Zelda vs. Final Fantasy

[Guest cardsfan31]

Ok so this may seem really nerdy but my friends and i were having a conversation about which we prefer, the Zelda series or the FF series.

 

I was just wondering what others thought.

[AndrewTS 0]

Kind of a moot point, really, because they're not even close to the same genre.

 

Although I think Zelda has maintained a higher level of quality (cdi games notwithstanding) than the FF games--depending on whether you count the spinoffs.

 

However, I firmly believe Ocarina of Time and Final Fantasy VII are the most overrated games of their respective times/consoles. But few people will admit to having the same love for FFVII now as they did back then.

[Guest cardsfan31]

Yeah i realize its like comparing apples to oranges but they both have pretty loyal fan bases it seems like.

 

So i was just wondering.

[AndrewTS 0]

There was a FF vote...and it disappeared.

[Guest Smues]

Kind of a moot point, really, because they're not even close to the same genre.

 

Although I think Zelda has maintained a higher level of quality (cdi games notwithstanding) than the FF games--depending on whether you count the spinoffs.

 

However, I firmly believe Ocarina of Time and Final Fantasy VII are the most overrated games of their respective times/consoles. But few people will admit to having the same love for FFVII now as they did back then.

 

FFVII still rules. FTW.

[Ginger Snaps 0]

FF. I do not even consider it a close contest.

[Prophet of Mike Zagurski 0]

I picked Zelda based on the facts:

 

I've played more Zelda games than Final Fantasy games. I believe there are more main Final Fantasy games than Zelda games. Also, the LoZ games usually have the same protagonist.

[Black Lushus 0]

I've played 2 Zelda games in my time: Legend of Zelda and Link to the Past. I have had no desire to play any other Zelda game.

 

on the other hand, I've played every Final Fantasy other than 9, 11 and 12...though I hated 8, the others were good.

 

I'll go with Final Fantasy...but for the record, Link to the Past is one of my all-time favorites.

[KingPK 0]

It's apples and oranges to me. FF vs. something like Phantasy Star or Zelda vs. something like Metroid would have been a better debate.

[Guest cardsfan31]

Yeah i mentioned that earlier but its just one of those stupid debates people have sometimes.

[AndrewTS 0]

Also, the LoZ games usually have the same protagonist.

 

Well, no, but okay...

 

FFVII still rules. FTW.

When did you play it last?

 

Zelda vs. something like Metroid.

 

Can't say I follow. You're still looking at very different genres.

 

Good games/game series more similar to Zelda:

Alundra, Beyond Oasis (and Legend of Oasis), Crystalis.

[Anya 0]

It is still good. Better then any Zelda game.

 

FF VI, VII and VIII alone beat out the entire Zelda series. Actually I'd say I'd take those 3 over Nintendo's entire cataloge.

[Black Lushus 0]

8???

 

whooooooa Anya! whoooooa!

[AndrewTS 0]

It is still good. Better then any Zelda game.

 

FF VI, VII and VIII alone beat out the entire Zelda series. Actually I'd say I'd take those 3 over Nintendo's entire cataloge.

 

Yeah, but you're a soulless crab girl. We come to expect that notion from you.

 

8???

 

whooooooa Anya! whoaaaaa!

 

Final Fantasy VIII isn't even as good as Zelda 2.

[Anya 0]

I don't like FF because I am a crab. I am a crab because I like FF.

[AndrewTS 0]

I don't like FF because I am a crab. I am a crab because I like FF.

 

The original poster was asking about the entire series. That includes crap like X-2, XI, and even those entries (many of which people think are the best) that are on non-Sony systems.

 

A more appropriate poll would probably be Dragon Quest vs. Final Fantasy. But that would be a complete landslide, and an entire board making fun of Japan.

[Prophet of Mike Zagurski 0]

Well isn't Link the main protagonist is most of LoZ games? Yeah I know, different Links.

[Guest Smues]

FFVII still rules. FTW.

When did you play it last?

 

 

 

2005. I have to play through FFIX again and then it's VII's turn again.

[AndrewTS 0]

Well isn't Link the main protagonist is most of LoZ games? Yeah I know, different Links.

 

Well, Link is what we call him, but you can name him whatever you want (and conveniently his actual name is always lost to history); he could be the "legendary hero", "messenger of the gods," "hero of time," "hero of wind", whatever. He's a guy who will don the green tunic and Master Sword and save Hyrule (most of the time), but there are 8 distinctly different ones.

 

It's kind of like Final Fantasy's Cid. Except Square just decided to begin doing Cid several games in, and he's a completely different character in each one.

[Guest Smues]

It is still good. Better then any Zelda game.

 

FF VI, VII and VIII alone beat out the entire Zelda series. Actually I'd say I'd take those 3 over Nintendo's entire cataloge.

 

Yeah, but you're a soulless crab girl. We come to expect that notion from you.

 

8???

 

whooooooa Anya! whoaaaaa!

Final Fantasy VIII isn't even as good as Zelda 2.

 

I think both of those games are great.

[Anya 0]

The original poster was asking about the entire series. That includes crap like X-2, XI, and even those entries (many of which people think are the best) that are on non-Sony systems.

 

 

Um, I like X-2. I can't think of any main FF that is crap. I don't like XI but I don't like that entire genre. The NES and early SNES games are old and outdated but so are the old Zelda games. Even some of the spin off games(TACTICS) are great.

 

It doesn't really matter anyway. VII and VIII are two of my favorite games ever. Even if the others sucked I would still put it way above Zelda.

[AndrewTS 0]

Even if the others sucked I would still put it way above Zelda.

 

Which is pretty much my point. I actually like some of the Final Fantasies, but it isn't like you have even gave given the LoZs a fair shake.

 

X-2 is terrible, just admit it.

 

Now go play that and tell me how good it is. Or go kill giant bunnies for hours in FFXI.

[Guest Princess Leena]

X-2 isn't terrible. It was just different. And a horrible idea.

[Anya 0]

How do I not give them a fair shake? I've played through all the big ones except LTTP.

 

X-2 is not terrible. It's not even bad. That's such hyperbole. It's not as good as the others but it's not bad. It's no Zelda CDI of FF. It's not even the worst FF. I don't need to play it again, I've beat it twice.

[World's Worst Man 0]

I'd really love to hear why FFX-2 is horrible. Funny how I hear that a lot yet never see any reasoning outside of "LOL GIRLY FANSERVICE GAME". FFX-2 had really great gameplay thanks to the job system, which in turn makes the battles fun. Incentive to level-up the jobs plus a lot of different skills to use makes for fun battles to me. There was also a lot of fun side-quests, and a lot of stuff to do in general. The gameplay was certainly better than lets say, Chrono Trigger, which seems to be a popular game among the nostalgists. Unless of course one thinks that characters where you have no control over their progression, and a pitiful amount of variance in battles makes for better gameplay than FFX-2. Say what you will about the point or spirit of the game, the gameplay was there.

 

As for the poll, it's not really even close. No point getting into story and character development, because the Zelda series isn't even in the same stratosphere as any post FFV Final Fantasy game. Gameplay? I can see the Zelda fans complaining about the repetitiveness of RPGs, but guess what? Zelda is repetitive too. Besides, battles in FF9/X/X-2/XII were hardly repetitive, as using a bunch of different skills was essential for completing certain battles without a large headache. I'd also like to add that I don't necessarily mind repetitiveness if there's some sort of reward. For example, I'm willing to take certain levels of repetitiveness if I'm leveling up characters, because it eventually improves the amount of repetitiveness and makes the game much funner. Anyway, FF also has the advantage of some solid character customization systems, which I do enjoy. Zelda's advantages come with the puzzles and boss battles. Although occasionally they're incredibly convoluted and not much fun, but in general I'd say that's the biggest strength of those games. The question likely comes down to which genre the person likes better. But I try looking at how the games do in their respective formulas, and I'd call FF the winner on the strength of FFVI, FFVII, FFIX, FFX and FFX-2.

[Conspiracy_Victim 0]

X-2 was just an attempt to capitalize on X's popularity. They just tried to explore an angle and it went horribly, horribly wrong. And hey, at least we got Payne out of it, so it wasn't ALL bad. Personally speaking, it was far from the worst game I've ever played, I just got bored with it.

 

Edit: Misawa's post made me add my reasons. The main problem I had with X-2 were the characters. I found Rikku annoying childish, Yuna was not a compelling lead, and Payne (although cool) never really developed. And I know it was a "girl power" sort of game, but would it have killed them to have ANY decent male characters? Auron was, naturally, nowhere to be seen. Wakka makes little more than a cameo, and the most prominent male character is a blithering idiot (yes Brother I'm looking at you, you moron! Stick to kicking ass at blitzball). Maybe I'm forgetting someone since it has been quite some time since I've even turned it on. The job system was pretty decent, but I found myself switching the character's classes just to try to max their classes out, not out of necessity. It just felt incomplete. Everyone could do the same things in every class, so why bother making any of the party work at more than 2 or maybe 3 classes? Plus, I don't think I used their ultimate costumes (or whatever they were called) more than once or twice each. I just found them tacked on.

 

All in all, I liked the idea of going back to Spira. I just felt that the idea was better than the execution.

[Kapoutman 0]

I voted Zelda because there are about five games from that series in my top 10 games. Final Fantasy never really hooked me. I'm not saying they're bad games, it's just that I connect more with Zelda. Something about the story has me waiting for the next installment just to see the next twist in the legend. The last time I played a Final Fantasy game (FFVII), I found the random battles and hour-long attack animations very annoying.

[AndrewTS 0]

LOL at how seriously GQ is taking this.

 

Right about now is the point where Star Ocean 3 pops in to post "Xenogears."

[World's Worst Man 0]

Sorry for actually supporting my opinion with observations and facts. Next time I'll just be smarmy and say anyone who disagrees is a moron.

[Conspiracy_Victim 0]

Sorry for actually supporting my opinion with observations and facts. Next time I'll just be smarmy and say anyone who disagrees is a moron.

 

NOW you're getting the idea! Welcome to debating/arguing on the internets!