In every game series, they will have an "oddball" entry, where they do some experimenting. While this may not always pan out, it's valuable in the sense it helps future entries decide what elements will work going forward. Final Fantasy II Pixel Remaster is a re-release of this series oddball.

Some background is in order. Final Fantasy II was the second NES/Famicom game in the series (not to be confused with the localized SNES Final Fantasy IV released as Final Fantasy II). While it had much better story writing, and introduced many concepts like a recurring character named Cid, chocobos, and dragoons, and making characters somewhat more distinct than mere RPG cliches, it also had odd gameplay and leveling choices.

Most of the latter would not show up in Final Fantasy games, though they were further fleshed out in the Romancing Saga series (which was also localized in the early years with the Final Fantasy name for brand recognition). It also had an abortive official English translation for NES (and was mostly known prior for being fan-translated), but it would not be released officially until it was bundled in the PS1 Final Fantasy Origins, albeit with some changes.

The story is somewhat basic. You play as several refugees from a country invaded by an Empire that is slowly turning the world into its own lands. Its Emperor is bent on destroying all opposition, its only resistance being the shattered remnants of the country of Fynn and the Wild Rose, its resistance forces. From these humble beginnings, you become pivotal to stopping this merciless conquest and liberating the world. Despite this, the storytelling is quite a step up from the first game. Actual characters with arcs and an overarching continuing plot with story impacts beyond localized areas would debut in this title and set the tone for future Final Fantasy entries and their writing.

The gameplay is mostly typical turn-based RPG fare. You must explore dungeons, fight enemies, discover treasure, get new equipment, and so on. The leveling system, however, is a "get stronger by example" system. Taking damage increases HP, using weapons or magic causes it to get stronger, and theoretically, there is no limit on growth save the limits of the engine itself. The leveling system would not be repeated in later Final Fantasy titles, so it's certainly the oddball feature of this title. A lesser oddball feature is the "Keyword' system, where learning certain terms and repeating them in certain conversations opens up new story options, many needed for critical progression.

Overall, FF2 tends toward the hard, especially for new players. The "level as you use certain abilities" system and the fact the world map is mostly in a Pangea-style where there is no clear separation of certain areas makes this a rather hard game. Add in the fact certain abilities like status effects can be very lethal and later on many foes make frequent use of them, and this is not an easy experience. A lot of these design decisions were a result of experimenting with the formula established since the first title, and thankfully the Boost feature in the menu allows tweaking gold, EXP, and stat progression to be easier if need be. This still is not going to be very easy in places even if this entirely optional toggle is selected, but it can smooth out the worst of it.

That said, the story writing is a lot better than the index card brief plot of the first entry, and this is the first series title with developed characters and a plot that is more than a barely disguised Dungeons & Dragons campaign. Many recurring elements that would become iconic first debuted here, and thus this is worth the experience.

Graphically, this is when the set design would be more than a cliche bright and poppy-looking high fantasy game. The color scheme is similar to the first but has many darker tones to fit the grimmer plot. Enemy design is now more varied and not just a bunch of barely legal Dungeons & Dragons homages. Some enemy designs admittedly look pretty weird (with the Bomb type of enemies looking like popcorn bags rather than flying explosive beings), but some are great, like the various ranks of the Imperial Army. The set designers did abuse an annoying "fake room" design choice though. Specifically, these are rooms that go to a room with nothing in it that immediately moves you to the center of the room after entering to often fight a random foe. These tend to waste your time and resources and are very common in most later dungeons.

The music and sounds are similar to the first title but lean more on the softer instrumentals than the heavier beats. Given the slower pace and darker plot, this works with the graphical style hand-in-glove. A few soundtracks are a bit odd, like an oddly Arabian-esque boss battle theme that isn't bad but doesn't exactly fit the theme the rest go for. That said, the music is generally good at setting the mood. The classic 8-bit tracks can be switched to if the player wants a little nostalgia as well.

This title can be played with a keyboard and mouse or any Steam-compatible controller. I found it works fine with both, though I recommend the latter. Controls are very easy to learn, and there is even a helpful quick access control scheme guide you can access if need be.

Stability is rock solid on Windows. If your computer isn't old enough to be considered over twenty, chances are great this will run great. It runs out of the box on Linux with Steam Proton and is Verified for the Steam Deck as well.

Morally, there are going to be some issues.

Violence is of the "give orders and watch it happen" turn-based RPG style. While the plot is fairly dark, there is no blood and gore, bodies disappear after death, and you can only attack in self-defense.

Language is going to be pretty mild. a few uses of h*ll and d*mn, mostly in the religious sense (for monsters of demonic origin), but that's it. There is one scene that looks like a crude seduction but ends before it goes anywhere. A few female enemies appear naked from the waist up but are drawn to avoid any display of details.

The magic in Final Fantasy II is generally generic, at least that which is usable by the player. There are a lot of demonic and undead foes, and a version of Hell as a formal place exists. Mentions are made of contracting with demonic forces for power, by the villains at least.

Morally, this is going to be fairly straightforward. You play as refugees turned volunteer soldiers who are working with a defeated kingdom to reclaim their rightful home and overcome the oppression of an aggressive empire bent on world domination. The morality is pretty clear-cut throughout and you work with the rebellion against a clearly immoral and illegal set of conquerors who traffic in demonic bargains for power. There are a few mentions of alcohol and one battle enhancement item is called "Bacchus Wine" (it boosts attack but references the Grecian deity of alcohol in passing).

While it doesn't have the extras of earlier ports, this is a pretty well-refined version of the original NES/Famicom Final Fantasy II with modern enhancements for ease of play that still preserves the core of the original experience. Technically, it is very sound. Morally, it has some minor issues but nothing an older child on up couldn't handle. If you love old-school RPGs or the Final Fantasy series, this is definitely worth getting.