FFIV DS finally making it stateside! July 22nd

[Auspice]

http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stori ... 234&EDATE=

Revolutionary Title Comes to Nintendo DS on July 22, 2008

LOS ANGELES, April 10 /PRNewswire/ -- Square Enix, Inc., the publisher
of Square Enix(TM) interactive entertainment products in North America,
announced today that it will launch a completely re-envisioned FINAL
FANTASY(R) IV for Nintendo DS(TM) on July 22, 2008. A new generation of
gamers will now have the opportunity to experience a legend reborn.

(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20030403/SQUARELOGO)

The team that brought FINAL FANTASY III to Nintendo DS comes together
once again to breathe new life into a classic that broke convention and
introduced a wide array of innovations to the RPG genre. With its
groundbreaking Active Time Battle (ATB) system and an engrossing,
character-driven plot, FINAL FANTASY IV was a stunning step forward for
role-playing games when it was originally released for the Super NES(R) in
1991.

"FINAL FANTASY IV for DS is a classic revived for the 21st century,"
said John Yamamoto, president and chief executive officer of Square Enix,
Inc. "The visual upgrades are remarkable, and the plot has been enhanced
with added detail and depth. We hope that fans of the original, as well as
players new to the FINAL FANTASY franchise, will enjoy all that this title
has to offer."

Now featuring full 3D graphics, fully-voiced dramatic cutscenes, and
added content, FINAL FANTASY IV for DS is a must-play for those looking to
jump into the best-selling RPG franchise in the world.

STORY

Four elemental Crystals, each possessing awesome power, lie scattered
throughout the realm. However, men are quick to covet things that offer
strength, and are easily corrupted by the might that they possess...

Seduced by the promised power of the Crystals, the kingdom of Baron
begins employing unprovoked force to seize them from peaceful nations. The
dark knight Cecil -- Lord Captain of Baron's elite force, the Red Wings --
is ordered by his king to obtain the Crystals, but soon begins to question
the monarch's motives. Stricken with grief at his own actions, yet burdened
by his loyalty to his country and his personal sense of honor, Cecil at
last decides to turn from the path of darkness and destruction.

Enraged, the king accuses him of disloyalty, strips Cecil of his
command, and sends him off to slay a mysterious beast that lurks in the
nearby Valley of Mist. Cecil embarks on a fateful journey that will bring
trials, betrayals, friendship, loss and self-discovery. Can Cecil open his
eyes and become the man of honor that he must be?



FEATURES
-- Witness the dramatic and thrilling story of this mythical game world
brought to life through astounding 3D graphics, gorgeous CG cutscenes
and top-notch voice acting
-- Create a versatile party using the all-new Augment System -- a dynamic
system that allows the player to assign special abilities to characters
-- Dive into the first RPG to incorporate the innovative Active Time
Battle system, now further enhanced and refined for the Nintendo DS
-- Listen to a beautifully remixed score by world-renowned composer Nobuo
Uematsu that breathes new life into some of the most beloved FINAL
FANTASY themes
-- Navigate effortlessly through the game with Nintendo DS Touch Screen
functionality and stylus-driven controls while receiving vital
assistance via the dual-screen presentation
-- Train and customize Whytkin by playing a variety of mini-games and
challenge another player to head-to-head battle via local wireless
connection

FINAL FANTASY IV is rated E10+ (Everyone 10 and older). Please visit
the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) website at
http://www.esrb.org for more information about ratings. FINAL FANTASY IV
will be available at North American retailers for the suggested retail
price of $39.99(USD). The official website can be found at
http://na.square-enix.com/ff4/

About Square Enix Co., Ltd. and Square Enix, Inc.

Square Enix Co., Ltd. (Square Enix), with headquarters in Tokyo, Japan,
develops, publishes and distributes entertainment content including
interactive entertainment software and publications in Asia, North America
and Europe. Square Enix brings two of Japan's best-selling franchises --
FINAL FANTASY, which has sold over 80 million units worldwide, and DRAGON
QUEST(R), which has sold over 43 million units worldwide -- under one roof.
Square Enix is one of the most influential providers of digital
entertainment content in the world and continues to push the boundaries of
creativity and innovation.

Square Enix, Inc. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Square Enix Co., Ltd.
with offices in Los Angeles, California. It handles operations in North
America, including development, localization, marketing, and publishing of
Square Enix titles. More information on Square Enix can be found on the
Internet at http://www.square-enix.com.

DRAGON QUEST, FINAL FANTASY, SQUARE ENIX, and the SQUARE ENIX logo are
registered trademarks or trademarks of Square Enix Co., Ltd. All other
trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Nintendo DS and
Super NES are trademarks of Nintendo.

About freaking time. I'm so stoked for this to come out.

[Izzy]

Thurman Thomas was fucking awesome!

[octopus]

Beat the JP version. I wonder if they'll change it so that magic attack won't be so overpowered for the US version...

[Niiro]

Fuck yea, been waiting forever for this, but with a July release there's still an eternity to wait Q_Q

[Khamsin]

Beat the JP version. I wonder if they'll change it so that magic attack won't be so overpowered for the US version...

Magic attack should be overpowered with an MP system that doesn't easily allow for recovery in the field. Due to the MP issue, I always used magic as little as possible and saved it only for bosses.

Plus, many items were unbelievably expensive and rare (take status healing items, for example) so it wasn't easy to chug ethers or elixirs.

[octopus]

Beat the JP version. I wonder if they'll change it so that magic attack won't be so overpowered for the US version...

Magic attack should be overpowered with an MP system that doesn't easily allow for recovery in the field. Due to the MP issue, I always used magic as little as possible and saved it only for bosses.

Plus, many items were unbelievably expensive and rare (take status healing items, for example) so it wasn't easy to chug ethers or elixirs.

I actually meant... it's overpowered for both player characters and enemies.

For some enemies/bosses that basically only use magic (ahem Rubicant), they can wipe out your party easily unless you do a lot of grinding. And good luck at Bahamut/Dark Bahamut lol.

[Po]

YAY! Finally confirmed for sure! excellent news!

[Khamsin]

Beat the JP version. I wonder if they'll change it so that magic attack won't be so overpowered for the US version...

Magic attack should be overpowered with an MP system that doesn't easily allow for recovery in the field. Due to the MP issue, I always used magic as little as possible and saved it only for bosses.

Plus, many items were unbelievably expensive and rare (take status healing items, for example) so it wasn't easy to chug ethers or elixirs.

I actually meant... it's overpowered for both player characters and enemies.

For some enemies/bosses that basically only use magic (ahem Rubicant), they can wipe out your party easily unless you do a lot of grinding. And good luck at Bahamut/Dark Bahamut lol.

Bahamut doesn't do anything anyways, he just charges his flare attack.

[octopus]

Bahamut doesn't do anything anyways, he just charges his flare attack.

As long as you can kill him before he does megaflare, yeah.

(you can't reflect it anymore)

[GSDragoon]

The hardest boss for me was the Queen Bomb actually, when you get Yang for the first time. Even if I leveled obsurdly, the explosion would always instant kill everyone at full HP. The only way I beat it is by having everyone guard it. It works on magic attack too, lol...

[Correction]

the explosion does damage proportional to damage taken during the countdown. So not attacking during the countdown is how you kill the boss.

[Elmer the Pointy]

The hardest boss for me was the Queen Bomb actually, when you get Yang for the first time. Even if I leveled obsurdly, the explosion would always instant kill everyone at full HP. The only way I beat it is by having everyone guard it. It works on magic attack too, lol...

I died like 5 times in a row on that stupid Queen Bomb until I realized when Yang was yelling to brace ourselves he meant it literally (Defend).

[Pro]

Only reason I haven't sold my DS Lite yet. Can't wait.

[GSDragoon]

the explosion does damage proportional to damage taken during the countdown. So not attacking during the countdown is how you kill the boss.

Doh, that's why I was thinking the bosses level up when you do.

[Yuri-G]

Bahamut doesn't do anything anyways, he just charges his flare attack.

As long as you can kill him before he does megaflare, yeah.

(you can't reflect it anymore)

That sounds beyond lame...

[octopus]

It basically forces you to level up to win by force (level) instead of strategy...

Also, everyone needs to realize that it's not the same game as before. A lot of the battle system has been redesigned. Damage calculation formula was changed completely. Shell/Protect doesn't automatically cut damage in half anymore (it's more like in FFXI). Soul Eater/Darkness is really like in FFXI (no kraken though!), etc...

[Maguspk]

The hardest boss for me was the Queen Bomb actually, when you get Yang for the first time. Even if I leveled obsurdly, the explosion would always instant kill everyone at full HP. The only way I beat it is by having everyone guard it. It works on magic attack too, lol...

I died like 5 times in a row on that stupid Queen Bomb until I realized when Yang was yelling to brace ourselves he meant it literally (Defend).

Did the same fucking thing only I don't know Japanese so I just got more pissed off everytime and eventually just went online to refresh my memory and realized that you actually have to guard the explosion to survive it.

MP wasn't that much of an issue because of pray. You could easily just leave one enemy standing and cycle pray and defend until you were at full MP/HP. This was time consuming but certainly helpful when I didn't feel like risking walking back to a save point or wasting items. I didn't beat the final boss now that I remember though, I got pissed when I'd been banging on him for 5 minutes and he just randomly did "Meteor" which did an absurd amount of damage I couldn't possibly avoid. Not to mention the entire time he's just draining your MP and being a total bitch silencing you. I decided I'd wait for the US version so I could understand what the heck was going on and actually play it correctly.

edit: Bosses are hardly just sheer force, every boss has a unique strategy up until the last boss who is just fucking gay as far as I could tell. If you felt it was sheer force you weren't using decants and such to the best of their ability.

[octopus]

MP wasn't that much of an issue because of pray. You could easily just leave one enemy standing and cycle pray and defend until you were at full MP/HP. This was time consuming but certainly helpful when I didn't feel like risking walking back to a save point or wasting items. I didn't beat the final boss now that I remember though, I got pissed when I'd been banging on him for 5 minutes and he just randomly did "Meteor" which did an absurd amount of damage I couldn't possibly avoid. Not to mention the entire time he's just draining your MP and being a total bitch silencing you. I decided I'd wait for the US version so I could understand what the heck was going on and actually play it correctly.

Yeah, auto-play in battle made the battles a little easier to get over with. I always set one party member to do an MP recovery and/or HP recovery ability with everybody else auto-battle.

I don't think I did anything special to the final boss - think I just beat him straight up. When your level is higher the damage from Meteor reduces (like they added the level difference adjustment from FFXI), and with you can set your battle member HP%+ option so they're close to 9999.

[sekaran]

Woo. There was a reason I kept my DS.

[Demian]

Anybody else get this :O? I bought it and shipped it out england since it comes out in September for them.