Poll: Your favorite Final Fantasy

[Open the Muggy Gate 0]

Saw this in the best console topic, and I figured we could give it it's own topic. So which Final Fantasy is your favorite (I left out XI, since it's kinda hard to compare a MMORPG to RPG here).

 

For me, it's Final Fantasy IX. Not the one most people would pick, but I enjoyed the old schoolness of it. It was also less customizable, which actually helped it a bit. After playing VIII, it was refreshing to be given limits like the old days (that does sound kinda weird, but ya'll know what I mean). While Sephiroth is my favorite game character of all time, FFIX stood out to me more than any other as just a fun experience. And Kuja is underrated as a villain in my eyes.

[Matt Young 0]

Heh, I was going to make this topic, but I figured I'd leave it to someone who had, you know, played more than 2 hours of any given FF game.

 

But what about Crystal Chronicles, Tactics, etc.? Chocobo's Dungeon?

[Guest OSIcon]

I picked VI.

 

The simple answer is I've never enjoyed myself more playing any RPG (maybe even any video game) than I did when I played VI for the first time. I really just like everything about it from the middle of the road gameplay (not too hard, not overly easy), the characters and story, the graphics, the music (only video game CD I own), ect.

 

The 'two games in one' feel you get from it is really great also. If you like very linear games, there is the first half. If you like freedom to do pretty much whatever you want, there is the World of Ruin. Just to much packed into one game.

[Open the Muggy Gate 0]

Heh, I was going to make this topic, but I figured I'd leave it to someone who had, you know, played more than 2 hours of any given FF game.

 

But what about Crystal Chronicles, Tactics, etc.?  Chocobo's Dungeon?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

I'm just going by the main series in this case.

[cbacon 0]

FFX. Loved the storyline, gamplay and music. FFVIII would be a close second since it was the first FF game I played, so it holds a lot of nostalgic value.

[Special K 0]

VI, all the way. There's just so much to do, great villain, great plot, great character development. Scads of gameplay. My personal best sountrack ever. I'm hoping that whoever picked III meant VI, because III sucked a fatty.

[Matt Young 0]

I took this at E3 in the ZiffDavis/EGM/1up.com booth:

 

[Anya 0]

VII is my favorite game of all games.

 

I rank them from best to worst..

 

VII

VIII

X

VI

IX

IV

I

II

V

 

 

Although VII is my favorite overall it does not have my favorite characters. I like the cast of VIII and X much more. Especially Squall, Rinoa, Yuna and Tidus. Those are my favorite couples in any game.

[Black Lushus 0]

god I hate cosplay...

 

my top 3 in order: 6, 7, 10

[Anya 0]

Cosplay is good. I would do it if I had any talent in making costumes. I don't even go to cons. I would just randomly dress as Yuna and Rinoa.

[Black Lushus 0]

maybe all the cons i've been to have warped me, i just really hate it...except for the asian gal I saw once dressed as the white cat girl from Darkstalkers, forgot her name...Felicia?

[dubq 0]

VII is my favorite game of all games.

 

I rank them from best to worst..

 

VII

VIII

X

VI

IX

IV

I

II

V

 

 

Although VII is my favorite overall it does not have my favorite characters. I like the cast of VIII and X much more. Especially Squall, Rinoa, Yuna and Tidus. Those are my favorite couples in any game.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

The fact that you rank 7 & 8 above 4 & 6 makes me think that you're bloody insane..

[jwpeer 0]

VIII (with a caveat that I only really love this one because I enjoyed the story more than any other FF story, it had a lot more to it than people really give it credit for.)

IV

VI

V (Job system rocks)

X

IX

I

VII

II

X-II(i never actually played this one...)

III (But there's no way it's worse than III)

[Special K 0]

VI

VII

IV

Tactics (too good NOT to include on the list)

X

IX

X-2

V

VIII

I (though excellent for its time, it's not at all timeless)

II

III

[Kahran Ramsus 0]

It has to be VI. The World of Ruin is a thing of beauty. Without a guide it becomes quite difficult to get everything there. My only really problem with the game is that by the time you get through it, and fight through that big tower at the end which takes a long time, you get to Kefka and he's one of the easiest final bosses in RPG history. The Atma Weapon/Illumina/Offering/Genji Glove combo will often kill him in one shot. The best music of any of the games is in this one as well.

 

My rankings...I never played III.

 

1) VI

2) IX. I still think that coming out the same year as the PS2 killed interest in it. Even if I'm overrating it here, it is easily the most fun of the PS1 games. You actually get 4 people in your party!

3) V. Best job system in any Final Fantasy.

4) VII. Great in spots, but the middle part of the game is really boring. From the Midgar escape to Aeris's death it is just wandering from one town to the next, usually to just find out that Sephiroth just left and you have to go to the next town. It can get quite repetitive. Also the materia system is pretty poor (characters only differ from limit breaks) and the three person party is too restrictive. Still I liked the story and it was fun for much of the game.

5) IV. Doesn't hold up as well as it used to, but the five person parties are nice. There just isn't enough here. On the bright side, this might be the hardest of the games.

6) I. I love the customization here at the beginning, and how no playthrough is the same depending on what classes you pick. On the downside it is very short and there is no story to speak of.

7) X. Home of the most annoying characters and the dumbest plot (rather than no plot as in I) in the series. I am amazed that some people praise this game while ripping on the Metal Gear games, because they are similar in that there is good gameplay (the actual battle system here is probably the best in the series) but it takes two hours of cutscenes to get there. At least in Metal Gear the voice acting is leagues better, and you can SKIP THE CUTSCENES. Here I was forced to watch every last annoying cutscene between Tidus & Yuna. I beat it once and then just played Blitzball from then on. At least that wasn't frustrating.

8) II. I found this game strange. In theory, I didn't mind the job system, but it didn't handle very well at all for two reasons. First, black magic was almost completely useless. Second, the first part of the game is very difficult as your underleveled characters get killed time after time by regular enemies, while by the time they get to the end of the game (without even spending time to go out and level outside of the storyline) they are practically gods that kill every powerful boss in no time flat with just their weapons. A nice idea, but the game just seems broken. Nice music though, especially for an NES game.

9) VIII. Speaking of broken systems... The draw system kills this game. You spend hours (as opposed to just spending a night at the Inn) drawing out these magical spells only to find out that you shouldn't even use them, because they are better being junctioned to your characters. It is just so tedious. The GFs aren't much better, as you can blow through literally 99% of the game just by summoning them over and over and seeing the same ten minute animation of them being summoned. Only the final boss resembles anything close to a challenge, and there you just use Aura and use your god-like limit breaks on her over and over again, despite being at full MP. This is game is far and away the easiest game in the series. I died more times in fucking Mystic Quest. So with the game itself so bad, it is left for the story to carry it, and we get one of the most hated stories in the series here (although I still think X is worse). A complete misfire.

 

Since some of you are including Tactics, I would put it at number two on the list. If it was easier to level (the random encounter rate is a bit off, so that sometimes you get attacked every step, and other times you can go across the entire map without getting attacked once), and the English translation was better, I might even put it above VI.

[Slayer 0]

Push:

 

IV for the nostalgia and significance (being the game that grabbed me into RPGs in the first place)

 

VI for the actual elements (story and gameplay)

[10 Pounds 0]

Even though the FF is not my favorite RPG series, Final Fantasy VI is the best RPG I ever played. Everything in this game is perfect : the story, the characters, the music ( best soundtrack ever, IMO ) and that incredible ending. I was totally surprised by the World of Balance ending where

we actually see the main villain fulfill his plan and find out where only at the middle point of the game

.

 

 

And to continue the trend of ranking the games :

 

 

VI

IV

VII

IX

X

 

 

Those I didn't like :

 

VIII - Don't have a problem with the leveling system, it's just that the game focused only on Squall and Rinoa. All the other characters are useless

 

I - I'm more of a Dragon Warrior fan.

 

X-2 - Ugh......well, I like the job system, but everything else is just so awful. It is one those rare cases where I didn't even bothered finishing the game since I was just so bored by revisiting the same locations.

[jwpeer 0]

I - I'm more of a Dragon Warrior fan.

 

 

That's all you need to be

I'm still debating if I want to get DQVIII.

VII disappointed me (The ending came too fast and was too easy, which made all the leveling you could do/have fun doing kinda useless. Plus there weren't enough sidequests to go with how many cool worlds there were. I did like the -midgame- challenge though, it was pretty high...just the whole game didn't utilize the class system as much as it could have because you didn't get access to it till 1/3 of the way into the game)

 

i just haven't read much about VIII, though I think the cel-shading art style is pretty cool (cel-shaded slimes are awesome) I don't know what the battle system is, how hard it is (ALL DW games should start off tough, become mildly difficult and end EXTREMELY hard ) and how much there is to do.

 

 

Talk about threadjacking....

[Cartman 0]

Of the FF games that I own or have played extensively I would rank them like so:

 

1. VI - The second FF game I played, and I can't count the number of times I beat it. The characters are all really well developed, the story is phenominal and gets you into playing the game alot, and the music is amazing for a cartridge based game. There is not one thing I didnt like about this game at all.

 

2. IV - The first FF game I ever played. I rented this game way back after it came out not knowing what an RPG even was. I fell in love with the storyline of Cecil and Rosa etc. and ended up buying the game soon after. Played countless hours of this over and over.

 

3. VII - Again a GREAT storyline and great characters. I tend to get emotionally attached to some characters in these games and when Aeris died unexpectedly I nearly cried...heh.

 

4. X - I, unlike most, loved the characters and story especially that this game told. The extra stuff before the end add alot of extra playtime as well.

 

5. IX - Awesome game with again great characters and story...I guess I should just say i get really into storylines and these FF games seem to rope me in better than any other series for some reason. The old-school factor is awesome here.

 

6. V - Didnt play this a whole lot since I only found it a couple years ago with emulation and all. Definitely has a cool system with jobs and all...which is the best part of Tactics sans the storyline which was phenominal too. I cant add tactics to this list but it's definitely a great game.

[chaosrage 0]

From best to worst

 

X (Excellent cast, great music, beautiful graphics. Has a pretty innovative battle system that gives you both character individuality and customization, keeps all of the characters involved in battle, is very fast compared to the snail pace of 8 and 9, AND is actually tough at times. The most character interaction out of any of the FFs, they're constantly talking so the story keeps moving and stays interesting, they feel like a close knit group of friends at the end. Compare that to FF7 where characters like RedXII and Cid have one scene where they develop and are barely seen for the rest of the game. It has a main character that's totally the opposite of Cloud and Squall, that's a definite plus. I'm in the minority here, but I also thought the voices were done really well and added a lot to the game. The voices were clear, fit each character, and the actors sounded as if they were in to it. Didn't have a problem with them at all. After seeing how voices made FFX's story come more alive, I wouldn't mind it if all of the FFs were remade with voices.)

IV (One of the most revolutionary RPG of all time. This was the first RPG where characters actually talked for more than a few sentences. And not only did they talk, they had personalites, they developed, interacted with one another, struggled with their feelings, and showed emotion. FF4 also eliminating level building and gave us ATB. Before FF4, every single RPG that I can remember made you build levels and the story and characters were just seen as an afterthought. Yet, very few RPGs that came after it require you to level and aren't focused on story. Before FF4, the only point of playing RPGs was just to be in a gigantic world and get to explore it, and have fun making your character grow from being a scrawny weakling to being able to save the world, you never played them for story, characters, or music. FF4 changed all of that)

Tactics

VI (Great game until the second half where the plot seemed to basically stop)

(large gap)

X-2

MQ

FFVII (awful boring characters, almost no character interaction, convuluted anime cliche plot, took FF6's already flawed system of everybody can do everything by equiping a magic object and made it even worse by taking away the character skills)

I

V

IX (the sad thing here is I think IX had a really good story, much better than 7's. But having to fight a battle every other step you take ruined the game imo. Very annoying when you have to sit through 50 battles just to get to the next part in the story, on each one you have to watch the camera float around the screen, plus the battles take forever because the characters are so slow to react after you enter in a comand, and aren't challenging in the slightest. )

VIII (Nothing redeemable about it.)

[{''({o..o})''} 0]

1: FFT. Went over it a few times before so don't feel like repeating it.

 

2. FF6. Even with the second half of the game lacking a bit in comparison to the first half, it is still the best of the rest.

 

3. FF4. The retranslation on the psx with the added difficulty cements the #3 spot. Even without it still works up here.

 

4. FFX. Annoying voices. That Lightning mini game is just stupid. Still, a solid game.

 

5. FF5. Battle system is great. Story not so much, but still is fun.

 

6. FF9. Liked what they were going for, but it really just fell flat. Vivi is the best FF character though.

 

7. FF7. Flawed, really flawed, but there's some good stuff in here.

 

8. FF1. A bit too simple really. My starting point for the series.

 

9. FF8. Nice polygons for the time, great card game. That's about it.

 

10. FFX-2. Tried to play through the game on three seperate occasions and just couldn't do it.

 

11. FF2. Different system just doesn't work.

 

12. FF3. The translation patch I used on the rom was terrible, can't really give it a fair score yet, but not thinking a good one will cause this to jump up much.

 

Edited a bit.

[AndrewTS 0]

My fave is VI. I didn't play I, 2, or 3. IV was good, VII is fine but I couldn't care less about it now. VIII, X, and X-2 I played enough to realize I felt "meh" about it.

 

I like FFIX but the PlayOnline crap was annoying.

 

FFXI doesn't really count as mentioned, but I never played it anyway.

 

Tactics Advance is one of the worst games I've ever played.

 

V is a footnote and little more. I played maybe 30 hours of it before my memory card accidentally was wiped out, and I can't remember anything about the game except for the job system.

[The Man in Blak 0]

1. FFVI - I think OSIcon's comments essentially nailed my sentiments about this game. This game might have my favorite music from the series as well (FFIV Celtic Moon excepted).

 

2. FFT - If we're counting Tactics, then I feel it definitely belongs up here with the best in the series. It's still the defining "Tactics" game, the music is fantastic, and the plotline is surprisingly complex.

 

3. FFIV - Though FFVI has the complete package for me, I enjoy the battles in FFIV the most through the series because there's some actual strategy involved behind the system, due to the strict class system. It's a sentimental favorite.

 

4. FFX - One of the better games in the franchise, but one of the lesser plotlines. Yuna and Auron are good characters, but Tidus is the most annoying protagonist in the history of the series, Uematsu's musical ride into the sunset is probably the low point for the series, and the storyline drives off a cliff in the final third of the game. That aside, the sphere grid, the turn-based system, and Blitzball go a long way for this game.

 

5. FFVII - The first third of the game is outstanding and can stand alongside with the best of the series. As the game progresses, though, the plot becomes more insane, and the lack of depth in the battle system is exposed. The graphics haven't aged well, but the orchestral swell behind the overworld music just might represent Uematsu's finest work.

 

6. FFIX - If you take out the last third of this game and remove Zidane's WTF origin moment, pseudo time compression, and the super pathetic final boss, this is a great game and it ranks as the best PS1 offering. As it stands, it comes up short of FFVII and, no matter how much I want to like this game (it is my personal favorite of the PS1 games), it still feels like a disappointment years later.

 

7. FFV - Finally, the job system done right.

 

8. FFVIII - Undoubtedly, the best mini-game ever. The graphics have also aged remarkably well. And the plot has some spice until (say it with me) it completely falls off the wagon in the final third of the game. But, god damn, I've got to have a game to play here and the GFs and Junction system single handedly wreck the game and put the franchise in a tight spot.

 

9. FFI - Let's be realistic: the plotline is nothing to write home about, the combat system isn't really that remarkable ("ineffective", time and time again), and there are stretches in this game where you just want to set your NES on fire. The different classes are a nice touch, but it just allows for variations on a mediocre theme; Dawn of Souls did a nice job of dressing this game up.

 

10. FFX-2. An absolute turd and the only North American FF that I couldn't bring myself to finish. Seems like it was designed to piss off longtime fans of the series. Mission accomplished.

 

11. FFII - It's virtually unplayable. That's it, that's all I got.

 

I actually haven't played FFIII enough to really bring forth an opinion, but if you had to push me to a ratings, it'd be at 11, pushing FFII to the bottom.

[dubq 0]

Push:

 

IV for the nostalgia and significance (being the game that grabbed me into RPGs in the first place)

 

VI for the actual elements (story and gameplay)

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Exactly my reasoning.

[Special K 0]

Kain's still one of my favorite characters. What a badass.

 

I'd probably like FFIX a lot more if the Chocobo hunting wasn't so necessary. It seemed like it took about a third of the game, and it was literally just blindly pecking around. Awesome.

 

I can't believe they actually bothered to translate #II. That game has either the most impossible combat, or the easiest, provided you're willing to exploit some really terrible bugs. Either way, it's-a boring.

[jwpeer 0]

Kain's still one of my favorite characters. What a badass.

 

 

QFT.

[{''({o..o})''} 0]

The Man in Blak and I usually have really similar opinions. Good stuff.

[Lil' Bitch 0]

I picked VI.

 

The simple answer is I've never enjoyed myself more playing any RPG (maybe even any video game) than I did when I played VI for the first time. I really just like everything about it from the middle of the road gameplay (not too hard, not overly easy), the characters and story, the graphics, the music (only video game CD I own), ect.

 

VI, all the way. There's just so much to do, great villain, great plot, great character development. Scads of gameplay. My personal best sountrack ever. I'm hoping that whoever picked III meant VI, because III sucked a fatty.

 

Practically what you guys said, except I would use that to describe how I felt about FFIV instead. I just liked the characters and story more:

The dark knight Cecil repenting his sins and rising up to become a noble Paladin to save the planet!

 

Golbez is one of the coolest RPG villains ever, but the kicker is

he wasn't even the guy behind it all!

 

Plus the final boss took freaking forever to kill, making it more epic when you finally beat him!

 

Final Fantasy V:

 

I never got to finish it, but from what I remember, I liked it!

 

Final Fantasy VI:

 

Loved this game as well, plus the fact you had Moogles in there kicking the shit out of people and that you could have one in your party!

 

Final Fantasy VII:

 

Frankly I think this game is overrated mainly because everybody was spoiled at the time by all the CGI going OOH! AHH! Cloud's not a character I really got into as he came off as a whiny bitch to me. Other than that, the story was good, had a great cast to make up for a dull main hero, I loved the Turks. Its a good thing they made Advent Childrten because I HATE how this game ended.

 

Final Fantasy VIII:

 

A definitely improvement over FF VII except for a similar problem with the last game: a lame main character. I didn't like Squall being Mr. Roboto, huge turn-off. At least Cloud displayed different ranges of emotions. A better story and an even better cast makes FF 8 great.

 

Final Fantasy IX:

 

I didn't like anything about this game except Vivi, enough said.

 

Final Fantasy X:

 

Probably my 3rd favorite FF game, I liked all the characters offered, Tidus was a fantastic lead. The only thing that ruined this game for me was the ending because they just felt like making a change that wasn't your typical RPG ending, which I hated them for. FFX-2 didn't help things either.

[Narcoleptic Jumper 0]

VIII is the best (Junction system is genius, best RPG mini game ever, game is stunningly beautiful even to this day), followed by X (mainly for the brilliant battle system, the game's story is pretty bland and Tidus is really grating on the nerves), which is followed by VII and then IX.

 

I couldn't really get into any of the older games. The NES games are completely archaic and not really worth playing, IV is too hard for me and also really archaic and almost unplayable in certain respects, and neither V nor VI ever really grabbed me in any significant way.

[Guest Coffey]

Voted six and it's not even close.