Half a package; half the challenge.
Packing two old-school Final Fantasy titles -- one which only recently made it to North American shores -- into a single cart seems like a great value. For the most part, it is, if only for newer players to experience where their favorite Playstation Final Fantasies came from. The big obstacle here is that Final Fantasy has become a little too easy, and Final Fantasy II retains its design annoyances, to the point that only the completely curious or nostalgic will get a real kick out of this package.
The original Final Fantasy is a straightforward, no-nonsense trek with barely any character growth. It prides itself mainly on its killer dungeons and monsters, and for that it's a decent ride. It bears mentioning that, even as it's "easier" than the original, it's still entertaining enough to play in spurts, and the bonus content after the game's initial conclusion is a healthy challenge.
So, with its rigidly turn-based battles and tangible but thin storyline, and overall tepid difficulty, Final Fantasy is a nice romp down memory lane but lacks the intensity of other throwbacks like Etrian Odyssey.
Now, Final Fantasy II is all mixed up in a blender. The developers' propensity to keep in the rampant useless empty rooms in its dungeons, and willingness to throw you into a fatal battle if you venture one pixel too far in the wrong direction with underpowered characters, is just too irritating to excuse.
The leveling system is, at its core, a splendid idea, forcing you to use the item or magic types that you want your character to become adept at. The problem is that there's no formal overall character growth, meaning that there's no discernible point at which your characters grow in overall strength and ability because the traits get so specific as to demand that you level up sword-wielding and axe-wielding separately. Yes, this makes for a challenge, but it also becomes annoying to have to go back and spend time to level up your sword-wielding ability on peon enemies after becoming a master with an axe.
Were this a loot-drop game like Titan Quest, where different weapons are readily abundant and you would never be at a loss for said axes, this would be fine. As it stands, Final Fantasy II would have benefited more from more general stat increases, a system that the Gameboy SaGa games (known in the US as Final Fantasy Legend and Final Fantasy Legend II) used to a serviceable effect.
Again, this package is a good value. Final Fantasy is still nostalgic, and Final Fantasy II isn't terrible -- but it easily contends for the most flawed entry in the series. You shouldn't be scared off from picking it up if you're a fan or just want to know your roots, but be prepared for its annoyances going in.
