Lucky enough to snag a US copy a few days before release, it called out to me. “Come on, give me a try. I know you’ve been waiting for this. It’s been almost 10 years!” That’s what the box was telling me. It was playing on my emotions on that after 10 years; it’s come back to me… like it never left. I wanted it to be utter bliss. I wanted this experience to be mind numbing; to make me a believer again. I wanted to experience the magic that only Final Fantasy could give me. But… something wasn’t right. It was a Square-Enix game. It was a different kind of Final Fantasy.

Now, as I sat there, I thought to myself; “Okay. So they merged. I don’t mind at all. Two of the greatest RPG makers, ever, together as one; Aw, hell, I’m down with this.” But that wasn’t it… that was the good thought. What I was worried about was the game itself. Was it really a Final Fantasy? Was what I’ve been waiting ten years for, sat enclosed in that little box, really the game I’ve longed to play? Sadly, the answer was no.

Deep within the dark recesses of my mind, that answer struck forth like a shot to the skull. As I slowly picked up the box, I carefully opened the shrink-wrap and set it aside. Taking one last look at the box, I must admit; it made me grin. But would I be grinning for long? Would the feelings rush me as I experienced the first Final Fantasy on a Nintendo system since the good old Super Nintendo era? I slowly clicked the disc into place and before I knew it, the crystals were waiting for me.

So, it was me and Final Fantasy. One on one; man to game; the way it should be! As so I thought, anyways. Then it started; my adventure. The adventure I’ve waited ten long, hard years for! But again, something wasn’t right. This… isn’t Final Fantasy. Those words echoed in my subconscious like a broken record. It wasn’t as if the game was bad, it was good… but, it was lonely. Where were my steadfast party members that I could rely upon? Where was the bad guy that I loved to hate so much? Where was that one wise-cracking party member that always got on my nerves? Where was the magic? Where was Final Fantasy?

That answer was nowhere to be found. I looked at the screen and asked myself why? Why did it have to be this way? Why couldn’t Square-Enix give me what I wanted? The answer escaped my questioning. It escaped, that is, until I decided to invite fellow staffer and good friend, Gina Mazzone over to my humble place of dwelling and contemplate that infernal question with me. And so it goes my friends, the start of something new...