Topic: FFII SNES Beta Curiosities

[Grimoire LD]

On a nostalgic surge, I decided to take a look at the old SNES Manual and found a few interesting mentions of things that didn't make it into the final cut of the game.

On Page 17 they introduce Tellah and they say that he has forgotten many of his spells "He might be able to recall some spells by chance". Did they intend to put Recall in FFII SNES, but then take it out at the last minute for some reason? It must have gotten pretty far since every reference to Cecil's Dark Wave is gone in the manual.

On that same page is a reference to receiving "powerful weapons and armor" after falling down the waterfall... but there are no weapons. Was there intended to be at one point?

The most bizarre mention on this page though Has to be in regards to the Staff. "Has Rydia learned Lit? If she hasn't, come back after she has risen in Level, or have her use the Staff. Used as an item, it has the same effect as Lit.

Whoa, whoa, what? That would have been quite powerful and its not as if it would have outshone the Thunder Rod, since that has Wisdom boosting capability.

Haha! "You will obtain a Hovercraft in Damcyan. With the exception of water, this vehicle travels everywhere including through forests and over mountains." This had to be a translation mistake otherwise there would barely be a required Dark Knight stretch of game to go through if you could use the... Hovercraft... to go over mountains.

Hmm... (in regards to Antlion "Two Antannae's emerge from the ground." They show the picture of the claws snapping at Edward right above that sentence...

On Page 23 - "There are two special fields on the mountain." Eh? Isn't there only one save point on Mt. Ordeals? Or is my memory playing tricks on me?
"Milon enters accompanied by his Zombie." Hm? Only one you say? At first I thought it may have been a typo, but the group is continually called "Zombie". Did they originally intend for Milon to have only one Zombie?

I do have to say the "Et Tu Baigan!" caption is actually pretty neat and shows they put a bit of effort into this instruction manual.

The Item List is woefully poorly translated with gems like Paradin, Doragoon, wepon and Ice Bland.

The info. seems mostly right, except they have the accuracy of the Drain sword wrong (thank goodness!) they have it at 30% when it is really 50%

Blizzard Spear is actually two points more powerful than the manual says.

The accuracy for the Dragoon Spear (or they call it the Dragon Spear) is wrong. It is 80 but the manual says 99.

On that same note the Holy Lance (Called Holy in the manual, White in game) has 80 accuracy as well where the manual says 95. What odd changes.

Ogre Axe's hit rate is shown as 69% when it is actually 80% in the SNES version.

The Archer Bow has the wrong accuracy, the manual lists it as 30% (Huh...?) while in-game it is 50%. Also an interesting note is that all bows have "aerial" on them in the manual, but the only spear to even mention Air was the Blizzard Lance. Were lances originally not going to have that effect? It may have been added late since a lot of the "Air, Element" indexes come pretty late.

The Elven Bow is not shown to be effective against Mages.

Iron Arrows are listed at 3 Atk rather than the 5 they actually are.

Mute Arrows are not listed as effective against Mages.

The Whip may have been intended to have 99% accuracy, which would have made it quite useful for a guarantee stun actually! The other whips are shown with the correct accuracy.

The Assassin Knife may have been Ridiculously good! At 99% accuracy it would instant kill any thing that was vulnerable. In the final (still unused) it was dropped to 55% accuracy, but did gain some more Atk.

Shuriken's aren't shown to have aerial properties, oddly enough.

When writing about Shields I think someone mixed up the Paladin and Dark Knight, or maybe the Paladin was just not able to equip many shields? Only being able to equip the Paladin and Crystal Shield originally?

Caps are shown as an evade rate of 3% when they actually have 5%, hmm. I'm noticing a theme with 3 to 5...

The Ribbon is effective against... ribbon, fantastic work guys.

Rune Ring has 3 defense in the manual... 5 in game.

Gaea Gear protects you against "Earth"... does this mean it was intended as an element at one point in production?

Karate... 3 def in book. 5 in game.

This might be going out on a limb but in these descriptions, I don't see Any resistances to Monster Types. Does that mean they weren't included at this point in production?

Fire is listed as having 13 Defense when it has 15 in-game. (3 and 5 again.. .hmm...)

Crystal has 23 Defense when it has 25 in-game (3 and 5 again... HMMM....)

(Goes to Magic Section in manual...)

Interesting...

Heal - Heals Hold, poison... That would be worthless. Thank you for upgrading this in the final game.

They for some reason call "Hold" "White" in the manual. Same effect.

"Sage" is shown as a character who learns "White" but Tellah never learns White.

It seems that Nuke was originally going to cost 99 MP. In the end it costs 50 in-game.

Then it shows Meteo costing only 50 MP... I think someone must have gotten mixed up there.

Stop is listed at only 9 MP, but is 15 in-game.

Judging by this manual, apparently Tellah at one time had every Black/White Magic in the game.

Now Image has an interesting description "Improve defence rate" (evasion) and could apparently be cast on any ally. I wonder if that means they intended for a routine to do such a thing? The description makes it much more inline with the FOG spell of FFI.

And finally it seems that the Mist Dragon may have only attacked one enemy at one point.

Well that's all I could find from the instruction manual. I'll go back through the Reference Book that was made before the game released to see what I can find there of interest.

[Pinkpuff]

A lot of times instruction manuals would just have outright mistakes in them. Some of that could be due to last-minute changes, but I'd bank on the majority of them just being errors. I remember seeing one version of the manual that had one of the summon effects described as "blows wizard"... so... yeah...

[LordGarmonde]

The most bizarre mention on this page though Has to be in regards to the Staff. "Has Rydia learned Lit? If she hasn't, come back after she has risen in Level, or have her use the Staff. Used as an item, it has the same effect as Lit.

I wonder if they meant the Rod with its mostly forgotten "Magic Arrow" effect - that  would seem to fit. Can she use the staff as a Child, I always outfit her as I would Palom so never actually noticed. 

Does that book reference the missing mid-level Dark Knight shield -"Darkness" I think? I feel like it did - that and something else in the equipment section bothered me as I recall...though the specifics elude me. I think it was I didn't know about translation/censoring issues at the time so I wanted to know why I couldn't find the "Hades Sword"

A lot of times instruction manuals would just have outright mistakes in them. Some of that could be due to last-minute changes, but I'd bank on the majority of them just being errors. I remember seeing one version of the manual that had one of the summon effects described as "blows wizard"... so... yeah...

That's so awesome! Consider me quite jealous. I read about that in the transcript of one of Ted Woosley's interviews and I was pissed that I missed that back when the game came out - I looked around trying to find a picture of that somewhere but I came up empty.But you saw it; too cool 

[chillyfeez]

Et tu, Baigan!

Funny thing is, I played FFII many times over before ever reading Julius Caesar (and there was no internet), so for a long time I was clueless about that reference. I distinctly remember having a "huh, wow" moment about it in 10th grade or so.

There was a lot of walkthrough in that manual, huh? They sure don't make 'em like that anymore...

[Grimoire LD]

Yep, Rydia as a child can use every Staff/Rod/Whip and Knife. When she grows up she loses the ability to use Staves, she can even use the White Robe as a Child that she can't use as an Adult, oddly enough.

I'd say that its likely a mix. Some things may be genuine errors, Hovercraft, mention of Weapons in the area below thewaterfall, Meteo/Nuke MP, but manuals can sometimes display things about a pre-release version of the game. Zelda 64 is well known for this in many respects, though that not so much in text, but in pictures of the manual. (though some guides from way, way early on mentions a slightly different progression of events)

The Manual actually has up until you enter the Underground as a guide. Curiously enough it says to talk to everyone in Agart to "get the story" but then proceeds to tell you the gist of what they said a sentence later and the solution to the Magma Key puzzle. (It was Supposed to be a puzzle, it just is poorly laid out in the US Version)

[chillyfeez]

I had a thought... do you think they were talking about the secret room inside the waterfall?

[Grimoire LD]

The phrasing kind of makes it clear what they're referring to. My phrasing did not, eh heh.

"Inside this dungeon, you are carried down a waterfall. Below, there are Treasure Chests. Open all the Chests. They contain powerful weapons and armor."

[chillyfeez]

Yeah, that's pretty clear.

[LordGarmonde]

The phrasing kind of makes it clear what they're referring to. My phrasing did not, eh heh.

"Inside this dungeon, you are carried down a waterfall. Below, there are Treasure Chests. Open all the Chests. They contain powerful weapons and armor."

There sure are...a set of gauntlets, a helmet, a suit of armor and a tease of a treasure chest that doesn't even contain an I.O.U for a shield...

- That's interesting what you were saying about Rydia - in all the times playing through the game I don't think I ever tried to give her a staff. Also, I almost actually ran into White Robe situation; I have a test ROM with the party before Fabul up in the Lunar Subterrane - I wanted to go to the moon and that's who I had on me 

I was also thinking about what you worked out for solo quests as I went do to face Zeromus sans Paladin. I like that you were able to defeat that mechanism; it always bugged me too. For the short term I just stopped before hitting the trigger and went into the RAM for a quick 81 -> 8B shift 

[Grimoire LD]

The reason you probably never gave Rydia a Staff is because there's one Staff she can use in her time with the party as a Child... and its the Staff. Yeah... "Cures Poison!" for all the Zero Enemies that can inflict it on you near the start of the game.

I hated that they used All This code to kill the characters, except leave Cecil with one HP... You know what else would do that, game? The Event Instructions You Made For This Purpose!! Then you could have used a little bit of custom code to revive Cecil with one HP.

[Grimoire LD]

I love the FFIV Scenario Guide and I think there's a lot of beta ideas in there that never got off the ground and some story elements that were abandoned for better or worse.

Let's start from the beginning...

"Long, long ago...
a great light appeared in the sky.
It bathed the earth below in its warm luminance
and then disappeared for parts unknown.
Afterwards, four small lights remained
and a new planet was born in the heavens.
An evil will yet reached out for Earth,
but it remained sealed away by a strong power."

Quite a bit different than anything we see in-game! What is interesting is that this coincides with FFIV:TAY's overall plot very well... now if they would have Included this Anywhere in either game maybe the Final Boss wouldn't have seemingly come out of nowhere. Also I have to wonder at this point if Zemus was even thought up. Mainly because "An evil will yet reached out for Earth" I don't think the Lunarians looking for a new home is an "Evil will" that reached out for Earth.

"Tella <-> Rydia: teacher-pupil relationship, eventually" Here would have been a fun relationship to develop. It seems they originally intended for Tellah and Rydia to be a student-teacher relationship. The two never once talk to one another (he does at least speak to Cecil about her). I think this was a missed opportunity.

"Warriors of Destruction Who Fight with Their Own Life Force and the Powers of Darkness
The mightiest division of the Baronian Army - and one of the divisions the rank-and-file soldiers look up to and yearn to join - is the Dark Knight Corps."

Does it strike anyone else as strange that you never fight one Dark Knight throughout the game? There's a Dark Tree a Dark Imp, but no plain Dark Knight. They would have been an interesting mini-boss somewhere. (Dark Knights turned by Golbez I would imagine could be extremely dangerous foes).

All of Kain's backstory is not in Any game, and its a real shame. It's the only mention of Dragons in the plot of FFIV in the first place, they mention him being the son of a great Dragoon, but they don't expand that. Apparently his father was the master of the last trained dragon, but the dragon eventually died while under Kain's care (of old age) and it seems like the Dragoon was supposed to have a special affinity to Dragons. None of that carries over to the game.

"Wind Spear
It's said that the wind is the best friend of those who make the skies their battlefield. Therefore, the Dragon Knights are very familiar with the handling of this spear and wield it expertly. It's said to display formidable power in mid-air battle.
Blood Lance
Has the power both to stab like a spear and to cleave like an axe. Since the spear can siphon the life force from its victim's blood, its wielder can use it to heal his wounds by striking at monsters.
Flying Dragon Lance
Infused with the spirit of the nature-loving silver dragon; the spear still has the power to call forth his spirit at times. The spear is greatly effective against dragons."

Is it just me or do the Wind Spear and the Flying Dragon Lance sound like they were going to use an FFV-like Magic Weapon effect originally? Especially with the mention of the Flying Dragon Lance being able to call forth the spirit of the Silver Dragon.

Also, that description of the Blood Lance... yet its still the most worthless weapon in the game.

"Yoichi's Bow
A Japanese-style bow said to have been used by the hero Yoichi. [Note: the Yoichi referred to here is Nasu no Yoichi, a Genji archer in the Genji-Heike clan wars of the twelfth century famed for shooting a sacred fan pinned to the mast of an enemy sailing ship in stormy waters from a distance of about 70 meters at the battle of Yashima. Further info is available here and here.] Its accuracy is mediocre, but it's powerful enough to fell an enemy with a single volley. It also is said to possess strange powers that decrease attack power but increase the power of other equipment.

Elfin Bow
A wooden bow infused with elfin magic; it boosts one's agility and wisdom when equipped. It possesses great defensive powers against magic and is very effective against magic-user types. When used as an item, it emits a burst of magic power."

Whoa, whoa? What is this about Yoichi's Bow that decreases its attack power but boosts ?other equipment? how was that even supposed to work?

Elfin Bow is interesting, mainly because it doesn't raise Agility. To its credit it does cast Shell as implied here.

"Albeit Simple Tools, Splendid Weapons in Cid's Hands
Hammers are just hammers, and in the hands of everyone but Cid, their only use is as tools.
Cid, however, with his knowledge of machines, can use these hammers as weapons. He can instantly analyze a machine's structure; since he can discover all one's weak points in a single shot, it would be advisable to use them to deliver a sudden, surprise blow to the enemy. Of course, he can also exercise this ability on non-machine-type, organic enemies.
Earth Hammer
Fashioned from a special metal; the friction produced when one attacks with it creates an electric charge. It's especially effective against enemies weak against thunder. Extremely weighty; also endowed with a special feature that is said to increase one's power when equipped.
Mithril Hammer
A hammer generally preferred by artisans; also a mass-produced hammer. Cid also uses it to conduct repairs on the airships. They're advertised as being strong and sturdy, but they're not promoted as potential weapons."

Yep... they Sure are great against Machine enemies. How about all those machine enemies you fight while Cid is in the party? All none of them...

The description of the Gaia Hammer is interesting. Most of it is correct, except it is Fire Elemental, rather than Thunder as the description implies.

I love the Mythril Hammer's description because Even the game is saying "Its garbage, don't buy it."

"Various small groups of Summoners are scattered hither and yon throughout the world, but their bloodlines are weak and abilities limited." Other summoners? Well that could be an interesting idea.

"The Summoners of Mist have continually married within their own bloodlines, but that has certainly shortened their lifespans, and the continuation of those bloodlines looks doubtful. In any case, the future of the Summoners does not look bright."

Yikes...! I forgot about that rather creepy detail.

"Red Dragon
A frequently-encountered monster that lives all throughout the world, a dragon that has huge wings. Attacks enemies while freewheeling about the sky. Marked by its pure red body, its strongest weapon is its fire-breath attack, and so it is popularly called - and feared as - the "fire dragon" due to its alleged ability to command fire."

Or... y'know... nowhere In the World itself, but in the Moon, definitely.

White Dragon
"A mystic female dragon. It deals out extreme amounts of violence with direct attacks that make full use of its colorful breath and tail. In particular, the destructive power of its tail, swung with all its might, is said to be able to level an entire mountain in a single blow."

Is this the Mist Dragon? Because the Mist Dragon doesn't have a tail...

"An octopus gone mad and violent who has settled in the city sewers. It is different from other, normal octopi; through an underwater science experiment, its body's balance has been completely upset, and it has grown to a humongous size. Marked by its poisonous-looking color. Also has a hard, sharply-pointed head with which it can also pierce enemies. Normally, it entwines its enemies in its tentacles with its giant suckers, squeezing them to death."

Underwater science experiment? Sounds a little bit like something Dr. Lugae-ish...

"Assault Door
A living-door beast. At once a trap and a monster. Once one lets one's guard down and, thinking it an ordinary door, tries to enter, the door suddenly slams firmly shut, and its victim is thrown into another dimension. Then, the victim is absorbed right down to his very soul. They [the Assault Doors] lie in wait in places where people are likely to pass by, such as mansions or residences. Will not stop moving ahead until defeated."

Trap Doors that may have at one time been used for more than just the Sealed Cave? That could have been neat.

Well that's all I could reason. That was an interesting little journey to see what was left out.

[LordGarmonde]

White Dragon
"A mystic female dragon. It deals out extreme amounts of violence with direct attacks that make full use of its colorful breath and tail. In particular, the destructive power of its tail, swung with all its might, is said to be able to level an entire mountain in a single blow."

Is this the Mist Dragon? Because the Mist Dragon doesn't have a tail...

White Dragon is guarding the Murasame - very fond of the Earthquake Monster Skill - and in fact the whole thing is basically one big tail 

[Grimoire LD]

Pale Dim, hmm? Translated as White Dragon? What a boring name! Pale Dim is a pretty creative name on the translator's part. Yeah, weird for them to mention a Moon Specific boss, but then again, maybe it (she?) wasn't always intended to be there.

[LordGarmonde]

"Warriors of Destruction Who Fight with Their Own Life Force and the Powers of Darkness
The mightiest division of the Baronian Army - and one of the divisions the rank-and-file soldiers look up to and yearn to join - is the Dark Knight Corps."

Does it strike anyone else as strange that you never fight one Dark Knight throughout the game? There's a Dark Tree a Dark Imp, but no plain Dark Knight. They would have been an interesting mini-boss somewhere. (Dark Knights turned by Golbez I would imagine could be extremely dangerous foes).

I think some translations rename "Warriors" from the Cave to the Feymarch into Dark Knights - or actually it's probably their palette swapped cousins from the Tower of Zot - but I agree, not even mention of any other ones - and the people in town definitely look at you like they've never seen a Dark Knight

[Dragonsbrethren]

You fight Black Knights in the Tower of Zot, they're pretty much the same thing.

Really I wouldn't read too much into the flavor text in that guide, they had to make fairly mundane things in terms of gameplay sound interesting. No doubt things were shifted around as the game developed, but I doubt it changed all that much.