Old School Versus New School

[The Captain]

Seems that Locke is getting a lot of love around these parts right now, and for good reason. He was easily my favorite character of any "Old School" final fantasy, especially for that grand heroic music. However, it really made me wonder:

What is it about the "Old School" characters that seems to make them more popular then most of the "New School" characters? Is it because they came first? Or something else?

Or do you disagree and think the "New School" characters are superior?

For the purposes of this debate:
Old School: FFI-VI, and all games that came out during this time that aren't from the actual series
New School: FFVII and beyond.

Take care all.

[Kirobaito]

Actually, some of the people that say that they like the oldskewl FFs and their characters are saying that simply because they want to be oldskewl as well. If that makes sense. They think it makes them look cool, or something like that.

I like both equally, actually. I think each game is its own, not "oldskewl" over "newskewl", or vice versa.

[Del Murder]

I like the older games better because I played them first and they are just better games.

[eestlinc]

Old School FF games just did everything better.

[Snowman]

actually i disagree. the older FF's just didnt hold me. i could never get into suikoden despite my mate pushing because it just.....well it didnt flow and the graphics were naff. that said when i first read teh instruction book for ...what FF was it, the one with teh dark knight as the main character i was captures by him..he sounded cool.

i loved teh cubed look for FF7, with the square hands and chunky faces. it was a cute style they should have kept in the later final fantasys. but generally i prefer the later FF's

[escobert]

I like the old school games better but VII is my all time favorite game ever.

[HOOTERS]

I like Quina

:smash:

[DocFrance]

They've all got their merits, but I think that the N-Generation FF's are much better in general.

[Snowman]

why?

[escobert]

The fact that all the characters don't look and act liek girls is one good reason. I'm sick of these little brats who cry about everything.

[DJZen]

Actually, that chunky look of FFVII is derived from the look of the battle sprites. That style has been in place since FFI. I personally feel that when they made FF games for NES they had less to work with so they had to work harder to get things to happen and wound up with an awesome product. The richness in poverty, if you will. They had to go with the best ideas and anything shakey would have to be dropped. When you're working with bare bones ideas only, you tend to make those really solid. Now that the same memory constraints don't apply, they throw in any old thing they feel like. Also, the series has REALLY changed from the days of its D&D roots. It used to be pure swords, sorcery and dungeon crawls. Now we have weird things like slot machines, gunblades and giant earth killing robots. It's true that FFI had robots too, but they're a lot more ubiquitous in modern FFs, and the setting is more modern. It makes sword slinging less believable. I guess I'll have to get FFXII when it comes out, it seems a little more in the vein of FF games I like.

[Mr. Graves]

I liked the old-school games more for the fact that they had great gameplay. FF5 is possibly my most favorite Final Fantasy, and for good reason. The gameplay was highly deep, and it was never boring, even when you were just going around a certain cave to build job levels. FF4 is a great game, as is FF1. Almost all of the old-school FFs had that special quality to 'em, and when you completed them, you felt as if you've accomplished something.

Now, new-school games are alright, and I thoroghly enjoyed FFs 7 and 8. I mostly enjoyed FF8 because it was highly different at the time than the other FFs, and it still remained fairly challenging. FF9 disappointed me because it was too easy, and I felt that the gameplay had lots of flaws. FF10 was also disappointed me because of it being 75% movie and about 25% video game. FF10-2 was much better gameplay-wise, but not as great as the old-school games. I have less faith in FF11, because to me it charters on unfamiliar terrority, that of the MMORPG. FF12 looks great, but whether the game itself will be good is something that remains to be seen. About the only new-school game that's truly challenging on a massively hard level was the first FFTactics.

Old-school wins in the end because they never disappoint, and always deliver a solid RPG game.

[Boromakus]

The fact that all the characters don't look and act liek girls is one good reason. I'm sick of these little brats who cry about everything.

BERT is so far my favorite member.

I like Old School games because the characters had PERSONALITY instead of pop music and manicured, fragile bodies.

[eestlinc]

actually i disagree. the older FF's just didnt hold me. i could never get into suikoden despite my mate pushing because it just.....well it didnt flow and the graphics were naff.

Suikoden isn't a FF game though.

[Sephex]

I like more of the old school characters because I felt most of those games were better. The only new school people I like as much as the old school people are the ones from VII because they evoked the same warm feeling from me as the older FF characters.

[Rase]

what FF was it, the one with teh dark knight as the main character i was captures by him..he sounded cool.
I believe that would be FFIV.

Anyway, I like the old school games because:
a) They were the first I played.
b) They seemed to have more personality IMO.
c) They didn't rely on flashy effects.

[Snowman]

ill repeat a previeous comment since it's gone now.

both the early FF's and suikoden herald from the early forms of RPG, thus you miss read me Tsunami.

ive never let the fact i first played something or watched something influence me because theres too many good and bad things in both.

[The Captain]

I go back and forth myself. I play Final Fantasy games more or less to be moved and swept away by a great story. A story means not just plot, but memorable characters, situations, startling revelations, and the like. For me, FF8 got it just about right, except for the Orphanage sequence but again, that was a startling revelation because I didn't see it coming.

The trouble with Final Fantasy games as a rule is that they must always be good versus evil. I think for once, we should have a Final Fantasy entirely from a villians perspective. That would certainly make for a most interesting game.

Just my personal opinion.

Take care all.

[Rase]

Yeah! We could call it "First Reality" and to win, you destroy the world.

[Xander]

Actually, some of the people that say that they like the oldskewl FFs and their characters are saying that simply because they want to be oldskewl as well. If that makes sense. They think it makes them look cool, or something like that.

I like both equally, actually. I think each game is its own, not "oldskewl" over "newskewl", or vice versa.

I agree with you. I haven't played much of the oldschool FF's yet, although I love what I have played of FFVI. When I played FFVII which was the first one I played, I thought - wow this game is the best, but after playing some more I found my new favourite - FFIX. And I don't like FFVIII much, whether it's old school or new school didn't effect that, it was just boring. :p

I like a lot of old games, MI games, Sega Genesis games, I still play on my C64 and Amiga emulators, so no-one could say I play games because of the graphics. I just happen to enjoy the newer FF's at the moment, and don't feel like playing the older ones yet. But when I do I'm sure the story/characters and so on will effect how much I like them, rather than what they are classified as.

[ShadyMilkman]

I like Old School games because the characters had PERSONALITY instead of pop music and manicured, fragile bodies.
The newer ones have just as much personality but AMEN to the part about pop music and fragile bodies of the females. What chick in hotpants is really going to kick ass and save the world? Not too many, the older ones just made more sense. Thiefs-used to danger, Black Belts-Live to fight! Fighter-do ya really have to say anything? But... now... with characters like Tifa (like she could really kill anything), Eiko (She's SEVEN!!!!) Vivi (He was even younger!) and Lulu (Yeah, like could relaly move around and fight in thta dress...)

[DJZen]

Vivi is a black mage. Black mages aren't supposed to be good at fighting, that's a fighter's job.

[Outsider]

I like the old FFs much more than the new FFs for only one reason. I don't really have fun playing the new ones.

I believe that I don't have fun playing the new ones for the simple fact that they are not as good as the old ones. It has nothing to do with which game I played first.

[ShadyMilkman]

Vivi is a black mage. Black mages aren't supposed to be good at fighting, that's a fighter's job.
I know that... but he's SIX!!!!! How many six year run around throwing fire out of their hands and kicking your ass?

[DocFrance]

None in the real world. But this is Final Fantasy.

[Rase]

I know that... but he's SIX!!!!! How many six year run around throwing fire out of their hands and kicking your ass?

Well, there's that one little neighbor kid down the street...

[DJZen]

Well, there's that one little neighbor kid down the street...

YOU KNOW HIM TOO?!?!?!?!?!

[ShadyMilkman]

Well, there's that one little neighbor kid down the street...
Holy crap!!! I Thought He Was Just A Myth!!! You Mean He's Real?????

[DocFrance]

Yeah, the little bastard singed my jeans.

[Rase]

He burned my car, then my house, then my box I was using instead of a house. :mad: Stupid kid! Gonna make him pay! *Makes phone call to Michel Jackson*