IX is WAY better than VII. Don't know about VIII because after trying VII when it first came out and thought "Um . . . this is NOT Final Fantasy!" I was reluctant to try any new FF games game out until I heard everyone saying how like the "old games" IX was. I played it and loved it! I still haven't bothered with giving VII a go.

After VI, they should have started a new series called Final Sci-Fi and left my FF alone. :P