Final Fantasy III Tenth Anniversary Special

Long ago, the War of the Magi reduced the world to a
scorched wasteland, and magic simply ceased to exist.

1000 years have passed... Iron, gunpowder, and steam engines
have been rediscovered, and high technology reigns...

But there are some who would enslave the world
by reviving the dread destructive force known as "magic."

Can it be that those in power are on the verge
of repeating a senseless and deadly mistake?

To this day, Final Fantasy III, released by SquareSoft in 1994 towards the end of the era of the Super Nintendo, has a special place among games. When the staff of RPG Classics decided to compile a list of the top fifty RPGs of all time, Final Fantasy III came out first. In a long-running informal poll of RPG Classics visitors concerning which Final Fantasy game is the best, Final Fantasy III is far ahead of most of its colleagues, though statistically tied with its direct successor on the PlayStation. Out of the fifty user reviews on GameFAQs, only five rank the game lower than 8/10. The game was celebrated by every gaming magazine in existence. There have been websites, chat channels and other communities dedicated to Final Fantasy III since the day the Internet became widely available; Final Fantasy III is probably responsible for a good amount of this site's initial readership. At that point, emulation made the game easily available forevermore; it is routinely a top download on sites that offer such things (no, we won't give you a link). On the message boards of RPG websites such as this one, it served as a sort of rallying point for people who were dissatisfied with Square's approach to making RPGs for the PlayStation; they simply pointed to Final Fantasy III and claimed that Square turned away from perfection, and looking at the game, it was difficult to argue with them. In more recent history, it was reissued for the PlayStation.

Ten years have passed, but the game's reputation is as strong as ever. Its admirers may have aged, but the game seems timeless, with its graceful, if simple, visual style, its beautifully melodic soundtrack, and its engrossing plot. As 2004 draws to a close, we at RPG Classics have decided to come together and pay tribute to this game.

Final Fantasy III Tenth Anniversary Special
"The Impression" by Zeppelin Zeppy discusses his crafty scheme to be the first kid on his block to own Final Fantasy III, as well as his initial reaction to the game.
"An Insatiable Thirst" by Hiryuu Hiryuu tells the story of how he purchased Final Fantasy III at a pawn shop for two dollars, and why he was so happy about it.
"FFVI(FF3) Character Roundtable Reunion" by Rirse Rirse presents a piece about the heroes and villains of the game, using his trademark sprites.
"Final Fantasy VI Original Sound Version In-Depth Review" by Dragon God RPGClassics' resident Square soundtrack specialist thoroughly reviews the score of Final Fantasy III.
"Two-player Mode and Final Fantasy III" by Skankin' Garbage SG's fondest memory of Final Fantasy III concerns something that many people might not even have noticed: the two-player mode.
"Final Fantasy VI: End of an Era" by Cidolfas Cidolfas explains how Final Fantasy III was the culmination of a whole approach to making RPGs.
"The Characters of Final Fantasy III" by Merlin Merlin discusses the characters of Final Fantasy III, and why they are so well remembered by audiences.	"The Best Game Ever Made" by Sephiroth Katana SK pulls out all the stops and tries to cover every aspect of the game in one essay.

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This feature was made possible by the efforts of The 984, who did a great deal of HTML work and general coordination. Original concept by Sephiroth Katana.