Probably Not the Final Fantasty, But Still Fun to Play

Filled with scandal, betrayal, and political intrigue, game director Yasumi Matsuno’s fictional world of Ivalice is rather busy these days. After making its debut in the release of the original Final Fantasy Tactics 10 years ago for the PlayStation, Ivalice, a magnificently styled medieval setting enhanced with just a bit of magic, also played host to the underappreciated classic Vagrant Story and last year’s fantastic Final Fantasy XII. Now, as part of the newly formed (and marketing driven) Ivalice Alliance, developer Square Enix has re-released Final Fantasy Tactics on the PlayStation Portable with a host of new features and a new title: Final Fantasy Tactics: The War of the Lions. Final Fantasy Tactics is still one of the premier titles in the strategy role-playing game genre, and, now adapted for on-the-go play, it’s better than ever.
In Final Fantasy Tactics: The War of the Lions, the world of Ivalice plays no small part in creating a maturely themed, adult atmosphere. The plot of the game is complex and captivating, telling the “Zodiac Brave Story.” Ramza, the youngest son in a family of esteemed nobles, gets caught in the web of a political power vacuum that engulfs his family, his childhood friend, the commoner Delita, and the entire kingdom. Ivalice has just emerged from a 50-year war with Ordalia, and its king dies soon after, leaving numerous factions, including the White Lions, who support Prince Orinas as the rightful heir, and the Black Lions, who support Princess Ovelia as next-of-kin. Ramza and Delita find themselves at the center of a civil war, which is where the game begins.
The game’s plot is extraordinary for two reasons. First of all, games with mature, developed storylines including class warfare, balance of power bartering, and more political turmoil than you can shake a sword at are beyond rare. It’s refreshing to have a narrative that functions as something other than the typical coming of age tale starring a whiny preteen who fights against dragons and goblins.
Second, the game has been completely retranslated since its 1997 release and its presentation has been augmented with the addition of absolutely gorgeous cel-shaded cut scenes that resemble moving watercolor paintings. Fans of the original will truly appreciate the new translation that removes any semblance of broken English—no longer is “Ivalice” spelled four different ways, and the story is now so eloquently told that you don’t need a plot guide to understand what’s going on. It’s really stunning what a new coat of paint does to the game’s overall feel—everything is written in an ornate Elizabethan style that really lends an air of authenticity to Ivalice and all the events occurring within it.
And nothing gets one ready for mortal combat like bagpipes and violins. The game’s beautiful soundtrack was composed by Hitoshi Sakimoto and Masaharu Iwata, who have collaborated on the music of many other niche titles such as Tactics Ogre and the recent Odin Sphere. Varied, textured, and cathartic, the music will certainly have players ready for battle.
The game plays out like a traditional single-person role-playing game: all battles take place on isometric grids, with the player controlling a set number of units all functioning in different roles, or “jobs.” You have your traditional knights and archers along with classic Final Fantasy hallmarks like the black mage and the time mage. Players take turns moving their characters like chess pieces across the grid and dealing damage based on a number of set statistics like attack power and speed. It really takes a ton of brainpower to outthink and outmaneuver your enemy, but it’s an awesome feeling to take out a team of enemy summoners using only an archer and some shrewd planning.
Fans of the original will notice two additional job classes in the PSP version of the game. They’ll also be pleased to know that Orlandu, who in the original was an unstoppable beast, is just as amazingly powerful 10 years later. His authoritative slashes will surely leave everyone nostalgic for earlier times.
There is just one catch in this overall fantastic package: some slowdown has been added during magic casts. It’s forgivable but bizarre considering how well the game ran on the significantly less powerful PlayStation.
Overall, though, Final Fantasy Tactics was a great game in 1997, and The War of the Lions improves on it in nearly every way. In addition to the new job classes and translation is a new wireless multiplayer mode that allows two PSP owners to pit their armies against one another over local WiFi.
PSP owners should definitely check out Matsuno’s treasured gem, most graciously re-released by the marketing wizards at Square Enix. There won’t be another game this holiday season with gameplay and narrative like this, so put down that Lit Hum relic and pick up Final Fantasy Tactics instead.