So what's the deal?

[champagne supernova]

Villains: I thought they were good. I don't want to get into the details of it as I will spoil the game for you, but for me, the villains all believed they were doing the right thing. Which is quite invigorating, instead of the usual: I'm an evil person and I want power. So I would say that is similar to Vayne in XII. (SPOILER) And finding out that Cocoon was basically a chicken battery reminded me of the Matrix scene when Neo finds out that humans were being used as batteries. There are quite a few Matrix similarities I think

Yeah that villain outlook is seen quite often in movies though. So nothing new for me.
But thank you for pointing out the pros and cons in the sections you did.

Oh agreed. Just not normally in Final Fantasies. Kefka, Sephiroth, Ultimecia? They did not have that outlook!

Kefka, Ultimecia no. But I believe Seph was thinking along those lines. He thought he was doing the right thing, it was selfish, but he still thought he was. Not really going for more power

There's a debate going on about that in the VII thread. No, Sephiroth wanted to become a God. Not as a means to go to other planets and save. Being a god was the end, not the means. Definitely not for the greater good.