Final Fantasy Thread

12 kind of pissed me off in that is was basically a single player 11 combat-wise.

12 pissed me off as well for the same reasons. I didn't find the world really engaging, the characters felt underdeveloped, I hated the music. It was just such a let down after such a long wait between X and XII.

I'd be interested to try 12 again since i've played a lot more western style RPGs in the meantime but yeah...

For some reason I just hate that composer. All his music sounds the same, and he just doesn't make strong themes that make the whole thing feel cohesive.

Didn't 12 have some crazy development issues? Like, it was supposed to be directed by the dude who did tactics and based on that world? Help me out here, guys.

Theatrhythm.

12 really pissed me off too but it's grown on me over the years. It was such a huge change from what I was used to and expected from Final Fantasy. I remember being halfway through the game wondering "so when does the story start?". The music was pretty and nicely done but still boring compared to the other games.

BUT... The world was amazing and so much fun to explore. I really wish another FF would have a huge and more open world with tons of things to do like that again. It's pretty much what made the game for me after I got over the disappointment over the lack of story and underdeveloped characters. It's just.. a very different Final Fantasy experience I guess.

IMHO 12 couldn't decide if it was 2D or 3D. Squeenix fucked themselves with the greenlight of Advent Children. They're the epitome of how to go from relevent to assclown within a few bad decisions.

That's Square in a nutshell, pspiddy. I find it hard to talk about why I dislike 12 because it's been so long, but I guess that's part of the problem...it didnt' leave a lasting impression at all. I felt like chocobot did, just waiting for the story to kick off, and while it would be fine if Vaan wasn't part of the story but if so...don't make me play as him because you can say all you want that "it was about the politics" and all that but I call it bad writing if you make your protagonist really unengaging.

BUT, let's actually address the the topic of the thread. Let's start with just a vague ordering of favorites:

1. Final Fantasy VII
2. Final Fantasy IX (dropping a bit since this last playthrough though, the battle system is PAINFULLY slow, the last act of the story is a mess)
3. Final Fantasy VI
4. Final Fantasy VIII
5. Final Fantasy X
6. Final Fantasy IV

replaying VIII now as well. Really nice not playing these playthroughs for completion but just as I would if I was playing it for the first time now without a guide, and with enough forgotten to take it in fresh. There's a charm in these PSOne era FF's though that despite the aging of the translation/game mechanics they are still addictive to play.

My fucking cat jumped on my lap and somehow clicked the back button with her sharp claw feet. Little bitch. Lost 3 really big long good paragraphs. I want to eat her cat food in front of her to mock her.

My favorite Final Fantasies

1. VII - My favorite game of all time - world, art design, characters were all spot-on.

2. XII - huge world, and I actually liked the characters and music a lot.

3. FF Tactics - best battle system in the game and I like the Ivalice world.

4. IX - cute art design, and what would be the best ATB system if it weren't so laggy.

5. VI - my first Final Fantasy, large cast of characters, a great villain, and a great soundtrack.

6. X - Colorful world and the always badass Auron.

7. VIII - Squall is probably my favorite FF hero. Also liked the music, and the Junction system was an interesting idea.

8. V - Good job system, and it's really grown on me over time. Gilgamesh is a memorable bad guy.

9. XIII - It was a definite step down in quality from XII, but it wasn't bad. I liked it. It just mostly sank under its own weight.

10. IV - One of the best soundtracks, and an overall great experience.

11. FFXI - one of the few MMORPGs I really liked.

12. II - I'm a rarity, but I actually enjoyed II more than FF1 or FF3.

13. III - This game is a ballbuster!

14. I - A rudimentary game lacking most of the elements that Final Fantasy is known for, although that's because a lot of those elements hadn't been conceived yet. Still a good game.

I think my wife preordered me FFXIV: A Realm Reborn, so I don't have an opinion on that game yet.

I like how XIII isn't even involved in this discussion =p

I mentioned XIII-2, and my cat wiped that away from existence.

I have hope for XV...pessimistic, guarded hope, but hope.

And yeah, well, I just suck at reading. so there. pffft.

You startled me a little, Kay, before I realised you were talking about San.

1. XI - It had a high cost of entry, but after the initial grinding there was plenty of game to be had. I'm still waiting for another game like it without the PlayOnline ridiculousness. It's way too complicated to go into why I dig it so much. It's one of those "if you know, you know" things.

2. Tactics - This is the basic concept of XI so really these two share the top spot.

3. X - I really like the grid sphere. And Blitzball. Yes, I dig Blitzball.

4. VII - It was the first truly epic game I played.

5. IX - This game had that certain feel to it that emphasizes fantasy.

6. VI - This was the first FF I played at length. It hooked me on RPGs.

7. X-2 - I could care less what anyone else thinks, I loved playing dress-up in this game. The crazier the better; stats be damned.

8. Crisis Core - It wasn't quite what I expected, but I got into it after the learning curve.

8. VIII - I need to give this another shot. My first and only playthrough was when it dropped and I can't remember much besides it being pretty boring.

9. XII - There's some good in this game but it has so much wrong with it I no longer consider purchasing FF games retail. I'll give it another go if it gets the HD treatment on Vita.

I-IV I haven't played enough to comment on. I bought XIII only to flip it so I don't even know anything about it or the sequel.

I'll let you guys do the hoping for XV or whatever the hell it is. Fool me once...a fool can't be fooled again. (or however Bush put it)

YOu think they're ever going to bring back the Job system proper? That mechanic was pretty cool I thought...

I would hope so. But they're pretty good, as you pointed out, at pissing on their fanbase.

X is my favorite game of all time, it was the first FF I played and also my first RPG (other than Pokemon). Before that I mostly just played platformers so I was amazed by the characters and storytelling. It also came out at a sort of shitty time in my life so it was the perfect way to escape from reality for a bit. I used to replay it during every break I had, Spring, Summer, Winter.. every year. I just really really love it and it's super special to me. And Auron is badass and the coolest character ever <3

The rest are really difficult for me to rank, I change my mind constantly about which I like more but I'll try my best..

VII- Amazing setting and atmosphere with music that always fit so perfectly. There's just nothing else that feels anything like FFVII.

VIII- For some reason I just really like the world and cast and the relationship between Squall and Rinoa. The draw system drives me crazy and I admit I'm not too sure what goes on with the story towards the end of the game though >_>

VI- I didn't play this one until it was available as a PSOne classic but I was really impressed by the story and characters. And Ultros. Gotta love Uncle Ulty.

XII- as mentioned before, I loved exploring the huge, beautiful world so much. I just wish there was more to the story and characters.

IX- the colorful and whimsical art style is great. I never cared much for Zidane and Garnet though and ugh the slow battles.. this is one I really need to replay though, my memory of it is a bit foggy.

IV- everything about this one is great and I don't have any complaints about it. But at the same time nothing about it stands out quite as much as the games I ranked ahead of it.

XIII- I enjoyed it and it was a good game, but the characters remained so shallow throughout the whole thing. I like that they went in such a unique direction with the battle system, and it's a lot of fun when the game finally stops holding your hand (which takes forever). So XIII really isn't a bad game, it's just not great either.

I could never really get into 1-3 and I haven't played enough of 5 to say much about it yet.

@Kay - Pissing on your fanbase by delivering inferior products is what it is. Reminds me of how Fender calls their strats American made when they are made in Mexico. Technically correct, yes, but flagrantly foul.

I tend to gravitate towards products that put pride ahead of the bottom line. Capcom and Squeenix seem to have forgotten what got them there in the first place. But then again, I could be wrong. The numbers agree with me, but who the fuck am I to judge? (Some asshole on the internet is the correct answer.)

Final Fantasy VII will always be my favorite game. Everything about that game is still great except for the shitty translation and character models. The battles are fast and frenetic. The music is outstanding. The story is great with an excellent villain. To me, the game does nothing wrong really. Wonderful game.

Final Fantasy XII to me was a good game because I'm obsessed with leveling up. Running around that big world fighting and leveling up was awesome. Plus they gave you all of those hunts to do, which just gave you lots of things to accomplish. However, the music fell flat for me (someone could play a songs from it and I couldn't tell you what game it was except for maybe the battle music, and that's only because I had to listen to it so much). If Uematsu would have done it, I'm sure it would have been special. Also, I couldn't tell you what happened with the story. Always thought Fran had a really cool design though.

1. Final Fantasy VII - Great characters, story, battles, materia, music, villain. First RPG ever, also played it at a perfect age for a game like this at 14.

2. Final Fantasy IX - Wonderful characters, fun way to learn abilities, music, world, and Vivi.

3. Final Fantasy X - Such a fun game. Awesome battles, loved being able to use all characters.

4. Final Fantasy X-2 - It felt like a mix of X and V. I loved V's job system.

5. Final Fantasy IV - Out of the SNES FF games, I seemed to beat this one the fastest so that must say something for it. It was fun.

6. Final Fantasy V - Loved the job system. Characters were at times surprisingly funny.

7. Final Fantasy VI - Great game, but too many characters. I know that sounds like a stupid complaint but whatever. Great music.

8. Final Fantasy XII - So much fun to run around and explore and level up.

9. Final Fantasy XIII - Not as bad as it is made out to be. People that say you can beat the game just hitting X are so wrong.

10. Final Fantasy VIII - The only reason this is higher is because it has more of a story and great music. Everything else sucks. A lot.

11. Final Fantasy - Got this on the GBA and found it addicting.

12. Final Fantasy II - Above game was more addicting than this, which came packaged with the same cartridge.

13. Final Fantasy III - Played the DS version, and got really bored with it.

Never played XI, and I love Crisis Core but it didn't feel like a Final Fantasy game so I didn't include it. Playing XIII-2 right now so I can't put that anywhere yet. It seems really fun though.

YAY! Came home to The Sky: The Art of Final Fantasy! For $50 it's super impressive. The box that holds the 3 hardcover books is gorgeous. I HIGHLY recommend it. The MSRP on the Darkhorse box listed it at $90 US/ $100 CAN.

The metallic paint doesn't come through in this set (although I've just skimmed) but the books are great quality and the whole set is a worthy showpiece.

I can kind of agree with that assessment of FFVIII, although I liked a lot of stuff on Disc 3 and the way the last dungeon worked. The story kept together really well for me until they got to Esthar. I thought the orphanage scene was a bit of a cheat, but it wasn't a big deal. I think the space scene would have made a fine end point for the game myself.

And the soundtrack was quite badass. Heck, even the visuals were a big reason why I didn't run right out and pick up a Dreamcast on September 9, 1999.