You only gain JP for the Job you are in- This JP can then be used to buy abilities for that class. Although you do get a certain amount of JP to "start off" a class I believe (Clarification needed). I can say for truth that you do only gain JP for the job you're in. Also to abandon a game Go: Menu> Open Battle Menu> Return to title screen. From there you can load your saved game
Jp earning Well there are otherways to get jp as well. While your class is important to focus on keeping mind that What happens is when you gain JP in a job, 1/4 of that JP is also distributed to the other party members for that particular job, regardless of whether they are currently in that class or not. For example: You take an action and earn 40 JP. You are currently a Ninja. All other party members (in that battle) will receive 10 JP each in the Ninja class (even if they have not gained access to it yet). I believe this is mentioned in the Battle Mechanics guide
This is the correct one. Commonly termed as spillover JP. This does not count the bonus from JP Boost skill.
Now that's why I'm a squire and I have lots of chemist and black Mage JP!!!! Thanks for the clarification and thanks everyone for their answer. Just finished a 2 hour session...amazing game, really.
It is. Another consideration is that you must assign the active abilities of your current job. If you arel like me and always keep the second active slot for Items, them you are kind of limited in what you can assign from non-primary jobs. The cool thing is that you have a lot of flexibility when it cones to passive and defensive skills, so you can, for example, give your black wizard a parry ability -- that makes the job system way better here than in FF3 IMO. About the front page review: I think it's fair enough, but the writing is brought down by hyperbole. The menu system isn't really "horrible," for example, just a bit clunky and old-fashioned. It also, strangely, fails to mention the save system, which is I find to be the single best feature of the iOS version.
@squarezero I totally agree about the save system. so many times, apps are released not taking into account the nature of the device i.e possibility of interruption at any given moment. The system here is perfect and makes this a really great game to carry round with you in your pocket.
I'm starting to grasp the Job system, and I concour it's absolutely brilliant. The 'funny' thing is I really started to grow on my PCs when I lost many of them (now there are only 4, Ramza included)...I started to focus on them much more and now I call them by name, already knowing which abilities they have BEFORE trying the Act menu. Regarding the 'review' (in reality it's a 'port' review, they almost do not talk about the game itself pointing to the myriad of other PSP review, which imho is a disservice to iOS users): I must be the only human being in the World that finds the touch control implementation perfect. Really, after getting rid of the default controls and activating the full touch ones, I cannot immagine a better interface: you point and swipe, you pinch, you touch, you rotate...if I have problems to select a tile, I simply zoom in or, better, I keep my finger pressed for a second then swipe in the right direction till I center it (the whole map moves). I firmly think that if it wasn't already done on psp or psx, but came out on iOS as it is, it would be praised a lot, because a review still have to weight pros and cons, and this game has such big pros where it mostly matters (story, immersivness, depth....) that really outwoights the eventual cons (interface is by no means horrid nor it hampers the gameplay in a critical way). But myabe it's just me, I'm done with impressions....now I return to Ivalice.
As much as I love the game, I feel that the save system in this game (which is pretty nailed down) is a given. I mean, I really cannot imagine a game like this where after a 2 hour battle where you're winning, a single phonecall makes you restart from scratch. THIS would be a great con in a game so depth and long.
Let me describe my typical PSP playing experience: 1) Start up a game on my 30-40 min morning train commute. Play until we pull into my station. Sadly, I haven't reached a save point, so I pause the game and put my PSP to sleep. 2) On my commute home I get distracted by work emails and never get a chance to pick up the game again. 3) I get home, eat dinner with my family and put my son to sleep. There's something good on TV so I don't even touch my PSP. Before going to sleep I play a game on my Mac or on OnLive. 4) Next morning I remember the PSP game on my commute. Alas, I forgot to recharge it and now it's out battery. Not only can I not play then, but I also lost the 30-40 mins worth of progress from the day before. 5) That night I remember to plug in my PSP to recharge. But in the morning I forget to put it back in my bag. 6) And so on. It may sound like mere "convenience," but a good save system (combined with the easy portability of the iPhone) is what makes it possible to actually enjoy the game. It's difficult to overstate how important it is.
But it's also only noticeable because you have dealt with the unacceptable version. The fact there is a proper save system is only remarkable in that they previously screwed up that part as well the first time they ported it. This being my first port of the original, what I notice is the unintuitive and poorly implemented way you have to cancel continuing your game to continue it (who greenlighted that UI choice?), what I notice is the fact you can't just reload during a battle even though you'd think that would have been a no-brainer. Just because it was so bad in the PSP version, doesn't make the way it's done for iOS something to count as a standout feature.
I take your point, and I agree that the system could be improved on iOS. But I don't think the original save system was bad per se. It was just the product of "console" thinking, instead of "portable" thinking. On consoles saving is treated as a reward -- I remember leaving my PS2 on for days because I was stuck on a particularly tough section of a game and didn't want to lose an hour+ of progress. On portables, saving is a matter of necessity: you arrive at your destination, or run low in battery, and you have no choice. Unfortunately, many PSP and DS games are still designed with the console mindset. Take for example LoZ:OT in the 3DS, which technically allows you to save anywhere, but if you happen to run out of battery (a common occurance on a 3DS), the game sends you back to your home -- forcing you to make your way back to whatever part of Hyrule you has been previously exploring. And yes, I know that there are shortcuts: I still can't help but feel that the game is punishing me for running out of battery, which seems remarkably unfair to me. So I guess what I'm saying that even with its flaws, the FFT system is a big leap for a portable port of a console game. I simply can't take it for granted.
Squarezero, how is your experience with onlive going? Sorry, off topic I know but that just really made your post screech to a flaming halt for me. Haha. And yes, I know exactly what you describe in terms of gaming habits, except I'm even more in the iOS camp where it has basically taken over my gaming time. I have a stack of 360 games and a virtual stack of PC games I've yet to finish and I just can't be bothered.
I think I understand what you're saying and I do agree the options aren't easy to find for the average person. It is possible though, during a battle if you would like to quit the game and restart your saved game without leaving the app, cancel everything in battle until you only see your character portrait and the menu button is highlighted. Press menu, go to Open Battle Menu, Return To Title Screen, and when you press Continue you have to choose Cancel, then it will allow you to access the save files. This can also be done from the world map, and from the party arrangement during battle prep. I do agree the wording on the options cancel and okay when you get into the Continue window can be misleading or confusing, might've been a translation problem, the window above those two options explains it though it says "You have a paused game saved. Continuing this game will erase its save data. Are you sure you want to continue this game?" It should read, "Pressing continue will access your paused state. Pressing cancel will access your saved files."
Game Impressions I really don't think the criticisms of this game are warranted. The speed is great once you turn off some menu options, clear your memory, and reboot (even on my girlfriend's 2g). The text is blurry on my 4g but it is very readable. The controls are very easy once you get used to them, and the save system and multitasking are flawless. Even compared to the PS1 version, I'm incredibly thankful for the load times, which are almost zero compared to 30 seconds between everything. And the game's content and gameplay have aged incredibly well. All this needs is one good update. Fix a few bugs, tighten up menus and controls, make the text a little clearer. Maybe improve the speed. One good update and this will be perfect.
I'd argue it should just go to how most games work: both choices, load quick save OR load save file, with the warning that loading any save will delete the quick save data. There's a lot of leftover console/PSP thinking in the menus and if I wasn't so used to the way you 'B' button and shoulder button your way through all the mess after 20 years of playing Square titles on Nintendo and Sony hardware I'm sure I'd be completely bewildered by the way they've done things. In what other game would you routinely be "cancelling" (B button) to actually confirm so many things as you are backing your way through the menu hierarchy to a previous level? Flaws aside, I'm having a blast getting my butt handed to me routinely as I refresh myself with the franchise's mechanics and learn what's different in this particular game compared to the Nintendo adaptations I spent so much time with.
If you do not mind, I would like to know how is your OnLive experience too. This fall they'll open European servers.
Hey can you guys give me any tips, i have never played this game before on another console before and it seems like i constantly die and lose my fighters and im left with one or two of them.
Check out our other Tactics thread for strategy and tips. http://forums.toucharcade.com/showthread.php?t=103058
