Dawn of Souls - How is it?

[FinalBob42]

Is it a good way (read: the best way) to enjoy FF1 and FF2?

Also, is the music at least as good as it was in the original games?

[Captain Maxx Power]

The music is vastly improved from the NES versions. The only change I don't like is the reshuffled Boss music for FF2.

As for the actual playing of the games, I'd say that for a real FF1 experience, go play Origins. The difficulty of DoS is so low it's gone beyond a joke. FF2 remains almost identical to it's predecessor, so it's really up to you if you want to play it or Origins.

[FinalBob42]

Is the music better in Origins or Dawn of Souls?

EDIT: Also, how much harder is FF1 Origins over FF1 DOS?

EDIT2: Also, Origins isn't one of the PS1 compilations that has the ugly loading times correct?

[Venom65437]

It's been a while since I've played origins but I'd say if you played both you'd notice the difference in how hard it is, but both are far from impossible, IMO.

I don't remember TOO much about the loading times either... so that must mean they weren't great, but not terrible either.

[Hayabusa]

It's GREAT! Escpecially FF2- since I'm on the go a lot and busy I have one free period in school so I can play DoS and it's great but again, that's if you're all over the place - FF1 I think...I would have like to played it on the PS - But also with 2 - But yeah, I have both I think they're both a great investment. :)

[Sjorn]

I've got Origins and Dawn of Souls; I just play DoS more since I can play that on the move. :tongue:

I don't really know if the difficulty in FFI has changed, I never played the original.

[Reine]

THe music is ultimately better in Origins of course. For pure fun play DoS. For a challenge, play Origins. Also, the load times are almost nonexistant on GBA and amazingly fast on Origins

[Mikeneko Rocker -- Tim]

As for the actual playing of the games, I'd say that for a real FF1 experience, go play Origins. The difficulty of DoS is so low it's gone beyond a joke. FF2 remains almost identical to it's predecessor, so it's really up to you if you want to play it or Origins.

FFI DoS = FFI Easy Mode Origins. When I noticed one of my friends playing FFI DoS in his DS, I noticed that the HP goes all the way to 999, MP goes double-digits, and the level goes to 99 --that's how I recalled it; I might be wrong.

[Captain Maxx Power]

FFI DoS = FFI Easy Mode Origins. When I noticed one of my friends playing FFI DoS in his DS, I noticed that the HP goes all the way to 999, MP goes double-digits, and the level goes to 99 --that's how I recalled it; I might be wrong.

Seriously, DoS is even easier than Easy Mode Origins, especially when you factor in all the new gear available. And you're part of the way there, MP actually goes up to triple digits also.

[Crossblades]

DoS is very enjoyable. I recommend it:)

[Reine]

White Wizard 999 HP 999 MP Level 99

lol

[Carmilla]

I hate DoS for the GBA. Origins is a million times better in my opinion.

The non existant difficulty that everyones talking about ruins the game for me.

Theres Hi-Potions. Monsters drop potions. Mages are ridiculously overpowered with the new mp system. Theres like 3 swords STRONGER than the Masamune. And theres a staff which gives you infinite Nuke.

Not to mention the thief hits just as hard as a knight does. :eek: :eek: :eek:

[project X]

I like DoS because I can play it on the go, although I'm biased since I've never played origins. But it's a good buy, I think.

[dirkdirden]

I desided to go buy it. I have been playing the NES version since it came out in 89.

DOS is fantastic. WAY TOO EASY. But still fantastic. Can't wait to get into the 4 new levels, and try out the new wepons.

MP system total kicks ass, and makeing the theif a complete bad ass is nice as welll. Playing this game will make it hard to go back and play the NES version.

My only problem is that the Fighter should have Solid red hair.

[Mikeneko Rocker -- Tim]

FFI DoS = FFI Easy Mode Origins. When I noticed one of my friends playing FFI DoS in his DS, I noticed that the HP goes all the way to 999, MP goes double-digits, and the level goes to 99 --that's how I recalled it; I might be wrong.

Seriously, DoS is even easier than Easy Mode Origins, especially when you factor in all the new gear available. And you're part of the way there, MP actually goes up to triple digits also.

Now I'm officially turned off, given how disgustingly easy that game is.:mad2:

[boys from the dwarf]

it has better graphics. more advanced everything, 4 extra dungeonswith bosses from FF3,4,5 and 6 and its much, much, much easier than the original FF1. FF2 though is still just as difficulkt as far as i know. ive not played the originals but FF" had some very hard parts. their both great games and if you dont want to buy origins for PS1 or the original for snes/nes (was there ever a nes version?) id definetly buy DoS.

[Garland]

You have to think of what made FF1 good, when you decide what version to buy. What were FF1's perks? The plotline? Not to many. The gameplay is solid, but then, so is the gameplay of every other FF. In my oppinion, FF1's perk was its challenge. FF1 doesn't really offer anything other FFs haven't offered better except one thing: when SE made FF1, they didn't care if you saw the ending. The cutscenes didn't comprise 2/3 the budget of the game creation. FF1s perk is its unapologetic relentless challenge. EXP come slow, and monsters come frequently. FF1 DoS removes FF1's one defining quality. FF1 DoS is a fun game, but only for nostalgia. It's not "FF1" to me. It's "Dawn of Souls". FF1 was tedius, frustrating, challenging and deliberately inconvenient at any given opportunity, and the masochist in each of us loved it for it.

[Blackmage__]

I thought DoS was really fun, but REALLY ridicously easy, i got level 45 without even trying or noticing, boss battles last about 1 turn, but i was using a wm/bm/ftr/monk but even so...The graphics are 5 times better then the old tho.

Still if you want a challenge go with 4 thiefs or 4 white mages or something like that :D actually 4 white mages would probably be the hardest. I still found it fun!

Not to mention it comes with FF2 which i played for a few min(havent had time to try it) and it seemed harder then FF1...

[ocdblackmage]

DoS was pretty easy, even for never hving played the original NES version, lobger character names were nice, but it was a lot easier, especially if you're into the mages.

[KainHighwind]

DoS is too easy. The Theif is way too strong, and MP/Ethers make Magic a lot less challenging. You can save anywhere, and on the whole, it basically feels "kiddified" or "cartoony" or soemthing. Origins isn't that hard either,b ut at least it's a little truer to the flavor of the opriginal. It's still too easy, tough..

If you want a decent challenge, go play the actual NES version - keep in mind that on the NES, you can only save with a Tent/Cabin/House or Inn, Your characters will attack enemies that are already dead, and the worst thing of all.... If you want to buy 99 potions at once, it'll take you half an hour to complete the transaction! :p

I'm not saying FF1 is the hardest RPG experience ever, but it's a lot tougher in its original form. Oh yeah, and don't use a Fighter. It'll be a lot more "brisk" of a challenge without the old sword-loving redhead in the mix.. I think that I'll be doing this shortly.

[Lawr]

"You can't spell slaughter without 'laughter'!"
I didn't know where to put that phrase...so I put it randomly.

[Angi-Kaiser]

There are always ways to boost the dificulty level. Like, play through the game as a solo Red Mage (no class upgrade).

[~SapphireStar~]

It is ok for something to play whislt travelling around. And £30 isnt bad for 2 games.

[ValiantKnight]

**possible spoilers I guess**

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Everyone's accuracy seems increased. some just barely.. some siginificantly.

My Black Wizard was geting 6 or 7 hits, which I dont remember in origins.

Black Belt has been cut in half.. his damage is weakened, and his armor growth.
Do not play a black belt in this game.. a Fighter is much better.
My Master is 62, My Knight is 63.
Normally as far as I remember.. a Master would be doing upwards of 2500 at this point.. but my Master keeps struggling to break 1000.. normally hitting 700-900
My Knight by contrast is doing 550-800.

Spells are no longer randomized and seem to be based on intelligence.
Dia1 always does 57-60 damage for white mage, not 20-80.
Later on after getting the healing staffs.. it was odd to note that black belt used it for 28-33 to all, white mage 46-50 to all, and black mage 56-60 to all. This was a staff and it drew power from intelligence stat I guess. Spells seem to do 75% of their effectiveness, maybe 80%, if intelligence is normal.. IE say the original range was 40-160, it averages 120-130 damage 100% of the time unless resistances from enemy.

HP growth for white mage seems very high at first, and she/he overtook my fighter.

The regular game is EASY... EASY EASY EASY.
Potions dropping from enemies.. random gear dropping from enemies.
Buyable Hi Potions, Buyable ethers(i think), buyable Phoenix Downs, buyable EVERYTHING. No more just G Needle, Potion, antidote. Now with hi potions, Echo something(cures silence), Phoenix downs, Ethers.. its just crazy.

However, there is one place where the difficulty isnt easy.
The extra dungeons pack a good punch.
The upper levels of these dungeons are cake.. and random battles are just an annoyance(tho i've only been through earthgift and whisperwind so far...(dang whisperwind was long))

In the last 30% of these dungeons, the enemies ramp up pretty strong.. random enemies were hitting a 74 absorb Knight for 120+(200-300 on mages) it seemed. Also there were Flare casters in whisperwind. and yes flare does 300-400 damage even with ribbons. And they came two at a time.. thats a potential 600-800 damage in one turn

The extra bosses were hitting my knight for 300+ and it hurt a good bit.
However Blink, white robe, Rune Staff(or heal staff before that), Protera...... repeat this about 6 times... and evasion and absorb were high enough that I didnt get hit much and it was more like 50s-150s instead of 200-500. Extra bosses also have the range of 10,000-40,000 ~ ish hp too. Giant Gloves x 5 + haste and my BB was hitting for around 4000, same for knight. it took quite a few turns to whiddle his HP down.. but once defenses were up, and offense boosted, it wasnt too hard.

[KainHighwind]

Yes, the White Mage's HP growth is ridiculous. Mine is on level 14 and has like 280 HP, meanwhile my level 13 Red Mage barely has 100.

[Omega weapon123]

didn't play origins but played DoS, the only thing I like is that u can make as many combinations of parties on their. mine is fighter,red mage, white mage, and black mage( just started off)

[Sefie1999AD]

I have a party of Thief, Red Mage, White Mage and Black Mage in FF1 DoS. No Fighter, but so far, it's been quite easy, and my characters gain levels very quickly. I haven't played it for a while, but I'll probably play it some day because of the extra dungeons. I actually like it that the Thief in DoS is doing damage so well, now he's more useful in battles. :p Otherwise, I think the WSC version is still my favorite. It's like FF1 Origins minus great music quality plus faster gameplay, no annoying translations (what's translated of the game is almost directly from the NES version) and no upupup or downdowndown bugs. As for challenge, I thought FF1 WSC was even harder than FF1 NES.

[Avarice-ness]

I'm over here killing Kraken in the Chaos shrine as we speak. One hand game, one hanf EoFF. I do have a problem with the whole "OMG FIEND TIME" when I'd walk up- He's dead. - to a staur... HOLY MITTENS MY WHITEMAGE WAS DEAD?.. staircase..... *Deranged laughter*There no phoenix downs.. Hhahah.. Hahahahha... ... when you go up to the stair case and get attacked by the fiend, in this case Kraken popped up a good 20 steps from the staircase. .. This so wrong. Well.. now that my white mage is out of comisson Tiamat's prolly going to own me, and if Tiamat doesn't own me, Chao's is about to have my head on a silver platter. *mumble*

Oh but.. I'd recomend it. <3.

[Fireblade13]

Go for DoS.
-Portable
-Has FF2 which is different FF exp all together
-Extra dungeons provide difficulty (although the random encounters were obnoxiously easy and often as the dungeon is huge)
-Better graphics and higher caps
-MP system

Now if for somereason u have a NES and will risk mixing the old with the new (TECH) then it might be worth it (havent played origon).

Otherwise wait for wii as u might be able to download all the originals!

[Mikeneko Rocker -- Tim]

Say, is it possible to disable the DoS bonuses so that I can play I in tune with Origins?

[Decessus]

You could ignore high potions, eithers, all those other items, Don't level up very ofen, and only save at inns to simulate the difficulty. Besides Shinryu and Omega will probably send you straight to hell. I can hardly remember how many times I had to go through those 20 floors. Also, they did ramp up everything's HP.

[black_cloud]

I Liked It But I Didn't Get The Chance To Beat Final fantasy I because My Friend Stole it :(

[Crossblades]

Some friend >_>

You should ask for it back. If not, beat him up

[black_cloud]

LoL,he's Alittle On The Heavy Side And Has A Bad Temper,,,Thats Why I Dont Ask For It Back.......haha....I Think He Needed The Money,I Can't zblame Him For Needing The Money,For The Love of God,He Works At Mc.Donalds..LoL...But I can Blame Him For Steeling it.

[Kain911]

I have a problem with DoS and Origins. I can not beat those games, I can beat every other FF game but those two. I dont know why but they are extemely hard and I have been trying to beat them ever since I first started playing FF games which was when I was like.....5. LOL...

[deek the noob]

dude they're pretty easy once you get started off.... Ask me if you need any help , with DoS anyway..... I'm almost at max lvl for everybody and going back to get revenge on shinryu :mad2:

[Zeromus_X]

Garland pretty much put it there for me, though I will say that the (confusing) time loop ending is still timeless.

It's great to play when you have nothing else to do, and for nostalgia. Play for the secret bosses of FFIII-VI in the four bonus dungeons, but don't play it for challenge, oh dear no. Still, it's nice for a new school person to play FFI, if they can't seem to pay fifteen dollars for a copy of Origins...

I beat FFIDoS in a day, so no, you won't play it for the challenge.

[Kain911]

Holy ****ing crap....a day!!!!

[deek the noob]

dude i did in a day and a half...... Its a really easy game thats fun once you pick it up:D

[druinmaster]

a day is a unholy sin against god himself I played DoS for a while before playing the NES one followed by origins after I bought it and it works like this
DoS=
Pros=its fun not tedius and you will probably never get pissed off and throw your controler,faster levels,and the new dungeouns are nice
Cons=Every pro is a con minus the dungouns depending on your tastes

Original=
Pros=classic,the feeling of accomplishment when you finish a dungoun or certain battles,and the diffuculty
Cons=pretty much like DoS all the pros can be cons depending on your tastes

[RpgN]

People complain that FF1 and 2 on the gba are way too easy: Monsters drop items, mb system, hp goes to 999 (or was it 9999?) etc. Didn't you guys notice that these kind of things are also on FF7-X and nobody ever complained? The gba version were ment for the people who liked the newer FF games and want to try the older games. That's what I think atleast.

FF1 is pretty easy, but the extra dungeons (4 of them) are alot harder.
Also FF2 is harder then FF1 and after you finish FF2, you get and extra story from the characters who have died in the game in the dead world. And this mode is also very hard.

After you finish the games, you also get a music player to listen to all the music that you have heard in the game. And you can always view a monster bestiary if you like.

I think that you should go for the gba version, since they are 2 games in 1 and you can take them on the go.

[boys from the dwarf]

one thing i have noticed is that the people at the top of the list of characters on the battle screen have a higher HP growth and the one at the bottom has a slower HP growth im quite sure. if you play a game with 4 fighters im sure you will notice they have very different health stat. im quite sure this is correct for the DoS.

as for what rpgN saida bout FF7,8,9,10 and 10-2. there is nearly always a way to abuse RPGs to make things easy. on FF7 there is KoTR and omnislash which is why people say safer sephiorth is an easy boss. he isnt so easy when you dont have either but some people have never tried to beat him without them. in FF8, its easy once you know how to junction and refine. you can get 100 megalixirs from the bahamut card. im not sure about FF9 but there are loads of abilities thats do an instant 9999 damage. in FFX you can spend hours leveling up like mad and completing the sphere grid. the only thing thats different about FF1 DoS is that its easy nearly no matter what you do. you dont have to abuse it to make it easy.

[Duncan]

My favorite version is Origins. DoS is as everyone has already stated, ridiculously easy. On the NES and Origins i think the Black Mages misses at least half the time whereas with DoS he's hitting around 90-95% of the time. Both my thief and fighter were getting 2-hits from the start and by level 5 they were doing 3-hits.

The music in DoS is pretty much the same as in Origins, but let flashy in order to get it to run on the GBA hardware. The nice thing about Origins is that you can choose to play Hard Mode, which makes the gameplay closer to the original NES (things are more expensive and your magic level max out at 9).

Graphics-wise Origins and DoS are very similar, though I do think the characters in DoS are a bit squished relative to their Origins counterparts.

That's my take on it. DoS is nice if you are always on the go, but I much prefer Origins.

[ReloadPsi]

Origins will actually allow you to fully readjust the difficulty so that it's just as hard as the NES version; play on Normal Mode and turn off all the little things like redirection of attacks when your target dies and so on.

DoS is, as everyone else is saying, too darn easy, but that in itself adds fun to it so you can try some more new parties out as you complete the game quicker and think "Right, so that was two white mages and two black mages... next, four thieves. Uh oh..."

Has anyone else cottoned on to the fact that the reason you can save everywhere in DoS is because it's on a battery-operated console?

[Paul]

Has anyone else cottoned on to the fact that the reason you can save everywhere in DoS is because it's on a battery-operated console?
yeah, that seemed obvious to me. that, and because it's intended for when you're on the go, you might have to put it away suddenly. it's maybe done better in FF4 advance, where you can save any time. but when you reload your "quick save", it will be deleted, meaning you can't dive into a dungeon head first knowing you have a restart point.

[Sefie1999AD]

I think being able to save anywhere makes the game a lot easier. The thing that made Ice Cave so hard in NES/WSC/PSX was that enemies might ambush you and annihilate your party, forcing you to restart the dungeon. You no longer have to restart the dungeon if you keep saving all the time in the dungeon. Now you don't have to buy a Sleeping Bag or go to an Inn every time you want to save the game, either. I liked FFIVA's system where you can save in the world map and save points, and create a temporary quick save if you ever have to quit playing in the middle of a dungeon.

I played FF1 DoS yesterday, continuing with my party of Red Mage, Thief, White Mage, Black Mage. Their leveling up speed is huge, I think they were on level 16-17 when I went to the Marsh Cave. o_O Buying spells for three mages is quite expensive, but since the spells are cheaper now, even that is possible. My Black Mage has almost 200 MP, and both Fira and Thundara take 15 MP, so he could cast them in almost every "tough" battle in Marsh Cave (read: jellies or a large group of enemies).

With their newly added extra hits, this team was able to defeat four Hill Gigases in the peninsula NE of Pravoka on level 15. Haste + Temper + Protect (or Invisible) = battle won. The fact that you can buy Phoenix Downs and some status-healing items not present in NES, and that enemies can drop some very good items, will make things even easier. I got an Ice Shield from the enemies in the peninsula NE of Pravoka, though I don't have a Fighter/Knight or a Red Wizard, so I can't use it yet.

In short, FF1 DoS has so far been very easy.

[Paul]

yeah it is pretty easy. i've spent like 37 hours on it and my characters are all level 99.

i've spent like 51 hours on FF2 and my best character has like 4000 HP. then spent an additional 15 hours on soul of rebirth. FF1 DoS is like a kids version a bit, but the Dos version of FF2 is regular difficulty i think.

[Kumo]

Did anybody else that played this version find it INCREDIBLY easy? However, with it was nice to kind of have a perfect translation finally (for spells and what not). Really felt like the final product (although I still think it sucks you can only get up to 999 hp and mp).

Also, what did you think about the added Dungeons? I blew through Earth Gift Dungeon pretty easily, and I just finished the new Fire dungeon too. It's pretty cool to fight against bosses from both FF Mystic Quest and FFIV. They've been the ONLY challenge thus far in the game for me and even then I didn't really have to fret.

I'm currently playing through the new Water dungeon, but I realized that at level 66, I'm going to absolutely destroy the final boss of this game . . . GBA version is toooooo easy.

[Necronopticous]

Yes, the ports of Final Fantasy seem to be getting easier and easier.

Though the GBA port, while probably the easiest port of Final Fantasy yet, is the most enjoyable so far, in my opinion. The only version I enjoy more is the original.

[Kawaii Ryûkishi]

Threds marged.

[Sefie1999AD]

Yes, the ports of Final Fantasy seem to be getting easier and easier.

Though the GBA port, while probably the easiest port of Final Fantasy yet, is the most enjoyable so far, in my opinion. The only version I enjoy more is the original.

Well, I'm not sure. FFII DoS was quite tough, and Souls of Rebirth was extremely hard for me. FFIVA had its difficulty toned down, but I think it was still harder than FFIV Easy Type.

As for FFI DoS, I quite agree with you. Even though it's easy, the gameplay is smooth and enjoyable. Walking through dungeons and towns, and also fighting battles, are all pretty quick in FFI DoS. I remember enjoying FFI Origins less because it just felt slower. I think FFI WSC is the best if you want smooth and fast gameplay with the original difficulty. FFI DoS is like a mix, having enjoyable gameplay like FFI WSC had, and having good translation and music quality like FFI Origins had (even if GBA can't reach PSX's sound quality).

[TehAnima]

I've only played I and II in DoS and even then it almost drove me insane! I guess it wasn't easy for me because it was my first play through for both games.....if I did play the NES version it would very likely kill me :p

The high encounter rate was mostly what took the fun out of it for me. This game had the worse out of all FF games!

[Kumo]

I know exactly what you mean! I'm sorta glad FFXII is getting rid of the random encounter thing and having all enemies visible on screen. In retrospect, random encounters was the worst invention for RPGs. But considering the limitations the programmers had when they were making this game, it works out for the best. But NEVER again should we gamers be subjected to such torture :P.

BTW, is Omega the most difficult Enemy in this game? I'm playing through the last extra dungeon . . . saw a bunch of FFIV and FFVI bosses waiting for me which was cool, but nobody was as hard as Omega. He actually ALMOST killed me ... almost.

[Odin2006]

DoS FFI is definitely easier then the NES version, though I think the DoS version is more fun and user-friendly; No more attacking mosters that are already dead, you can save anywhere, no more taking a hour to buy 99 potions, and the updated magic system (I prefer the MP system then the system the NES version uses) is good, so is the updated equiptment and items system.

[The Knights of the Round]

im not a big fan of handheld systems anymore. you should just get origins, its the best and if you play it on ps2 there are no loading issues, same with chronicles and anthology.

[Mirage]

im not a big fan of handheld systems anymore. you should just get origins, its the best and if you play it on ps2 there are no loading issues, same with chronicles and anthology.
That's not true on any of the 3 PS2s I've tried them on. For Anthology anyway, Origins loading times were pretty short compared to the ones in Anthology. This is most likely due to the fact that the game was remade, not ported, like Anthology. Therefore, most elements in the game that are accessed a lot would be made sure to be partially or fully preloaded. Unlike in Anthology, where it had to access the CD to display a mere menu.

[Necronopticous]

I'm hoping Finalbob42 isn't still on the fence about this, a half a year later. Save your phoenix downs for your allies, don't use them on threads!