It was the first time Western gamers (including this writer) got to experience FFV. In 1999, Square released Final Fantasy Anthology on the PS1, which collected FFV and FFVI on two discs. The real FFII and FFIII remained on the other side of the Pacific, as did FFV. North American audiences got the original Final Fantasy on the NES, followed by FFIV (called FFII) and FFVI (called FFIII) on the Super Nintendo. Gaming history buffs will know that Final Fantasy V was a “lost” title in the West for seven long years. But I can easily imagine a JRPG fan feeling overwhelmed by all the different versions out there. That’s all true, and I can’t imagine any JRPG fan walking away from FFV feeling disappointed. In Square Enix’s helpful “ Which Final Fantasy game should I play first?” post, it recommends playing FFV if “you enjoy battle systems with a lot of depth,” “you want as many options as possible in how you build your party” and “you like to laugh” - as FFV has a lot of laugh-out-loud moments. The story and characters are a bit thin, and the villain’s motivation makes little sense.Īnd yet, FFV is also an extremely charming game, particularly for longtime FF fans. One false move in a boss fight could wipe out your whole party, even early on. Mastering Jobs takes entirely too long, meaning that you’ll have to level-grind for hours and hours if you want to do any substantial experimentation.

With 20 years of hindsight at my disposal, FFV isn’t perfect. That makes it all the more satisfying when you find a character build that really, really works. While you can always recalibrate and try again, the game has a heck of a learning curve. It’s entirely possible to make a weak character build, or even an entire party full of them. However, not all classes - or combinations - are created equal.

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