Has ff gone down hill since Square Enix

[SaveOurSeeker]

I believe so. I came in at ff9. I have played most ff games except 11 and the ff7 prequals. I think after ff10 the stories and charecter personalities have lacked any sort of humanity really. Understandable with 13 as they were made in to 'monsters' but ff12 was terrible in my eyes and 13s gameplay was terrible, I think they spent to much time on other sub standard games like Nier and the other SE game (can't remember) it's name. 13 was beutiful as far graphics are concerned but I felt cheated at how it was walk in a straight line and battle and press x. Any one else agree. versus 13 looks good though, it could be make or brake for me though. What do you think?

[Levian]

Most of my beef with the later installments are the boring battle systems, but then again, they made the best battle system to date in FFX-2, so it can't be that either.

What's definitely gone downhill is that they're spending ages getting the games released. Took them 9 years to make FFX-2, XII and XIII. Took them 4 years to make VII, VIII, and IX. Crank em out quicker dammit!

[SaveOurSeeker]

You mean 12 and 13 battle systems. Not the best, X-2 battle system was a highlight to the game, a bit to girly for me, which I think was the point behind it which is fair enough. The old system is and always will be the best in my opinion. Maybe if they revived that system but added a bit of skill into it like Shadow Hearts (did you ever play them) very good rpg, closest any one has got to beating FF. You would think that they would have more games out since 10 which was 8 years ago now Apparantly verus 13 has World map back which i have missed, I like straight forward games but not mind numbing linerity like ff13. Hopefully SE will realise the potential in the ps3, we can have beutiful graphics as well as depth to the gameplay.

[Saber]

I'm not liking a lot of the new final fantasy titles past IX. Well to say it truthfully, yes, I do think Final Fantasy went downhill after they merged with Enix. They try and make them likable to critics and well 12 got a high score as well as 13. People use to complain that Final Fantasy consists of just pressing attack over and over again... but I think it was more about using spells and skills right to master the games. I miss the world map and battle systems of the old. I don't care what people say. It was famous for it after 10 and then they went to auto-battle and gambits?? I mean come on!! If I wanted to just wanted to walk a little in game and watch cinemas fine... but I like to role play and make my own decisions. 10 even bugged me where you had to kill certain monsters with certain characters.

I have played Shadow Hearts and love them all. Even the Koudelka game that takes place before hand. Covenant is one of my favorite games. Also Legends of Dragoon had a Addition battle thing to spice up the fights.

[SaveOurSeeker]

I never got to far with covenant, I left school and started work either side of buying it and I fell out with computer games for 5 years. It is on my to do list now though. I totally missed out on legend of dragoon. My first rpg was 2001 ff9 and when I completed that I got a ps2 and ff10. Hopefully it is on PSN. FF13 is an X button masher for sure. I actually played a lot of the battles whilst on the net reading about other things and paying no attention to the games. Ok so yeah even in the old games X was the staple button, but you also had to explore places and find you're way there, not follow the arrow on the mini map that is always on screen. As well as mini games and towns to explore just for the sake of it (especially ff9) My 11 year old nephew I love him for this even prefers the ff7-10 which I got him for his birthday over the recent ones. Have you played Dragon Age, it's a good one for the decision making side of things.

[Del Murder]

I haven't liked anything after IX better than IX. So in that regard I agree, but I don't think this has to do with the merger. The company just took the series in a different direction which I liked a lot less. XI was a great game, but it was an online game so it attracted a different crowd. Great application of the job system, though. X-2 was indeed a great battle system, but the story and rest of the gameplay was so meh in that one that it got overshadowed.

[Marshall Banana]

I just want to say that FFXII is amazing! Heh.

[VeloZer0]

I think it has but a lot of the stuff that has me disenfranchised with the series is tied to a general decline in JRPGs in general over the last decade. The advance of technology has been extremely unkind the the genre in the context of allowing it to produce games I like.

[ShinGundam]

Apparantly verus 13 has World map back which i have missed

In HD no less. I heard HD world maps were impossible to make. All Praise Nomura-sama.

[Roogle]

I think it has but a lot of the stuff that has me disenfranchised with the series is tied to a general decline in JRPGs in general over the last decade.

I agree. It appears that Eastern developers are aware that they may have to learn some things about game development from Western developers.

This article discusses the noticeable trend across the board: Japanese Playing a New Video Game: Catch-Up

I feel that Square Enix, too, has fallen victim to a trend that has enveloped most of the Japanese game developers.

[Jessweeee♪]

I think they need to end the series, and continue to make Final Fantasy games under unique titles. Without the weird expectations people have for Final Fantasy titles they might be more well received. Personally I've managed to enjoy every game post-FFV, with FFVI being the weakest for me.

[Vyk]

I think it has but a lot of the stuff that has me disenfranchised with the series is tied to a general decline in JRPGs in general over the last decade.

I agree. It appears that Eastern developers are aware that they may have to learn some things about game development from Western developers.

This article discusses the noticeable trend across the board: Japanese Playing a New Video Game: Catch-Up

I feel that Square Enix, too, has fallen victim to a trend that has enveloped most of the Japanese game developers.

I would have to say that Squeenix is probably trying harder than most companies. They generally have the wrong idea most of the time, but they're definitely changing things up a lot in an attempt to see what works. They just seem to refuse to take notes from Western ideas. I think they're trying to revolutionize JRPGs rather than evolve them. I never considered 8 to be the next level of 7, or 9 to be the next level of 8. They kept changing as much as they could possibly get away with and I think that eventually deterred me. But as stated, JRPGs in general have stagnated. So change was definitely needed. But I don't think reinventing the wheel was the appropriate way for them to try to go. And for the record I have not enjoyed a Final Fantasy since 7. At all. Even beating the throw-back that was 9 was a chore for me. But then again, I didn't enjoy 5, or 3 or 2 for that matter. So I don't think my opinion really goes for or against any argument here. My JRPG pallet is very odd with high standards. Not a good mix of expectations

I think they need to end the series, and continue to make Final Fantasy games under unique titles. Without the weird expectations people have for Final Fantasy titles they might be more well received. Personally I've managed to enjoy every game post-FFV, with FFVI being the weakest for me.

You speak an alien language. 6 is your least favorite? ;P Ah well..

[Jessweeee♪]

I think they need to end the series, and continue to make Final Fantasy games under unique titles. Without the weird expectations people have for Final Fantasy titles they might be more well received. Personally I've managed to enjoy every game post-FFV, with FFVI being the weakest for me.

You speak an alien language. 6 is your least favorite? ;P Ah well..

My least favorite out of the ones I liked. All of the characters were pretty similar to each other, except for the gimmicky ones like Gau. I enjoyed the dialogue between them and the battle system was fun. The story was entertaining, but not as deep as my favorites. I liked the game, just not as much as the others that I enjoyed and I find it to be one of the most overrated in the series. My least favorite so far is FFIV (I haven't played FFI, II, or V). To me Final Fantasy has always been about the story being told, and as it goes on they improve on their ability to tell it.

[Depression Moon]

I started to see the fall of the FF titles with X-2. Then 11 had followed it. We got KH which I loved and then DQVIII loved KHII and FFXII in the same year. Though I really enjoy XII, the storyline disappointed me and after that Square had begun to put less games that interested me on consoles at least. Now I'm hearing nothing but bad things about XIII. Oh and with the news of Versus possibly not coming out til 2012 and KH III til 2013, I'm not sure how much longer I'll stick with them.

[SaveOurSeeker]

Apparantly verus 13 has World map back which i have missed

In HD no less. I heard HD world maps were impossible to make. All Praise Nomura-sama.

That sounds intense, Gran Pulse was superb in HD.