Final Fantasy IV Advance

Final Fantasy IV Advance is a port of one of the series' most significant entries from the Super Nintendo in 1991, with which Square Enix in 2005 continued the line of previous Game Boy Advance remakes such as Final Fantasy I & II: Dawn of Souls or Final Fantasy VI Advance. The player takes on the role of Cecil, a dark knight who over the course of the story turns to the paladin order, and together with a gradually growing group of companions travels through a world threatened by lunar beings and their mysterious plans. The battle system is built on the Active Time Battle (ATB) gauge, where characters act according to their own speed while the player chooses commands, spells and items between turns, and each character has a fixed role, which gives the battles a different rhythm compared to later entries with selectable jobs.

The graphics were reworked for the handheld version - the sprites received finer detail and the color palette was adapted to the GBA's smaller screen, the music was newly arranged for the console's sound chip, and the script was retranslated, which fixed a number of inaccuracies from the original American localization of the nineties. A new addition was the bonus Lunar Ruins dungeon with additional bosses and exclusive content for collectors, which was absent from the original and extended the game even for players who already knew the story from previous versions.

At the time of release, this port was regarded as one of the best available versions of Final Fantasy IV, and it still serves today as a solid entry point into the story of Cecil and his companions for players just discovering the classics of the 16-bit era. The combination of a compact format, improved graphics and expanded content makes it a rewarding and still-playable title for anyone interested in the golden age of Japanese RPGs and their handheld crossovers. Alongside the main adventure, it also offers supplementary texts and a bestiary that flesh out the world and make it easier to return to the story even after years, and thanks to its smaller format, the game is also well suited to being played in short sessions while traveling, without losing any of the drama of its key twists.

Why play it: For players discovering the golden age of Japanese RPGs, it's one of the best available versions of Final Fantasy IV, with improved graphics, expanded content and a format suited to playing in short sessions on the go.