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Final Fantasy Tactics Advance(JP) is an RPG tactics game released for the Game Boy Advance in 2003. It is a spin-off of the Final Fantasy series and was published by Square in Japan, and Nintendo in other countries.
Plot[]
Spoiler warning: The following information contains spoilers. Please read at your own risk.
At the beginning of the game, you, Marche (Or another name that you can choose), and his two friends named Mewt and Ritz are in a snow ball fight in the town in St. Ivalice. Once the other team start to throw snow balls with rocks in them, the game ends. Marche invites the other two to his house telling them that he bought a new book.
Once the two get to his house, he introduces them to his brother Doned, whom is disabled and in a wheel chair. Marche then shows the three (including his brother) his book, where it asks them if you could live in any video game world, which would it be? Mewt says the Final Fantasy world, and everyone else agrees.
The next morning, Marche seems to wake up in a different world, or in other words, the Final Fantasy world. He then has to find his friends and try to find a way back to the real world.
Spoiler warning: Spoilers end here.
Gameplay[]
The battles take place on a pre-made grid board where you move your characters around and attack your enemies. Unlike most RPG's, you'll move your character on the grid rather than staying in a certain spot, and once you get near your enemy, you'll be able to execute an attack that'll presumably harm it, depending of course if you attack it or if its vulnerable to it.
Each character has a certain job that he or she specializes in, though your free to change it if you wish to a completely different one. Also notable is the fact that there are five different species in the game, each one being able to master different jobs. You'll master jobs not by job levels, but rather by learning and mastering certain abilities.
The ability system is similar to the other Final Fantasy games. Abilities are assigned to specific equipment, and if one of your characters equip any of these items, they'll be able to perform the special ability that comes with it. While normally you won't be able to perform the ability once you unequip an item, you can permanently have the ability if you master it with the respective weapon. To master a certain ability, you'll have to gain enough ability points.
Laws[]
A new mechanic in the game is the Law and Order system, or rather the Judgment System that is commonly considered by critics as the major down-point of the game. Basically each day has a certain amount of set rules that, if you go against them, will dramatically effect the battle or the amount of cash you have. All the battles are watched over by a selected judge who'll closely look at every move that you perform. However, if you manage to follow the rules, you'll be awarded with Judge Points which will later on allow you to use combo attacks.
Laws have been a part of Ivalice for hundreds of years. One king performed a special type of magic to create the first law, and then composed a judicial system which would then entirely enforce these laws. Ever since then, how to exactly control these laws have been passed down to every generation.
Once you break a rule, you'll come in possession of a card - a yellow or red one. If you happen to break the law, then hope that you get the former seeing that the penalty is not nearly as bad as the red, which will send you to jail. Note that breaking laws go onto your personal record, and the more you break laws the worse the penalty will be.
Species[]
This section will take a look at the five available playable species and their many different jobs. As aforementioned, there are five different species, which consist of Humans, Bangaa, Nu Mou, Viera, and Moogles. Humans and Moogles are common species in the series, though the other ones are new to the series.
Humans are not only the most common of species in the game, though they're also the species that can master the most jobs, with eleven in total. They're a perfect choice most of the time, and have nice, well rounded stats.
The Bangaa are lizard like creatures who both look rude and usually are. Despite this, they'll still be a nice addition to your team, and it's always great to have one. However, out of all the species, Bangaa are the ones with the least amount of jobs, only being able to master seven. They're very powerful, though their short amount of not-to-varied jobs are their main disadvantage.
While all species can manipulate or create magic in some way, the Nu Mou are understandably considered as the magic species, and are able to master almost all types of it, excluding maybe one or two (such as Blue Magic).
The Viera are a species comprised completely of females. They have what appears to be bunny ears, and have amazing height, not to mention the fact that they can communicate with the dead.
Moogles are unarguably one of the most recognizable creatures in the Final Fantasy universe. They're adorable furry creatures who can learn up to eight different jobs. They're intelligent and every single one of them tend to end their sentence with the word, or at least saying Kupo.
To get a new team member to join your clan, then you'll have to complete missions. However, note that members of a certain species will have a better chance of joining if you've completed a mission during a certain month. These months include
- Kingmoon - Humans have a better chance.
- Madmoon - Bangaa have a better chance.
- Sagemoon - Nu Mou have a better chance.
- Huntmoon - Viera have a better chance.
- Bardmoon - Moogles have a better chance.
Shops and other notable areas[]
- The Pub - In the pub you will be able to buy missions and cancel them. You will also be able to look through all the recent rumors, which are actually tips and hints.
- The Shops - In each main town there is a shop where you can buy items for your team. You will also be able to trade items to get better ones in return once you save Montblanc's younger brother, Nono.
- Ezel's Card Shop - Ezel's Card shop will appear once you save him from some bounties. In his shop you will be able to buy cards that you can use in battle that will allow you to go against the rules.
Reception[]
| Reception | |
|---|---|
| Aggregate scores | |
| Aggregator | Score |
| GameRankings | 87.64% (based on 66 reviews) |
| Metacritic | 87 (based on 44 critic reviews) |
| Review scores | |
| Publication | Score |
| Computer and Video Games | 8/10 |
| Edge | 7/10 |
| Electronic Gaming Monthly | 9/10 |
| Eurogamer | 9/10 |
| Famitsu | 34/40 |
| Game Informer | 9.5/10 |
| GamePro | 4.5/5 |
| GameSpot | 8.2/10 |
| GameSpy | 94/100 |
| GamesTM | 8/10 |
| IGN | 9/10 |
| NGC Magazine | 91/100 |
| Nintendo Power | 4.9/5 |
| Nintendo World Report | 7.5/10 |
Limited Edition Bundle[]
For a short time, every 7-Eleven and Ito-Yokado Group store in Japan had the Final Fantasy Tactics Advance Limited Edition Bundle. According to Square-Enix, every copy sold out within five hours of pre-orders. Everyone who pre-ordered (which is apparently everyone) also got a premium poster of a judge and a Chocobo. The package came with -
- A Pearl White Game Boy Advance SP
- A Game Boy Advance AC Adapter
- Final Fantasy Tactics Advance
- A Tactics Advance theme premium strap
- A Tactics Advanced theme SP carrying pouch
Sequel[]
The sequel (for the Nintendo DS) is titled Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift. It has many similarities to the first game, though it also includes many new characters and more than 50 classes.
See also[]
- Final Fantasy Tactics Advance/gallery - Image gallery.
External links[]
- Final Fantasy Tactics Advance at Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- Final Fantasy Tactics Advance at GameFAQs
| Ivalice | |
|---|---|
| Nintendo games | Final Fantasy Tactics Advance (GBA) | Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings (DS) | Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift (DS) | Crystal Defenders (WiiWare) |
| Non-Nintendo games | Final Fantasy Tactics | Vagrant Story | Final Fantasy XII | Tactics: The War of the Lions |
| Other | Ivalice | Ivalice Alliance |