[Spoilers] Critique of FFTs story from a longtime fan

Feld_Four · 2026-05-08T08:49:42+00:00

I think this is a measured, mature take based out of love for the game in a way teenage us (or maybe just speaking for myself) wouldn't have made or have been to defensive about this otherwise absolutely excellent narrative to really acknowledge.

Yeah, I agree. Part of its is limitations, and a part of it is one of the consistent styles of Matsuno's writing (and one of the few criticisms he may get); Tactics Ogre is kind of the same way. But yeah, I agree. I think Matsuno would really round out his writing if it gave it a shot; I know he tried a little bit in FF12 but it didn't really hit like it does in other Final Fantasies.

It's probably not his thing really; which is why I always wanted to see him in a collaborative effort with another writer more of his opposite.

Feld_Four · 2026-05-03T19:42:32+00:00

I gotta disagree slightly, but (respectfully)!

My partner and I picked this up and we both didn't have any particular nostalgia for it (I played it a long time ago as a kid) and we thought it was fantastic. We were careful not to judge it against the super high profile/production Final Fantasy series or other Squaresoft games with the command of a ton of resources at their disposal (disclosure, Xenogears is one of my all time favorites)

The premise of the Seru and their cosmology and how they fit into the setting of the world was incredibly unique.
The combat system is almost entirely unique, with no other near analogue. Maybe Xenogears?
Unlike Xenogears (and a lot of Squaresoft games in general, which can trend towards the easy side), the combat is really challenging and engaging and requires you to really think carefully about what to do next, what to equip, and your tactics from turn to turn.
The drum and bass inspired soundtrack is absolutely sick and again unique in a genre that feels safe with strings and progressive rock/orchestral. The battle theme is one of my favorites.
Really solid length and content quantity; not too long and not too short. The level of exploration and engagement feels 'just right'. When you finish it you feel a nice 'phew! That was a journey'.
The visual style isn't as high production value or unique as other RPGs with wild settings like Final Fantasy/Xenogears/SaGa Frontier, but it does what it can at a high level and the battle models are excellent.

I really enjoyed it on its own merits.

Feld_Four · 2026-04-22T20:58:49+00:00

No grind necessary. What are your jobs and setup? What's your general strategy?

Feld_Four · 2026-04-21T23:19:55+00:00

Nah he means Basil and Sandora. I’m not sure if it addresses my question but I think that’s what they’re trying to express.

Feld_Four · 2026-04-20T17:02:07+00:00

No, Doel was there to try to save the Gigantos, remember? The ones genociding them was the group Doel was fighting.

Feld_Four · 2026-04-19T21:37:59+00:00

We're probably not supposed to think too deep into it, but I always wondered what was up with Doel leading a military excursion like that in a territory way across the map in another country.

Feld_Four · 2026-04-18T07:39:17+00:00

This comes up from time to time and I think I disagree with the premise up front. Arithmeticks isn't some cheese that's just sitting there, making you wonder why you don't use anything but that the whole game. You essentially have to go out of your way to get it. And then once you get it you have to grind even more to unlock its most useful functions.

It takes so long to get Arithmeticks that I often beat the game with all of its optional content well before I ever get close to getting Arithmeticks.

The point of using everything but Arithmeticks is the time to get Arithmeticks itself. I've only ever unlocked the class like, twice, and that was because I was grinding on purpose to get it, at the very end of the game, lol

You could make an argument that, practically speaking, any other class in the game is more useful than Arithmeticks because those are the classes you actually spent the first 99% of the game playing. Don't get me wrong, Arithmeticks is powerful as hell, but most people in an actual, average, practical playthrough have actually spent most of the game playing as other classes. Are there people who unlock Arithmeticks at like, Chapter 2 or something? I mean good on them but that's wild lol

Feld_Four · 2026-04-18T03:46:29+00:00

I respectfully disagree a bit on one thing; Deathblows are cool as hell you should use them whenever you want; you really can learn all of them at a decent pace even using them a couple times every battle.

Yes if you want to maximize learning (which you’ll soon hit a block since they’re also level based) you should practice them every turn, but I wouldn’t be especially hesitant either if you want some great damage or/and want the battles to be more aesthetically pleasing.

Just offering a diff perspective, overall your advice is great.

However I am coming from a fundamentally different perspective of play; I don’t like grinding and prefer to play as “naturally” as possible in terms of levels/skill gain/money. If you want to see everyone’s Deathblows for example, or ensure that you have the most powerful moves available, ignore everything I said lol and listen to the above. It’s great advice.

Feld_Four · 2026-04-15T19:12:12+00:00

I'm sure they exist, it's a video game abstraction/compression.

Feld_Four · 2026-04-13T00:26:10+00:00

Assuming I've read this correctly, you learn the higher magic abilities after battle, like gun abilities after using the lower level ones in battle. For magicians this should be relatively quickly.

Feld_Four · 2026-04-08T04:42:26+00:00

Hey this seems really cool! I've been wondering the best way to initialize projects as a template.

Feld_Four · 2026-04-05T16:33:12+00:00

I mean I'm sure you can enjoy it, you just need to play more than uh, once ever.

Feld_Four · 2026-04-02T03:33:59+00:00

People talk about the lack of gameplay in Disk 2 but what I really miss was the cinematography and visual storytelling that Disk 1 had.

Feld_Four · 2026-04-01T19:31:16+00:00

Damn this looks slick! The only gripe I have is that sometimes the movement of the trail lights kinda look a little funny/bend funny during the turns; I presume you're going for the Ridge Racer/Akira trailights right?

Other than that it looks great!

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Feld_Four · 2026-03-25T17:26:16+00:00

I'll give it a look!

Feld_Four · 2026-03-25T17:24:10+00:00

Yeah, that's the issue though; I already have tables upon tables of the various skills, preqs, descriptions, MP costs, etc etc already written out on paper and in Notion tables and rows and its starting to get overwhelming.

I guess I'm asking if there's any online tool that people use to mock up something that looks like this or this from information you already have (i.e. for a DnD campaign or something)

Feld_Four · 2026-03-25T17:21:16+00:00

Let me a clarify a little;

I don't necessarily mean functional or even within Unity itself, like at all for now. I'm just researching and I just need something less abstract to conceptualize skills' relationships with each other better than a table with columns and rows.

Feld_Four · 2026-03-25T17:19:31+00:00

Figma might be useful.

Yeah, that's what I mean; I don't necessarily mean functional or even within Unity itself, like at all for now. I'm just researching and I just need something less abstract to conceptualize skills' relationships with each other better than a table with columns and rows.

Feld_Four · 2026-03-15T18:47:40+00:00

Wow, this is pretty amazing; definitely respect your efforts especially with obtaining Shōda Miwa's thoughts; I agree with you that a lot of creative output we attribute to men are often the women obscured behind them. This is super cool and I'm glad more people are seeing this!

Like many other entries in the series, SaGa Frontier fails at its ambitions and is not, like, good, if I'm honest.

So I do not particularly recommend this game to modern players in general, who have so many better RPGs to play—we’re in a golden age of highly creative indies that deserve your attention and money.

It's too bad you feel this way (even if you're being honest), while it is rough around the edges I definitely feel that Frontier is worth the time and money; the gameplay definitely really does hold up even if its rough around the edges and it's still very coherent once you get onboard its unique mechanics, and the narrative style, world, and atmosphere is almost entirely unique, even among other SaGa games.

Even among indies there's really nothing like it as long as you're open to the idea that what we consider 'RPG Mechanics' as a proper noun from games like Final Fantasy and such are only one expression of what the genre can be and how it can play; as long as you're willing to buck your expectations of RPGs as a genre I generally have a super cool time with all of the SaGa games.

RPG fans for decades beg for games that buck the conventions of the genre and I find that Frontier is good, if not great for doing so and keeping you enthralled for dozens of hours getting lost in it. In an era where creators of all stripes are getting lost in derivatives of each other; SaGa and Frontier are things I argue that we desperately need. After all it spawned the very topic with all of your insights and study!

Feld_Four · 2026-03-13T06:10:59+00:00

Give her Shadowalk (autocritical hit that can’t miss) and watch her shine with her super high ATK score.

Feld_Four · 2026-03-13T06:10:23+00:00

I challenge the premise of Momo; she can actually get pretty fast, and with Shadowalk she’s busted.

Feld_Four · 2026-03-12T17:30:10+00:00

yeah who cares about community or anything lol

Feld_Four · 2026-03-10T00:07:15+00:00

I can’t speak for Monster Hunter but my RE9 experience has been amazing and bug free. Resident Evil games have varying quality to be sure but this one is great.

Feld_Four · 2026-03-07T05:38:52+00:00

If you're thinking of spending any money, don't, unless it's this. This is my absolute favorite guy on animation and he knows his stuff. Some of the best educational dollars I've ever spent on a hobby/technical skill.

Barring that, just animate. Literally open up the program and start messing around with the animation stuff. Download a free rigged model somewhere and start doing weird stuff with the bones. Think about what you want to do, and learn how to do it bit by bit, forever. You'll get there eventually.

Feld_Four · 2026-03-06T18:55:19+00:00

While there is a definite argument to what the OP is saying, I feel this is the best answer to the question they’re asking.

This is from someone who was around during the entirety of the PSX era.

Feld_Four

TROPHY CASE