what platform do yous guys play on??

[Spriggan]

Square are actualy going to be remakeing some of those original GB Final Fanstasys for the GBA.  But just FYI they weren't FF games in Japan.  They were SaGa games.  Then the final fantasy adventure (the one that played like zelda) is a prequal to Secret of Mana.  They just renamed them Final Fantasy here so they could go off of the name and didn't have to market two different series that most didn't make it here to the states.  SaGa series didn't come out here till the end of the PS1 and only two of the mana games came out here. (there's four if I remember correctly.  3 SNES ones and 1 PS1 game).

[Mr_Pleasington]

Final Fantasy Adventure II was one of the best RPGs released, period.

Such a great setting and storyline along with some fun combat options made for some of the most entertaining gameplay I've experienced.

[JP Dogberry]

The first mana game was actually on the gameboy. Its one of my favourite series really. Even though I only like number 2, Secret of Mana. I never got into Seiken 3

[Spriggan]

Seiken Densetsu (ie Legend of the holy sword) 3 never came out here in the states.  Square wanted to release it but by the time it would have been done the PS1 would have been out for about 4 months or so.  No one would have bought it since the SNES was dead by then.

[Mr_Pleasington]

Well, I bit the bullet and splurged.  The way I see it, the Game Boy Player for Gamecube is a great investment that extends the range of available game by thousands.  

I picked up Final Fantasy Tactics Advance and Castlevania: Aria of Sorrows.  Thought I'd give both a little play this afternoon, but Castelvania sucked me in and wouldn't let go.   I'd forgotten how much I missed the 2D games of my youth.  Too bad GBA is the only platform that makes them anymore.

Golden Sun, Metroid Fusion, and Advance Wars are on the buy list.

[JP Dogberry]

But remember, Seiken 3 was dumped to a ROM file and translated by a group of fans before being released on the interenet. If you want to play it, you can do it that way.

Not that I've done it, or would advocate doing it...

[Tage]

Interesting fact about ROMs and such (as I understand it). If it hasn't been released in the country you're in, there's no license for your area, and you aren't breaking copyright laws by downloading it.

I have a friend who does something similar with manga. As long as the mangas aren't released in the states by the copyright holders, they're allowed to fan translate them and release them free on the internet.

I could be wrong, of course, but that's what I heard.

[Spriggan]

It dosen't have to do with weither it's been released or not Tage, but if someone owns the rights to the said item.  With manga and some anime your right.  With VG's you're treading on thinner ice.  It has to deal with developers/publishers.  If a developer is the publisher (as with the case with Square, sega, capcom etc...) then they hold the rights to release it anywere they can (ie have a busniess licence).  So any Square game that dosen't come out here is still licenced here.  Also remeber that the Japanese love to use US international copyrights, so most VG's are copyrighted in both at the same time (why do you think there are multiple copyright dates on most Japanese VG)

With 3rd part licences it can be different.  Sometimes the publisher only buys the rights to distribute it in one market (ie Japan or the US).  If that's the case then there are no legal owners of the game here in the US, unless they used one of our fancey Copyrights.

So if you've got a concern about ROM's, unless you own the game it's illegal.  Just to be on the safe side.  Despite what people on ROM sites say, I find ROM's to be as illegal as MP3's that you don't own.  Or downloading unlicenced software.  Don't do it unless you OWN a copy of the game.

[Tage]

Huh. Despite the fact that I, as a general rule, don't believe anything Sprig says, that actually kinda makes sense. Ah well.