Originally debuting on the Super Nintendo under the moniker of Final Fantasy 2 in the US, it was eventually ported to one of the PS1 compilations and renamed Final Fantasy IV, to follow the numbering that was brought in line with the Japanese versions after Final Fantasy 7 released. Eventually a port was created for the Gameboy Advance, one that had quite a few annoying bugs, and now we have not only a port, but also an honest to god 3D remake on the DS.

Final Fantasy IV DS follows the path of Final Fantasy 3 on the DS, by taking a former 2D sprite based RPG adventure and updating the visuals to the 3D realm. However, you can tell that Square Enix has managed to get a better handle on what the DS is capable of doing, and the visuals in FF4 are improved from what we saw in FF3. That's not to say Final Fantasy IV DS is the prettiest game around, but for the most part everything looks pretty solid. They've also introduced some CGI cut-scenes that feel a bit out of place with the blocky, cartoon style 3D models, but still the overall presentation is pretty.

If you've never played Final Fantasy IV before, it holds a special spot for quite a few older gamers as one of the earliest Japanese RPG's that put a heavy emphasis on story and characters. The prior Final Fantasy titles were more focused on giving you generic character types, Black Mage, White Mage, Warrior, etc, and allowing you to name them and even play them however you would choose. However, this freeform style of RPG gameplay sacrificed story and character building, and for the most part the early games in the series feel a bit hollow.

FF4 DS introduced a varied cast of characters that most players will remember to this day, like the Dark Knight Cecil, his somewhat unstable friend Kain, the Summoner child Rydia, the impatient and vengeful Tellah, and many more. The title was unique for not speaking down to the players, but instead introduced powerful themes of love, vengeance, betrayal, and even death. I personally remember being astounded during my first play through at how I had never played anything quite like it before, even though I had played a few RPG's in the past. As much as I really enjoy the game though, I wasn't sure if I was looking forward to playing through another version of the same game I've been playing on and off for 15 years, and thankfully Square Enix managed to change up just enough to keep things interesting, at least for one more go.

This time out, in addition to the regular classes and abilities that everyone has, you can obtain special items called Augments, which allow you to actually customize your characters a bit. Augments will typically add small stat boosts, but the better Augments will even add abilities to characters that typically wouldn't be able to use them, since they're usually just under one particular class. You can even find some Augments that will grant enemy abilities, allowing you to toy around with new spells and powers.

A few new quests have also been added, some of which flesh out the stories of each of the characters, and one quest that features the character Namingway, usually featured in the Final Fantasy games as a tool to rename your characters.

Rydia also gains a new summon this time out, one that you can actually customize and level up, sort of like a Final Fantasy style Pokemon. You can go so far as to change the appearance of this summon, along with its abilities. You can fight against another players version of the same summon using the local wi-fi DS connection.

Also, Square Enix has pumped up the difficulty this time out, obviously taking into account the players that have been through this story many times before. Some of the boss battles will play out a bit differently than you might use to, and even the normal enemies can be a bit of a pain if you're unprepared for the fights. That's not to say this is going to be one of the hardest RPG's you've played, but it can definitely surprise you at times, especially if you're used to the old SNES difficulty level. Because of this, there is a fair amount of grinding involved, particularly once you reach the midway point of the game. If you're not a fan of running in circles to level your characters, this could be a detractor for you.

For the most part I enjoyed this port of Final Fantasy IV, and it's definitely the best of the bunch. However, the game shows it's age, even with the graphical overhaul, compared to some of the newer RPG titles on the market. The changes are enough to warrant another play through, even if you've put more time into the game than anyone else probably should, but it doesn't change enough to make it into an entirely different experience. The lack of actual innovation is what keeps it from being a stellar title, but it's a game that most RPG's enthusiasts will want to add to their DS library.