Welcome to Paladin's FinalFantasyIV.net!

This is Paladin's Unofficial Final Fantasy IV Fan Web Site, and soon to be your online source for Final Fantasy IV!

Please Be Aware! We are still under heavy construction. Mostly offline compilation of data for insertion into the new site database. This is taking much longer than expected due to the volume of data from my old static content sites. More content and content sections are forthcoming!

While FinalFantasyIV.net is devoted to the Square-Enix video game "Final Fantasy IV", this web site is not officially affiliated with Square-Enix in any way. If you are looking for an official web site for Square-Enix's Final Fantasy series, please visit the Square-Enix corporate web site to navigate to the appropriate destination.

NEWS: FF4 DS North American Release Imminent

Nintendo Power Magazine Article, Official N.A. Site / Press Release, Sheds Light on an FF4 DS English Localization

Posted On: 4/2/2008 8:52:55 AM

 

 

Thanks to Dark Knight Elliot at Sygnus.org for finding THIS article about the newest issue of Nintendo Power magazine with a cover story scoop on Final Fantasy IV DS. Wherein apparently a 10 page article is contained about the game. The web article makes it clear that there is not 100% confirmation of a North American localization nor is there a release date. However, the screenshots of the game in the NP article apparently show in-game dialogue in English. Therefore a release of the game, at least in English, is extremely likely.

UPDATE:  According to THIS article on RPGFan.com, Final Fantasy IV DS is expected in North America sometime in July! Thanks to Edge_623 from the Sygnus forum for the heads up.

UPDATE #2:  In case you're even the least bit dubious of those sources there is now an official Square-Enix Final Fantasy IV DS website that has gone up for North America: http://na.square-enix.com/ff4/. It doesn't get more official than that folks. There WILL be a North American English release of the game. Thanks to Aywren herself for posting the link.

And if all that isn't good enough. Here's the final word in THIS Official S-E North America press release. The game should be available July 22nd.

UPDATE: New Mysidian Legend Version

Posted On: 3/9/2008 10:16:57 PM

A new English version of the Mysidian Legend has been found on the packaging of the Final Fantasy IV DS Original Soundtrack. This new version is perhaps the most unique and lyrical "official translation" to date.

You can find it: Here!

NEWS: Final Fantasy IV Sequel Website

Posted On: 2/20/2008 12:56:50 PM

As usual word from Sygnus.org has caused an update on the news here. Looks like the impending sequel to Final Fantasy IV for the DoCoMo mobile phone which is entitled Final Fantasy IV: The After now has a website

http://www.square-enix.co.jp/mobile/ff/ff4after/index.html

What we have on that website is some very intriguing concept artwork for the characters. Especially since this depicts the characters what appears to be 15-20 years older than they were at the end of the original FF-IV story. For the most part I like the artwork, however it is pointed out that some characters have changed rather drastically. Namely Porom appears to have red/pink hair now for an unknown reason.

The game also appears to have new battle sprites for everyone, which are the more advanced form of 24x16 pixel sprites used throughout Final Fantasy VI. It also appears from the screen shots on the FF4-TA site that these sprites may be used as your "map character" instead of the archaic 16x16 pixel sprites 2D versions of Final Fantasy IV have always used.

So the jury is still out, but at least there's a place to perhaps keep up on what's new about this title

NEWS: Final Fantasy IV DS - Preliminary Impressions

Posted On: 12/27/2007 3:58:41 PM

Final Fantasy IV DS has released in Japan as of the 20th of December. While I don't own a copy or a DS yet, thanks to my good friend Syntyche I have been able to play the game. Notwithstanding these minor technical difficulties, I am thus able to make a few comments. These include the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly. Despite the cliché reference to the legendary Clint Eastwood spaghetti western of that name, there are truly these three levels of information about this new DS re-incarnation.

The Good...

The game looks great. Perhaps my lack of experience with DS games in general gives me that perception, but in terms of the characters living in a 3D environment now it really looks good. Not to mention the CG movies, but come on, this IS Square-Enix after all. They were going to be enjoyable and well made by default.

So far it seems to be a rather faithful adaptation of the core story, that is what was and has been presented in Final Fantasy IV incarnations since 1991, and this was a promised portion of this title.

The difficulty level has been raised, and not by a smidgen but by a few full notches. Cecil Dark Knight in the lower Damcyan Desert around Kaipo at level 15 was getting his posterior handed to him by imps and sand hags. I have yet to take down a SandWorm which has felt like fighting a demi-boss more than a random encounter. Now some might call this bad, but I find it to be a fun challenge. Maybe because I've played the game 4,254,986 times or so. But also with the notable exception of Final Fantasy V, Final Fantasy games in general have really been rather easy with a bit of casual leveling-up. Especially when localized outside Japan. So increased difficulty is welcome.

Most notably the game contains new background story to many of the characters not previously known or revealed. Perhaps it was designed 16 years ago but this is the first time many of the details are being released. Namely what we know so far deals with Cecil and Golbez. Or should I say Cecil and Theodore. Their father Klu-Ya (of course) and their mother Cecilia, a heretofore unknown (yet essential) character.

The Bad...

Apparently the Japanese FF4 community and a rather large number of fan fictionalists are up in arms over the newly added story elements, particularly the fleshing out of previously unknown characters in undesirable ways.

I personally am torn, I find some of it interesting (and I don't know the full scope of the new story yet). But I also find some of it bland. The new background story so far seems like daytime soap drama and not particularly grand, and actually a little weird.

Perhaps the "baddest" thing that can be said is there have been absolutely no details on any upcoming localizations of this title outside Japan. Nada. Nothing. Even if it's a disappointing "no" anything would be better than no details at all. My only assumption is that S-E is biding their time to see how well it does in it's native market before green-lighting a localization. Once you press the RTM button and it flops you're doomed to lose money. At least if it's a domestic failure they'll cut their losses by not localizing. At least that's my assumptive viewpoint at this time.

The Ugly...

On top of the DS release a Final Fantasy IV sequel to be on the Japanese DoCoMo mobile phone device has been announced.

This sequel appears to be set years after the Final Fantasy IV core story (shall we call that the Crystal Wars?) but within the lifetime of our original heroes. This game is set to chronicle the adventures of Cecil and Rosa's son "Ceodore" which is apparently a name combination of Cecil and Theodore.

The most distressing bit of story information about this sequel is that it involves the return of the Lunarian moon, which seems to invalidate the drama and poignancy of the ending to the original story.

Let's not forget this will be on a Japanese mobile phone platform so that alone makes it entirely inaccessible to an international market.

In other words, S-E is trying to get the milk and honey to flow from anything and everything these days. Something I both understand in a business sense and loath in a fan sense. Anyone who says things are black and white is a fool or a liar. Even black and white televisions had shades of gray.

Conclusion?

Too early to tell.

It will definitely offend many long time fans, but it should be pleasing to play even to the most staunch originalist. Anyone who never played Final Fantasy IV before the Advance version (or who would play this DS version as their first time) are likely to find their new favorite RPG.

Information on FinalFantasyIV.net will, of course, reflect any additions, supplementations, or modifications to the game's offical S-E canon. I leave it to the fans to use, modify, or ignore these new elements in their fan-ly works.

In the meantime I will endeavor to import the game and play a good bit of it properly (say...to the paladin transformation). However I will be patiently waiting for what I hope is an inevitable localization.

NEWS: Final Fantasy IV DS Update #2

Posted On: 11/15/2007 10:58:09 AM

Dark Phoenix at Sygnus.org forums found that RPGamer.com has the box art for Final Fantasy IV DS. It appears to feature a new original work by Yoshitaka Amano, very much like what was done for the Advance version. The art features Rosa, Cain, Cecil, Edge, & Rydia with a large tower in the background (Bab-il?) and the Moon Ship overhead with what appears to be other airships. Anyway, here it is (click for large):

NEWS: Final Fantasy IV DS Update

Posted On: 11/6/2007 10:25:42 PM

Thanks go out to Subaru, she's found (and has been keeping us at Sygnus updated with) more new images that have amazing new artwork being cranked out for the new release of the game. It also looks like, from Square-Enix's booth at TGS, that there will be Trading Arts figurines of some of the Final Fantasy IV characters in their new DS form available later in December. So keep an eye out for those.

Other information is suggesting that Final Fantasy IV DS is near 70% complete (as of 8/22/07) and is scheduled to hit the shelves in Japan as early as December 2007. Unfortunately there have still been no official details of a North American localization. However in a June 1st interview by Michael Cunningham of RPGamer.com, Square-Enix PR Assistant Manager Charlie Sinhaseni said this of a general question Michael asked about upcoming N.A. localizations: "Final Fantasy IV DS is almost a given. Of course, we have nothing official on it, but it will most likely come our way." In the absence of any official announcement this tidbit is rather promising and hopefully will prove a truthful assumption. Thanks go to Dark Phoenix for pointing the interview out over at Sygnus.org. You can read the full interview on RPGamer here.

I'll leave you with one of the coolest new pieces of artwork I've seen, it's done by Airi Yoshioka. Click the image for the full size...which is really big but worth it!

NEWS: More Final Fantasy IV DS Details

Posted On: 11/6/2007 10:00:36 PM

For 15 years a stylized version of Amano's "Cain" has been used as the "avatar" in the Final Fantasy IV logo. However that has changed. The Square-Enix developers of Final Fantasy IV DS have commissioned the esteemed Amano-San to create a new avatar. This time it's a stylized image of Golbez. Which I think is appropriate. Here is the new title and avatar logo as shown below

The official Square-Enix Final Fantasy IV DS website has also launched and is available at http://www.square-enix.co.jp/ff4ds/. Be sure to check out the videos available as well as the really cool new CG artwork of the main characters.

The Japanese gamer website "Famitsu" recently did a very interesting interview with two Final Fantasy IV DS staff memebers. This would be Producer Tomoya Asano and Executive Producer / Director Takashi Tokita (also a member of the original Final Fantasy IV SFC staff). The interview in its original Japanese on Famitsu is located here. A translated version is available from GameBrink.com here.

NEWS: Final Fantasy IV Coming to Nintendo DS!!!

Posted On: 11/6/2007 9:23:26 PM

Thanks to friends over at Sygnus.org FinalFantasyIV.net has learned that a full 3D version of Final Fantasy IV is under development for the Nintendo DS platform based on this article found in "Weekly Jump" a Japanese video gamer publication.

Obviously this is huge news.

Other than the pictures in the aforementioned link, there is no other forthcoming information, specifically North American localization release dates. Neither is there any data on any material changes to the story, characters, gameplay / battler system, or world layout. We'll just have to wait and see!

This article previously appeared on Paladin's Final Fantasy IV Chronicle on May 9th, 2007

UPDATE: News Feed is Active!

The first dynamic, auto-repeating content!

Posted On: 11/6/2007 3:54:57 PM

This is the first auto-repeating content on the site!

I'm also testing to make sure that the newest content is the first in the list, and hopefully that's the case...

Hello World

The Stereotypical Development Test

Posted On: 11/6/2007 3:28:31 PM

It wouldn't be right to not say Hello World for the first news feed article! Now for some filler!

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