Lessee, I might know what I'd choose off the side of my head. For now, I'll bold the nominees' names here, and hopefully fill in more later. (For reference, I've played through I, II, IV, V, VII (mostly), X, X-2, Crisis Core, Dissidia, Dissidia 012, and Echoes of Time, had significant playtime with VIII, XIII, and Mystic Quest, and read LPs for VIII and Dirge of Cerberus.)
1. Best Character
2. Best Hero: Zack Fair
It's the core of his drive in Crisis Core, an it's played off in its ending, in Birth by Sleep, and FFVII AC Complete, IIRC. His ambitions aside, this guy offered a completely different feel from Cloud. He's just so optimistic and energetic! Even though his game has a higher concentration of bummers... Zack was excited for what he's doing, and that got me exited; "I Wanna Be The Guy!"
3. Best Heroine: Yuna
As much as FFX focused on Tidus, Yuna was the fulcrum of that pilgrimage, and seeing her steadily grow a spine about the persistent crap around her without losing her resolve to help whenever possible gives a sense of strength to her beyond simply being tough or a bad ass. Then seeing her unwound yet, at her core, still a "goody-goody" in FFX-2 was fun for me.
4. Best Villain: The Emperor
If FFII had been saved for the SFC/SNES, it could have been great. As-is, we have an epitome of an archetypal evil ruler, with his douchabggery stretching from his own sadistic power grab/show to getting personal with the rebels opposing him. Even unto heaven and hell, there is only one who shall rule. This guy kills gods. Just because he insists on his sovereignty, and the complete subjection of all else. (Exdeath was also in the running, but what I find interesting in him are the mechanics of his existence and of his aims rather than his character.)
5. Best NPC: Maechen
Before FFX, my JRPG experience was mostly Pokémon and Golden Sun, the latter featuring Kraden. Between him and Maechen, I gained a soft spot for their kind of "old guy", with Maechen being fully voiced during his spiels. It was from him, just literally chilling on Mt. Gagazet, that we learned the past of Zanarkand and Bevelle's interactions. And thanks to FFX-2, there's a certain satisfaction knowing he's been babbling for a long, long time.
6. Best Creature (Species): Chocobo
This isn't even a question for me. I feel sad that others must be excluded (Malboros, Tonberries, Cactuar, Flan...), but I love chickens, and these are chicken steeds. Horses? Pfft. Kit that buzzard with armor, Clasko!
7. Best Summon: Quetzalcoatl
So many cool summons, and so many more useful, but Quetz wins out for me in two areas. Although I started with Ixion, I've come to learn of Ramuh's recurrence. However, neighther design appeals to me, whereas this...thing, it's a slick electric bird-thing. It just looks damn interesting, in part due to its near featurelessness (but, hey, those wingtips remind me of Valefor's). Second, this GF exclusively had Card and Card Mod, essential abilities in a game where magic is tedious to come by otherwise (man, I wish Triple Triad loaded up faster).
8. Best World: Spira
As partial as I seem to FFX, I've only been through it myself once. Anyway, for what seems rare, we have a world without staples. No castle town, no ninja land, no mage town. There's a desert, yeah, but this world just feels rather different, even to FFVIII's. That aesthetic pervasiveness of island cultures gives an otherworldly vibe to just about everything there (small as it felt to real-time trek across a continent and a half). (FFII was in the running, but that was due to how melancholy the world map was, at least in the GBA version.)
9. Best Town/Location: Chaos Shrine
This is mostly being driven by those beautiful tracks "Chaos Shrine" and "Sunken Shrine", but this location was an alpha and an omega, and seeing Garland's minute arc there is cool to think about. Ah, how time takes its toll...
10. Best Song
11. Best Moment: Battle on Xezat's Fleet
There are more substantial moments, but this sequence had one particular moment that truly impressed me. As Galuf caught up with Xezat, the two surrounded on all sides, they circle about, back to back, as they quip to each other. The music already had me going, but the dynamism between that, the scenario, and their motions somehow really pumped me up. Somehow, these simple sprites (as in, their heads were as big as their bodies, as opposed to FFVI's proportions) completely riled up my GAR. I was thoroughly impressed that such simple graphics could inspire such a reaction so strongly, with said graphics at the core of that moment.
12. Sexiest Male
13. Sexiest Female: Faris
SPOILERS! Anyway, that, even in her guise of a pirate captain, she caused Bartz and Galuf to swoon, there's some fierce fetchingness thar. I'd love to see what they'd do with her (assuming they're faithful to her character) with modern tech.
14. Cutest Male
15. Cutest Female
16. Best Voice: An old lady in Besaid
"Stay away from the summoner!" This has, and shall always, stick with me. It's not even too good, but it's entirely memorable.
17. Best Dialogue (Character)
18. Best Dressed Character
19. Best Story (Character)
20. Nicest Character
21. Evilest Character
22. Happiest Character: Laguna
I think it counts in his favor when those close to him are dead, in peril, or ignorant of their relation. Heck, he led to his friend's entire ability to speak getting nerfed. And, yet, he's still so chipper. Even when he's bummed, he's shrugging off as much as he can. (BTW: Look up
Ask Laguna's
Photobucket.)
24. Funniest Character
25. Weirdest Character
26. Most Influential Character
27. Most Mysterious Character
28. Most Underrated Character
29. Most Annoying Character: Whoever's being nonsensical in FFXIII
Seriously, FFXIII is painful... There are incidental characters elsewhere who can spike harder, but when your main party, and the only characters you're exposed to, are hair-pullingly insufferable, it hurts that much more.
30. Cutest Couple
Most Likely To...
31. Be the Protagonist in a New Sequel
32. Get Killed off in a New Sequel
33. Get Run Over by a Chocobo
34. Be Riding the Chocobo
35. Laugh at the Character Getting Run over by a Chocobo
36. Run over a snurble and spend the rest of their lives crying over it
37. Beat up an adamantoise on their day off: Yang
Because even on his days off, he'd be training. He'd punch its shell open, eventually.
38. Be Biggs
39. Be Wedge
40. Get Together
Special Awards for Square-Enix Staff
1. Highwind Award for Most Loved Former Square Enix Employee
2. Highwind Award for Most Loved Current Square Enix Employee
...Were we supposed to give reasons? Sorry about all the text...
