I'd never heard of the FF series untill I played FFVI back in... I think it was 97 or 98. My friend and I played it with no walkthrough or hints. We had to find our own way through the whole thing. This just made it all the better. We were totally immersed in it. The music cut through me and I mourned for the lost friends. The fact that it was so well made that man still consider it the best is just frosting on the cake. I'd never seen anything like it and it just overwhelmed me. That's why it will always be my favorite.
It was my first.

Later I went back and played FFI on the NES and got a copy of VII eventually I played all the previous ones on the emulator and they were great too.