The Changing Times

Question: How long have you been active in the FF community?
Answer: About 12 years now.

Feel free to answer that question.

Since I first got online back in 2003 I have been on many RPG and FF boards. One cannot help but make observations when you talk to people this much about similar subjects for a prolonged period of time. And I have noticed some things have changed a lot over the years. What about all of you?

For example....
There was a time when Final Fantasy V was just "that game sandwiched between two classics." Final Fantasy IV and Final Fantasy VI have always been popular but FFV used to be thoroughly ignored by everyone I talked to. However, in more recent years, perhaps due to the Advance version, it has gained quite the cult following.

Final Fantasy IX is another game that has spiked in popularity. I used to be the biggest FFIX fanboy and it was so frustrating finding more people ready to talk about frickin' FFVIII than FFIX. Nowadays though, I'd say FFIX is generally agreed to be placed right up there with the all-time greats.

In the opposite direction, thee is Final Fantasy IV. If anything, its stock has been steadily dropping over the years. I think this is a perfect example of the moral decay of the human race, much moreso than gay marriage or any other Right Wing yahoo rhetoric. FFIV was amazing.

Well, I've been playing FF for 17 years (Jesus Christ it looks a lot when you see it like that eh.)

I probably got active in the community when I would do Final Fantasy board roleplaying in about... 2005 - so 10 years, give or take! I've been friends with a few people for that long too. Some of my oldest friends are from the online FF community.

I've been playing the series for eighteen years, only been active in the community for three. Two of which have been on here, and the third was on Final Fantasy Forums.net which I wasn't active on for that long. Before that I just spoke with the occasional fan, but that was it.

It's nuts looking back on how perspectives on the series have radically changed. There was a time when a good deal of the members on this board refused to acknowledge that VII was even a decent game.

It goes back to only half the series being available in the West before VII. FFIV and VI were the be-all end-all but those games aren't as special when you discover the adventures they were sandwiched between. Its ironic they claimed VII was only beloved because it was peoples' first FF but I suppose it's some kind of poetic justice how the tables have turned on that. I know a number of us hold V higher than VI. I'm still waiting for FFII to get its due - there's some of us but it hasn't quite gotten the reputation bump that V has yet.

I think the real loser though is FFVIII. It used to be an incredibly divisive game, much more than XIII except a few insisted it was the best in the series. Now it's more or less forgotten.

Ive been playing FF games for just over a year now, and i joined EoFF like a year ago. not much to say, but i do find it annoying that everybody who i talked to on xbox, was not interested in FF at all. except one guy. i dont know why i waited this long to play FF, considering i used to watch my sister play 7 8 and 9 alot when i was young. it is truly a fascinating series, that will stand strong for millenia.

I've been playing Final Fantasy games for I dont even know how long, and they are still my favorite games of all time. For me not much has changed, as I still love the older ones (mystic quest excluded) as much as I did back then. I joined the board last month when I found it bye mistake and it has been a place I have enjoyed greatly. I love all the members here, and though I don't always agree with them on good and bad FF, I love reading there opinions on them as it made me go back to a few I pushed aside as ehhh.

It's been an interesting time to say the least. Games come and go, and entries rise and fall. It was nice to finally meet people who grew up on the series and actually played entries before the PlayStation era. While I've played the games for a long while, I only became engaged with the community in the time I've been here.

It was nice seeing people praise the NES era because it really doesn't get enough love. Meet people who loved the SNES era, finally meet people who don't treat the PS1 era like it was perfection, and banter back and forth on which games were actually good in the PS2 and 3 eras.

I find the PlayStation era's star has risen again as well, but I blame this more on the oldest fans abandoning the series as life finally kicks in and suddenly paying bills and raising kids is more important than speculating what the next FF will be like or arguing which is the best. In another ten years it will only be the PS2 fans and beyond but that's just life.

FF5 has always had a cult following. I'm in it!