HSUP B TCELES

... A Magic Spell? Two of my best video game memories were of the game Final Fantasy, for the NES. It was a really awesome game at the time, and I got it maybe a year after it came out. The two things i remembered most happened at about the same time in the game. They both made me obsess over that game until every character had reached level 50 and I had beaten it with soundly with many different parties.

The first thing one notices when turning on the game is that there is no title screen. There is simply a "new game" or "continue" menu. Odd. The thing in the story is, you adventure really doesn't begin until after the first (or rather zero-th) act (after you save the princess). You then see the title screen. I thought "Wow, what an awesome idea. I get it! The game hasn't started until then! This is going to be so cool!"

So then once that occurs in the game, you continue on in the adventure, and you go north of Corneria, to Matoya's Cave. You "talk" to a broom there. It babbles out "HSUP B TCELES...A Magic Spell?" Obviously, it says "Push B Select". Doing so on the "walking around" map brings up the World Map. At let me tell you, at the times of the NES games, that was awe inspiring. You are this tiny little spec in this huge world. Right there, with the casting of that secret little spell, I was hooked. I still remember to this day that small revelation, and thinking "B SELECT? Okay, i'll try it." And then boom!

The original Final Fantasy is still one of the best simple console role-playing experiences of all time, for it's story, intricacy, and the ability to squeak out every last bit of atmosphere from the cartridge.

Push B-Select, and be hooked.