Play Final Fantasy III (J) Online

Final Fantasy III originally released in Japan for the Famicom in 1990, but the 2006 Nintendo DS version was my first real encounter with it. Developed and published by Square Enix, this remake brought the classic into the portable 3D era, a time when the DS was full of ambitious reimaginings of older titles. It felt like a substantial, proper RPG made for on-the-go play, with a visual style that was clearly of its time but charming in its own right.

You control a party of four young orphans, the "Onion Knights," who are drawn into a quest to restore balance to the world's decaying crystals. The core of the experience is exploring towns and dungeons, engaging in turn-based combat with monsters, and steadily upgrading your gear. The standout feature is the Job System; you can change each character's class at almost any time, from Black Mage to Knight to Scholar, which lets you tailor your strategy for different dungeons and bosses. The game is known for its considerable difficulty, especially in some later dungeons that demand careful resource management and specific job setups. It feels like solving a long, intricate puzzle where every battle and equipment choice matters.