Breath of Fire, Finally Readable in Spanish on the Game Boy Advance
Capcom's first Breath of Fire appeared on the Super Nintendo in Japan in April 1993, and Square Soft handled its North American release the following year. Eight years later the game came back on the Game Boy Advance, released in Japan in July 2001 and in North America and Europe that December. Spanish-speaking players, however, were left with an English-only cartridge. A group called Vegetal Translations filled that gap: its Spanish translation of the GBA version is dated 30 August 2002, listed as version 1.0 and fully playable. That is less than a year after the American release.
At a glance
- Based on: Breath of Fire (Capcom, Super Nintendo 1993; Game Boy Advance port 2001)
- Created by: Capcom (original game); Vegetal Translations (Spanish translation)
- Released: GBA port in 2001; Spanish translation in 2002
- Genre: Turn-based role-playing game
- What sets it apart: the complete story and menus in Spanish
The adventure itself
You play Ryu, the last survivor of the Light Dragon Clan, who sets out to find his sister Sara after the rival Dark Dragon Clan captures her. Along the way he must gather six Goddess Keys to stop Emperor Zog from reviving the goddess Myria. Companions join from all over the world, among them Nina, Bo, Karn, Gobi, Ox, Mogu and Bleu. Exploration is top-down with random battles, parties of up to four, and spells paid for with AP.
What the GBA port changed
The handheld version is not a straight copy of the Super Nintendo game. According to published descriptions, it adds:
- Redrawn character portraits and a menu layout resembling Breath of Fire II
- Updated cutscene graphics
- A quick-save feature and a dash button
- Item trading between two consoles over a link cable
Reviewers at the time were mixed on the port, with some criticising its colours and sound, but it sold well in Japan, with just over 63,000 copies in 2001.