Editor’s note: This review was written by Colin Renfroe, a 23-year-old student at Full Sail University. Currently working toward a degree in game design, Colin obtained a degree in psychology from Stonehill College in 2009. He’s been playing games since he was 5, and he’s owned every system since the NES was released. Hopefully, after he graduates, Colin can continue his studies toward a master’s degree in game design. He eventually hopes to enter the gaming industry and make a positive mark on it.

Final Fantasy VI tells the story of Terra, a young girl born with magical powers who must band together with a resistance group known as the Returners. Terra and the Returners must stop Emperor Gestahl and Kefka from starting another Magic War that hearkens back to the destructive War of the Magi from more than 1,000 years prior. Throughout the game, I encountered numerous characters that eventually joined my party. From a huge cast ranging from a rabid boy living in the jungle to a ninja with a hidden past to a destructive yeti, >Final Fantasy VI boasts one of the largest playable character libraries of the Final Fantasy series.

From the opening sequence of the Magitek units marching through the snow to Narsche, I knew I was in for one amazing game. Squeezing out every last drop of power from the Super Nintendo, this game showed top-notch graphics juxtaposed to an amazing opening track from Nobuo Uematsu. Every area throughout the game is beautifully designed and drawn. I was able to explore a harsh desert, frozen mountain peaks, a ghost forest and even the inside of a giant monster. Despite being made for the SNES, this game is one of the most visually appealing from a graphical standpoint. Since there is such a large cast of characters, I was rather pleased to find enough variety between all the PC designs as well as the Esper designs.

The gameplay mechanics are very vast and vary depending on which PC is in the party. Each playable character has his own special attack. Sabin can perform Blitz techniques, including a pummeling and body slam. Cyan calls upon his bushido training to slice and dice his enemies to pieces. Edgar, being the tech-savvy ruler he is, calls upon an arsenal of tools to dispatch his enemies.

Along with the unique techniques, the battle system follows the tried-and-true method of an Active Time Battle. Players have the option to attack, defend, use magic, run away or use the special technique. Also, depending on who is in the party, I was able to choose among a melee heavy group, a caster heavy group or a hybrid, which maintained a nice balance between the two. All players can equip a weapon, shield, body armor and helm. They can also use two relic rings. Knowing how to combine certain relics can easily turn the tide of even the hardest fights. One of my favorite combinations was Genji Glove and the Master Scroll, which allowed me to attack eight times in one turn.

Story-wise, Final Fantasy VI may seem rather cliché. Good guys set up resistance group; bad guy stops at nothing to annihilate resistance group; good guys finally succeed. Yet when looking deeper at the game, we come to realize that every character was fleshed out with a proper backstory. The main villain Kefka is probably the most maniacal antagonist in the history of games, and literal destruction of the world blows this story out of any cliché consideration. I was completely thrown back the first time I saw the world end and the game switch over into the World of Ruin. I also loved the fact that the player had to go and find all of his friends again. Some characters could even be ignored in order to beat the game, but I’m a stickler and had to find everyone.

Although some characters may seem stereotyped, the use of flashbacks and dialogue brings the player deeper into the game and allows us to empathize with the PCs. Shadow, for example, is a ninja for hire. Throughout the game, he comes and goes from the party dropping small tidbits of information about his past. But every so often, I would stay at the local inn and be rewarded with a dream sequence of Shadow’s past. Is he related to the young girl Relm and her grandfather Stragus? The more you sleep, the more fleshed out Shadow’s story becomes. All these small details have been added to every playable character in the game except for the yeti Umaro and the mime GoGo.

As far as a role-playing game goes, Final Fantasy VI is by far the most enjoyable one I have ever played. It introduced me to the genre as a whole and has remained a staple in my gaming library since the first time I played it. It’s no wonder the game has been ported again and again since its inception. Iterations of the game can be found on the SNES, Gameboy Advance, PlayStation and the soon to be Nintendo 3DS. If anyone needs a reason to at least try the game, they have to look no further than the famous Opera scene that has even been turned into a 22-minute live-action performance. Despite being more than two decades old, this game has stood the test of time and warrants at least one play through.

Finally, I must admit that no game has moved me as much as Final Fantasy VI. As the end credits roll and players escape the destruction around them, I felt tears fall down my cheek. The “The End” screen came up, and I sincerely hoped there was more for me to do. Sadly, the game had really ended, but it opened up the possibility to go back and relive the entire experience again. If you want a game with moving music, graphics ahead of its time, a stellar cast with enormous depth, and rich historical significance in the gaming community, then you need to find a copy of Final Fantasy VI as soon as you finish reading this.