In this episode our heroes determine which was the better RPG. Final Fantasy 2 or Phantasy Star 2? Find out in the latest episode of Console Wars! Facebook: / consolewars Twitter: / consolewarsguys
+Tei Citan I'd love to see this too. Being a big fan of both and played through them multiple times. FF is still the better game though IMO. Currently playing through Phantasy Star 3, which will not win any console war challange...
Y'all, I'm the one who suggested this match-up. I have to say that, even 10 years later, it still feels surreal to see this video and my comment highlighted. Honestly, thanks for that.
Also surprised you guys didn't talk about the *kind of spoilers* deaths that happened in each game. It was kind of groundbreaking at the time to kill off one of your party members. Personally, PS II's death hit me more in the feels.
The death was surprising, but everything around the death was even more brutal - the ending is also very interesting as well. FF2 pretty much wrapped everything up with a bow. PS2 is a pretty depressing game (in a good way).
Everyone is talking about Final Fantasy VI vs Phantasy Star IV. I will wait for Final Fantasy (NES) vs Phantasy Star (Sega Master System). Any chance to do it someday, Console Wars guys? :D
Have you played the MS version of Phantasy Star? It's an impressive piece but it's VERY unforgiving and some directions are just plain wrong. Let's not forget that you can skip a good chunk of stuff just by following these same incorrect directions. (Road Pass glitch) Final Fantasy... Wow, what a tedious grindfest. That's all I have to say.
best ending goes to phantasy star 2 and remember Nei died way before they did the same in final Fantasy 7 ;) When Nei died her very soul became part of the weapons used to deafeat Dark Force.
Great video! While Console Wars focuses on Super Nintendo games vs. Sega Genesis games, perhaps it could be cool to make a video comparing these RPGs' prequels, with NES's Final Fantasy 1 vs. SMS's Phantasy Star 1.
I don't know why you guys came out with this ...Phantasy Star 2 its a early 1989 game and Final Fantasy II (IV) its from middle 1991 ...two years ahead? you guys when too far there!
Phantasy Star 2 can save any places with an one item, has some vehicles too.Anyway, Nobuo Uematu composed Final Fantasy 2's music, but he was surprised at ActRaiser's music was composed by Yuzo Koshiro at that time. So he made new music from the biginning.
To be fair to Phantasy Star II, it was actually released (in Japan) on 03/21/1989, while Final Fantasy 2(4) was released (in Japan) on 07/19/1991, so it's not terribly surprising that FF 2(4) would win in a direct head-to-head. FF3 would probably have been a more realistic match-up, since it only came out a year after PS2. Understandably, the difference in power between the Genesis and the NES was so massive as to render that comparison almost a forgone conclusion, but the 2-year bonus in the development cycle (of FF4) at that point in time was absolutely huge, especially since PS2 was released only 15 months after the original Phantasy Star came out on the Master System.
Phantasy Star II came out in Japan just 3 months later after Final Fantasy 2 for famicom, and the difference is HUGE. I mean, at least consider the time it was released people...
The time is indeed important, but to be fair to FF2 (2), the power differences between NES and Genesis were enormous. Sega programmers may not have had as much experience to squeeze every last bit of power out of the Genesis as the Square programmers did with the NES, but the memory capacity difference alone allowed PS2 to put up things that were ridiculously better than anything on an 8-bit console.
it's like comparing apples to apples that are 3 years old. no kidding people are going to pick the newer apples. both of these games are my favorites of their respective series, but a more fair battle would have been Phantasy Star IV to Final Fantasy IV (same game) or Final Fantasy V.
I really don’t like that non-turn based battle system. I just don’t like it. I play RPGs for the turn based battle, it’s nice and you can relax without having to worry about having good reactions or being rock slow. I’d much rather play Phantasy Star’s battle system.
Console Wars I know, And it wasn't a shock FF won, plus I do own both and FF6 is really expensive, if you really wanna blow peoples minds find a hack English version of FF5 and do it with fantasy star 3
Console Wars Final Fantasy Anthology on PS1 has a version of FF6, or there are handheld versions. And all four Phantasy Star games are very cheap on Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection on PS3/360. If you want a true original comparison then you are out of luck I guess. But you still might be able to compare them.
Final Fantasy 3 is not expensive around here. Both of our local game shops lowered the price to around 30 for both ff2 and ff3. I asked why and they said that they can't sell them for more due to the numerous re-releases over the years.
Darn, was hoping for PS IV versus FF VI, since I thought it would have been a more fair battle (even in terms of music). But eh, I'm just glad to see another of your videos ^_^ And no hint for the next video? :(
Console Wars Brehs....its been over 4 years. We ever going to get that PS4 vs. FF6 matchup? Considering the amount of years since this was posted...might be a good idea, yeah?
7:19 Call me crazy, but I actually enjoy you guys' reviews better than their's. This series is so thorough and goes into every little detail of each game.
I haven't done the list yet, but this one feels like a top 10 favorite Console Wars episode. It's a good introduction point for new fans, as it's early enough to make you feel like you haven't missed out on any of the lore, it's got a tight and lean narrative, the song is great, it's funny, the chemistry between Sega and Nintendo works well, and the games picked are from two popular IPs from a popular genre (JRPG).
@@untested3344I always found Chinbi looking characters very stupid and ugly, I guess its all nostagia. Either way it looks bad you can't even distinguish their body parts, their limbs are just nimbles lmao and their heads are as big as their bodys, *shrugs* . They also look very kiddie and are a horrible representation for bad ass characters.
I might be wrong, but it seems to me the Nintendo guy (Sorry, I know you guys are Greg and Dan, but I don't remember who is who) is not a fan of RPGs. He keeps playing the "repetitive" card a lot.
Nobuo Uematsu creating the type of music he did within limitations of the consoles he worked with is comparable to someone successfully painting The Sistine Chapel with nothing but crayons; not only is it something of the utmost difficulty to create art of that magnitude in the first place, but there's a real sense of awe and beauty when it's made apparent that it was done without the resources one would normally have for the job at hand.
Also, sorry if my wording on that comparison was shitty. Point is, Nobuo Uematsu is a master of his craft and the Final Fantasy soundtracks are not only some of the greatest video game soundtracks of all time, but some of the greatest soundtracks of any medium.
You know. This really isn't a fair comparison between two games. The FF2 for the Super NES wasn't made during the same time as PSII. And its still called FF4 now. They should've just compared the Original FF2 with PSII just to show the Positives and Negatives of both games since they came out around this time.
I started losing faith in an unbiased opinion when I heard "RPG Game" within the first two minutes. I will admit that FF2's sweeping musical score is outstanding but even by then the medieval setting was done to death. PS2's music was well fitted to the theme of the game.
It depends on how you define better, if you're coming from the pov of FF being the default, that is inherently unfair. PS2 has bigger, brighter, better defined and executed sprites, while FF is darker and i guess going for grittier, it looks pretty boringly typical and chibi for that era of JRPG. The FF2 score is nothing special if you're not nostalgic for it, typical noisy orchestral SNES sound. PS2 is utterly unique, a masterpiece of the system, the era, and the technology, that inspires electronic musicians to this day.
Phantasy Star II is possibly my favorite game of all time, but I admit that Final Fantasy IV was overall a higher quality game and has aged much better. I really wish someone would do a proper remake of Phantasy Star II (proper meaning without a mutilated soundtrack -- the Playstation 2's version violated the music in ways that should be considered criminal). If someone could tackle a lot of the issues that were brought up and update the visual style, the result would be incredible.
@@GiordanDiodato Yeah the story of FF4 is actually really dumb. Doesn't hold up to 6-10. Like how cid kamikazes off the airship, then he's still alive 5 seconds later for no reason.
D Saber result would have been the same... FF4 is in the upper echelon of FF games and the FF games are considered the best RPG games... it just not a fair comparison imo.
I click on the video thinking, "Final Fantasy II vs Phantasy Star II, this aught to be interesting." I end up cackling like mad when it turns out to be Final Fantasy IV vs Phantasy Star II. I knew it would be no contest.
graphics: phantasy star. music: phantasy star because it fits more appropriately to the art style. final fantasy 2's music sounds way to pretentious for its colorful art style but despite that being said, the music does stand alone as a classic in it's own right. story: phantasy star because it was totally original compared to final fantasy, that which added to it's usual formula of evil empire that's being controlled by a universal evil. game play: hands down final fantasy 2. phantasy star 2 is absolutely draining when your navigating the dungeons and fighting robots as well as anything from the towers. so my final thought despite all the good that's in phantasy star 2, I'd still have to go with final fantasy 2 as the overall better experience because we play games for enjoyment, not for crazy difficult dungeons and monsters that give little or no reward. Side note: I always wished for square and sega could collab on a project but obviously put square in charge of game play. nice video guys.
Seeing them side by side, and hearing them side by side, I am very surprised that Final Fantasy II won both Graphics and Audio. Phantasy Star II had more vibrant sci-fi visuals, and music good enough to listen to outside the game. Final Fantasy II had music and graphic good enough for the game, but not so good I'd ever listen to it outside the game. Final Fantasy II however always was my favorite 16-bit Final Fantasy game, and a very cool game. A comparison of the two unpopular games Phantasy Star III and Final Fantasy Mystic Quest would be interesting. Relatively unpopular, but both had their merits. I always thought Final Fantasy III was extremely overrated, I'd rather see episodes that include games like Breath of Fire or the 7th Saga, they could go up against the Shining Force games. I think Chrono Trigger would be the best game to pair with Phantasy Star IV, Chrono Trigger VS Phantasy Star IV for best 16-bit RPG ever would be awesome! Also, Illusion of Gaia vs Crusader of Centy would also be awesome!! If you ever do 8-bit games, original Final Fantasy or Dragon Warrior vs the original Phantasy Star could be interesting. Hell, if you included the powerbase converter on the Genesis VS regular SNES the original Phantasy Star could probably go up against Arcana. Something about those two I think would go together very nicely.
Something worse about the Phantasy Star 2 Dungeons is if you're playing it in Sonics ultimate genesis collection you dont have a map so confusion is even higher...
I happen to love both of these games. I played them both around the same time, and have played them many times since. But I prefer PSII. You say it's not rewarding but I disagree. Is any game really? What you get from it is up to you personally. PSII was and is something different, and set the course for better and for worse of what JRPGS would become. FFIV or II, is just another fantasy setting. I do dig the steampunk elements as scarce as they are in FFII. You also cheat a little, all the towns in PSII look the same? But not in FF? That's a load of crap. You also claim that no equipment is found in the dungeons this is false. The Gires items are indispensable for the latter half of the game and they are found in the dungeons, as is one of the best swords in the game.
Phantastic (with ph) guys! You did a great job. Let´s try a comparision between the last one of the series for both systems. Phantasy Star IV for the genesis and Final Fantasy VI for SNES
I have to go with Phantasy Star 2's music and graphics. If you follow the story it explains why it looks the way it does. Also you do get vehicles in Phantasy Star 2. I don't know what version of Phantasy Star 2 is being used here but a real Genesis sounds way better than this.
I played Dragon Warrior 1 thru 4 and Final Fantasy on NES back in the day. I discovered that I liked those much better than Final Fantasy II or Final Fantasy Tactics and nearly all other RPGs including modern ones. I'm looking forward to giving the Phantasy Star series a try as I totally missed out on them!
I loved Phantasy Star II,only that i mind are those over complicated dungeons,i needed to dowload maps to find my way in dungeons,without them i'm lost and hopeless...
Final fantasy 2 (4) is the only Final Fantasy game I like. The Phantasy Star series is brilliant. Phantasy Star 1, 2 & 4 are tied for me. Phantasy Star 3 unfortunately was made by a completely different team, but at least the story is still good and it ties in very well to the complete story. Epic.
How does Phantasy star 2 not have any payoff? I found it to be one of the most satisfying RPG's Iv'e ever played. For instance, It has one of the most intriguing endings Iv'e ever seen.
Comparing a game from 1989 with one that came out in 1993. I would be actually shocked if Final Fantasy IV was worse with a 4 years advantage. A fair comparison would have been to Phantasy Star IV, which came out in the same year.
This is a terrible comparison. 2 years separate these games to start with. It would have been more accurate to put Phantasy star 4 against ff2/4. Better yet, the original Phantasy star vs original Zelda. Phantasy star 2 is a good game but was definitely rushed a bit. The original has no equal in the 8 bit era. Phantasy star 4 is probably the best of the 16 bit era as well. Don't get me wrong. I love the old school ff games, but comparing these 2 aren't exactly apples to apples. They are just too different in style/ theme and time.
Ff iv was out in middle 91, and ps iv at late 93, yeah. Great comparison . The most right one would be ff iv vs ps 3, and all of us know you would win.
Final Fantasy 2 is easier to navigate and play, and in some cases looks better; but the story of Phantasy Star 2 has one of the best stories ever written to this day. This is not a good comparison, but the story and tone in Phantasy Star 2 makes it the clear winner. Of course I can barely play either of these games by today's standards, so story counts for alot here.
Phantasy Star 2 Hands DOWN is the winnner in comparison. The Music ALONE is a Mega Driving force for why, Phantasy Star 2 is the better R.P.G. Then when you add the STORY of PS2..THAT needs to be a MOVIE
I beat Phantasy Star II back in 89-90. It took me until end of my freshman year in high school. I just bought the genesis classics game for ps4 and I'm playing the game again. I forgot how hard the game was. I never played a super Nintendo back in the 90s I was a diehard sega player so I had the master system, then upgraded to the Genesis and never played the SNES. I still have the original Master System and Genesis, they work great. I finally bought a super Nintendo and I like it. I'm already at level 11 and I'm gonna try to beat it. Then go to part three and four.
If you're going to make a comparison the games should be comparable. There are two years between these games. Phantasy Star 2 released like 3 months after Final Fantasy 2, but you chose to compare it to Final Fantasy 4. Either compare games from the same time periods or compare the best of each series, which while Phantasy Star 2 is good, most people would point you towards Phantasy Star 4. This comparison is like comparing Blake Stone to Quake.
Sega is and always will be my favorite game company ever! However, I have to agree with you on this comparison. Here's why: PS2 was amazing for its time but the dungeons and mazes (I hate mazes) were extremely frustrating! That hint book was essential to beating the game. The music is very good and the battles were great too...however, very repetitive. FF4 was what really got me into jrpgs. I agree with everything you said about the game. Plus it was my first time EVER feeling sorry for a villain (Kain..not really a villain, but you get it). Kain was by far my favorite. I honestly don't think you should put PS4 VS FF6 because FF6 improved upon EVERY aspect of FF4! And don't even get me started on that damn FF6 music..Too good (especially in Narshe)! Sega and Nintendo really need to get into bed together and make that Dream console! They would seriously rule the world!
isn't this a little.... unfair? seeing as phantasy star 2 was a year earlier and is the 1st 16 bit rpg for america and europe?.... these things should be the same game... or at least share the same name and cone out at the same time...
It might be a little unfair but there do share a lot of things in common. Sometime you gotta change things up a bit. I mean, both games are RPGS and have "fantasy/phantasy" in the title. They were begging for a comparison.
Console Wars That's how you justify it? Why don't you compare Tattoo Assassins to Mortal Kombat then? I mean, both are fighting games that use real people images as characters, and both have a lot of finishing moves.
In a comparison of these two I would say: - Graphics: Both have their flaws, but I definitely think PSII's are better, because although its cities and dungeons can be repetitive, the animations of the monsters and characters make this game a better visual experience. So PSII wins in this aspect. - Gameplay: Both have major flaws of the time in their mechanics and have not aged well at all: The ATB system in FFIV was never well implemented and will always be better than the turn-based system. Although PSII still had some basic problems of the first turn-based system, as you could not perfectly choose the monster you wanted to attack. So the two are evenly matched in this aspect. - Dungeon Designs: FFIV dungeons were much better and really didn't cause frustrations when going through them, unlike the ones seen in PSII where exploring these dungeons without a map or guide could be frustrating. So FFIV is better in this aspect. - Music: The music of FFIV seems better to me, although PSII also has some pretty good tracks: So FFIV is better in this aspect. - Story: Neither game really aged well in this aspect. FFIV's story is very cliché and has quite a few poorly developed moments with a bad conclusion. PSII's story is poorly explained in the game and some key moments are only explained in the official guides published in Japan. Still, I think I give this point to PSII, as its world setting is less cliché and it has some really memorable moments like the ending and the death of a certain character. Overall, both are games that have not aged well by today's standards or compared to the best of their console generation. Although they were good games during their time and are still better than many jrpg's released during that console generation. But I would recommend playing FFVI or PSIV better than these two, because they are a better experience in any aspect.
Phantasy Star II is My Favorite RPG of all time, my 1st dog I ever beat full thru... FFIV is my favorite 2D FF but hands down ill always go 4 Phantasy Star II...
These comparisons are good for a retro perspective and without doubt in most cases the SNES released 2 years later will usually win out. Gamewise, I'm sure in these kind of comparisons they both have merit and so the stronger platform can give it the edge overall. Usually when Sega wins a game on both platforms, its because of the level of TLC put into the game as the hardware isn't quite as strong overall. With Phantasy Star 2 its a bit of an odd one especially at the time the game. PS2 was a first for a major character perma-death, it was at the time the largest RPG cart, it was a first where the dungeons were so large and complex that it came with a massive hint book, it was a first with an ambiguous ending leaving a lot of discussion around whether the party died or not and whether certain allies were actually traitors. The emotion that came with the last point and the permadeath character being a first was unparallelled at the time. Nowadays it might be the norm but it was so different then and such a shock. At the time, nothing compared. Now, winners would be games like Chrono Trigger really.
love this show so much I know you guys are sega and Nintendo but I was wondering if you guys will ever do episodes with other systems like N64,PS1, and Dreamcast one day.
One general note, as fun as the video is, it is far from a fair comparison. Final Fantasy IV came out over two years after Phantasy Star 2 in an era where two years of game design best practices was an eternity. It's actually quite impressive PS2 holds up as well as it does considering. I mean look at the difference between the original JP Dragon Quest 1 to DQ3 to see how fast things were changing back then. Heck, Phantasy Star came out a little over a year after the OG Dragon Quest and looked a full generation ahead.
I had a Genesis growing up and will admit I have a bias for Sega. But I will try to be as objective as possible here. FFII vs Phantasy Star II, if we're talking about the actual FFII, then it's a bloodbath - PSII just crushes it. If we're talking about PSII vs FFIV, then it's probably a tie - but because of the abundance of RPGs on SNES (whereas PSII is one of Sega's best), I give the nod to PSII. Call it charity. Lastly, I disagree when you said that FFIV is one of the best games of all time. When a game isn't even in the top 3 in it's own series, let alone console, you can't say it's one of the best all time. No doubt it's an incredible game, but FFVI and FFVII (and maybe even FFIX) crushes it.
Whilst I really like the soundtrack of Phantasy Star 2, Final Fantasy 2 blows it out of the fucking water and into interstellar space! The music is technically incredible compared to PS2 and sounds fucking beautiful.
It's not really fair to compare these two because Final Fantasy 4 came out 2 years after. While the real Final Fantasy 2 came out around the same time as PS2.
Man, those cut scenes are sexy; Nei is cute. Great video. I like the the different take on the format. Just gonna throw it out there: NHL 94 Genesis vs. SNES.
You should consider listening to phantasy star II music in a genesis model 1, wich has way better sound chip. the music in the video sounds like crap. you must have been using the genesis model 2 for it
You guys could try all 4 WWF games that are on both SNES and Genesis (WWF RAW, Super Wrestlemania, Royal Rumble, and Wrestlemania the Arcade Game) next.
Awesome video guys! Thanks! Please, make a video comparing Donald in Maui Mallard VS Maui Mallard in Cold Shadow, or, Bugs Bunny Rabbit Rampage VS Bugs Bunny in Double Trouble!
I have an idea for a Console Wars video: Zombies Ate My Neighbors for SNES and Genesis. The SNES version can be a bit pricy, but it is on the Virtual Console these days and the Genesis one can be found for under ten bucks usually. Either way, I think that would make an awesome video, especially around Halloween time. Nice vid by the way. Keep up the awesome work guys!
Some ones to consider: Eternal Champions vs. Killer Instinct Vectorman vs. Donkey Kong Country Mortal Kombat 2 (SNES vs. Genesis) Earthworm Jim 2 (SNES vs. Genesis) WWF Raw (SNES vs. Genesis)
I loved Phantasy Star 2 for the first 10 hours but then the grinding mazes really just wore me out and I didn't finish it. Final Fantasy 2 is better designed overall.
As someone who grew up with FF4, I'm gonna disagree. Didn't play phantasy star 2 until 20 years later, but once I did, I realized it was the better game. FF does have the best music though, no contest.
Phantasy Star 1 is better then Final Fantasy 1.. I had to hand draw maps on graph paper to get through the nearly impossible maze dungeons on PS.. a truly unique challenge.. graphics are great and some of the music absolutely bumps. I actually like ps1 better then 2, it's good but a little boring.. but 3 is way better then both.
