But why Final Fantasy?

[trancekuja]

You are here , obviously because you're a fan of final Fantasy. So , tell me what is it so special about Final Fantasy? What aspect of it distinguishes it from the sea of other RPG titles?

How is it that after all this time , we still find pleasure and good emotions while playing VI on the SNES or finishing VII for who knows what time? Why do we still watch VIII intro with same enthusiasm and admiration , feel sad when Vivi is sad , try our best not to let a tear watching X ending? Or spend numerous hours in Henne Mines trying to get Zodiac Spear because we opened one or two chests too many...

Why does it feel good just to be in a FF world?

[The Man]

I really don't even play Final Fantasy that much anymore. Probably a large part of what keeps me attached to the series is nostalgia. The reason I'm still posting here seven years after joining is due to the friends I've made here. That said, there definitely was something special about the series back in the days. For me I think it's mostly the rather fantastic grasp of human nature displayed in the storylines alongside the fantastic soundtracks.

[Saber]

Cause I hate reality. The games got me when I knew I could escape from the real world and play endlessly in a far better world. Its quite sad why I like FF but still thats my honest anwser. Plus it was way different then the run and jump Mario games. Final Fantasy had a great amount of things you could do and they kept some things the same like Cid, Excalibur, Summons ect. So you could easily learn the basics of one game and carry down your knowings to other titles. For example if you knew what cure was they kept it the same in all the games so you get the idea how the whole series works and build talent in battles.

[FFIX Choco Boy]

I liked FFs because of the many things you could do, and because the gameplay and stories of all the games(Yes, even XII and IX) were amazing. I don't play for the battles anymore, more just to watch story scenes. The amazing writing has always captivated me, and sometimes I still get surprised with things I already knew were there. Nostalgia helps, too, also since it is one of the most popular RPG series ever.

[the AJman]

I like Final Fantasy because its fun, it seems to have the right blend of elements to make it an enjoyable experience. One of the many things I like is that it tries something new with each title, it makes it more interesting and it also means theres ususally a Final Fantasy for everybody. I'll try to keep this short, but no promises and now that I realize this is going to be big, I'm going to divide this up into categories.

Gameplay

I think Final Fantasy has some of the most exciting and most fast paced battle systems in the genre. Especially with systems like the ATB or ADB, you had to be quick and decisive as well as smart and thinking ahead and with XII being able to move around was a real treat. As the series progressed they would add or twick things to make it much more fun. The different applications of the limit breaks are always entertaining and very much some of my favorite abilities and features in the series. The animation for the skills and spells in the games are usually some of the most impressive on their respective video game hardware, and most of them are a decent enough running time so that it doesn't slow done the gameplay and still treat us to some awesome fireworks, though there are exceptions these aren't the norm. The bosses are interesting, well designed, and definitely one of the highlights off the series. They certainly have that larger than life feel to them.
They also have massive worlds to explore and uncover the secrets too. There are usually a good amount of fun side quests, and optional bosses who are in every meaning of the word epic. I also love there weapons designs, being a sword fanatic one of the things I'm always looking forward to when a new game comes out is the new swords (and other weapons of course). They also have pretty innovative and fun build up systems, ranging from the espers in VI, to Jobs in III, V, and Tactics, to Sphere grid in X.

Setting/Graphics

The settings are usually really cool, and they use a wide varity of them, it isn't the same rehashed game world in each one. The series goes from traditional medieval high fantasy (certainly my favorite type of setting), to steampunk, to a strong sci fi future world, to very heavily asian settings, and so on. Even with some of the settings they use more than once, they put a different spin on them. An example would be IV, IX, XII, all have a typical medieval setting, but each does some thing different to make them different in their own way. The worlds are real eye candy, especially the latter half of the series with 3-D graphics, its just flat wow. Even the 2-D games have a certain charm to them that sometimes the 3-D no longer have. The Graphics for a Final Fantasy game typically are some of the most advanced on the system they are release for, even the first game had amazing graphics for the time. Now I know that graphics aren't everything, but they certianly help, and Final Fantasies' graphics make the games so much more enjoyable.

Story/Characters

What can I say, the stories are epic, and enjoyable to play through. Another thing is that Final Fantasy is presented differently than other JRPGs. Most JRPGs out there feel like a playable japanese cartoon, and that sometimes puts me off a bit, but FF on the other hand feels like a big hollywood blockbuster like Lord of the Rings or Star Wars, and feels just as epic. I'll admit that Final Fantasy might not have the deepest or the greatest writing out there, but what it does have is interesting plots and they are just overall fun and exciting. Stories don't always have to reveal the meaning of life or have some alagorical (sp) message, sometimes its just good enough to be enterained and wowed and every once in a while share a touching moment and shed a tear, and FF delivers all of that.
The Characters are interesting and easy to get attached too. There is a large number of different characters out there in the franchise, all with their own personality, design and fairly well written backstory. Theres really is a character for everybody in these games. And the character designers are usually varied and interesting bring something new to the table. Nomura with his modern street look, to Amano's very dream like and beautiful artwork, to Yoshida's old world european look.

Music
Nobuo Uematsu is an amazing music composer and I personally rank him up there with John Williams, Hans Zimmer, Howard Shore. His compositions range from big and epic like many of the battle themes, to soft and a bit sad, and even some tracks that are a bit creepy (the track in VII when you escape the Shinra tower after Sephiroth massacred many of the people there). He also composes music ranging from heavy metalish, to typical big orchesta tracks. Sakimoto is another great composer, with great tracks that helped define the world of Ivalice. Even some of the more pop tunes are fairly pleasing to hear and this is coming from a guy doesn't usually listen to pop music whether it be from the western world or asia.

I could probably go on for ever, but frankly I'm getting tired of all this typing and I'm using a computer on my college campus to write this and I'm just waiting for some one to tap me on the shoulder and say I've been one here long enough. Final Fantasy is definitely a game franchise I have been a huge fan of for over a decade now, its certainly one my favorite game series by a long shot. As mentioned eariler it has the right combination of the right stuff to make it what it is and seperates it from its from the rest of the titles in its genre or sub genre. These are a set of games I don't see myself quiting any time, thats why Final Fantasy and I'll leave it at that.

[scrumpleberry]

Uh, because it has a tradition of being brilliant and all the in-jokes and tunes and distinctive style has caught me.

Basically, because they're all fun.

[Jessweeee♪]

'cause they're fun games with neat-o stories and music!

[,,,]

Why, indeed. I haven't heard many argue that it's significantly better than the Chrono games, and whether or not it's better than the Mana games or the Dragon Quest games is pretty arguable. And other than those, there's still tons of other RPGs out there. FF didn't do it first and they didn't do it best, but they did it well and, more importantly, they did it the most prolifically. No other console RPG series is the franchise that FF is. The only one I can think of off the top of my head that has close to as many games is DQ, and that one skipped the SNES generation in America altogether. Final Fantasy is the only one that every generation of gamers since the nes era has in common. The playstation 1 crowd, the SNES crowd, the nes crowd, and the ps2/beyond crowd can all come together and say "Yeah, Final Fantasy. That's a very good RPG." And it is.

[sir helix]

a way to get away from the hell thats life

[The Man]

Why, indeed. I haven't heard many argue that it's significantly better than the Chrono games, and whether or not it's better than the Mana games or the Dragon Quest games is pretty arguable. And other than those, there's still tons of other RPGs out there. FF didn't do it first and they didn't do it best, but they did it well and, more importantly, they did it the most prolifically. No other console RPG series is the franchise that FF is. The only one I can think of off the top of my head that has close to as many games is DQ, and that one skipped the SNES generation in America altogether. Final Fantasy is the only one that every generation of gamers since the nes era has in common. The playstation 1 crowd, the SNES crowd, the nes crowd, and the ps2/beyond crowd can all come together and say "Yeah, Final Fantasy. That's a very good RPG." And it is.

SMT arguably is nearly as prolific, and it definitely has way more spinoffs. However, it's too esoteric and probably too difficult to catch on with American mass audiences.

On the whole, I'd say Suikoden is probably a better series as well, at least if you disregard SIV (which I haven't played).

[LunarWeaver]

I would gamble the Tales series comes the closest to FF and DQ in the states and Japan. But it's not like I have facts to back up my wild claims or anything.


Final Fantasy's popularity gets the games large budgets and good teams. I'm usually pretty impressed with them. But I'm not as skeptical and harsh on the series as many others. It makes it easier for me to just enjoy them instead of compare and bitch about everything. That's why I generally like it the best.

[trancekuja]

I'm usually pretty impressed with them. But I'm not as skeptical and harsh on the series as many others. It makes it easier for me to just enjoy them instead of compare and bitch about everything. That's why I generally like it the best.

I couldn't have said it better myself...

[Rostum]

I'm not as skeptical and harsh on the series as many others. It makes it easier for me to just enjoy them instead of compare and bitch about everything.

Agreed.

I generally love the unique artistic direction of most Final Fantasy games, and I love the music (not just Uematsu's stuff either). That's a good enough reason for me to play.

[Bolivar]

I like every game I've played, a lot, even the more loathed NES ones. I've beaten them all multiple times and I like each one for distinct reasons. Others have disagreed in this thread, but I think its the best RPG series, western or japanese, computer or console, out there.

To me, every aspect, from story to music to gameplay to visuals is top notch. Every game has had the most impressive graphics for its time. The music in all of them, even as far back as Final Fantasy II (I for some), is so incredibly memorable and praiseworthy. I think once ATB came into the picture, it's had some of the best fast paced battles, with 2 exceptions going back on that. I love all the stories alot. Although they were very simple and relatively generic before the Playstation games, they still stood out from the crowd of its peers.

The concept itself is very intruiging. Every game has basically the same plot structure and mythology, just with a different planet, characters, and mystical energy force that keeps it all together. Each battle system is essentially the same, with a completely different menu system for character development. Even the music has similarities, with each game sometimes taking its own style, or tracks that take a different approach on a similar concept, like the battle theme or world map theme.

I also like coming here to discuss the one I'm currently playing and see what others have to say about it. Unfortunately there's been so many good next (current?) gen games coming out, I haven't had the time to get into the series. Hopefully I can beat them by the time FFXIII comes out.

[cloud21zidane16]

Their a good way to escape from the real world. I love it that the stories so long, we can sometimes associate with some characters. Theres so much to do, especially i love the start knowing all the tasks that await, its like a really fun checklist that feels satisfactory to tick off I like it when its sometimes slow and you can just take things in rather than just some basic shooting everything fast kinda game. And i actually enjoy organising things such as weapons, armour, magic, statistics, i just think its cool