Lanny's Rants Volume 3: Final Fantasy
and Renewal of Faith
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I, like most of you out there, are a NES fan, but also a general
gamer. I have a modestly sized NES collection (90 or so games)
and also collect other systems. I have had the pleasure of
owning a PS2, and not long ago picked up a Gamecube. And I
admit, lately, the NES has taken a back seat in my gaming
hobbies. However, recently, I finally picked up Final Fantasy.
I had been putting it off, instead promising myself I'd pick
up a complete copy on eBay. I knew the cost would be high
(i've rarely seen one go for less than 100 bucks complete),
so i kept putting it off. So, weeks ago, an offer popped up
that I couldn't refuse. In a 3-for-3 deal, i ending up trading
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 3 for Final Fantasy. The game
was loose, but i was tired of delaying buying the game so
i got it anyways. So, on a rainy Sunday, only days ago when
i wrote this, i plugged the cart into my oft-maligned toaster
and grabbed a comfy chair.
I played for nearly 10 hours. Yes,
nearly 10 hours. Around 2:00 in the afternoon till nearly
12 at night. The seemingly monotonous quest of gaining experience
and dungeon crawling turned me into a believer overnight.
Now, before you go dismissing this, I owned Final Fantasy
when i was younger, around 5 years old. I was reasonably good
at the game, I think I got to Kraken before I sold my NES
to save up funds for another, 16-bit system. But my second
go-around with Final Fantasy was a big moment in gaming for
me. Like the first time I played Tony Hawk's Pro Skater, or
my first experience with a computer, or even shall I say it,
the first time I put hands on the square controller back in
1988 at my cousin's house. It truly taught me about gameplay.
So what's changed after this so called "reaffirmation
of faith" only days ago? It's taught me true appreciation
for the 8-bit box. It taught me that it's not about rarity,
it's not about hunting down pirates or Famicom disks, it's
about gameplay. Unadulterated fun. Never before have I had
such a sense of accomplishment after tackling a game for such
a long time. It truly brought me back to my early days with
the system. Days of having dinner brought into my room next
to the couch while I was playing Crystalis. Having friends
over bragging about their respective accomplishment. I was
truly enlightened to a feeling that had been lost ever since
I sold my NES over 10 years ago. I like to call it "gaming
goodness".
To conclude, consider this experience
scientific proof, that even on the dullest, most unimaginative
day, gaming nirvana IS there. It CAN be reached. Don't bother
yourself with manuals and boxes, rarity, and whatever. Don't
spend all your time lurking on the boards, in the chatrooms,
whatever. Don't talk about playing the games, just sit down
and PLAY the damn games. That's what it's all about. Thank
you.
