIII, I still feel this is one of Square's tighter stories.

I have had nothing but good things to say about the game to this point; however, if I must give a bad check, it would be towards the music in Final Fantasy Tactics. I feel the music is just sub-par as a whole. It is in no way bad, but there are really no songs that stand out. I often found myself getting bored with the music, and would turn it down to play music from Final Fantasy VI via my computer. The main problem is that there is so little variance in it; there is only one overworld map theme, the pre-fight is always the same march-like cadence, and there are only a few battle songs. The only time it really changes any is during the story scenes, and those are nice, but once it's over, you are returned to the redundant map theme.

Summary

On the whole, I love Final Fantasy Tactics. Between the wide variety of classes and the personal customization of your characters, this game can be everything you want it to be. It is a solid 40+ hours game that will keep you involved and interested throughout. I don't recommend this game to players who are not ready to devote some time into learning how it works, but to everyone else, please do yourself a favour and pick this game up. And, as it's a relatively old title, it's not even a very pricey buy. I bought mine at Wal-mart for $14.99. Anyway, I hope I have helped you in some way.

Percentage Overall Score: 90%