2.2.3 - Final Fantasy III (not released in the USA)
Description
This article is from the Final-Fantasy and other Square Soft Games FAQ, by nickzman@eskimo.com (Nick Zitzmann) with numerous contributions by others.
2.2.3 - Final Fantasy III (not released in the USA)
Playable characters: N/A (characters are created by the player)
NPCs:
Sara, Cid, Desh, Elia, Unne, Dorga
Other Characters:
Allus, Delilah, Gigames, Goldor, Gorn, Taca
Four mystical Crystals protect the four Elements of the world. When an
evil magician named Zande tries to take their power, fate calls upon
four boys to protect them. The Four Warriors are granted special Jobs by
the Crystals they save, for aid in thwarting Zande's plans. The four
will travel from their home on a floating continent, out to a much
larger world. They will use a variety of airships, submarines, sailing
ships, and chocobos to reach their destinations. They will fight dozens
of enemies using over twenty specialized Jobs. And they will discover
that behind Zande lies an even greater fear: the Dark World, ruled by
the Cloud of Darkness, who is just waiting to come out and devour the
real world...
Final Fantasy III was a huge leap forward in innovative gameplay. Jobs
played an integral part in the game, and jobs could be switched at any
time (as long as there were Capacity Points, which were acquired by
winning battles). Jobs were far more versatile, allowing up to three
different commands in battle, and also being able to equip different
armor and use different abilities. Jobs ranged from the physically
powerful Knight, Karateka, and M.Knight, to magicians like the Summoner,
Shaman, and Sage, and novelty jobs like Archer, Geomancer, Bard, and
Scholar. Some physical jobs can cast magic, as well. This made for a
large variety of gameplay, and a huge amount of secret treasure hoards
helped along the way.
The battles and menus were the prototype for the later games; the only
thing missing was the Active Time Battle system, implemented in FF IV.
Overall, FF III was a very enjoyable experience; the soundtrack was
excellent for an NES game, the graphics were solid, the world was large,
and the game was challenging. A fitting legacy to the Final Fantasy
name.
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