Which is the best Final Fantasy Game?

[AceJP]

ff7 and ff tactics on the play station.
Also Engeiz(sp?) was pretty sweet, it was a fighter game that had like Tifa, CLoud and Sephiroth and other ff members in it.

 

[Marcus]

X-2 really didn't have scantily clad women in it. The costumes that were actually revealing were Rikku's thief and Yuna's gunner. All the others were nothing you wouldn't see outside of a sophisticated club or publicly available modeling magazine.

 

[Mega Flare]

well most of Rikku were revealing

 

[Arathe]

I don't get why people say FFX was easy.... Anyone tried to defeat the dark Aeons(sp?)? I had a playtime of 180 hours before defeating the dark Magus Trio. Another 10 before beating Deus, the second hardest enemy in the game and I never beat the hardest enemy in the game. (I don't know his english name, his german name was "Der Richter" what means in english "The Judge")

They didn't include the Dark Aeons and Penance in the initial North American release.

They are in the greatest hits version I hear, but most FF fans probably own the original release. I know I do. I'd totally buy the greatest hits version just for those fights if I wasn't so broke. >.>

Anyway, here's my rundown:

1. FFVII

I'm not saying it was the BEST FF game, but it was the one I enjoyed the most. The characters were fantastic, the story was deep and very layered. I liked the fact that it left a lot to the imagination, loose ends in places where events were implied, but never really shown. And then there was the fun factor. It really just had a lot of fun, random crap you could do, but didn't have to. Chocobo breeding and racing, finding some of the more powerful materia, the Weapons, the Gold Saucer. FFVII was the only game that my timer had over 99 hours on it. ^^

2. FFX

My only complaint about this game was how easy it was (There were a few tough bosses, but overall, it was easy. Which is why I want the Dark Aeons!), and the lack of overworld map. I like being able to explore, and that sort of took that away from me. Other than that...the music and graphics were fantastic, I loved most of the characters. (Yuna drove me nuts, and Tidus was whiny, but well, as someone else said, he kinda had his reasons.) The story was great! I cried at the end. Any game that can dredge that kind of emotional response from me gets brownie points in my book. The spheregrid was neat, and the gameplay rarely got tedious. Very good game in my book. Plus, Blitzball was a nice change from card games.

3. FFVI

The characters. I LOVED the characters in this game. The plot was good, nothing special, but solid and fun to play through. The characters really made this game for me though, there was so much to them. I also loved how your own actions could result in the permanent loss of a character. It added a level of depth that previous FF games really didn't have.

4. FFIX

This game was just...fun. Kuja was one of the most interesting villains in the series to me. Like FFVI, the characters in this game are deep and rich, and even the side characters had some very distinct personalities. This game took the fact that it was fantasy and showed it off proudly. My only real gripe was the whole final boss thing, but otherwise, it was a very solid and enjoyable game. I also thought Zidane was a nice break from the typical angst-ridden main character. *cough* cloudandsquall *cough*

5. FFI

Classic. Best experienced on the old NES.

6. FFVIII

Laguna! <3

Seriously though, this game holds a special place in my heart for no other reason than that it was my first Final Fantasy game. In fact, I was so clueless about how things worked, I was too weak to get past Adel when the time came because I relied entirely on GF's ^^; Ah, memories. I loved the whole GF angle, the junction system, and just the GF's themselves. I thought Laguna and his buddies were awesome characters. The world was neat. The main characters and plot however...not so much. Well, actually, the plot wasn't too bad to begin with, if a little slow, but the whole Ultimecia deal at the end seemed way too sudden and arbitrary. The music was awesome however.

7. FFV

Jobs! I know they were in FFIII as well, but...well...I never played it. *shame* I loved the whole job system in the game, and the two seperate worlds was neat.

8. FFIV

Nothing much to say here, really. It was a good game, fun, but nothing really jumped out at me.

9. FFX-2

It was fanservice, through and through. That said, I loved the battle system and dresspheres. The fast-paced battles kept you on your toes, and maxing out different jobs added a bit of depth to the gameplay. The plot was...okay, though it started out with a lot of really random crap, and didn't settle down into much of anything until you were nearly halfway through. The music was okay, the graphics were, understandably, no different than FFX, and Brother was freaking awesome. Oh, and the way they made blitzball all automated sucked. Which isn't to say it was a bad game, I played it and enjoyed it, I just liked the other games in the series more.

FFII and FFIII don't make my list because I haven't actually played either of them. I know, I know. Some fan I am. >.>;

 

[Mega Flare]

there are no dark aeons in the greatest hits version of FFX. I own that version and There are none

 

[Arathe]

there are no dark aeons in the greatest hits version of FFX. I own that version and There are none

Really? I have a friend who owns it and there are. >.> Unless there's a difference between the Canadian and American version, though I'm pretty there isn't. Hrm.

Edit: Well, I just did a quick search, and most places say you can only fight them if you own the international version, or the european/australian version. Maybe my friend is just a moron who says he has the Greatest Hits version when he has one of the other two. Though I'd love to know how he got it.

 

[ryanwh]

There might be. If canada got the PAL version that went to Europe(which they might of, since Quebec) they got a version with additional endings and levels and gameplay. But its irrelevent, the dark aeons are in EVERY version. MF just didnt get around to unlocking them.

 

[Mega Flare]

I dont have pal or Internatiaol Version. I just got a normal copy of Greatest hits. Since i have followed guides for those dark aeons things and i could never find them

 

[Marcus]

I have the original 2001 release I've never heard of the dark aeons. I don't know if you mean those bug sisters or not so refresh my memory if I just happened to miss them or something.

 

[ryanwh]

You fight them in the castle right off the plains. If you fullfill certain conditions, a man will be inside and you can talk to him to fight the dark aeons.

 

[Enigma]

The only Final Fantasies that I've played are FFII (didn't beat it though), FFVII, FFX, and FFTA.

FFII was rather lame. The whole random stat boost thingy was stupid (I probably didn't understand how it worked). Firion was getting stat boosts like heck and Guy got 1 boost in STR and that was it.

There is a spoiler for FFVII in here, so don't read if you haven't played it.

I got FFVII because I wanted a good RPG and because I wanted to be able to say that I beat it. But I was horribly disappointed with it. I LOATHE ATB battle systems (which is why I haven't played FFVIII or FFIX). That alone made me hate FFVII. To me, the most important aspect of an RPG, or any type of game for that matter, is gameplay. Gameplay determines whether the game is fun or not. A game with crappy gameplay equals a rather boring game.
Also, I absolutely hated Cloud, Aeris, and Sephiroth. I actually enjoyed everyone else, but those 3 have made it on my most hated characters list. I think the only part of FFVII that I enjoyed was when Aeris died.

Now, FFX is my favourite Final Fantasy. It's got turn based battle system as opposed to that lame ATB. So the game was fun, and I really enjoyed the story. The characters were pretty cool (Kimahri!), and they interacted with each other nicely. The Sphere Grid was an amazing idea, but it was presented horribly, though. I thought that if each character had individual paths that could NOT be accessed by the other characters, it wouldn't have been so stupid. Because at the end of the game, everyone were clones basically. The only thing that differentiated them was the Overdrives. FFX also hosted Blitzball, which I thought was the most deep mini-game in any game I've played. Seriously, Blitzball could have been it's own game.

FFTA was alright. I didn't hate it like I hated FFVII, but it wasn't anything spectacular. I usually enjoyed SRPGs, but the law system damaged it quite good. Laws were annoying and frustrating, but once I got the hang of it, it wasn't as bad as my initial impression.

 

[Marcus]

I thought that was where you got the ultimate weapons. I didn't know you could also fight dark aeons. What do they give you for beating them?

 

[Mega Flare]

whats so bad about ATB? Its a lot better then turn base.

 

[Marcus]

whats so bad about ATB? Its a lot better then turn base.

ATB is one of the stupidest things added to an RPG in my opinion. Just think about it... you're waiting FOR A BAR TO FILL UP. I mean, going back and forth taking turns hitting each other is pretty lame in terms of how a real fight plays out (although RPGs have always been about planning individual strategy as opposed to realistic combat) but waiting for a bar to fill is essentially a waste of time. Think of it like this:

ATB system, how long it takes to charge a bar:
Character 1: 5 seconds
Character 2: 2 seconds
Character 3: 10 seconds

Turn Based System order of attack based on speed or whatever:
Character 2
Character 1
Character 3

See how much simpler it is to just base order on speed or some other factor than a MYSTICAL BAR?? What does the ATB even represent? In Dungeons and Dragons, rounds consist of 6 seconds where all participants act within those 6 seconds at the same; the order they attack simply determines who reacts before everyone else within a 6 second timeframe. What does an ATB represent other than 6 seconds of standing there doing a goofy battle dance?

So to sum this up, ATB just makes things boring unless there's an option to speed the bar up (which is thankfully present in most cases). Final Fantasy X also told you who's turn was coming up and when which allowed for surprising strategy's in battle. I would have never beat Evrae without Tidus' quick attack which completely rearranged the order my character's would normally fight in and I could also plan for Evrae's attack and react accordingly.

 

[Andy6000]

ATB is one of the stupidest things added to an RPG in my opinion. Just think about it... you're waiting FOR A BAR TO FILL UP. I mean, going back and forth taking turns hitting each other is pretty lame in terms of how a real fight plays out (although RPGs have always been about planning individual strategy as opposed to realistic combat) but waiting for a bar to fill is essentially a waste of time. Think of it like this:

ATB system, how long it takes to charge a bar:
Character 1: 5 seconds
Character 2: 2 seconds
Character 3: 10 seconds

Turn Based System order of attack based on speed or whatever:
Character 2
Character 1
Character 3

See how much simpler it is to just base order on speed or some other factor than a MYSTICAL BAR?? What does the ATB even represent? In Dungeons and Dragons, rounds consist of 6 seconds where all participants act within those 6 seconds at the same; the order they attack simply determines who reacts before everyone else within a 6 second timeframe. What does an ATB represent other than 6 seconds of standing there doing a goofy battle dance?

So to sum this up, ATB just makes things boring unless there's an option to speed the bar up (which is thankfully present in most cases). Final Fantasy X also told you who's turn was coming up and when which allowed for surprising strategy's in battle. I would have never beat Evrae without Tidus' quick attack which completely rearranged the order my character's would normally fight in and I could also plan for Evrae's attack and react accordingly.

I'd have to disagree about the ATB thing, done in a specific way, it can be a different experience from turn based. For instance, when it doesn't just pause the game whenever a character's turn pops up. If you speed the system up a lot, force the player to react extremely quickly, you can lend a certain need of skill to it. Though of course, that's rarely the case. Hell, in FF7, you had to react in omg 5 seconds, not hard at all. It may as well have been turn based.

 

[Marcus]

I'd have to disagree about the ATB thing, done in a specific way, it can be a different experience from turn based. For instance, when it doesn't just pause the game whenever a character's turn pops up. If you speed the system up a lot, force the player to react extremely quickly, you can lend a certain need of skill to it. Though of course, that's rarely the case. Hell, in FF7, you had to react in omg 5 seconds, not hard at all. It may as well have been turn based.

I know what you're getting at, but the only game I played with an ATB that I had to react really quickly was FFX-2 because the ATB charged in about 2 seconds. The later battles in that (especially against the UBER HIDDEN boss) got pretty hectic but so far that's only just one game so I can't vouch for any others.

 

[Mega Flare]

i like the ATB... okay. Also you all know FF12 uses the ATB same with FF13 is using it.

 

[Enigma]

Yeah, that's why I stay away from Final Fantasies. Turn-based or real-time battle systems for me. So I stick with Star Ocean, Tales, and Dragon Quest.

 

[Marcus]

i like the ATB... okay. Also you all know FF12 uses the ATB same with FF13 is using it.

There's 2 different fighting modes, the other one doesn't use the ATB. Even still, you can employ some tactics such as positioning your characters instead of just staying in one spot.

 

[Kiniko]

I just like FF6. Its fun all around O_O