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  • Self-Randomizer Showcase

    Brought to you by FF Rando and FFV Central

    For the self-rando hall of modders, see here.

    Co-organized by FFR and FFVC and hosted by FFR on Twitch

    FFR on: Twitch | YouTube | Web | Discord

    FFVC on: Web (you are here) | Discord

    Pilot Season

    Note: plans and details are still subject to change.

    1. Headliner: Super Mario 64 Randomizer (N64) – April 5 | VOD
      Runner: RisingPhoenix64 | Twitch | YouTube | SRC
      Commentator: LudwigVonKoopa | Twitch | YouTube | SRC
    2. Final Fantasy: Headwind (NES) – April 19
      Runner: Robby’s Lobby Hobby Gaming | YouTube
    3. Fire Emblem: The Binding Blade: Self-Randomizer (GBA) – August 1 | VOD
      Runner: happytact | Twitch | YouTube
    4. Secret of Mana: Tremors (SNES)
    5. Final Fantasy Mystic Quest: Mystified (SNES)
    6. Lufia & the Fortress of Doom: Fortified (SNES)
    7. Final Fantasy II: Upwind (FC)

    Season 2

    1. Headliner: Kid Icarus Randomizer (SNES fan port) – May 24 | VOD
      Runner: Maniacal | Twitch | SRC
      Commentator: Rumbleminze | Twitch | YouTube | SRC
    2. Advance Wars 2: Self-Randomizer (GBA)
    3. Final Fantasy III: Crosswinds (FC)
    4. Fire Emblem: The Blazing Sword: Self-Randomizer (GBA)
    5. Pokémon Emerald Inexperienced (GBA)
    6. Lufia II: Rise of the Sinistrals: Arise (SNES)
    7. Final Fantasy IV: Downwind (SFC)

    Season 3

    1. Headliner: Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones: Self-Randomizer (GBA)
    2. Pokémon Emerald: Party Randomizer (GBA)
    3. Final Fantasy V: Whirlwind (SFC)
    4. The Battle of Olympus: Item Randomizer (NES)
      Runner: Karma1 | Twitch | YouTube | SRC
    5. Final Fantasy VI: Tailwind (SNES)
    1. Not yet locked in. ↩︎

    Season 4

    1. Headliner: Castlevania: Symphony of the Night Integrated Randomizer (PSX)
      Runner: Crazy4Blades | YouTube | SRC
      Commentator: Mottzilla | YouTube | Twitch
    2. Bionic Commando: Item Randomizer (NES)
    3. Dragon Warrior: Ablaze (NES)
    4. Willow: Item Randomizer (NES)
    5. Ys III: Wanderlust (NES)

    A follow-up season can be considered to cover roguelikes.

    Runners and Commentators

    If you’re a runner or commentator of one of the above games in vanilla or rando and would like to showcase a run of the game’s self-randomizing mod in this pilot series, see below.

    1. The showcase series is currently being planned for a monthly schedule of one to two games per month. The start date is still being determined but will be announced when known. Update: series kicked off April 5.
    2. For example showcase runs, see FFR’s YouTube channel here.
    3. One or two show hosts may be present during your run, and there may be introductory and/or closing segments and/or some interaction during the run. This depends on host availability so is by no means guaranteed.
    4. Both speedruns and challenge runs are acceptable. For other types of runs, speak with clymax for an exception to be granted.
    5. Live audio commentary in English by you or by a guest is required. Update: an exception can be made to accept prerecorded audio commentary to improve commentary quality.
    6. Live play is optional; gameplay can be prerecorded.
    7. Face cam is optional.
    8. Full runs are requested.
    9. As a guideline, previous showcases have often had runs ranging from 1.5-2 hours. But other run lengths can be acceptable as long as audio commentary keeps pace with the run.
    10. Runners and commentators who are interested, please reach out to us via the FFR or FFVC Discords. Contact clymax if you have any questions.

    This post has been viewed 400 time(s).

  • Final Fantasy II

    The Most Bizarre Speedrun in All of FF?

    syo is a content creator specializing in analyzing the techniques used by speedrunners in FF games. You can follow syo’s projects via YouTube, Twitch, or Patreon.

    No, not Final Fantasy II (IV) on the SNES. FF II on the Famicom.

    Remembered more for its unconventional (by FF standards) system for character progression than for its existence in the 8-bit era of gaming, FF II gets a special treat for fans, in the form of a feature video from FF-speedrun content-creator syo. (The system would later find a new home in the sister franchise, SaGa.)

    Speaking with FFV Central about what prompted the video to be made in the first place, syo says:

    I became fascinated with the NES version when I learned about the use of the poison status to skip encounters.

    The whole idea is what hooked me to make the video when I first found out about the speedrun.

    Tactical Toxicity

    We at FFV Central certainly didn’t know why staying poisoned would make a run go quicker (before watching syo’s video, that is).

    All we could imagine was the punishment of playing through an RPG with the screen continually blurring in and out (or, apparently in this case, with audio blaring).

    On what else stood out when making the video, syo says:

    For [the] glitchless [speedrun category], I was surprised to learn that it’s significantly faster to have Firion solo carry the game, it seems wrong but it’s just how smart people figured out how to abuse the progression system.

    Here at FFV Central, we’ve also seen the surprising effectiveness of solo carries versus party-oriented approaches, and it’s interesting to see this strategy come up in FF II.

    For instance, notorious in the community of JRPG achievement hunters, the All Party Combinations Subset for Final Fantasy on Retro Achievements1 was ultimately designed to require party members not only being alive but also being within a certain level range of one another.2

    On what syo may have done differently in the video, syo says:

    Something I wish I’d touched on a bit more too is that on the overworld, encounters are always after a set amount of steps, so its very fast to just save 1 tile before an encounter, get the encounter, and then soft reset.

    This tricks the game into thinking you got the encounter and lets you continue walking freely.

    Sounds only slightly harder than entering the menu to do the same in the overworld in FFV. And much easier than memorizing a step route (typically the fastest option).

    Leaderboard Denied

    Speaking to FF Central further, syo lamented the lack of a recognized speedrun category for FF II’s English mod, despite some of the fascinating quirks this game offers to players. Says syo:

    I’d really like to see . . . [interested] reader[s] . . . try their hand at speedrunning the game. The [FF I & II speedrunning] discord is a great place to get started, and with enough interest, the goal of getting these categories made will come naturally.

    What do you think? Are you a fan of FF II on the Famicom? Do you think there should be a speedrun category for FF II in English?

    A Plan Forward

    If you have ideas to help make the leaderboard happen, check out the speedrunning Discord mentioned above or reach out to us.

    For example, for the English mod to both be eligible for a category and attract runners, the English mod would need some playtesting to confirm that all the time-saving glitches in the Japanese version remain intact in the English mod.

    It’d be preferable that such runs be recorded so that they can serve as a reference for the leaderboard moderators.

    Some measure of the time difference between the Japanese and English versions should also be documented.

    The modding team at FFV Central can investigate porting these glitches back over from the Japanese version if needed.

    This post has been viewed 28 time(s).

    1. Bravo to our community members who have bested this subset on Retro Achievements. A feature post may come soon. ↩︎
    2. But only after one of our modders (solidification) raised solo carrying as being a potential exploit, to the achievement author. ↩︎

  • Final Fantasy V Advance

    Bonus-Jobs Run by Supraprika

    Supraprika is a content creator specializing in covering FFV and challenge runs. Supraprika’s challenge runs are co-commentated with friends. You can follow Supraprika’s projects via YouTube.

    Fans of FFV may know that the Advance version locks four new jobs behind the endgame.

    Three of the jobs require collecting the four tablets in the Merged World.

    The final job requires beating the final new superboss.

    But what is it like to do a full run using just the bonus jobs from start to finish?

    Yes, a challenge run in the style of the Four-Job Fiesta, modified to access the jobs from the start.

    Using a cheat code1 for this purpose as confirmed when asked by FFV Central, Supraprika answers that question in this video.

    What do you think? Should there be an achievement for completing this run? What’s your favorite bonus job?

    1. Our modding team after an independent investigation believes this can be done via RAM writing value 0x80070080 to memory address 0x200DF7C. Unlike other codes available on the web, this one is intended to unlock the bonus jobs without also unlocking the vanilla jobs. Reach out to us if you need troubleshooting assistance. ↩︎

    This post has been viewed 27 time(s).

    Want help with this or other cheats? Check out our cheats pilot here. We also offer multiple FFV mods on SFC that let you unlock jobs early.

  • Comprehensive ATB Enhancement for FFVII

    The Comprehensive Active Time Battle (ATB) Enhancement mod for Final Fantasy VII (PSX) now has a release candidate available courtesy of RoSoDude.

    Players who wish to playtest the release candidate are invited to stop by our Discord.

    An announcement will be made when the mod is formally released.

    This post has been viewed 18 time(s).