Topic: Final Fantasy: The 4 Heroes of Light

IGN give it a 8! http://ds.ign.com/articles/112/1125729p1.html

It looks like the gme is gonna be hard, like they say a hardcore game!

So yes, it looks pretty cool, and if NL give it a good review, then im gonna spend those bucks!

This game is VERY good imo. It is very hardcore too. Some of the battles are pretty hard (even some random battles) and the game does not lead you by the hand. Not always, but a lot of the time you have to talk to a NPC to find out what to do next (and it doesn't tell you who to talk to, so you have to go around talking to people until you find the right person). That can be a little frustrating at times, but its very rewarding when you discover on your own what to do next. The battle system & the crown system/weapon upgrading is great too.

I've seen four towns now and I've found one of the mini-games. I've also found a secret place. All I'll say is, if you've played classic Final Fantasy games before, you may have run into this secret place before. Its a little different in this game, but still funny. I know, I'm being vague, I just don't want to ruin the suprise. I actually found it on accident though. lol. I'm not sure if thats how your supposed to find that place or not. hehe. Oh well. It was fun.

Anyway, the game just gets better and better. The storyline is good/fun and full of suprises. I'm happy I got this game. Its great.

DF2506

Thanks for your impressions, DF2506. I've read that when you die, the penalty is the loss of some gems. How brutal is this penalty in terms of lost time and effort? Do you only lose the most recently acquired gems (ones you've found since your last save, for example) or can you potentially lose gems you've had for a long time?

I figure I'm going to die a lot because I don't want to study FAQs or guides in advance of a boss battle. I want to play the game the hard way ("OK, that didn't work...back to the drawing board" rather than "OK, the FAQ says this next boss is vulnerable to strawberries and whipped cream...everyone on the team is going to be a walking strawberry shortcake on this next campaign").

This is definitely on my eventually-will-buy list. Too many good games to play right now!

I must say tha the game looks like a gam I will just LOVE!!!!

SO YAY! I will spend more money! Anyways I hope I find the time to play and beat all the games I got, well next week is holliday

What holiday is it? Even my Dorm's gonna be closed next week, meaning I'll be on the bench for a few nights, so it must be something big.

@Mickeymac, idk... October Holidays?

No problem.

I've read that when you die, the penalty is the loss of some gems. How brutal is this penalty in terms of lost time and effort? Do you only lose the most recently acquired gems (ones you've found since your last save, for example) or can you potentially lose gems you've had for a long time?

The penalty doesn't start right away in the game (at first I was dying and no gems were being taken and then all of sudden, they were). Can't remember when it started, lol. But it looks like to me that you can lose gems that you've had for awhile. It seems to pick one gem (at random) & deduct serveal gems from it. Sometimes its a small amount, other times its a bit more. Not sure what the pattern is. Also, if you're in a dungeon & you saved before you fight the boss (outside of the boss part of the dungeon, there's always a Save) and then get defeated by said boss, you will get taken back to town instead of the place where you saved. lol.

Still, you can always just reset the game & go back to your save before the boss. Its pretty easy to do on the DSi. Sometimes I just go back to the last save (as long as I didn't make too much progress) instead of losing gems too. lol.

I figure I'm going to die a lot because I don't want to study FAQs or guides in advance of a boss battle.

Oh you'll probably die a lot. Even in non-boss battles. The game does require quite a bit of grinding to get your levels up for a new area or boss battle.

I want to play the game the hard way ("OK, that didn't work...back to the drawing board" rather than "OK, the FAQ says this next boss is vulnerable to strawberries and whipped cream...everyone on the team is going to be a walking strawberry shortcake on this next campaign").

LOL. One of the cool things about this game is that if you do die & you're returned back to town & think "Oh wait, I could go to to the nearest store & maybe pick up some items to help with the boss". So I guess the returning to town thing helps sometimes. Its just kind of a pain if you're mostly prepared for the battle. Plus if you really want to go back to town, whenever, just make sure you have a couple of Dragon Wings with you.

I'm not using a strategy guide for this game and I have to admit its pretty rewarding to figure out what to do next (the game doesn't tell you directly even sometimes) & how to beat a boss on my own. Old Skool man!

Anyway, I found another town, got a little further in the story, unlocked some more crowns, and found another mini-game. Now I'm about to go into another dungeon!

DF2506

Strategy.

Strategic.

Sorry...that was really bugging me.

Thanks again, DF2506. Sounds fantastic, and different enough from DQIX not to feel like I'm playing the same game twice.

My local Walmart just got it in stock according to their web site (which doesn't always match reality so I'm not getting my hopes up too high). Hopefully I can pick it up today or tomorrow if it really is in stock.

I’m really enjoying the DS as an RPG platform. I do need to get my own though (using my daughter’s). I just picked-up FF:T4HOL and a used copy of Chrono Trigger. I have committed to finishing FF:III first. But I’m only 9 hours into the adventure.

@Swerd_Murd. LOL. ya, sorry. I'll try to avoid that word. I always spell that wrong. And hey I'm a English major too! Gah. (wish this board had spell check. lol).

@Zaphod Beeblebrox. No problem again. It is VERY different from DQ9. I mean, yes, its a turn-based RPG like DQ9, but Four Heroes is a lot more old skool than Dragon Quest 9. Its just an apples and oranges type of thing. lol.

@JayRPG. I totally agree. The DS is the best platform for RPGs. Love Chrono Trigger. I couldn't get into FF3, but I did like FF4.

Well, I have now visited all the towns in the game I think. I do have more quests to do & a lot more crowns to get (including hidden crowns). But I am starting to suspect that this game is not very long. I'm 20 something hours into it and I already seem pretty far into the game. Hmm. So I'm guess no epic DQ9 playtime on this one? Starting to look like it. Of course, there are very few games that are as long as DQ9, but I was hoping that FF4 Heroes would at least last 50 hours. I'm guessing it'll only be about 30-35 hours. Maybe 40. I do still have some quests, plus the hidden crowns and leveling up the crowns I have & the ones I still need to get. Also, I gotta play those mini-games again. So it may be longer than I think (maybe 50 with lots of level grinding? lol), but def. not 100 or more hours. Oh well. Its still an awesome game.

DF2506

@DF2506: idk when you finally switched everyone in your party over from Freelancer to something else, but that could've been when you started being penalized gems -- the description is 'keep all your gems when your party dies', after all :3

man, this game is pretty freakin' hard, but in a good way. My party dies maybe once in a normal RPG sooner or later, but I think I've died three times so far. you really can't just breeze through battles in this game, you've got to be careful. I like it :3

How far along in the game are the rest of you? (other than DF2506 ofc). Do ya'll get the impression that it may be as short as what DF2506 is stating?

I almost purchased it last night while I was at Best Buy but couldn't quite bring myself to do it. Like JayRPG, I'd have to use one of my kid's DS's to play it. I've started to make a list of "must haves" so I can start building a small collection of games to play when I get the 3DS.

@Magi: I think you and I have the same mindset. I am also compiling a "must have list" of DS games. I won't be able to purchase a 3DS until 8-12 months after release. So, I'm enjoying my small collection on my kid's DS in the meantime...

@theblackdragon. lol! Right. Forgot about the Freelancer "job".

And I agree with you about the battles. Whew. I've died a ton in this game. Still, I like the game a lot.

@Magi. It may be a bit longer than I'm thinking, especially if I do some more level grinding & play more of the mini-games (which I plan to do).

@JayRPG. Ya, I don't have very many games for my DS. Mostly because I keep trading them to help get new games.

Can't wait till the 3DS comes out. I'm hoping to get one early on, but who knows. Might end up waiting...sigh

Anyway, today I spent some time playing the mini-games a lot. I'm trying to get a high score on one or both of them. I hear you get something very cool from them if you do well. I plan to play the game more in a little bit. I'm on a main quest, so I may get back to that or play a mini-game or do some leveling up. Hmm. Not sure yet.

DF2506

Just put 2 hours into FF3. A fair amount of that was spent level grinding. Now I'm fighting the urge to unwrap 4 Heros!

I was just wondering... were is the NL review of these game?

be patient, hulklol. it's in the works :3

@thenblackdragon, ok, ok I will try to be patient