Although Final Conflict was released after Shining Force II, it’s actually set between Shining Force and Shining Force II. There are a number of cross-overs in the characters (which I won’t spoil for you here!) and the plot is fantastic. I guess most of you will be somewhat disappointed to hear that it’s only available in Japanese.

Rather like the first two Gaiden games, Final Conflict also lacks towns to roam around. The graphics, however, are significantly better than the previous Game Gear Shinings, and the music is a trimmed down version of that from Shining Force II.

Attempts have been made to translate the ROM (even I started work on it), but an odd form of compression has been used in the game, and so it’s nigh-on impossible to translate anything more than the items/spells/characters names. I have, however, managed to translate the game’s script, and it is available here at SFC, click here to view it.

The game itself is very hard to find – especially in good condition, so the chances are you’ll have to play it as a ROM. A copy sometimes crops up on Ebay in the region of US$100, or you could try asking a friend in Japan to track one down for you, probably for significantly less.