This was the first time I'd played FF1 all the way through, and the Pixel Remaster's boosts feature was the main reason I was able to finish. This is a very grind-heavy JRPG, and previous attempts by me to play various versions usually ended in frustration. The default encounter rate is crazy high, and being able to turn them off completely was a blessing. I love the lack of guide posting in this game, but had I played with the default encounter and experience gain rate I would have bounced off this version as well. I just don't enjoy feeling punished for wanting to explore dungeons.

Story-wise, there's not much here, and that's fine. You're given a quest, and you adventure across the world to gain the resources necessary to complete that quest. There is a twist at the end, but it doesn't really change the story that much. I think what allows Final Fantasy to withstand the test of time is the simplicity of the story; while it is very "of its time" in terms of conforming the story telling to the limitations of the medium, it's also timeless in its brevity.

Overall, I really enjoyed this game and would recommend the Pixel Remaster to anybody who, like me, tried but failed to play any prior version of the game.