Known as the most popular role-playing series ever to grace a videogame console, Square's Final Fantasy games have always been at the front lines of innovation and cutting-edge technology. Since the release of Final Fantasy VII in the U.S., role playing games have quickly become more and more accepted as mainstream entertainment. In an effort to give new role-playing fans a chance to play the games they missed out on years ago and cash in on the series' success at the same time, Square/EA brings Final Fantasy Anthology to U.S. shores. 

Final Fantasy Anthology consists of both Final Fantasy V and Final Fantasy VI with a bonus music CD thrown in for good measure. Final Fantasy V was originally released for Super Famicom (Super Nintendo) in Japan only before being translated for the Anthology. Final Fantasy VI was originally known as Final Fantasy III for Super Nintendo in America and Final Fantasy VI for Super Famicom in Japan. Confused yet? Well, all you really need to know is whether or not the compilation is worth your hard-earned cash.

Like the graphics, the sound in Final Fantasy V isn't so good. The sound effects are extremely lackluster, with about 30 different sounds altogether. That may seem like a fair amount, but it really isn't when you consider how many different actions there are for them to accompany. The soundtrack isn't as far off the mark as the sound effects, but each song is pretty short and some of them even sound the same. Final Fantasy VI saves the day again though with both a good set of sound effects, and a great soundtrack. There are plenty of sound effects to go with animations this time, and the soundtrack is the kind of stuff that made Nobuo Uematsu famous. If the compilation didn't come with its own music CD already, it would be well worth importing the soundtrack for fans of videogame music.

Now while Final Fantasy V may not have good graphics or sounds going for it, at least it has great control on its side. Final Fantasy VI feels a bit sticky with a short lag between the time you hit a button and the time the command is performed, but Final Fantasy V is dead-on, with precise controls that respond instantly. The sticky feeling in Final Fantasy VI can feel natural after a little while, but after playing through Final Fantasy V, most players will definitely notice the slight degradation in control quality. 

So graphics, sounds, and controls are all fine and dandy, but real role-playing fans play RPGs for the story, right? Luckily, this is what makes Final Fantasy Anthology a worthy purchase. Most of the story in Final Fantasy V revolves around a group of four people who cross paths and end up working together to stop the revival of a power crazy mage. Along the way, the group receives crystal shards which make new jobs available to them. Some of the jobs include but aren't limited to: Knight, Ninja, Thief, White Mage, Hunter, Monk, Black Mage, Summoner, and Time Mage.  Mastering all the jobs is not necessary to complete the game, but it makes battling enemies more interesting when you switch jobs now and then. Truthfully, the story in Final Fantasy V is pretty generic, but it's entertaining enough reward players for enduring battle after battle.

Final Fantasy VI has a great story in its corner. Like the movies "Pulp Fiction" and "Go!," Final Fantasy VI takes a different angle on things by following certain characters at different times and then showing how it all molds together. It's not done quite as much as the two movies mentioned, but it is in similar fashion and that's part of what makes the game so fun.

To further make each character individual, each character has their own unique abilities. For example, only Sabin can use his "Blitz" moves, while only Cyan can use his "Sword Techniques". Everyone can gain more abilities as the game progresses, but none of them can can have all the same abilities, therefore keeping each character a valuable, unique member of the party.