FFVIII made magic attacks mostly useless (outside of junctions, of course), and later games also give magic rather dubious distinctions. FFX was pretty good though. Lulu could be your most powerful damage dealer, alongside Auron, with her ability to target elemental weaknesses, though of course, by endgame, Quick Hit is the best way to deal damage and items to heal.

In FFXII, magic was useful enough for support and damage, but due to the way magic queued up in the field, using more powerful spells resulted in lots of lag. Physical attacks were just way more efficient.

Really, in games where magic is useful, it's either mostly for a support role or loses usefulness towards the end where you get incredibly powerful weapons. I still love using magic though, and that won't stop me using it.