A great port of arguably the best Final Fantasy ever made Having not been swayed by the legions of fans who worship Final Fantasy VII or Final Fantasy Online (FFXI), I grew up playing them all. The 2-D entries into the series will always be my favourite, because they had something special about them that I just can’t find in the later games. The visuals are beautiful, the music pleasing and memorable, the characters likeable (even the villian), and the story epic and well written.
Unlike their next attempt at a remake (Final Fantasy III on the DS), Final Fantasy VI transitioned to the GBA beautifully. While it is lacking the wonderfully made cinematic sequences the Playstation One (PSX) port had, the loading times are almost non-existent. However, I can’t say that I’m entirely pleased with the new translations they’ve been using for their remakes lately. Some of the name changes make little sense, as I’ve never approved of their renaming someone after fans have known the original name for years (that includes Aeris for all the people who insist on using that ridiculous new version).
Bottom line, Final Fantasy VIon the Gameboy Advance (GBA) is a great addition to any RPG fan’s collection if they don’t already have the game on another console or two. The bonus dungeon really isn’t that big of a draw, but it doesn’t really change the overall story of the game either, so that’s a plus. If you do own the game, I’d suggest looking to Final Fantasy V or the GBA release of Final Fantasy IV (avoid the horrible DS remake like the plague). However, if you have the cash to spend, and want FFVI as a portable game to take anywhere.. you can’t go wrong with this one.