REVIEW
Final Fantasy Tactics A2
By Chris Calzonetti - August 26th, 2008
I was a latecomer to the world that is Square Enix. For the longest time, FFVII was the only game I played, before I discovered the world of Nintendo. But then I got a GBA, and one of the first games I bought for it was Final Fantasy Tactics Advance. I was immediately hooked. So when FFTA2 came out for the DS, it seemed like a no brainer.
For those not familiar with the series, the Final Fantasy Tactics games are role playing games with many elements familiar to seasoned RPG gamers. The combat system is a turn-based strategy style reminiscent of more traditional table-top games. Characters not only get stronger by gaining experience in combat, but through the use of the Jobs system, gain more and more abilities that give more options in combat as the game progresses.
FFTA2 feels like a system upgrade in a lot of respects. Just like moving from XP to Vista, (or Panther to Tiger, or Gutsy Gibbon to Hardy Heron, I’m not trying to be exclusive here,) FFTA2 is a noticeable improvement over FFTA. The look and feel got some fine-tuning. Some of the more annoying play elements got rebalanced, replaced or just outright removed. And along with those changes, new classes, new abilities and new styles of gameplay have all been added.
One of the most overarching changes was the acquisition of Loot, which are used to unlock more and more weapons, armour and accessories in the shops. Initially only a very small subset of the weapons and armour are availble, but instead of arbitrarily being awarded a broader selection when the story reaches a certain milestone, as was the case in FFTA, in the sequel you have to try to mix and match loot that will make all sorts of equiment available for purchasing. Loot is given out as rewards for completing missions, and for following the laws laid down by judges.
