Blog

  • Why “FFV” Central?

    Your Questions Answered

    For clymax’s projects, click here. You can also follow him on YouTube.

    Q1. Is this site official?

    A1. No. This site is unofficial and unaffiliated with Square Enix.

    Q2. Does this site only cover Final Fantasy V?

    A2: No. Since launch, we have covered hacks and challenges in the Final Fantasy franchise. See the “Mods” section of the top navigation bar.

    Q3: What about other JRPG franchises?

    A3: Yes, we currently cover hacks and challenges in other JRPG franchises also. See the “Series” section of the top navigation bar.

    Q4: What about other game genres?

    A4: Yes, the site has been expanded to cover hacks and challenges in other game genres, such as adventure, arcade, and fighting, just to name a few. See the “Rando” section of the top navigation bar.

    Q5: What about vanilla games?

    A5: Currently, vanilla games are mainly covered from a hack-adjacent angle of challenges, exploits, etc. The focus on this site is on hacks and not squarely on vanilla.

    Q6: Then why the theming based on Final Fantasy V?

    A6: Final Fantasy V was the game that spurred the efforts by fans to create the first major English translation romhack.

    Our community at Final Fantasy V Central aims to carry this kind of hacking spirit and creativity forward to the new era.

    We hope to inspire a new generation of players and hackers—just like how we were inspired when we first got our hands on a copy of the quintessential translation romhack by Myria, SoM2Freak, and harmony7, collectively known as RPGe.

    No matter how many times we expand our scope of coverage on the site—and we’ve expanded many times now—our vision remains the same, hence the keeping of the name.

    Q7: Where can I learn more about this RPGe romhack?

    A7: See the resources below.

    1. RPGe‘s English translation patch for Final Fantasy V
      https://www.romhacking.net/translations/353/
    2. How Three Kids With No Experience Beat Square And Translated Final Fantasy V Into English
      https://kotaku.com/how-three-kids-beat-the-odds-and-translated-final-fanta-1794628286
    3. The Untold Drama and History Behind Final Fantasy 5‘s Fan Translation
      https://www.ign.com/articles/the-untold-drama-and-history-behind-final-fantasy-5s-fan-translation

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  • Hacking Academy

    Pilot Program Launched

    For clymax’s projects, click here. You can also follow him on YouTube.

    Are you a beginner interested in learning how to hack roms of your favorite games? Having trouble grasping assembly coding on your own? Read on!

    Registration

    1. To join the hacking academy, the player warrants that he or she is new to romhacking. Coding experience in another discipline, e.g., web development, is OK.
    2. The player must not have had any publicly released hacks in the player’s name, in a way that credits the player as a hacker.
    3. The player must have passion for or fondness for the Final Fantasy franchise.
    4. Sign-ups are taken via a dedicated thread in the Discord. Please note, a player may be denied entry for any reason or for no reason.
    5. Especially for the pilot, enrollment may be limited and subject to availability.

    Making Your Hack

    1. If a player is accepted into the academy, the player will be given one calendar year to make a new romhack.
    2. The romhack should be of one of the following games: Final Fantasy I-VI.
    3. The romhack should be for one of the following systems: NES, SNES, and GBA. To be clear, Pixel Remaster (Steam/PC) versions are not accepted.
    4. The romhack can be any type of hack. Examples include comprehensive, improvement, levels, graphics, sound, bugfix, etc.
    5. The player is required to submit a hack description and seek approval by one or more mentors before commencing work on the hack.
    6. Please note, hack descriptions that correspond closely to a feature in one of clymax’s private hacks will likely not be approved.
    7. Important: assembly coding MUST be used in making the hack. Using an assembler and using binary editing are both OK. To be clear, only using game-specific tools is not acceptable for purposes of this program. Using such tools in conjunction with assembly coding is OK.
    8. Choice of debugger must be approved by one or more mentors. This is to ensure availability of a mentor well-versed in the debugger chosen by the player.

    Evaluation and Awards

    1. The player is required to submit the hack by the one-year deadline for evaluation by one or more mentors. The player may be required to explain how the hack was made.
    2. Hacks will be graded on a pass/fail basis. Please note, the decision is final and cannot be appealed.
    3. If the hack passes evaluation, the player will receive the “Certified Hacker” title from FFV Central’s Hacking Academy. Title recipients will be memorialized on the website. The title will also have a corresponding Discord role. The hack that passes evaluation will also be commemorated in a Hacking Academy Hall of Hacks on the website. This will also constitute the player’s graduation from the Hacking Academy.
    4. The player retains any and all rights related to his or her work on the hack. We kindly ask that FFV Central be given credit alongside the player in the hack, but this by no means a requirement and is up to the player.
    5. Terms of the program are subject to change from time to time to suit the needs of program.

    So, what do you think? Comment below, or come check us out on Discord.

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  • Series Showcase: No Random Encounters

    Whirlwind Family of Mods of Final Fantasy

    For the Whirlwind family of mods, click here.
    For clymax’s projects, click here. You can also follow him on YouTube.

    Final Fantasy VI: Tailwind (SNES)

    Hold A for random encounters.

    Final Fantasy V: Whirlwind (SFC)

    Hold A for random encounters.

    Requires game clear and Encounters OFF in Config.

    Final Fantasy IV: Downwind (SFC)

    Hold B for random encounters.

    Final Fantasy III: Crosswinds (FC)

    Hold B for random encounters.

    Final Fantasy II: Upwind (FC)

    Hold B for random encounters.

    Final Fantasy: Headwind (NES)

    Hold B for random encounters.

    So, what do you think? What’s your take on random encounters in JRPGs today? Comment below, or come check us out on Discord.

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  • Romancia: Awakening Released

    For clymax’s projects, click here. You can also follow him on YouTube.

    The Romancia: Awakening mod on Famicom is now in Early Access courtesy of clymax.

    Like all of clymax’s rando mods, it’s a self-randomizer, so just simply reset the game to play a new randomization.

    A release build for Romhack Plaza is being considered, or you can get early access to the dev build on Game Jolt.

    Development Build: Features

    You no longer need the blue orb to go past the first barrier.

    Key items are now randomized.

    Seeding not yet supported. Duplicates can be rolled.

    So, what do you think? Which platform do you think has the best version of Romancia? Where do you think Romancia ranks in the series? Comment below, or come check us out on Discord.

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