Final Fantasy VI Analysis (Ep.4): N.O...E.S.C.A.P.E. | State Of The Arc Podcast

[@hgc7000]

Ok, the best unintended comedy from FF6: My son wanted to play the game with me, so I did the two controller party setup. I told him early on that you could use a "Fenix Down" (OG's know) to insta-kill undead enemies. With this in mind, we get to the Phantom Train, I'm in control of Sabin, he has Shadow, and I haven't said a word about the taking the train to Suplex City. It's going to be a great surprise, right? The boss fight commences, and he immediately uses a Phoenix Down. No Suplex City. Just the win. I looked at him and said: "We have to do this over". I love that the game gives us the ability to suplex a large, undead train, AND I will always love the game for giving me this hilarious moment with my kid.

[@hgc7000]

@@cliffeye1791 Yeah that's right, I just don't recall those being available at that time. Guess I need to do another playthough.

[@alanlee67]

The multiplayer mode was the real mvp. I really enjoyed playing ff9 with the wife. Too bad they got rid of it

[@TJ-vh2ps]

@@alanlee67 I didn’t know FF9 had a multiplayer mode too! 😊

[@TJ-vh2ps]

Suplexing the giant ghost train has to be the funniest Final Fantasy moment ever! I was playing it with my friends after high school: great times! 😂

[@dudemcguy1227]

The whole Phantom Forest/Train sequence is a perfect slice of the classic era of Final Fantasy. It's meant to be taken seriously, but has silly moments sprinkled in throughout. Amazing music. And very memorable because it's concise and ends on a poignant moment. One of the best scenarios in the whole series.

[@alanlee67]

Yea, the end was super poignant. When I saw sabin suplex the train, I was moved.

[@EmeraldaKasim]

it felt out of place and didn’t add anything to the story

[@Sauvenil]

@@EmeraldaKasim It was sort of out of place, being a train in the middle of the woods, I guess. They had to go somewhere though. It's part of the story, only because Kefka kills Cyan's family in the first place. Cyan's Dream later reveals more. There's just not any more backstory about the railroad there - whether it's just one (the only nonreal one) of many trains that travel that line, or a physical passage to afterlife like the River Styx would be, embodied as a train.

[@pingunooty]

​@@EmeraldaKasim 🤓🤓🤓

[@tonyjudd4589]

Hey guys, I have a theory about why Woolsey used the word ‘idiotic’ in the scene where Cyan finds his family dead. So there’s a phrase - バカな (bakana), which, on its own means ‘impossible’ or ‘this can’t be’. Without context (or maybe he was just tired), Woolsey may have been seeing it as the ‘na’ adjective form of バカな, e.g. バカなことをしないで (baka na koto wo shinaide), which would mean ‘don’t do anything foolish/idiotic’. He may not have been familiar with the term as an idiomatic phrase. Thank you for listening to my TED Talk.

[@Enharmony1625]

I also really love in Locke's scenario, where when you steal a merchant's or soldier's clothes, not only does their sprite change to a naked person, their name changes to "Birthday Suit" (B. Day Suit on SNES). :D Always makes me chuckle! It's another wonderful touch that dials this game's charm up to 11!

[@ILoveThisBlank]

I like how the scene on the train platform just lingers for a while in silence. It's just like a similar moment of sadness after a tragedy in FFV. You just have to sit with your feelings, with Cyan, for a moment.

[@Pix3l_Pr1ncess]

Sabin (my brick house DADDY) provides one of the best moments in video game history - suplexing the train

[@rauusu]

Just makes the best character even better

[@LS1Highwind]

I'm playing along with the podcast and you bet your ass I supexed the FUCK out of that train 🤣🤣🤣

[@rauusu]

@@LS1Highwind As you should

[@BleachBasket108]

If you don't suplex the train, did you even really play FFVI to begin with?

[@payphone86]

The moment with Cyan on the train platform after leaving the Phantom Train is such a heart wrenching scene. The fact that you’re not allowed to advance the scene or leave the area makes it that much more poignant.

[@WhiteMousse1980]

I love how Gau learns natural, completely believable skills from the wild animals such as TEK-LASER

[@rainmaker709]

Regarding 24:30, at this point in the game you are lead to believe that Kefka is a deranged loose cannon that is doing things without orders. This scene is one of the first early hints that not is all that it seems and is intentional left vague to make the Dinner scene more tense.

[@michs7451]

On the topic of "joke bosses" and how FFV's Gilgamesh seems to be divided between Kefka, Ultros, and Siegfried, I actually like that they juxtapose the three "joke bosses" together and lead us to underestimate Kefka even further. We fail to take Kefka seriously because we are predisposed into expecting and preparing against a "Dark Lord" type of figure. We look forward to Kefka's hijinks because the clown is funny, has good lines, and doesn't seem so bad. But what the scene in Doma really shows is that the harlequin with the ridiculous getup (think Suikoden's Milch) is, in fact, a hateful, despicable individual who seems to delight in atrocity, who can take "pleasure" (and seems to only take pleasure) in genocide and mass murder. Someone we should take seriously and fight and resist with all our might instead of laughing at or with him. I am reminded of how Hitler was originally characterized by the liberal members of 20th-century Weimar as a fringe, extremist candidate without any hope of winning and was underestimated by them for this reason. Sometimes, evil takes the guise of the comical or the farcical, which is arguably even more "insidious" because we do nothing until it is too late.

[@zyrkugilgamesh]

Funny Clown = 💀

[@tebbtebberton1007]

An addendum to the "Narshe has the power to stand up to the empire" conundrum: Aside from the magitek armor being a new thing for this continent (though there are conversations that imply previous knowledge of them, so mayhaps word has gotten around of them being used on the lower continent for a while, but not as much up north until recently at best) The guards in Narshe, when you storm the place in the beggining, look more like arabian bandits with wolves and sometimes mammoths. It's like rolling up on the sand people/tuskan raiders of Star Wars with a magic powered tank. I've come more to the realization, after the dialogues later on, that Arvis is refferimg to the "resources." Specifically. When everyone is united and ready to go on the offensive, they mention "With Narshe's resources, and Figaro's machines...all we need is men. Narshe in and of itself can do jack-all against the empire. They have tech and weaponry/supplies, but no REAL soldiers, just townspeople. DOMA would have been the army...had it not been for Kefka... And since 3 magitek armors sent to retreive the esper comes off more like a "small infiltrate and get the thing out" unit, compared to the entire squadron Kefka rolls up on Figaro Castle with... The returners might be realizing they're going to need more than what Narshe, Fiagro, and even Doma combined could have provided.

[@dcxoffender]

So the crazy Aged Man in Sabin's scenario who is talking about fixing his clock and repairing his lawnmower is actually giving you clues about the clock in Zozo where you get the chainsaw. The clock in Zozo needs to be set to 6:10:50. The guy says "Ain't been ticking for 1, 5, shucks, maybe even 10 years!" 1+5 gives you 6. 10 is just 10. Then he says "Grass is 25 feet high out back!" Then he says "Fix that stove on the double!!!" So you double 25 and get 50. You just pay attention to the numbers he mentions as he's rambling and you get the Zozo clock code - 6:10:50.

[@CasenSperry]

What!? Wow that's crazy

[@dudemcguy1227]

Wow, that's a really good catch. I checked the GBA translation and it still says "There she is, hangin' up on that wall over there! Ain't been tickin' for a year now! Five years, was it? Shucks, maybe it's been ten, I don't remember!" But then the GBA version also says "Lawnmower repairman, eh? Couldn't provide worse service! Grass's 50 feet high out back!" Maybe Slattery thought the "On the double!" clue was too subtle, so he just changed the line from 25 feet to 50 feet. Because the translation still says "Fix that stove, on the double!" later on. (Though 50 foot tall grass... is absurd lol.)

[@pickerofnits3066]

I never realized this; guessing this was overlooked by a lot of other players as well. I thought the Zozo clock puzzle all came down to process of elimination via the NPCs telling you what the time was (not).

[@David-vh8op]

That's fantastic did you figure it out by yourself???!! I'm very impressed by you or whoever figured that out for the first time I would never get there in a million playthroughs especially as it's a little while before you go to zozo

[@dan47483]

Played this game countless times and thought I knew everything about it, but didn't know this!

[@Pix3l_Pr1ncess]

The best final fantasy hands down. ❤

[@Enharmony1625]

100%!

[@sean2552]

thank you for all the work guys

[@Masenken]

Ff VI is such peak D&D shenanigans, it's absolutely legendary how little fucks it gave about realism. The best kind of fantasy

[@turtlelove7]

Funny enough, when the FF6 pixel remaster came out the train got suplexed right side up and everybody threw a fit and SE fixed it.

[@mattfigueira856]

Hey! Regarding the original name of Terra, talked about in previous episodes, there is mention in the Retronaut podcast (in episode 140), that there may be a connection to the "La Celestina" opera. And that the names Tina and Celes maybe ref to it and ties into the opera themes too. Cool idea Reply

[@zyrkugilgamesh]

Yeah but those characters have nothing to do thematically with La Celestina

[@mattfigueira856]

@@zyrkugilgamesh totally I get that. I think the point being that a lot of English speakers draw the comparison between Terra (Earth) and Celes (celestial/stars) and when they find out that Terra’s name in the Japanese version is actually Tina, then its assumed that there is probably no other meaning or reason to the name choices. I have also seen speculation that the name Tina was used because it is an exotic name in Japan, even if it isn’t in English speaking countries. While the themes in FF6 maybe don’t line up with La Celestina, I think it makes some sense that the two names are are defence to La Celestina as a fun -if not especially deep- reference that lines up with the theatrical themes that are found in FF6. I mean, the whole Final Fantasy series is littered with references to deities and religious imagery that is in name only, and not at all concerned with truly mimicking or exploring the mythology around those references. The idea may be totally wrong, but it seems like it is possible that the team wanted to simply have the two main characters take their name inspirationally from theatre, without concern for it being part of the larger motif of the game. Either way, thanks for the response :)

[@Big_Dai]

​@@mattfigueira856 I appreciate the detail

[@chedhead3278]

Cheers guys, many great moments in this section. This was my first experience with Shadow's dog, and the initial time when he ran on and dealt big damage was so good. "Good boy, get in there". 😊

[@thejawgz6719]

That conversation you guys had about Leo and how he would’ve refused to follow through with the plan to poison everybody made me realize that’s probably the reason why Gestahl keeps Kefka around in the first place. Even though everyone rightfully hates him, he will do the horrible and unsavory jobs that the better generals like Leo and Celes would simply refuse to do. Through that lens it is easy to see why Gestahl would keep Kefka around at all, despite being an unstable, childish, bumbling fool of a general and a borderline incompetent mage.

[@michs7451]

At this point of the game, Gestahl is the "Dark Lord" and Kefka is his "Dragon." I think Kefka is actually quite competent as a mage, however. At the point of the battle in Narshe, he has access to Blizzara (a Level 2 Magic spell). We just don't take him too seriously because of his hijinks and funny lines.

[@tebbtebberton1007]

Pretty sure the implication is that Gestahl isn't showing his true colors around Leo. Like, at worst, Leo knows full well that Gestahl wants to conquer everything, and is fine with being a general in that "war", but is under the assumption that Gestahl wants to "unite" the world under the power of magic, not "literally control everything or *END* what can't be controlled". This can be followed up on later, after certain scenes that shed more foggy light on this occur. For now though, I also always thought the letter recalling General Leo was a forgery made by Kefka to get him outta there. Kefka's open monolog about planning to poison the river after Leo is out of the picture, to me, was him knowing that his plan is under way and it's just a matter of time before that letter "arrives". ...oooorrrrrrr Gestahl and Kefka were on the same page the whole time and Kefka knew Gestahl was gonna send for Leo to come back. Now, I'm not saying I think Gestahl is anywhere near a good person, but...well, I can't continue this point till after dinner.

[@bennykurns]

Love the videos so far. I would say Gau is more like the Beastmaster class and Strago is more like the Blue Mage.

[@andrew_stamps]

If you go into Kefka's tent, there's a Star pendant in his treasure chest. He knew before he left that he was going to poison Doma. Maybe Gestahl didn't know,, But im thinking he did otherwise why would he allow her (edit Celes) to be imprisoned and executed. Maybe Celes saw him pack it, and/or found out or one of Kefka's men talked (these soldiers are always talking about rumors things) and word got back to her, and she put 2 & 2 together. Its also why he calls Leo away, he doesent want the same thing happening if Leo found out.

[@Leijiverse]

Japan and train rides to death go hand in hand. "A Night on the Galactic Railroad" was a novel turned into a manga and anime about a nighttime train ride to death, and Leiji Matsumoto's "Galaxy Express 999” has similar overtones but is about transhumanism. I can't speak to the references of the former, but the platform scene with Cyan is 100% giving me 999 vibes. Great podcast!

[@rod9527]

55:40 This.... General Leo is such a great character , he's the best kind of leader, so honorable and a great man, like sabin said , too bad he was their enemy at the time, he could have been a great ally.

[@michs7451]

On "absurdism" and how Albert Camus speaks to FFVI: if you're interested in this, you might want to give his play "Caligula" a read. Its plot revolves around the historical figure of Caligula, a Roman Emperor famed for his cruelty and seemingly insane behavior. Camus takes what was there in history (Caligula's sudden turn into absolute cruelty and madness) and reconfigures this as a response to the nothingness of life ("people die and they are not happy"). There's a lot of commonalities between Camus' depiction of Caligula and Kefka, and how they force the people around them to come to terms with nihilism and the meaning of life.

[@CasenSperry]

I finally got through it. "I'm still alive!" Man that was a dark one.

[@michs7451]

Did you like it? Oh man, I’d love to talk to you about the play.

[@phantom8157]

Not sure if anyone mentioned this, but the reason Sabin went the route he did was because a landslide blocked the path to Nikeah so he had to go the long way around. Later on you can leave Nikeah and travel the path back to the cabin

[@mattcat83]

Sabin getting disabled is a bit like Worf Effect: it shows how dangerous the situation is when the toughest dude gets taken out.

[@Kasaaz]

The first time I think of something to add as a comment, I usually write it out just so I don't forget. Ideally, I just want to increase the engagement or whatever that nonsense is for the video. Casen makes it really hard because he always seems to then say whatever I was thinking out loud and I end up deleting it. So instead, I write this.

[@CasenSperry]

Haha, sorry!

[@Kasaaz]

@@CasenSperry Just means you're on the same wavelength! I'm really loving these, and especially the Localization stuff. I am fascinated both by the original intent and also the way we internalize game stories from the era with a bad localization. It seemed charming back then and is somehow frustrating with new games, etc.

[@plastikman7788]

You make the train stop by SUPLEX!!!

[@Pix3l_Pr1ncess]

EXACTLY

[@deedoubs]

Welt is world in German, but the Veldt is actually wild grasslands in Southern Africa (Likely related to the German word since the Dutch were heavily involved with the settling of Southern Africa)

[@bergucu]

Just to add: Veld in Dutch lmeans field.

[@rmsgrey]

Yeah, "veldt" is the southern African version of "prairie" or "steppe"...

[@AceBadguy]

Thanks guys for another great podcast.

[@Daniel_Eaton]

The Serpent trench isn't a river, it's more like the Marianas trench with a strong under current. Not sure if someone has pointed that out. Great series! Very entertaining. I like hearing the difference in perception given the different text iterations.

[@kevinstreetgaming]

I love Cyan's arc. There are so many great characters in Final Fantasy VI.

[@JoelBurger]

Cyan is definitely the character who has grown on me more as time goes on, to become one of my favorite FF characters. The optional letter stuff you can get in the second half in particular hits really hard.

[@HaitaniMasayuki]

Gau was such a cool and strange concept. too bad it was never re-introduced like that. I wouldn't really call him a Blue Mage as there is an actual Blue Mage joining your party later on. Gau is more like as if you would just take an enemy with you (which *also* is another FF job kind of with Beastmaster, which you *also* will get in your party later on! :D ) ...such a great game. As for Veldt... "Welt" means world in German. It's pronounced almost the same though. I suppose it is referring to that "Veld/Veldt" region in Africa.

[@valdegard]

Want to agree and add onto this a little bit, Gau works similarly to Beastmaster/Trainer in the last game, except instead of releasing a monster to do its attack, he channels it. He does not learn the monster's skills, he *becomes* the monster.

[@Lamasis2]

Even if he is a creep I do kinda like Ultros, I hope he appears in FFXVI. The Phantom Train, one of my most favourite parts in Final Fantasy history. Not just because you can suplex the train, it's because of Sabin Cyan. A real tearjerker. Gau one of the 3.

[@qster4]

I think, at best, we might get a giant kraken-esque creature that might just be named Ultros, but I wouldn't mind it being as wise-cracking as he was as well.

[@Lamasis2]

@@qster4 It's not Ultros if it doesn't make dumb jokes, it would only be a purple octopus with a funny face. I kinda doubt that we would get Ultors or Typhon, but Gilgamesh could fit.

[@kingofthesharks]

The Phantom Train sequence was definitely one of the most unforgettable parts of FF6 for me, especially involving Cyan. Oh yea I second that Sabin and his twin are pretty much my favorite characters in the game. Kept them in my party as much as possible back in the day.

[@alanlee67]

Cyan looks so much like Sakaguchi. It can't be a coincidence.

[@radicalantitheist]

during the conversation between gua cyan and sabin when gau tells them where the treasure is, gau draws a map, the characters are standing in a tringle, "where cyan stands water brought you" the far north point "where sabin stands mobilz" the far east point "treasure here" the mountains to the south so he is showing you where it is by drawing a map of the triangular velt with the characters and where he is standing is the location of the treasure

[@lex4111]

Again, this game is amazing. I'm so impressed with the seemingly new game play styles like choosing the different scenarios and playing them as you see fit. I also really enjoy the mode where you split up and fight the invading forces of Gestahl. So cool. The humor as well is top notch, I've caught myself giggling a few times. Also I'm playing FF6 through Anthology and other than the intro FMVs I have not come across a single FMV in game, maybe I'm just not triggering them but I have yet to see one in the game once you start playing. Keep it up Guys 👍🏻

[@josephwellens2178]

Mog being the narrator/director for the 3 way split scene could be the reason why the US ad used him as head of casting for the game. The casting also lining up with the theatrical presentation (also how the credits present the characters listenings) maybe that’s giving US advertising too much credit.

[@M4ruta]

1:38:50 Regarding the word 'Veldt', it's actually not a German word, but 'veld' is a Dutch word that can mean either field or plain. It commonly refers to a secluded area, usually covered with grass or small plants. It does have a clear earthly connotation, but does not refer to something as vast as 'world'.

[@tsbulmer]

For me, Gau's hesitance about jumping into the Serpent Trench is perhaps the realist thing about the character. Despite the incredible nature of his childhood, it's been about surviving and, like the animals, not taking risks, so he likely hasn't had *any* of the sorts of experiences that give Cyan and Sabin their, um, boldness about it. Also, he hasn't known *anything* beyond the Veldt and is deeply tied to it, so leaving it is an awfully big ask.

[@WoobertAIO]

Gotta love how in Sabin's scenario, the logical next step after the Phantom Train is to jump off the tallest waterfall in the history of anything, instead of just trying to cross the river by hand or on a raft.

[@video_ouija7114]

Always loved the phantom train part

[@XiongGou]

Pretty sure I found your channel through the Retrospective series. I love the deep dive and insider content that you guys provide into these older games. Definitely wish more games were like this nowadays...

[@ILoveThisBlank]

My question about Arvis: What did he do with Terra's Magitek armor? The Narshe guards were asking for it at the beginning of the game, but we never hear what happened to it. I always suspected that he handed it over to Banon.

[@barkbentley4657]

Mike, you're looking huge bro. Well done keep it up

[@Zelkiiro]

I think the "Idiotic!!" during the scene where Cyan finds his dead family comes from mistranslating the Japanese "Baka na," which often means idiotic but can also refer to something being impossible...which is weird, because that line is preceded by an "Impossible!" I dunno, man.

[@JudoEagle32]

Celes: Why are you helping me? Locke: You're hot and vulnerable, and I haven't had a girlfriend in a looong time. It's not rocket science.

[@Chadius]

About Cyan's Bushido/SwdTech: Cyan holds the entire team back while he charges up. Starting with the old iOS/Android version you choose his ability immediately and only Cyan delays his turn. It's one of the few buffs they made to the re released.

[@EBattousai]

I'm really surprised you don't talk about Celes being able to cast Ice magic, opposite Terra's Fire magic, or Locke not responding to seeing her cast it after being exposed to magic through Terra. Also there is an "unbeatable" boss in South Figaro, the Magitek Soldiers. Even in brown soldier kit, they tell Locke to get lost and wipe the floor with him. Also also! In the hallway outside Celes's room there is a hidden room containing a Hyper Wrist, which boosts attack power by 50%! And Running Shoes aka Hermes Sandals, which give permanent Haste!! Amazing relics for this point in the game

[@greatdane5444]

If you turn shadow invisible he cannot run away

[@Arkholt2]

The funny part about the Phantom Train is that, besides being able to suplex it, you can also damage it with healing items because it's undead. If you use a Phoenix Down on it the battle will end immediately. It's not only the easiest boss in the game but there are two different ways to trivialize it.

[@Kasaaz]

I think the reason the SNES localization of the scene with Cyan finding his family is so weird is because of technical reasons. He had to or did add more words because there were a lot more button presses to make the dialogue advance that are from the original Japanese and you can't break up words quite the same way. There were probably more elegant ways to do it, but I understand how it could happen. Instead, he just kind of added more dialogue that it sounds like he wasn't necessarily sure of the context for.

[@BartolisHideoutGaming]

Great episode!!! If any of you haven’t suplexed the train, shame on you

[@adamdesanti6713]

I just loved the storytelling and character development of FFVI. Looking back I think it's the strong point. The many main characters get surprising 3-dimensionality for a 1994 JRPG. The plot is excellent. There's always a firm goal in place. And it's all done with a hell of a lot of charm and emotional weight. And Uematsu's musical scoring brings perfect synergy.

[@TheBeird]

Kefka can be seen as a two dimensional villain by some. But his archetype is kinda true to life. The most dangerous people to society that I’ve observed over the last few years, are people in power who are treated like a joke. Because when that happens, they slip through the cracks, cultivate that judgement of themselves as a joke to use it as a shield when going about their business, and when they get what they want, they demand to be taken seriously and try shutting down any criticism of them. And to gain that respect, they’ll double down on the worst aspects of themselves. So for my money, a scary ass villain

[@Kasaaz]

On Abstraction: I think we underestimate just how much the dialogue being unvoiced affects how we take it too. Poor localization quality can be covered up somewhat when it's unvoiced as you tend always take it in the best light when you are filling in tone, etc. There's a consistency that can be lacking if it's voiced. That's when it can fall apart.

[@benc.5558]

Absolutely. "Idiotic!" never stuck out to me as a kid, because Cyan was so clearly in shock and rambling. It didn't really make sense, but it would be more surprising if everything that came out of his mouth DID make perfect sense in that moment.

[@Kasaaz]

@@benc.5558 I can understand how it can happen too. If you're just given an Excel sheet with no real context and scenes and dialogue way out of order you have to make guesses. I assume he guessed someone had come up with a really dumb plan or something like that. In that case, "Impossible! Idiotic!" would actually make sense, etc.

[@CassidyListon]

In my head-canon, I like to pretend that Celes was a very successful battle commander and was maybe responsible for taking Albrook or Miranda, and killed many people herself with her magic while holding the post. Later, she perhaps has a crisis of conscience when ordered to attack Doma and refuses. --but the bottom line is: throughout the story after and even DURING her rescue, she has a really low opinion of herself. I don't think the story has any teeth or credibility unless she's actually done something legitimately bad. Like kill rebellious villagers or something.

[@dudemcguy1227]

It's not just your head cannon actually. When Cyan first meets Celes in Narshe, he says (SNES version): "This is General Celes! She torched Maranda! She's an Imperial spy! Now, stand aside!" In the GBA version he says "The infamous General Celes...The woman single-handedly responsible for the decimation of Maranda!" And earlier when Locke eavesdrops on her in the prison cell she says to one of the guards: "Isn't it true Kefka's going to poison the people of Doma, to the east?" So I'd say her crisis of conscience is pretty well implied in the text. Since she went from conquering one domain for the Empire to then objecting to another one some time later, and even willing to remain behind and be executed for it.

[@ILoveThisBlank]

@@dudemcguy1227 I think the "She torched Maranda!" line is so important. I want a prequel game where you play as Celes, have a friendly rivalry with Leo, but then they learn about Terra and that ups the ante - Celes destroys Maranda, and then has her crisis of conscience like @cassidy said above.

[@snuggie12]

"If you're playing final fantasy vi and you don't suplex the train you're not doing it right." Truer words have never been spoken. There are a few other enemies where as a kid I thought that there must be some weird rule about if they don't look like you can suplex them then you should absolutely try it. Now I just assume it must be a bug in the code where their "suplexable" variable was calculated wrong. lol

[@mattsully2238]

Elsewhere on your channel I would love to hear your thoughts on the new footage and reviews on FF16 coming soon. Love the content

[@armorvil]

doing Sabin's part last is a mistake gameplay-wise if you want to be able to use all your equipment / relics in all 3 scenarios : you can strip Edgar and Terra naked after exiting the mines and before entering the house to see Arvis, you can do the same to Sabin and Cyan in Nikeah, but you CAN'T do the same to Locke and Celes because their story ends with a boss battle. For this reason the best order is imo : Terra >> Sabin >> Locke. Still, story-wise it makes more sense to do it your way because Celes warns the soldiers about Kefka using poison, then you see it happen during Sabin's scenario. So even though I wouldn't use it, for the sake of this podcast, I think you guys actually chose the right order - the one a newcomer should probably do.

[@jaymulls5426]

Also I love that Super Mario RPG keeps getting brought up. One of my favorite games of all time, that I still go back and play through every few years. Paper Mario is fine and all, but I've always wished another game that was genuinely similar would be made. So many great memories.

[@Scimarad]

I remember being a bit uncomfortable in that scene where they are beating her but I'd rather they hadn't censored it; It's supposed to be uncomfortable.

[@cr-nd8qh]

That's how it should be today. Make any game you want how you want.

[@madsolar480]

These two are awesome and I hope they never stop.. not anytime soon!

[@Kara99tg]

To this day, I have no idea how Square was able to get 1994 Nintendo of America to allow them to show a dead child on screen. Sure the deaths were necessary to the plot because they couldn't cut the Phantom Train section, but they could have demanded Owain's sprite remain unseen in the bed.

[@tsbulmer]

Just FYI, a couple of notes about the Pixel Remaster, for those who haven't played it: Cyan's Bushido is WAY less annoying to use - you simply select which one you want to use from the menu, then Cyan performs it after a short delay. The length of the delay increases with the strength of the technique, but they're all far smaller than in the SNES *and* you can do stuff with the rest of the party! The Pixel Remaster supports add-ons! There are some cosmetic ones that I feel are kinda necessary, such as one that darkens and desaturates colors to be more like the SNES (colors in later editions were brightened to adjust for a hand-held's lack of brightness, but they failed to dial it back for the PR, which doesn't have to overcome weak displays), but perhaps the most notable are those that make Gau *much* more usable, giving short descriptions of his Rage movesets and highlighting Leap when on the Veldt and fighting enemies whose Rages he hasn't yet learned.

[@skippyzk]

57:18 There's a scene where Kefka sends the letter to Leo calling him away, iirc. He lied

[@dosito86]

next week is gonna be lit!! cant wait for the opera scene!

[@ILoveThisBlank]

Does anyone have any thoughts on how the poison works? Do you just have to inhale fumes? Are Cyan and the other retainer just far enough away that it doesn't reach them? And are they very lucky that the fumes have dissipated by the time they go to look? Or do they just never drink water, and everyone else has just taken a big gulp?

[@pickerofnits3066]

Glad I’m not the only one who finds the poisoning of Doma odd. The poison reacting to the water and turning into gas would make the most sense but there’s just no visual indication of poison vapor being released into the air and the effect would be unusually localized, and Kefka certainly doesn’t seem to be bothered while he’s right next to it. The other conclusion, and one I think the writers were going for, is that it’s specifically meant to affect people who drink the water yet that makes even less sense. The poisoned water is discolored enough for Cyan to notice at a distance but just about everyone else in the castle doesn’t and it starts killing off people in rapid succession. As if they all drank at the same time. In the middle of their castle being sieged. Cyan losing his family and comrades is utterly tragic, but the specifics just seem to make little sense.

[@Big_Dai]

Abstraction

[@markasscop]

everyone always brings up the suplex, but something I found that's even better in that battle is how shadows dog can show up every now snd then to do an attack, and one time he freaking showed up and one shotted the train what makes it better is just how up to chance that is, a dog showing up randomly to decimate a train

[@fernandesh.m.5504]

In my experience, Interceptor blocked Siegfried's attack and one hit kill him adding the hilarity. The strongest swordman beaten by the dog.

[@mrbransformer4184]

Could Sabin suplex Superman?

[@stevemanart]

iirc, the kanji used for Gau's Precious is the same used in the official JP translation of LOTR.

[@fattmusiek5452]

ty

[@ceegronlee]

Baren Falls have always looked good, but they look amazing in the new pixel remaster

[@Siycosomatic]

When Squaresoft translated these games they tried (and still do this day do this) to have the characters use British English. In the UK, cider is alcoholic -- so that bit would have landed with a UK audience but not so much a US audience (though there is alcoholic cider in the US e.g., angry orchard).

[@cr-nd8qh]

Oh interesting.

[@TheLuNaMaStEr]

I can't tell you guys how much I love this series! Especially how you touch on the levels of abstraction used in various ways throughout the game. I've had so many thoughts regarding this specific topic when I made my FF7 video that draws comparisons to the remake, and the points you bring to the table brings my knowledge one step further. Thank you! Side note: When I saw the trailer for the FFVI pixel remaster, I was enjoying it until I saw the Opera scene, and heard it had a real voice-over for the song. When I look at a character that is made so minimaly, being a small sprite drawn up with limited blocks of color, that sprite living in a world that is also made up minimaly. Everything feels in place, but hearing it able to produce a realistic human voice seems like a clash of mediums used. It loses the cohesion of everything else designed around it, and makes it feel very out of place. I suppose I subconsciously expect a simple sprite to inherently only be capable of making simple sounds, because that's all it looks like it would be capable of doing. If there's a good counter point, I'd love to hear it.

[@Jayjs20]

So Celes is basically Sephiroth, or rather, Sephiorth is basically Celes.

[@kolebowyer3837]

... Celes maintained her sanity. I think Kefka is the better example.

[@studlytheknight]

I always do Sabin's first because I read that shadow stays in the group longer if it is done first. Does anyone know about this? I remember the first time I played the game I did Sabin last and Shadow left before the forest (which made the ghost train so much more difficult). Also in Terra's route I was wondering what people thought about the security system with the circling lights in the tunnel. This type of system is only used at this point in the game and never used again.

[@CarnSarnit]

Been a long time since I played, but I don't think that's correct about Shadow. As a kid playing the original SNES version, I always did Sabin's scenario last, with the intention of having a little more cash for the longer scenario, and getting a few more enemy types to show up in the Veldt for Gau. I don't remember precisely how it works. I think it's random up to the train, but if you get him there, he can't bail on you.

[@benc.5558]

Shadow leaving is purely random, but it can only happen after getting Cyan (Sabin can't be left to go solo unless you intentionally skip recruiting Shadow) and before boarding the Phantom Train, or after the Phantom Train but before the Falls where he's scripted to leave anyway. Sounds like you just got unlucky.

[@dakotawinston7677]

I’d buy a MFFAA hat for sure

[@joelkirkwood8224]

Isn’t Cyan’s name supposed to be Cheyenne? I could have sworn the GBA release changed that.

[@cashnelson2306]

Idk why y'all are so surprised about the Biggs and wedge thing. Aren't their names mentioned literally once in the movie while they're not even on screen? The only reason I know they're star wars characters at all is from various FF trivia articles in magazines over the years (and later on videos online)

[@mitchdouglas9844]

If you don't suplex the train, you aren't playing the game properly

[@dorkiesanman]

Does anyone know the name of the song they use for their outro?

[@dudemcguy1227]

Search for "Resonant Dreams (Arrange)" by the channel "symfonikev" on KZbin.

[@EduardoPortasRuiz]

You guys should talk about the "Gestalt" empire. Huge connotations within the name.

[@sjorsvanhens]

Yes!

[@nathank2289]

So if anyone didn't know the music from each Final Fantasy is basically reused and remixed for the next game. A good example here is the Phantom Train music which if you listen close has the sane rhythm as FF7 Train Graveyard.

[@derrickpanciera5644]

Yes.

[@wreday720]

1:04:00 - bookmark

[@lake4ishikawa]

"De gozaru" is a bit of a stereotypical "samurai" way of talk that would feel appropriate for characters like Cyan

[@skippyzk]

1:37:12 I think this first gau scene is different in Japanese

[@AuspexAO]

There is a serpent trench in FFVI and a Serpent Way in FFIV. I always thought they were a reference to Japanese or Chinese mythology, because there is one in Dragon Ball Z as well, but they may just be a Dragon Ball reference because I can't find anything about them online.

[@cr-nd8qh]

It's crazy they fit this game on a SNES cart.

[@RUdigitized]

Awesome podcast but you guys are too hard on Ted woolsey he really was ahead of his time

[@chrisyleenz]

You guys are the best

[@tsbulmer]

Cyan provides so much food for thought. He rushes to the king before his family - is that because he's the very soul of loyalty to his liege, or perhaps because poisoning the water is so far beyond the pale that the possibility of his wife and child being in danger hadn't even occurred to him yet? Both? As far as him saying "idiotic", it was a strange thing for him to say, for sure, but it also makes sense to me, in that shock and grief can rob anyone of their eloquence. For me, one of the main themes of this game is perseverance through grief, and Cyan's such an incredible example of that, showing us an example of a dignity in grief - one that doesn't rely on stoicism.

[@tonyranallo8306]

I believe Strago is the oldest party member in an FF Game. He is like 70 years old. But i could be wrong here if there is some weird like ancient diety goddess aged type person ha. Or some shenanigans' with FFX situation. Hrmm maybe Fusoya from FF4

[@JoelBurger]

Fusoya is probably the oldest, along with Fang and Vanille by technicality.

[@ILoveThisBlank]

@@JoelBurger And we don't know how old Fran is

[@tonyranallo8306]

@@JoelBurger ha when i read this i thought Yang from ff4 and like he only 50. but you said Fang XD

[@MonkellD]

What is the significance of doom train? (FFVIII)

[@pickerofnits3066]

It’s a shoutout to the Phantom Train. It makes some cameo appearances/gets referenced to throughout the franchise in future titles with VIII being one of the more notable of them.

[@Postumeartist]

I’ve often thought that FF6 would be impossible to properly remake, but in these funny moments, they could pull it off but breaking the 4th wall, and having the characters turn to the camera and directly address the player. Just like how an actor in a play would look to the audience when looking for a laugh.

[@nathank2289]

Can we call it a testament to the games writing that they never get to the point they expect to stop at?