| Final Fantasy IV: The Complete Collection | |
|---|---|
| Developer(s) | Square Enix |
| Publisher(s) | Square Enix |
| Designer(s) | Takashi Tokita |
| Artist(s) | Yoshitaka Amano |
| Writer(s) | Takashi Tokita |
| Composer(s) | Nobuo Uematsu Junya Nakano Masashi Hamauzu[1] |
| Series | Final Fantasy |
| Platform(s) | PlayStation Portable |
| Release date(s) | |
| Genre(s) | Role-playing game |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
| Rating(s) | |
| Media/distribution | Optical disc |
Final Fantasy IV: The Complete Collection is a compilation consisting of enhanced ports of the role-playing video games Final Fantasy IV and Final Fantasy IV: The After Years. It was published by Square Enix for the PlayStation Portable in Japan on March 24, 2011,[2] in North America on April 19, 2011,[3] in Europe on April 21, 2011 and in Australia on April 28, 2011. It was also released as digital download.[4]
Contents |
Interlude is set roughly a year[5] after the original game, and players take control of Cecil again. The story begins at Baron after Cecil has a dream about one of the Crystal Chambers, where he sees Rydia and hears a voice which says "Finally, it has a new form." As soon as the voice is just about to reveal itself, Rosa wakes him. Cecil and Rosa set off on one of the Red Wings airships for Damcyan. Meanwhile, at the Feymarch, Rydia is about to leave and is confronted by Asura, who asks her where she is going. Rydia tells her she is headed for Damcyan for its reconstruction celebration, and Asura lets her pass.
While at the celebration, a guard enters and tells Yang that some monks were brutally attacked at Mt. Hobbs. Hearing this, Yang plans to leave but Cecil and Rosa decide to go with him. Once they get to the summit of Mt. Hobbs, they find two injured monks, Rosa heals. Soon after they are attacked by the Dad Bomb. When they defeat the Dad Bomb they head to Fabul where Yang's wife Sheila is about to give birth to Ursula. Yang asks Cecil to be Ursula's god father, which he gladly accepts.
When Cecil and Rosa are about to leave they find Cid, Luca, Palom and Porom, who tell Cecil that there is a swarm of monsters coming out of the Sealed Cave. As they are about to take off Cecil tells Yang to stay with his family. Cid notices that Rosa looks pale and Cecil asks Yang to take care of her while he is away. Once they get to the Sealed Cave, they notice the Tower of Babel pulse with light. Edge notices this as well and goes off to enter the Tower of Babel through the underground passage way. Once Cecil and the others reach the Crystal Chamber they are attacked by the Demon Wall and narrowly dispatch it. In the Crystal Chamber they find Rydia there. She cannot remember where she was, but she says that "they" were calling her. While everyone wonders exactly who "they" are, the party decides that they should go to the Tower of Babel and investigate.
While they are scaling the tower, Rydia begins regaining her summons and acts more strangely. As they pass the cannon control room Rydia enters it and three guards come out to stop Cecil and the others from getting to Rydia. The three guards merge into the Deus Ex Mechina, where Edge finally arrives to lend a hand in defeating it. After the sentry is taken care of, they go into the control room only to find that Rydia is nowhere to be found. They decide to keep going up the tower in hopes that they will find her, only to learn that she is an impostor as she attacks the party with the Eidolons she obtained. When the fake Rydia summons Bahamut, the real Rydia shows up and talks sense into him. Though they defeat her, the fake Rydia escapes and reports to her creator, who is in the True Moon, that the Eidolon project is complete before vanishing. Back on earth, in Cecil's bed chamber, Rosa lies in bed and Cecil asks if she is alright. At Damcyan, Cecil reveals that Rosa is pregnant. Everyone is overjoyed with the news, and they tell Cecil that he should start coming up with some names. Meanwhile, on Mt. Ordeals, Kain is still training when a voice calls out to him.
The compilation was supervised by Takashi Tokita.[6] It includes a new playable chapter which bridges the gap between Final Fantasy IV and Final Fantasy IV: The After Years.[7] The compilation features 16:9 high-resolution graphics, the computer generated imagery (CG) movies from the Nintendo DS remake of Final Fantasy IV,[7] a new CG opening for Final Fantasy IV: The After Years,[6] a new soundtrack arrangement,[3] and a gallery mode for viewing CG movies and Yoshitaka Amano's artwork.[6]
In Japan, a collector's bundle dubbed "Ultimate Pack" was also released, featuring a game guide, an art book called Final Fantasy IV Complete Arts, and a 17-track CD called Final Fantasy IV The After Years Sounds Plus, whose final five tracks were selected by polling the members of the Japanese Square Enix community website.[2][8]
| Reception | |
|---|---|
| Aggregate scores | |
| Aggregator | Score |
| GameRankings | 81.44%[9] |
| Review scores | |
| Publication | Score |
| 1UP.com | B-[10] |
| Famitsu | 30 / 40[11] |
| Game Informer | 8.5 / 10[9] |
| GameTrailers | 8.5 / 10[9] |
| IGN | 9.0 / 10[12] |
The game has received mostly positive reviews.[9] Famitsu gave the game scores of 8, 7, 7, and 8.[11] IGN gave the game a score of 9 out of 10, concluding that if "you haven’t played Final Fantasy IV, are a fan of RPGs, and don’t find yourself utterly impressed with the game, I will be surprised."[12] 1UP.com rated the collection a B-, describing the original game as a "masterpiece" but referring to its follow-ups as "a pale imitation."[10]
GameZone, however, gave the collection a 4.5 out of 10, stating that "this Complete Collection is a hard one to recommend" as a package and that its selling point The After Years "isn’t any great shakes as a story, and the high-res makeover gives it some of the same visual hang-ups as the central quest."[13]
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