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DS Fanboy Review: Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift

Posted Jul 7th 2008 10:15AM by Alisha Karabinus
Filed under: Reviews

If you have a taste for strategy gaming at all and are looking for a way to spend the entire summer, then Square Enix's latest, Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift is not only a game with a very long title, but it might just be the answer to all your handheld gaming needs.

But length and depth aren't the only measure of a game. For some the latest Tactics may be a great way to while away the month(s), but others will find the paper-thin story and the hand-holding approach a turn-off. In a field of excellent Square Enix titles, Grimoire of the Rift isn't exactly a stand-out, but mediocre Square Enix still tends to be pretty good in the long run.

Gallery: Final Fantasy Tactics A2

Continue reading DS Fanboy Review: Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift

Metareview: Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift

Posted Jun 23rd 2008 7:00PM by JC Fletcher
Filed under: Metareview

This week marks the auspicious arrival of a new Final Fantasy game on the DS. Fans of the two previous Tactics games, or of the Ivalice Alliance, or the beloved strategy developer Quest (Ogre Battle), who began the Tactics series once absorbed into Square, may have even more reason to rejoice; fans of the traditional Final Fantasy RPG series should be warned, as they always should with a spinoff, that Tactics is way different.

Is the sequel to the GBA spinoff of the PlayStation spinoff of the Final Fantasy series worthy of its various progenitors? It sounds like it just may be!

IGN: 90% -- Daemon Hatfield misses the PlayStation iteration, but can't deny the addictive quality still present in the Advance series: "It would be nice to get another mature Tactics game like the original, but A2 won me over quickly with its beautiful visuals and deep, strategic gameplay. This is one of those desert island games you'd want with you if you were stranded with nothing to do."

GamesRadar: 80% -- Carolyn Gudmundson of GamesRadar thought the game coddled the player a bit more than strategy games typically do, but still worthy of hundreds of hours of your attention: "Like its predecessor, A2 presents a kinder, gentler tactical RPG (it's much easier than the original FF Tactics on PS1 or any of the Advance Wars titles, for example), so if you like your tactical action rough and punishing, we still recommend giving Tactics A2 a try, but skip straight to hard mode. "

GameSpot: 70% -- GameSpot's Shiva Stella found the opposite: a bit too much difficulty, and overcomplicated play. "One of Grimoire's setbacks is the amount of time that it takes to accomplish even the simplest of tasks, with most quests lasting 45 minutes to an hour, although there is a handy quicksave feature. Grimoire also sports a steep learning curve for both its combat and micromanagement elements, and is a bit slow to pick up because you spend the first 10 to 20 hours mastering basic abilities, unlocking classes, and gathering equipment to play the jobs that you want."

Gallery: Final Fantasy Tactics A2

Train for next week's release with FFTA2 screens

Posted Jun 20th 2008 10:15AM by Alisha Karabinus
Filed under: Screens

You know a game is epic when the publisher can release dozens of screens -- dozens -- and you still feel as though you're only getting the barest glimpse of the depth that awaits. We've seen so much of Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift, from videos to screens, and previews of jobs to boot, and none of that is even a patch on the hours of gameplay that awaits. For once, we're not even upset about the Square Enix "tax" that elevates the price of their games; here, we'll know where those extra dollars went. Sometime next year, we might have finally finished everything there is to finish.

Maybe.

If we're lucky.

Gallery: Final Fantasy Tactics A2

[Via press release]

DS Daily: Tough choices

Posted Apr 9th 2008 9:00AM by Candace Savino
Filed under: DS Daily

The next few months will be filled with a lot a great releases -- perhaps too many. Super Dodgeball Brawlers, Bangai-O Spirits, Final Fantasy Tactics A2, Etrian Odyssey II, Space Invaders Extreme, Arkanoid DS, Rondo of Swords, Jake Hunter: Detective Chronicles, Harvest Moon: Island of Happiness, and The World Ends With You are just a few that we can name on the spot, and all of these will be out before July starts.

Unless you have abundant amounts of currency, though, you probably can't afford to buy that many games in such a short period of time. Also, money isn't the only problem. Supposing that you could afford everything you wanted, you wouldn't even have the time to play them all.

Narrowing down the field is tough, but necessary. What games that are coming out in the next three months do you consider must gets? And they don't have to be chosen from the games listed above, so go nuts.

FFTA2 fan translation project underway

Posted Oct 24th 2007 6:40PM by Eric Caoili
Filed under: Fan stuff, Imports

Though Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift doesn't officially hit Japanese stores until tomorrow, forumers at the GBAtemp community have already managed to procure a copy and are working on translating its squiggly words. The motivated group has deciphered an impressive amount of cutscene conversations and menu items, overlaying shots from the SRPG with English text.

Even in its early state, this picture guide will be a huge boon to interested importers without any Japanese reading skills. Considering that Square Enix has yet to announce its plans for bringing Final Fantasy Tactics A2 to the states, this fan-backed effort may be the best way to play the game for a while.

Final Fantasy Tactics A2 advances

Posted Oct 8th 2007 4:40PM by Alisha Karabinus
Filed under: Screens

With Final Fantasy Tactics A2 hitting Japan this month, FFXII: Revenant Wings out for US gamers next month, and the PSP's Final Fantasy Tactics: The War of the Lions out this week, the Ivalice Alliance ... uh, alliance seems to be going strong. Of the set, FFTA2 seems to be the most controversial, with lines drawn between the fans of straight Tactics and Tactics Advance, and fans of both on the sidelines shaking their heads. Reviews on this one should be interesting! In the meantime, you can check out the latest screens in our updated gallery.

Gallery: Final Fantasy Tactics A2

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