Ever go on a date with an old friend? It's a little familiar, a little odd, and a little nostalgic, all packed into one. I've just returned from such a date. PRANG gave me the number of my old pal, Final Fantasy Adventure (otherwise known as Seiken Densetsu 1). It's a fun little game by my memory, but let's revisit it once more and see what shenanigans we can have with it!

You start out as some colosseum fighter or somethin', beatin' up feral cats. Actually, this screen is a blast of nostalgia in and of itself for me. Back in the day, we rented games from video stores, and this was one I recall having borrowed. I never really got terribly far, but I remember this cat. It's like the hunchbacked feline is etched into my memory. Kind of odd, but what do you expect from a person writing dumb game reviews to the ether for funsies?

Poor thing needs a ball of yarn...and a chiropractor

So this is an action-RPG game, kinda like if Zelda and Final Fantasy had a kid together out of wedlock and decided a name change was enough to hide it from their parents. You go around beatin' junk up with an array of weapons and upping some stats that affect you in ways I'm still not really sure about. But higher numbers are good, so keep fighting!

Also, all the enemies are adorbs <3

Along the way, you get pulled into all manner of quests, most of which just keep kind of piling on with no real warning. Like, you have to protect the Mana Tree from an evil dork, but then you also have to save this girl. Oh, but to do that, you have to get this potion. Better find some Dwarf to get through that one cave. Got the pot? Oh! But the girl's now gone, better go find her. You got her? Oops, she's stolen again. Now you need a boat? It just keeps piling on, and you just trudge through it all happily.

This about sums up the logic of this game's plot

The translation is alright. It's not the most verbose or expressive game, but what do you expect for a game boy title? Most characters are pretty rigid and ambiguous, which is a feat to have both at the same time. Still, you get the info you need to progress, so that's all that matters.

Though sometimes the banter gives a sensible chuckle. About sums up my views of current politics, too, buddy.

I'm sure she's fine

The story is only one part of the game, though. What about the combat? Well, it's pretty fun. You get a bunch of different weapons, and each has its own strengths. There's magic, too, but unless you focus ONLY on it, it's really only used when an enemy is immune to physical damage. Which, unfortunately, happens a lot. Meh, you can ignore most enemies anyway. The bosses, though, are pretty nice. They're a good balance of challenge and fairness. They're pretty simple, too, but it's ok in my book. And I have a pretty good book, if I do say so myself.

Excuse me, I didn't know we were playing Castlevania again...!

There are puzzle elements with the weapons, too, as they unlock different ways to traverse the world. Axes cut down trees, flails hookshot you across gaps, sickles cut weeds, and other interesting mechanics act as the gates preventing your progress. This is a nice touch, though it's a bit annoying to constantly switch between weapons.

Okay, I should have enough wood to craft a workbench now

One of my major gripes is the inventory system. You only get 16 slots for items. This fills up stupidly quick, and when you need to tote around junk like Mattocks (for destroying walls), keys (for unlocking all doors everywhere?), and other miscellaneous quest items, there's little left for the healing and offensive weapons you gain along the way. I just end up binging on candy and potions like some sugarhigh junkie wizard on Halloween. Like, can't we just have one slot for all potions instead of grouping them up in little batches of 3?

Come ON, Amanda, why you gotta take up so much pocket space? I have more pillows I need to hang onto in case we have a sleepover pillow fight.

I got about a third of the way through the game I guess, which means this game is pretty long! That's not a bad thing, as, despite my bickering, it's actually a lot of fun. I was tempted to play through the whole thing again, but we have other games out there that need dating! I can't just settle on you, Gayle, there a whole sea of fish out there and I need to throw my hook back in there! Or like invest in a net, I guess? Also, are we casting from shore or trawling? What lures do I even have in this dang tacklebox? Man, dating is hard these days.

I think this is the only game I know of that has an entire cave as an NPC. This makes me unspeakably happy.

Well, I'll call it here. Go play this game if you haven't! It's pretty fun and definitely merits a second date. Soak in the crazy laundry list of side quests and all the old time RPG elements for a taste of what 90's gaming has to offer! Let it swirl around in your mouth and savor it. It pairs well with this Sprite of Passage, so take one of those, too!