[FULL] RETROSPECTIVE : Final Fantasy Tactics

[@ratioretrospectives]

Here is the FULL version of my retrospective / playthrough. Next video I'm working on is: SECRETS OF EVERMORE. And then maybe SUPER MARIO RPG or FRONT MISSION 3. Please look forward to it. : ) Chapter TIME TAGS are in the DESCRIPTION.

[@SeekingTruth86]

Secret of Evermore!!! Yes plz

[@Justin-ShalaJC]

I have played and completed tactics every year since I was 16 years old.... I'm 33 now. Currently playing this years android port of it :D

[@ratioretrospectives]

i did it! it's out now! @@SeekingTruth86

[@ratioretrospectives]

36 here. no matter what iOS or andriod device I get, i always make sure to download FFT and KOTOR. it's, like, a law or something lol@@Justin-ShalaJC

[@Justin-ShalaJC]

@@ratioretrospectives HAH Same! I've got Kotor 1 and 2, FFT, XCom and Castlevania Symphony of the Night on my phone ALWAYS. It's literally become a yearly itch, every. Single. Year. I get a vampiric craving to play FFT, and after I beat FFT, I run through these specific games almost ritualistically. I am pretty sure I can make each and every sound effect from FFT and Castlevania SOTN with my mouth and no one could tell the difference. I'm subbing to you, it's fun to chat every once and a while, especially during these Dark Times, about the things we love. The things that helped build character in us. So.... Why do you think Delita Killed who he killed at the VERY END of FFT? I Always wondered what others thought about that. Edit:OH I DIDNT REALIZE IT WAS YOU DUDE!!! Hahah I swear I thought I was talking to another just random person hahah

[@MrDocSaturn]

Jesus, your numbers analagy at the beginning is spot on. My friends and I have been playing this game for like 15 years. We have a saying "If it ain't 100%, it's 50/50"

[@ratioretrospectives]

THE MATH CHECK OUT!

[@Protoman20xx99]

This is the most accurate description of how this in-game mechanic works LOL!!!!

[@SirLoyne]

This video is everything I've always wanted from a Final Fantasy Tactics retrospective. You have brought tremendous honor to this timeless classic.

[@ratioretrospectives]

THANK YOU, SIR LOYNE. MAY YOUR BEEF BE EVER SEARED AND DELCIOUS.

[@BrianD0313]

This game has one of the darkest endings ever. No one survives (even the people we should like and sympathies with). The hero is branded an enemy at the end. The person that tries to tell the truth is burned at the stake.

[@ratioretrospectives]

love me a dark story -- it's why this game resonated with me so much!

[@soundnfury]

You think that is bleak then you haven't played literally anything by Yoko Toro. The worst endings you can get for each game is the CANON ending.

[@TheShadowOfHumanity]

Thats not what happens. Even Matsuno clarified that Ramza and his party survived the end of the game and went off to live peaceful lives. There is even a canon appearance of Ramza and Agrias in another of his games that takes place after the events of ff tactics.

[@Yes-dr8um]

Spoiler alert

[@moonicedlatte]

@@TheShadowOfHumanityAnd Orran still burned at stake sadly

[@Masterho310]

FFT is my favorite game of all time. I replay it every year and 100% the game doing all the deep dungeon. Truly one of the greatest games of all time. Shame it never got a full fledged console sequel.

[@ratioretrospectives]

If rumors are to be believed, its may be getting a remaster / remake. But, yeah, I'd prefer a sequel -- though, to be honest, I *would* take a remaster / remake just as readily !

[@Masterho310]

I’d be very excited for either. But as good as tactics advanced was it certainly was not a sequel that even came close to FFT in terms of storytelling and character writing.

[@ratioretrospectives]

@@Masterho310 exactly how I feel.

[@Tietzy81]

You're a trooper. I absolutely love the game, but the mental effort makes it more of an every other year game for me. Tactics Ogre on the other hand...

[@SquadJuiced]

It was my favorite Playstation game back then.

[@TVsMrNeil]

I'm fairly certain the final scene with Delita and Ovelia was in the PS1 version. I never played the PSP version, but I did play it on PS1, and I definitely remember that scene.

[@ratioretrospectives]

seems to be . still don't like the scene tho : (

[@2la84me]

@@ratioretrospectives Yeah but Delita is ultimately a POS, showing how he abandoned his friends and honor for power and influence EVEN IF it ended up being for the greater good. Ovelia finally had her fill and mostly likely would've taken him out, told the truth of the entire plot, and took as ruler by herself (If you were wondering about why she did it then and there its because she was just made queen and had power to stop him finally and rule on her own once hes dead). She probably thought herself a more fit ruler than one who climbed his way to power in such unsavory ways. If he really did love her and only did the extremely brutal and cruel things he did over the course of the game for justice and for the common man then he wouldn't have immediately stabbed her back or tried a little harder to reason with her (Because honestly I don't care what his sprite looks like, there's no way she could've hurt him THAT badly. He was just quick to return violence with more violence). If he really accomplished his goals and sought to make her queen (which he did) then he would've died satisfied with his actions and how he tore down a corrupt system almost on his own.........BUT HE DIDN'T AND I THINK HE KNEW THAT. He maneuvered in the shadows and taking orders from those in power while slowly working his way up the chain of influence while Ramza (The real hero) didn't bend the knee once to anyone, fighting the entire time with a target on his back. His honor and his friends were beside him the entire time while Delita had no one but his vengeance . He didnt kill his right hand woman (church spy but he effing cut her tongue out) so that tells me that he still has a heart but I think it ends up being "The road to hell is paved with good intentions". Thats why I think that the scene is probably my favorite in the game because it shows how THIS is how he got his way here and THIS is how he'll stay there. Everyone was disposable to him and he learns very quickly that "Heavy is the head that wears the crown" while musing to his himself and his dying wife "Did you get what you wanted Ramza....this...this is what I got". And honestly its pretty effing bleak and he seems genuinely distraught that Ovelia thought him such a cold and ruthless person that he would eventually turn on her someday so she felt forced with her weak arms to end him now. Wouldnt you know it? She was right, he had a knife and immediately gutted her, just another obstacle in his way. He'll be forced to live with that for the rest of his days that he's not the hero he thought himself as and that he is no better than everyone he cut down on his climb to the top. It was later stated in an interview that Ovelia did in fact NOT die from getting shanked by her husband (www.frontlinejp.net/2020/08/26/final-fantasy-tactics-ending-explained-ramzas-fate-and-the-return-to-ivalice/) but she survived and they ruled together for a time until she died later on of unrelated causes but I still hold fast and true that while Delita isnt totally heartless he is still a cold and ruthless person Sorry for the long comment, FFT is my fav of all time and I wanted to share my views on the final scene.

[@Somebody374-bv8cd]

@@2la84me Well said. I didn't watch the entire video yet (an almost 4 hour video will take a while to finish) but what you wrote there was exactly what I thought of back when I played this on PS1.

[@Blink_____]

@@ratioretrospectives Don't have to like it. Just need to understand it.

[@Akasha6915]

Thought that scene was her over hearing in a hall, and then getting stabbed, but could be mashing up 2 different scenes. I have a PSX copy somewhere that I should try to break out.

[@xersys]

That description of percentages is 100% accurate. A steal chance of over 20% may as well be a 100% chance. An attack with an 80% chance of hitting will miss about 3/4 of the time.

[@ratioretrospectives]

it's the math of RNG and the maths of FFT. it's cosmically hilarious

[@charless1145]

His point is that every swing is either a swing or a miss, no matter what

[@FoNgThOnG]

How this game has not been re-released on modern consoles/PC is a tragedy.

[@ratioretrospectives]

I AGREE, GOOD SIR

[@joeypiccoli]

It’s on iOS

[@Nuka13]

@@joeypiccoli gross lmao

[@WhizPill]

Be the change you want to see in the world

[@idontwantahandlethough]

@@WhizPill ....by porting a licensed game? How does one go about doing that?

[@ledah1363]

This was one of those games that even as a child I knew was something special. Unironically I grew up with this game (WoTL) and got stuck at the infamous castle siege gauntlet and as a child, I just gave up there LMAO. Fast forward to highschool and I give it another go and was immediately enthralled by the narrative that I could now comprehend, it also helped that I met one of my close friends through this where we would constantly recite lines from the animated cutscenes in the game in daily life "We must away!" "You speak in nothings!". I also finished the game at that time. Another flash forward and I learn that the game has SO MUCH more to offer because I learn freaking Cloud Strife was in it for some reason, only to be disappointed at how much of a time sink he was being stuck at lvl 1. In that playthrough I learned that levelling multiple jobs unlocked new better and stronger ones with skills that completely broke the game and I think it was there that my brain started expanding. Its like every playthrough I had I would learn something new. Only on my 4th revisit to the game did I actually start engaging with the bravery and faith system and I honestly could not tell if it made me enjoy the game more or not. What I do know now though is that numbers are both lie and the only absolute truth in this world

[@ratioretrospectives]

big true to all of it.

[@augustuslxiii]

This is absurdly good. Really, really well done! Professional-grade.

[@ratioretrospectives]

i hope to get better at the audio quality and video editing, but I appreciate the kind words! thanks for watching : )

[@augustuslxiii]

@@ratioretrospectives Of course. Your writing is especially good. Author, by any chance?

[@ratioretrospectives]

I write some, yessir. : )@@augustuslxiii

[@Faldomar]

The Ovelia cutscene at the end of the game DID happen in the original PSX version. I remember it well.

[@ratioretrospectives]

i did not (as you can tell lol)

[@AC-hj9tv]

Thanks for covering my favorite game on earth 😎 Your work here is based as hell

[@scottgoodrich5430]

1:04 Oops, Ramza's father wasn't the late king. Ovelia was adopted by King Omdoria. Also, at 3:36 you say that the stabbing scene wasn't in the original PSX version, but it was. You seem to have a much more sympathetic reading of Delita than I ever did. That's obviously entirely valid given how morally grey the whole game is. As long as we can all agree that Algus is a little twat. I've only played the PSX version, and there were several scenes in that video that were apparently new. Delita didn't have any of those solo battle scenes in the original, and I wonder how much, as you mention at the end, the new content recontextualized him. Anyway, I probably shouldn't've started with nit-picking junk. The way you put each character into their political context to explain their behavior was really good. You ALMOST made Algus understandable as a representative member of a larger, loyalist-conservative faction.

[@ratioretrospectives]

1) Yes, Algus *is* the definition of a Cunt -- seriously look it up, you'll see his smarmy picture right there in the dictionary. He just also happens to be "right" on his moral musings about Delita and Ramza at the time. Always a hard pill to swallow when shit like that happens. 2) Delita is not a good guy -- like at all -- and I find far less sympathy with him but far more empathy: I get where he's coming from, I get his motivations, and I understand his actions. That's why I "like" him -- as a character, as a literary modality, and as a foil to Ramza, to the more "obvious" hero archetype. It's the same reason I like KOTOR 2 and Kreia so much as well: not that I wish to emulate their ideals or laud them, but that they are written well and well enough for me to gain a further understanding of their motivations or philosophy or the world at large, and maybe more importantly, a better understanding of myself and my own ideals. 3) It's been about 15 years since I last played the PSX version and the years of beer and bong hits have taken their toll. I fear I may be suffering from an acute case of "dogwater brains" -- so I may, and will, get things wrong like adoption details and whatnot. ;)

[@scottgoodrich5430]

@@ratioretrospectives Heh, I know something about that party-induced memory loss. It’s totally worth it. You have inspired me to finally play through WotL version, which I’ve tried to do before. This time I’m playing with the “Tweak” mod, which I enthusiastically recommend. It aims to keep very true to vanilla while making just dozens of fixes to bugs and balance.

[@matthewfraley4427]

Balthier is my favorite final fantasy character. He oozes confidence and competence. The guy is smooth, and dastardly witty. Just a heck of a fun character to be around in both games. Despite what the game wants you to believe, he is the main character of his main game too.

[@ratioretrospectives]

GIDEON EMERY, the voice actor, always does a good job. he's got a buttery smooth, psoh swashbuckler kinda voice. balthier was my fav besides basch. nobody likes vaan. lol

[@Akasha6915]

@@ratioretrospectives Vaan has to be one of my least favorite FF characters and his white washed Aladdin self ruined so many important moments.

[@charless1145]

of course he does. After all: he's the leading man!

[@matthewfraley4427]

​@charless1145 that's right!

[@saintakira9627]

BRAVO 👏 Standing ovation even. Appreciate the love for one of my favorite games of all time, and while i could write a novel about my thoughts and experiences with it, you've done a fantastic job here, of covering, and conveying, all of the thoughts/ emotions/ frustrations/ and love I have for Tactics. We'll watch your career with great interest 👍

[@ratioretrospectives]

tactics holds a special place in my gamer heart. thanks for watching, my dude!

[@stufffstufffington]

If you have the squire ability yell learned (+1 to speed), you can win pretty much any fight with Ramza. I spent weeks trying to get out of the chapter 3 save lock and eventually found the strategy of just buffing Ramza's speed every turn while running away, healing as necessary. It has a snowball effect as the more you buff your speed, the more often you can buff your speed. Eventually you are taking 10 turns for every one enemy turn, at which point you can start buffing your attack power. I was able to beat that fight as archer Ramza with no bow.

[@ratioretrospectives]

cant hit what you cant catch. a bold but often successful strategy.

[@ScarletEdge]

Underrated channel. Listening to your narration was zen. Subbed.

[@ratioretrospectives]

thanks a lot man! glad you liked it : )

[@MastaBlastah229]

Easily one of the greatest games of all time and definitely one of the greatest of its generation. It was so far ahead of it's time, and I am still holding it out for a remake or a remaster!

[@ratioretrospectives]

rumors suggest a remake / remaster is coming...

[@Shmandalf]

I really hope so. FFTA and A2 hold a special place in my heart but its not even close to how good FFT is, and I played FFT last of the 3 ;p

[@hansgulbranson9506]

The director made a statement that there is no plan to remaster the game =/

[@erwidobi7812]

@@hansgulbranson9506 Good.

[@RandomName0316]

I'd LOVE a full blown remaster with voice overs and updated graphics

[@larsrikardsen4964]

What a fantastic watch. Look forward to more videos from your channel. If it gives you any comfort 10yo me also had to restart my entire file due to the wiegraf and I have PTSD with 30 save files a game 25 years later because of it.

[@ratioretrospectives]

thanks! (you and me both, man. i learned from that moment and do exactly what you do -- have multiple files all the time now lol)

[@danofjute2419]

this game was my heart and soul just as high school ended. it was already like 10 years old then but i still rocked it lol.

[@ratioretrospectives]

no matter the age, it's always a good time for FFT : )

[@SeekingTruth86]

Really enjoyed this video! Your writing, editing, and cadence are superb. I love long-form video game content, and you nailed it. Hope to see more from you!

[@ratioretrospectives]

thanks very muchly! hope to have a video out every 1-2 months (or thereabouts).

[@bartomiejdomanski2515]

This game was pretty much my childhood. Watching this whole video really took me back to those times I now wish I could experience again, playing this game for the first time. Thanks for taking me on this trip dude. Great video, Thunder God Cid/10!

[@ratioretrospectives]

i feel like that's how all scoring metrics / systems should be based on: how many TCG Cids out of ten. lol. thanks man! glad i could entertain

[@timwolffauthor]

This retrospective is amazing. Brings back so many memories of a game that beat me down repeatedly. So many of us had to start over from scratch after using one save point before an impossible battle

[@Drumboardist]

In case you're curious, in the Speedrun (with Math strats), you can immediately blow up Wiegraf with CT --> 3 --> Holy. If you didn't grind *that* up, then just have Ramza run out of range of his attacks as best as you can, and keep stacking Speed until you're getting 5-6 turns to every 1 of his, so you can slap him around a few times and still get away. Or you can have a Wizard with a Samurai's "Draw Out", walk up and bust a Heaven's Cloud sword on him -- equip Magic AttackUP, Wizard Rod, Green Beret, Wizard Robe, Magic Gauntlet. You'll have +16 Magic (plus the extra damage from Magic AttackUP), and he dies super-fast too. Draw Sword ignores evasion and his shield (and won't allow him to counter you), so....it's a primo strat. Heck, the Japanese Glitchless World Record uses a Duel-Wielding Monk with +15 attack, and just...walks right up and socks him twice, outright ending the fight. Heck, if you get your hands on a Chameleon Robe, Wiegraf's AI goes all weird and thinks "Oh, I can't use Holy Sword on you!" Which is....incorrect? But still, it removes that attack from the table entirely, so you have that goin' for ya. (Holy Sword actually uses the weapons' properties, so if you had someone wearing a Black Robe and Duel-Wielding Icebrands ? Hooooo boy, that's a lot of damage goin' out.) There are a few ways to cheese Riovannes Castle. Lancers (again, with Chameleon Robe) will have the range advantage, Mages can blast him from across the map....y'know, good fun. Now, the bloody ROOFTOP, now that one sucks 'cause you can just....lose to RNG, and have no options available to you.

[@ratioretrospectives]

breaking the game is more of an, pardon the pun, *advanced* way of playing and more for the vets, but once you've gone through the game a few times, you wanna crack it open and see what gooey goodness lies inside -- like all the broken and busted combos of items and jobs.

[@mikozieg]

Ahh, the "throw stones at your allies and enemies at every turn you have" game. I so miss this.

[@ratioretrospectives]

I would say it's a life lesson , but i don't really know what that lesson would be lol

[@pierrepadilla1697]

Even from someone who didn't love tactics as much as others I must say this has to be the best video about ff tactics on the internet by far. This deserves so many more views and you got yourself a well earned sub. Keep it up man 👏

[@ratioretrospectives]

THANKS so much ! I'm glad i could entertain : ) tell your friends haha i'm slowly working on the next video but it may be a couple months (work and life, you know).

[@thomasshuck3923]

⁠​⁠@@ratioretrospectives From someone who does love tactics as much as others, I have to agree that this is the best video about tactics on the internet. You’re making good stuff lad, keep at it.

[@ratioretrospectives]

thanks man! : )@@thomasshuck3923

[@MeeraTheMooneyed]

Superb retrospective of one of my all time favourites! Great commentary all around, both on the insight end and in terms of humour. This one deserves a lot more eyes on it. Look forward to seeing what you do in the future!

[@ratioretrospectives]

thanks so much! I am glad yall are enjoying it. (next video is gonna be SUPER MARIO RPG).

[@hungryLIKEALI0N]

This video is a grand accomplishment. Good work! I loved this trip down memory lane.

[@ratioretrospectives]

thanks so much for watching!

[@stephenmoran5855]

You're channel is an amazing hidden gem. Such fantastic quality and writing. Keep up the fantastic work!

[@ratioretrospectives]

thanks so much man!

[@selendile030]

Awesome vid. Watched the whole darn thing. Plan to keep my eye on this channel dude!

[@ratioretrospectives]

thanks for watching!

[@darinjohnson7176]

Well done, you get your engagement from this guy. Nicely done your cadence and voice are easy to zone to and you subject matter is relatable. Thumbs up

[@ratioretrospectives]

Thanks muchly, my good sir.

[@CalderaXII]

was surprised only seeing 900 subs on your channel. pretty fucking good video mate

[@ratioretrospectives]

thanks, man!

[@kvrt_black]

You don't need potions to grind, just set the squires basic skill as your secondary and use accumulate over and over 😊 Loved the video BTW! This is my favorite game of all time.

[@ratioretrospectives]

true, but if i take damage, then i gotta heal! to chug or not to chug, that is the question. lol

[@kvrt_black]

Big true!

[@PringleTheOne]

This was pretty amazing but the 2x speed is really jarring, tactics is definitely a slow game bur seeing a video in2x speed is weird in if itself. Amazing stuff regardless, your script writing for such a huge undertaking is top notch. Can't wait to see what you cook up nexy

[@ratioretrospectives]

Lol, yeah it is. But I tried to match the script with the content without as many cuts, hence the speed-up. may or may not do that in the future. figuring out as i go along! thanks a bunch for watching!

[@Greatermaxim]

Nice we can all do this game justice.

[@ratioretrospectives]

it's one of the best, for sure

[@josephjonathanestacion364]

Thank you, excellent retrospective!

[@ratioretrospectives]

thanks for watching!

[@serenedream2065]

thank you for covering the story, can't recall how many reviews I've watched it that calls it complex and doesn't expound upon that

[@ratioretrospectives]

thanks for watching! : )

[@lordofhyphens]

8:59 to quote a different game in the same genre: That's XCOM baby!

[@ratioretrospectives]

i know all too well...

[@GeeshiaYang]

Here’s a tip. Ramza as a wizard will obliterate everything and carry you all the way till end game. Not even Wiegraf can survive it. For the “save Rafa” scenario. You literally have to have a ninja or 2 to damage one of the dancers enough. Rafa will die immediately if your “speed” is less than the dancers. I always make sure all my characters learn accumulate and gain JP up as a squire. It’s the best way to power level your characters. Get in any regular fight with monsters. Make them into the weakened state. Goblins are best due to low walk range. Kite them all around the map and Just accumulate for however long you want to learn all the strongest moves for the class you want.

[@Bcowzz]

Arguably one of the best games ever.

[@ratioretrospectives]

BIG TRUE!

[@coreydechane8606]

Just started watching this video and I can already tell I’m gonna love it, like many here in this comment section. FFT is my favorite game ever lol

[@ratioretrospectives]

thanks, man! it's one of my favs too

[@RayoPelayo]

I’ll tell you right now, keep doing JRPG retrospectives and your channel will grow. I know it takes time and effort (being a grad with voice acting and whatnot I can relate), and you will be rewarded eventually. This video is amazing. Keep it up!

[@ratioretrospectives]

thanks a lot, man. will do! (and i am getting better at recording my voice -- little by little anyway). next up is chrono cross! in a month or so!

[@sulfuras1985]

That opening description of mandelia plains. Spot on haha. Cheer and yell your way to level 99. Then play the game hahaha

[@ratioretrospectives]

degeneracy knows no bounds : P

[@SoopaGaming]

What an incredible video! Not only is FFT my favorite FF of all time, it has to one of my top 5 games of all time. I love this game so much, that I have a tattoo of Ramza on my forearm.

[@dark_fire_ice]

Wait Alma and Ramza have the same mother, the reason he didn't get a funeral was because he was a heretic and a traitor

[@ratioretrospectives]

if I hade a dime for every time I wasn't allowed in a funeral because of being a heretic and traitor...I'd have three dimes. long story, don't ask.

[@ri-qq6qt]

You weren't allowed because you were a n heretic AND a traitor or just an heretic OR a traitor depending on the situation?@@ratioretrospectives

[@willlauzon3744]

So the last scene with Delita IS in the PSX version. Ovelia stabbed Delita because she knew what he was, someone who would use anyone and everyone to get what he wanted. He stabbed her back, but we knkw from the opening that Delita survived the assassination attempt because he lived to an old age. Anyway, her use was done and she probably thought he would killl her too, or she straight up didnt love him at all and wanted some control over her life at long last.

[@melondonkey]

So many have tried to recreate the magic of this game and failed-even Square Enix itself. They get wrong what made it so good, thinking that all we cared about was the “serious” and complicated storyline when it was actually incredible mechanics that had been introduced over the course of a franchise

[@ratioretrospectives]

yeah, i didn't even touch the mobile sequel or whatever it is they tried to pass off as a tactics game -- full of MTX and timers. ugh.

[@ratioretrospectives]

Tactics Ogre is the only one I'd say that feels like FFT -- as you said, because it's made by the same creator. But with all the remakes and redos and remasters nowadays, I hold out hope that one day we see FFT get their just deserts. (just please don't be in the style of FF6 mobile version --ugh)@@baronvonslambert

[@darkbeastzero]

oh man i love this game. first played it in the 90's. it has one of the most dark and mature stories of any Square game and really made an impact on me as a kid. Wiegraf is such a well written character. I also love how the ending is so ambiguous and kind of sad.

[@ratioretrospectives]

gray/ dark stories are the best -- especially when it comes to JRPGs, which usually are a bit more, say, "bright" even tho they deal with world ending baddies and whatnot. Weigraf is a tragic story, for sure.

[@darkbeastzero]

@@ratioretrospectives another thing - i swear Ovelia also tries to kill Delita in the PS1 original, in a cutscene at the very end. i don't think this is an addition in the War of the Lions version. the dialog was more ambiguous though. maybe i'm mis-remembering? I guess they just had to drive the point home about Delita being manipulative just like everyone else, as if the rest of the game didn't make that clear enough.

[@hellwaker153]

Thank you for making such a long video about one of my favorite games!

[@ratioretrospectives]

you're welcome! thanks for watching

[@samuelst-gelais5822]

Kinda insane the amount of things I didnt know about this game vs the time I spent in it. Great vid, good job!

[@ratioretrospectives]

thanks for watching!

[@Snake-Legs]

One of my favorites of all time. It’s been eclipsed by Tactics Ogre Reborn.

[@ratioretrospectives]

theyre sister games in all honesty. one makes the other better IMO

[@iggyeo6458]

Act 4's sound editing is quite jarring when compared to the rest of the video. however, this was extremely well done, and well thought out. glad i spent my day at work listening. you definitely helped me get through it. i remember being 9 years old and saving just before the Isilude fight. i spent like a week there after school, unable to beat him. my big brother worked at it for a while and he finally was able to beat him for me.

[@sulfuras1985]

When you described the length of time considering the need to restart at riovanes castle.... I met that wall as well as a 13 year old. I refused to believe i was stuck for days. But then i relented and restarted. I didn't know about power leveling in certain maps (fovoham windflats) and had never considered attacking my own characters for xp and jp.... so what i did was this: I was alloted 2 hours a day to play games..... so i mapped out how i would farm in mandalia plains over and over 2 hours a day for 2.5 months to get to level 60. And then play through the game again and attempt riovanes. I succeeded and getting orlandu was the best reward ever especially because i didnt know anything about what came next in the game. I'm 34 now watching my son hit that same wall and he's doing the same thing haha. He'll figure out his own strats and it's a blast watching it and hearing about others who had a similar experience.

[@ratioretrospectives]

teaching the next generation the ins and outs of old videogames sounds like what it's all about. i don't have kids (even tho i'm in my mid 30s), but damn it if that doesn't swell the old cold iron heart a bit : )

[@stevemanart]

Ovelia stabbing Delita was in the base game, and to me at least reads as a response to her being completely disillusioned by Delita after eavesdropping the scene where he cut out Valmafra's tongue.

[@ratioretrospectives]

i mean, i get the impulse and the emotion of it, still the scene rang a bit sudden for me at the end. didn't ruin anything for me, just felt odd is all.

[@eoris12]

​@ratioretrospectives Didn't delita become the thing he loathed and, as a false lady, the queen felt the need to end his line before it conjured another age of aristocratic ill upon the land? I think it's brilliant to see how she tries to prevent another such story to be told.

[@Mondoness]

FFT has one of the most nuanced plots with FF6 quick to follow. This Final Fantasy is favorite, even now. P.S. You can totally cheese any templar knights by using "equip gun" on knight class, equip tha gat, and using skill "break weapon" on them. it renders them useless since their knight/holy/ark sword art requires a blade weapon.

[@ratioretrospectives]

6 is my personal all time fave. for me, FF goes like this: 6 > 7 > tactics. i tried my very best not to cheese this playthrough as much as possible. but alas, some things can never be.

[@Mondoness]

@@ratioretrospectives it was a different era my fren, literally a world without internet knowhows. Finding secrets and cheese exploits were much more kino then. Word of mouth was strong. Or u were the dude that bought strategy guides. 😎

[@ratioretrospectives]

I was a kid of pre-gamefaqs. strategy guides were the ultimate toilet reading material (besides the booklets that came with the game)@@Mondoness

[@stephenmoran5855]

My jp farming trick was all 5 members in a cross formation, one in the middle one at each orthogonal position. Spam Chakra while the enemies wail on me.

[@ratioretrospectives]

we all have our own cheese strat but we can all agree: cheese is delicious ;P

[@evrfreez]

First, I'm enjoying the video; pausing at 1:04:56 just to comment~ Second, the comment in question: on the off-chance no one else has mentioned it, Ramza is not a prince, not related to the late king, nor to Princess Ovelia (even by adoption). You've called him the son of the king twice at this point; he's not, he's the son of Barbaneth/Balbanes Beoulve, a Knight-Gallant in the 50-Years War. If he were a prince, so too would be Zalbag and Dycedarg; they share a father with him, his mother was a commoner with the last name Lugria/Ruglia (which is why he's just a half-brother to Larg and Dycedarg). If Larg and Dycedarg were princes, they'd be the central focus of the War of the Lions, as would Ramza. A small detail, but a hilariously important one, given the whole context of the story; I can imagine the confusion of someone not familiar with the game's plot. His family is important due to their renown and the status of their father, but in no way royalty (hence why they defer to Duke Larg; Dukes are one step removed from the royal family, and thus higher than all other nobles save the royalty itself).

[@ratioretrospectives]

many people have mentioned that (and most likely will continue to do so lol), but i can kinda give a slight reason for that: i played the game, then wrote the script in sections, non contiguously, so I might have gotten the info wrong at first, read back the script, and continued on with the misinformation. in other words, my brain went all dog watery on me. : )

[@evrfreez]

@@ratioretrospectives Gotcha! Things happen ;D Might I suggest mentioning it in an edit, either in the video description or the pinned comment? People (myself included) often at least glance there before offering corrections. I mean, unless you're baiting engagement by getting people to comment =D Since as we all know, the fastest way to get correct information on the internet, is to post the incorrect information to an audience. In which case, by all means, carry on~

[@ratioretrospectives]

didn't mean to do that, but you bring up an interesting point....hmmm....👀@@evrfreez

[@ShippoFoxD]

Riovannes Castle. That horrid place always haunts my mind when I think of hardest boss fights of all time. It's just that engrained. Absolute banger of a review. Best FF game ever

[@ironwolfosiris]

The pencil drawing style of those cinematics is absolutely beautiful.

[@2la84me]

This was an extremely excellent video to put on while I game

[@ratioretrospectives]

hell yeah, man! that's why i made it : ) glad you enjoyed it as you gamed.

[@long060]

19:31 I bet that certain fight happened on a certain rooftop. *grabs popcorn*

[@ratioretrospectives]

it may or may not be. 😉

[@RaisingDragon]

This video took me back to my childhood thank you so much!!

[@ratioretrospectives]

thanks for watching!

[@stathiskokto]

Thank you for your good hard work. You made a 52 years old man very happy. Greetings from Corfu island, Greece dear sir.

[@ratioretrospectives]

no matter the age, we all love these games! thanks for watching, mate. greetings!

[@SMandrell]

The opening to this aged beautifulling because of BG3. He's literally saying "just because they arent marketing it, doesnt mean there isnt a market for it". I see you and hear you.

[@Oolong_Bagged]

I think your main issue with the third fight at the end of chapter three ironically enough... was your save state. There are certain RNG mechanics that go into each fight as it's loaded and your save state saved these predetermined situations. If you notice, Rapha dies the exact same way each time you loaded that one specific save state. While this is still bullshit for sure, if you had a real save file and restarted the fight from there, the RNG resets and the fight plays out differently. It's still an incredibly difficult fight for sure, you just handicapped yourself trying to make a shortcut unfortunately. This is one of the only fights where I never bother trying to steal anything, the ability for each one of them to 1 shot at least one person every turn is just too high. Anyway, I've really enjoyed this video! (Also in addition, you don't have to only target Marquis Elmdor specifically, you can take out one of the assassins as well and the fight ends.)

[@ratioretrospectives]

but trying to steal his stuff is my favorite part -- i can't let that sparkly vampire win! i must steal everything and make him walk home without shoes on if i can. but then rafa dies...sigh...cant always get what you want, i suppose...

[@Rinavani]

Oh man this video brought back so many memories! Hours and hours of grinding mixed in with possibly the best plot ever in a video game.

[@ratioretrospectives]

i was 11? i think when i first played this back in the day. ahhh 90s... a different age lol

[@udalix]

Hours and hours of beating on your own party while an enemy cowers with 1 hp in the corner 😂

[@Rinavani]

@@udalix lol yep.

[@ratioretrospectives]

this is the way@@udalix

[@Awesombynature]

I’ve fallen asleep to this 3 times before I realized how many cutscenes he left in this full story breakdown

[@ratioretrospectives]

let the dulcet tones of improperly mixed 3d anime lull you to sleep...

[@paolosolcruz]

It's funny you mentioned living at Walnut Creek and Genova's lol. Always found your videos interesting and entertaining. Would be happy to buy you lunch if you're still in WC! 🤙

[@ratioretrospectives]

haha thanks for the offer! genovas is BiS sandwhich shop.

[@KingofGeo]

I almost Bricked my game on the Wiegraf fight it took me like 15 times to get through it... the sad part was I was problem is I was adequately over leveled, it was just a hard battle.

[@ratioretrospectives]

it's a right of passage with FFT. if you didn't, i would question whether or not you actually played it lol

[@stephenhall6238]

I loved this game so much as a kid. That Wiegraf fight in Act 3 was so hard. I restarted countless times to never beat him.

[@ratioretrospectives]

it's the fight where i learned how to swear like the best of sailors...lol

[@bortzanator3018]

Wow only 200 subs??? If you keep putting in this kind of work, you are gonna go far. I have a ton of comments.1. I too, was walled by Wiegraf. I got lucky and GameFAQs came to my rescue (huge fan of the Prima story btw) suggesting that I use Squire techs. 2. Luso's inclusion is slightly odd to me, but probably to promote FFTA2 since A2 was released in 08 and WotL was... 2010? I think? 3. I couldn't follow the story in this game, so I am grateful for this retrospective. Engaging and a great video. 4. I would love a Front Mission 3 video, maybe a FM1st video someday? Fantastic job. I can't want to watch more from you.

[@ratioretrospectives]

1) thanks, man! means a lot to hear that. < 3 . 2) Cross pollination within Final Fantasy series seems to be their MO -- the love doing that (ff14, all the mobile games, FFT, etc.), 3) glad I could help -- there are also tons of other "explain all" videos on youtube, so have at it! 4) SUPER MARIO RPG is next (should be done in 1 or 2 weeks), then I still haven't decided what game to do after that -- maybe front mission 3, maybe chrono cross, maybe FF6.,dunno! 5) thanks again. I hope to continue and hope to be better : )

[@miinyoo]

I woke up to this haphazardly as a woodpecker was pounding its face into the wall next to me and heard the comparison to meatloaf. Now all I want is meatloaf. I hunger for it. I hunger for it to contain woodpecker.

[@ratioretrospectives]

oh man, i had a blue jay or something park right next to my bedroom in my apt. and every day for like a year it would chirp louder than a goddamn jackhammer, so i feel you pain. also, meatloaf is love, meatloaf is life.

[@byeoocg]

When learning skills from enemy crystals always pick the furthest down skill because you learn everything above what you pick, Tried countless tactics games but none measure up to the original, the next best one is probably tactics ogre reborn/let us cling together. Great video, I always love the insight of others on this incredible story

[@ratioretrospectives]

wait, wtf? I didn't know that about the crystals? is that true?? so many wasted crystals then lol. thanks for the watch and kind words, my dude.

[@mooglemage6456]

This is a common misconception. It's not a list you're picking from, it's just a list showing what all of the abilities you're receiving from the crystal. You're not choosing one, you're gaining all of them, regardless of which ability you choose.

[@alexeiharp7676]

This game is such a polished gem ❤

[@ratioretrospectives]

indeed, good sir! i agree

[@SNDurgon]

I love how being hard locked in Riovanes castle is a trauma we all share 🙏

[@ratioretrospectives]

it's one of the few seminal gaming moments. toad telling you peach is in another castle; realizing Samus is a bad-ass chick; "Finishing the Fight"; Micah v. Arthur; "FRESH MEAT!"; whatever it is, it's a core memory for all gamers

[@CoffeePotato]

That...was the most apt description of our genre I think I've ever heard. But uhh ...my man, who makes meat loaf without ketchup?!

[@ratioretrospectives]

insane people. that's who. crazies. cooks. nutter butters. meatloaf needs ketchup

[@shivur5073]

1:23:22 i love it lol i love that you kept that in hahaha

[@ratioretrospectives]

usually i catch it, but sometimes i don't. in those instances, it deserves recognition lol

[@derrikschroeder2963]

The part about the percentages is too relatable, and it extends to my experience with Baldur's Gate 3 as well

[@ratioretrospectives]

no karmic dice in FFT unfortunately...

[@Eltrotraw]

One of my favorite jokes about Rafa (Rapha) on the roof is that if you spell her name backwards, it's "afar", which is exactly the opposite of what she does with the enemies there

[@ratioretrospectives]

ha! truetrue

[@HanSumGee]

The Steiner math in this game is a real struggle.

[@ratioretrospectives]

TRUUUUUUUE

[@CoffeePotato]

Riovanes instilled a lifelong reaffirmation of the belief that I always need to max out my starting basic class. That fight seemed like a brick wall. Then...after staring at the skills for ages... I thought I could grind by just accumulating. Which...I could....but I could also speed boost. So ultimately just powering up into an 8x turn one shot became the comical go-to.

[@ratioretrospectives]

i always like to imagine Ramza just sitting in the corner of the room reeeeeeeeeally thinking hard, fingers pressed against his temples, little "+1s" flying above his head every few seconds and Weigraf just staring blankly at him, then, BAM, thundercrack and Ramza just obliterates Weigraf in an anime ninja blur fashion lol

[@CoffeePotato]

@@ratioretrospectives It's a wonderful feeling. We had this community SRPG playthrough round robin thing a few years back for FFT, that fight gets passed around, team's scuffed, felt so good to break out that trick like "what are y'all struggling with, this dude can fart at infinite speed and power!" As a comedian I can't remember the name of once said "after the first part, someone said he was half dead, half dead....and the cops asked if we had any proof....so we stabbed him again....and sure enough, he was exactly dead."

[@AlmasyAlliances]

Commenting to boost your engagement. ;)

[@ratioretrospectives]

doin' the lord's work lol

[@udalix]

I don't recall ever having hit that wall at Wiegraf, it posed a challenge, but from the get go I was already abusing the game, leveling higher than I needed to be, farming up job points and unlocking the next jobs, it just felt right rather than rushing through the story points on the map. I employed the self harm, friendly mutilation technique to farm early in the game (well at any point really) before I even knew that was a strategy. I mean I could be wrong, game is 25 years old, and its been ages since I played it for the first time. Im just fairly certain I never had a save file destroying fight that made me start over.

[@ratioretrospectives]

then consider yourself lucky. because that save file destroying moment for many kids across teh globe was a pivotal moment in their gaming history haha. people learned real fast never to save only ever one file after that. ;P

[@Oms424]

They have the battle with Delita and Ovelia because fans were curious about Delita. We have a whole chapter with him, then no way of knowing how far he's coming along. This "easy" battle accomolishes getting to know him as a warrior

[@ratioretrospectives]

that very well may be, but i still think that battles could have been somewhat better designed.

[@ZeroAngel]

Originally, Delita's story was intended to be a second playable arc but it was too ambitious for the PS, so all the Delita cutaways are just peppering in some of that arc we never got to play. With the PSP, they added some extra cutscene battles to that end.

[@IPlaysGame]

Great vid. Subbed. Looking forward to your future projects 👌👌

[@Soshiplayz]

I have to rewatch this again. I fell a sleep watching it.

[@ratioretrospectives]

it happens. let the not-so-dulcet tones of my poorly recorded voice lull you to dreamland

[@jorleonelescott755]

Timeless classic

[@ratioretrospectives]

most certainly

[@bmoresweetz7023]

Best review of Final Fantasy Tactics Ever and a bit comical too I 💕 Love it 💪🏾😎👍🏾🔥💯

[@ratioretrospectives]

thanks, brother!

[@xx3uddhaxx]

FF Tactics is a GOAT. I still play this game from time to time and still lucky to have my og ps1 copy

[@Horsethe666]

Really enjoyed this. Gonna go binge thebrest of your channel now, brb.

[@ratioretrospectives]

MY MAN!

[@fitzytail896]

I played Final Fantasy Tactics Advance in the Game Boy Advance SP (i miss that device) and i liked it and i didn't know another Final Fantasy Tactics that has a more darker theme than the Tactics advance.. good to know

[@ratioretrospectives]

I Recommend trying it out! it's a great game.

[@FilippoGatteschi]

Great video, dude, thoroughly enjoyed it ;)

[@ratioretrospectives]

thanks a lot, man!

[@cartoongamer1]

The post credits scene with Ovelia and Delita is in the ps1 version.

[@ratioretrospectives]

musta obliterated it from my memory then back in the day...all the same, still not a fan of the scene... : (

[@cuktus8054]

Lol, the POE and Chris Wilson reference was just great, nicely played.

[@ratioretrospectives]

without a guide to know exactly where to go, doing deep dungeon is like guessing a four digit combination -- using consecutive numbers: 0001. 0002. 0003. etc. "Feel the Weight of it" Chris Wilson whispers to himself lol

[@midnightlumina7]

Ovelia actually lives and dies due to different circumstances. Matsuno clarified that Delita and Ovelia still made amends

[@ratioretrospectives]

hmm...interesting...

[@minty9245]

Amazing video, I love this game and playing challenge runs always keep me going back…I wish they’d remake it for modern systems or make a new installment

[@ratioretrospectives]

rumors suggest we may be getting just that...but who knows

[@skydonkey9515]

Man this game brings back memories, i remembered getting screwed hardcore in the bellias gigas battle lmao

[@ratioretrospectives]

as does everyone their first time lol

[@skydonkey9515]

@@ratioretrospectives those lucavi battles were always quite challenging I could never win those battles without at least two to three units becoming crystallized lmao

[@Rietto]

Honestly, the number of orphan shenanigans in FFT is very reasonable considering 50 years of warfare had been going on. Makes sense that there'd be plenty of homeless kids around.

[@ratioretrospectives]

urchins...urchins as far as the eye can see...lol

[@TruSuCiO23]

My favorite game of all time, i have now played this game 6 times, 2 times viaPSX version and 3 times the PSP version and I played it once from FFHacktics mod Valeria because i loved how they tweak most of the jobs! Wish they remade this game in the future, after watching this thinking of replaying it yet again!

[@ratioretrospectives]

if this vid made you wanna replay the game again, then i think the vid did its job o7

[@Badurex1992]

Omg this game is responsible for me learning to use multiple save files in any game. The same way as you i have soft locked myself in a battle with gaffgarion and later with wiegraf as a kid. 😢 I have tried those battles like 1000 times before i finally gave up and started the game from the beginning 😂 btw your video retrospective is top quality. Keep it up. :) are you planning to do some other videos like this? Either jrpgs like ff or any other games from the ps1 era? I know this video must took you like a 100 hours to do, but i would happily see for example ff8 video retrospective. Thank you for a quality content.

[@ratioretrospectives]

thanks for the watch and comment my man! i'm thinking i might do chrono cross next? still havent decided tho...