Should I play this or the GBA version?

I'm excited to play this game finally. Which version is better? Are there less edits in the GBA version? Is there something about the SNES version that makes it better? I'm curious to know so I can start playing tomorrow.

Or should I start with the remake of IV on the DS? I've never really played a final fantasy game other than II (IV) and I was like 8 years old.

Either version is fine. GBA version has some fixed bugs and new dungeons / items / summons / enemies, so that might be the better version for you.

I wouldn't recommend to start with FFIV DS. That's a more complicated game than this is.

Basically whichever you can get cheaper or on the console you prefer. But assuming all else is equal:

SNES:

- Better colors, bigger display, much better sound quality.
- Unmodified Woolsey translation. Whether that's a pro or a con is up to you, but most folks like his translation.
- Full of bugs. Most won't be really noticed unless you know about them. A couple can be exploited pretty badly if you choose to. Does not impact the game as badly as you might think. If you emulate, the vast majority of these can be patched, and you can even cherry pick which to patch if you like some of the bugs (believe it or not, some of them are pretty likable).
- Minor censorship vs Japanese version. Namely, one character's loli scene gets toned way down, a couple of monsters get bikinis over their boobs, and a couple monsters mysteriously have cigarettes but the smoke has been removed. You almost certainly would never know about this if you didn't look it up. If you emulate, this can be fully patched.
- Arguably better control layout due to 6 button controller.
- Like many SNES RPGs, item and some monster names are abbreviated for space.

GBA:

- Washed colors, inferior sound. Nothing you can do about this, it's the compromise of being on a portable. Emulated versions can be patched to fully restore this if that's what you're considering.
- Modified Woolsey translation, uses most of his text but a few phrases are changed. Most fans are either ambivalent or prefer the full Woolsey.
- Still full of bugs. Some of the exploitable bugs are fixed, new bugs are introduced, others just went unchecked.
- Some censorship undone, namely the pseudo-nudity is restored, not that you're likely to notice. A couple lines are slightly more blatant than before but nothing major. Oddly, a new instance of censorship is introduced, carried over from the Japanse GBA release; this instance actually rewrites a scene to avoid showing violence against a woman. Some fans don't care. I do, though. No patch exists for this.
- Control scheme is modified for the GBA by necessity. Doesn't really hinder gameplay but it could be viewed as less comfortable.
- Names are far less abbreviated, some names are changed to be more clear about what they mean. Spell names are changed to line up with names used in later FF games rather than older FF games.
- Minor point: character "jobs" are restored to the status screen. Not that jobs have any meaning in this game, characters are both unique and generic at the same time, but the Japanese SFC release had them for flavor and this has them too.
- The big one: bonus content. A few new spells, most of them useless. A post game super dungeon with bonus super bosses and "ultimate weapons" (almost all of which are useless, believe it or not), a post-post game arena thing that lets you get copies of some ultimate items, a post-post-post super mega ultimate boss that isn't as hard as the previous post-game-ultimate-boss, and the ability to beat the regular ol' final dungeon as many times as you feel like (allowing for multiple copies of the real ultimate weapon if you so choose).

Frankly, the bonus content is pretty gimmicky but still not that bad. The SNES has better technical specs. Both have some form of censorship (the SNES version can be totally patched away, though); it's your call which is more egregious, in neither case are they really worth getting up in arms about. Translation is a matter of taste, item and spell names are just what they are, etc.

Play whatever version is more convenient for you, I'd say. The differences are there, but they aren't going to make or break the game.

This isn't like, say, FF2us vs. other (2D) versions of FF4 where its a significantly different experience due to the former being hit with a huge nerf stick in multiple ways.

I would recommend against FF4DS. Its a game that feels on one hand meant to adhere to major fans of FF4, but on the otherhand, also made to screw them over at the same time (yes, referring to the way Augments were handled) and its difficulty is handled in some of the worst ways possible, being ridiculously inconsistent. Plus its somehow LESS balanced than the original FF4 unless you really look deep into the augment system.

Wow! Thanks. That was really awesome. I am a nerd about the music so I will probably go snes. I didn't realize I get find a patch to fix the edits via emulation. That's what drives me crazy. I'd like to play as true to the original as possible. I was more interested in the gba version due to less edits but now it looks as if I have no choice but to go emulation if I want the real thing. Thank you.

Also thanks for the FFIV info. When the time comes I will play the snes version. I was just curious because I thought they did a great job with chrono trigger on the DS.

Well, Chrono Trigger, despite being on the DS, is closer to the "Advance" series of the FF games than it is the 2 DS remakes (FF3 and FF4)

Its the same game, more or less, just with some added features here and there. The core game is more or less unchanged barring a few minor things here and there (FF1 is probably the most drastic of a change, due to the job rebalancing and what not, but lets not get into that. Still falls into the "Advance" series)

FF4DS is a straight up full fledged remake. Its the same game in terms of plot and dungeon design, but the mechanics, gameplay, etc. are all changed drastically. Its like a completely new game that has the same plot, characters, etc. as FF4.


If you want to play FF4, I recommend FF4 PSP if you have a PSP. same game but with better graphics, bangs out kinks in the game like bugs, and I believe it upgrades the music, at least instrumentally. It also has all the bonus content of the GBA version.


EDIT: Oh yeah! Further proof that CT is more like the "Advance" series than the DS series:

CT DS was made by TOSE, which also made both the PSX ports and the FF "Advance" series.
FF3 and FF4DS were made by Matrix software.

We'll either:

a) Really enjoy the game and want to eventually play both versions, or

b) Not like the game and it won't matter which version you play anyways.

But I suppose I'd start with the GBA version for the additional content and bug fixes. I vastly prefer the original SNES translation but that seems to be an unpopular opinion lately. I just think the SNES translation is a lot more interesting/entertaining and "realistic" than the GBA translation which I guess is more "pure." I don't really care if the GBA translation is more accurate if the SNES translation is more enjoyable, and even then I assume that mostly refers to weapon/armor/magic/etc names. I really doubt "Weapons of Magi Destruction" was part of the original Japanese dialogue. The GBA version is full of lame attempts on humor such as that.

this, so you can abuse sketch bug and vanish/doom. 255 dirks and paladin shields.