Any RPG that lets you pilot a spaceship and travel back to the future is good in my opnion.
Four rebel adventures must journey through time in order to save the world from domination by evil creatures.
The Gameplay:
Final Fantasy is a very unique and worthy RPG but it takes some getting used to. The core gameplay is hardly anything new, it plays just like any NES Final Fantasy in terms of leveling up, using spells/items, etc.; but it’s how the game explains things (mostly because it doesn’t) that gets me down. There are many cool twists in the gameplay and absolutely none of them are explained at all.
First off, the old class system is out the window. There are six basic classes in this game: humans(fighters), mutants(mages), beasts/monsters, and cyborgs/robots. The first two are your base classes which you are assigned to at the beginning of the game, the last four are attained by eating meat or taking parts from defeated enemies, these special classes aren’t really necessary and have special rules regarding how they get stronger and what they can equip and since none of this is explained beginners should just ignore them all together.
All weapons, armor, and magic can be equipped by any of your basic classes, but there are some important guidelines (none of which are explained). For example some weapons can be used more easily by humans rather than mutants. Mutants should use light weapons like guns and knives, while humans should use heavier weapons like axes and swords. Some weapons, like hand-to-hand moves which are really only useful for beasts/monsters, uses aren’t very apparent. All though any one character can learn all magic spells, there is a set party spell limit (which is never explained), so have your mutants learn specific types of magic and only teach your humans the necessities. Also because the uses/battle power for any item are never explained the game requires a lot of experimentation on which items you should equip.
Now that I’ve explained to you the basics of gameplay (someone had to) so now I can get into the cooler aspects of the game. The game has a cool, Chrono Trigger-esque time travel system that lets you travel into the past, present, and future worlds. This is not only a unique feature but is a god-send because each world is comparatively small. What makes it so cool, however is how well thought out it is. Not only can your characters turn themselves into cyborgs, but they can also equip lasers and light sabers. The coolest thing, however, is your time-traveling ship, the Talon. The Talon serves as your base of operations and as you progress and aquire more parts you can make it like your own flying town and can even use its weapons in battle.
The Graphics:
Similar to the NES games in almost every way. The biggest difference is that the battles take place in first person (as seen in Dragon Warrior) allowing for greater monster detail. Oh yeah, and the game is black and white.
The Sounds:
Lots of harshly electronic tunes. If you’ve ever played an older Mega Man game it’s sort o similar to that.
The Multiplay:
Zip, but I suppose you could always pass the game back and forth during battles Crystal Chronicles style.
The Replay:
The special classes may give you incentives to play the game over with a different class, but otherwise it’s a one time affair (like most RPGs).
The Bottom Line:
Final Fantasy Legends III is a very unique, fun, poorly translated, and confusing RPG and I would probably rank this behind Pokemon as the greatest Gameboy RPG. So in that sense if you love Final Fantasy and abhor the “kiddy” (call it what you want, doesn’t change the fact that it rules) Pokemon series, this is a definite must have for your Gameboy collection, and I recommend it to anyone who likes old-school style RPGs. Just be aware that you should keep Gamefaqs handy because of a whacked-out learning curve and poor translation that often leaves you wondering ‘who are these people, what am I supposed to be doing next, and why isn‘t ____ working the way it’s supposed to?’.