Before I play...What do you say?

[Michael Swayne]

I just bought Final Fantasy Tactics from Ebay (my first auction win ever!), and I was wondering. I have read the reviews of it on TFF, and so far I think I will like it. That being said...

Is there anything I should know about the game before actually playing it? My copy won't arrive until Sept. 2-8, so I want to know all I can about the game before it gets here.

This is the first time I have actually done this. Normally I just read all of the reviews that the Internet can offer. I wanted to get a more personal opinion on it. Reviews can be manufactured by company's relatives/friends/employees, so I want to know what actual fans think of the game.

Also, I wouldn't object to any tips/tricks.

[Alpha]

The random encounters are way too hard, and the story battles way too easy. Very rare it is to get an in-between.

Did you get it on PSX or PSP? (There's also a iPod/iPhone version now although you clearly don't need eBay for that.)

[Michael Swayne]

I got it for PlayStation. I prefer to have a hard copy of a game. It just makes my collection seem more complete. I bought it for USD$11.00 ($10 +$1 S/H). Did I pay too much?

[Alpha]

PSP is a hard copy. It's just a port with updates and added scenes and such (as well as multiplayer functionality, which was pretty crap IMO).

Haha. I don't know about in the States, but that is really cheap for here. Really, really cheap. So few copies of these games are floating around; I'm not even sure it was released here at all.

But yeah, just be careful walking around between story locations. Even at the beginning of the game, those wild chocobos DO NOT mess around.

[loaf]

Save, after, every, battle. Save, after, every, battle.

Omg you will do that so many times.

I personally like this game a lot, some people don't.

Get used to the battles, and you can do a lot of combos.

[HUNK]

Pay attention for a name you'll see in your first fight, Gaffgarion.

He will undoubtedly become your second person to hate for all eternity.

Have fun, and congratz on your win.

[Michael Swayne]

Gaffgarion, got it. If he is the second person, who is the first?

I read some more reviews, and though I have never played a game like it, I think it may become my new favorite game.

I did watch an LP of Disgaea on Youtube, is FFT similiar to that?

[HUNK]

Never played Disega myself so I can't say.

I'd think that Algus(Argath on psp) is the first person you'll learn to hate. His AI seems to be slightly stupid sometimes and he does stuff in the game that will just make you mad. (Keep in mind, both Algus and Gaffgarion are your allies, but trust me, in due time, you'll learn to hate them. xD )

I'd tell you more but I don't want to spoil anything, y'know?

[Michael Swayne]

Just to update everyone, my copy of FF Tactics arrived in Columbus, Ohio, today. It will be at my house either tomorrow or Saturday.

Also, I have been studying up on the game using videos by HCBailly. I have only watched 5 of the videos. I won't watch anymore, though. I don't want to know what happens.

He mentioned something about glitches in the game. Personally, I don't like to use cheats of any kind. Is there something I should do to avoid accidentally doing them?

[loaf]

Only glitches in PS1 version I know of is the Duplicating and 9999+ Job Points for certain jobs.

They both require you to actually do them and I doubt you will do them on accident.

[Michael Swayne]

Just got my copy in the mail. I am very excited about playing it. I am sure I will like it. Thanks to everyone who replied to this thread! I really appreciate it.

[Meier Link]

Random battles are based onyour parties current level. Story battles are set level battles. Do some power grinding at the. Begining of the game and as loaf said, save save save. Replaying some of the lev stages of the game gets annoying.

FFT is one of my favorites. Keep track of all the names and their allegances on your first play through. Recommend the use of paper.

[Michael Swayne]

I died after two battles. Well, not died. I chose to save Algus, and he died. I couldn't reach him with any of my Chemists, so I couldn't save him against the onslaught of bad guys. I played for two hours and barely did anything.

That's because I decided to do the tutorial stuff. I got bored with it, and just stared playing. Maybe I should've watched some more Tutorials.

EDIT: This game is frustrating, but the good kind of frustration. The kind where you want to play more and get past the part you're at.

[HUNK]

The tutorials on FFT are nice and informative but other then the epic useage of their zodiac compatability charts, I don't like them that much. Plus the dialouge has some bad translations I think. (Not sure on that) Still too much reading for really simple stuff...

See, Algus just starts with some bad AI but it'll get worse in due time.

[loaf]

The early AI is easy to work around. That first battle, you let Delita save Argus.