Which game had the best set of villains/antagonists?

[Psychotic]

Too often people only refer to the main villain, so is Sephiroth better than Kefka? etc. when I think there's so much more to the games than just the final boss. For example, the Empire in VI were truly rotten and just as much a thorn in your side - if not more! - than Kefka. And who can forget Ultros? So which game had the best group? It might be that you thought Zeromus was pretty lousy, but the likes of Golbez, the Four Fiends and Kain's Heel Turn made up for it. On the other hand you might have thought Seifer was incredible but the rest of VIII's villains weren't all that impressive.

I probably missed a few good villains on the poll so feel free to prod me to add them. Also I appreciate stuff like having Shinra and The Turks is a little weird as the Turks are part of the Shinra but hopefully you understand what I'm going for here.

[Shorty]

I know it's cliche, but Sephiroth is kindof the classic FF villain to me. I think Shinra and the Turks are great antagonists within the story and I love the mystery of JENOVA.

I've only completed FFVIII but was 99% finshed with FFX before ragequitting and I didn't think that the villains or antagonists of those games were very strong. Additionally, I haven't completed FFIX yet, but Kuja doesn't strike me as a particularly nasty villain on the scale of bad guys. All he's done so far in my game is commit a bit of amusing mischief for no real reason.

So FFVII it is. Of the games I've played, the complete package for me, villain-wise.

[Jinx]

Agreed with Shorty, FFVII. You've got the Shinra (and the Turks by extension) and Sephiroth. They represent different things but they're both equally scary. I think the Shinra are probably the best villain in the whole series because they are so realistic to what's going on in our own world.

[Ayen]

Tough one. I really like Shinra, Galbadia and Alexandria. Beatrix is a smurfing bawse!

[Jinx]

If you're adding more villains, you should definitely add Lani to FFIX!

[Psychotic]

If you're adding more villains, you should definitely add Lani to FFIX!

Why not!

[Colonel Angus]

Even though I love the villains in VI (Ultros, Kefka, etc.) I had to go w/ XII.

The Judges, the Empire, even the random beasts skulking around the world were all excellent. From the HUGE dragons, to the horrific undead, this game had the goods.

[Raistlin]

FFXII for me too, though it depends on the criteria. Sephiroth was pretty awesome when I was 10, but his story reeks of too much lost potential (which is true for almost all of discs 2 and 3). Sephiroth still probably wins "most badass," Kefka wins "most battrout crazy," but FFXII's Judges win most well-rounded and engaging -- and are the sort of villains I'd most like to see more of.

[Quindiana Jones]

Yeah, FFXII had the most engaging and interesting normal baddies for me.

[Pumpkin]

I'd say IX, but it's not firm.

[NeoCracker]

Top Three, Ranked from least favorite to most!

FF VI - Kefka, additedly, pulls most of the weight on this one for me. Utlros was good as well, though only for comic relief. And while the comedy is appriciated, doesn't really add much to the overall. The Empire, while being pretty Generic, were still done very well. Their reach and power were displayed quite well, and Ghestal had some great moments in terms of direct villlainy and being underhanded.

FF IV - As far as Story and motivation, I like Zemus. His turn to Zeroumus was... odd to say the least, but Zemus himself made a pretty efficient villain. Though Golbez and the Four Fiends are really the show stealers. A great variety of enemies, all of which come across as threatening for entirely different reasons. I think the threat of Baron may actually have been better presented the the threat of the FF VI empire on a whole. So while I think Kefka may be the single best villain among the two games, the overarching villany of FF IV gets wins this one.

FF IX - Kuja is already my favorite FF Villain. While he may be vain, narcasistic, and a terrible person all around, I kind of love his motivations. His entire motivation is to fight against a fate he has no control over, and what really makes him scary compared to other FF villains is not his wit, it's not his calm demenour or plans, it's the how insanely volatile his emotions can be.

Garland is absolutely wonderful as well, he fights to protect his people above all else. He's not evil, he simpley chose the lives of his people over the lives of Gaia.

And then you have Beatrix, who is a total bad ass. Like, oh dear god is she awesome.


I will give some credit to VII here though. While Sephiroth is the weak link of the games villains, Hojo is smurfing awesome up until that bit at the end where he's all 'Seph is my son and Imma help him!'. That was just... awkward. Had it not been for that moment, Hojo and SHinra may have put this game as a contender for my number 3 spot.

[Parker]

I don't care too much about Sephiroth/Jenova etc but the way Shinra was handled was pretty good and added something a little more gritty and interesting to a game about magic dudes with big swords

[Loony BoB]

Definitely FFVII. Shinra and Sephiroth are, for me, streets ahead of the rest of the series when it comes to villainy. If anyone were close, it would be Kefka, but he's just not that close.

[Karifean]

I agree. Final Fantasy VII had such good villains.

[The Man]

FFVI has Ultros, so it wins. Honourable mentions to, in chronological order, V, VII, and IX.