I usually refrain from even trying to do this, but here goes.

Full disclosure, FF VII would be put higher up on the list because of how much fun I've had modding the game, but for the purpose of this list I'll separate it and basically go by "how much does thinking of the game make me smile and want to play through the game again from scratch".

I've not played I, II and III and not played enough of LR and XV to put any of them on the list.

11. Final Fantasy XIII
10. Final Fantasy XIII-2

Honestly I've no desire to play either of these games again. I don't regret playing them once, but once was enough.

9. Final Fantasy IV

Gotta admit I really wasn't feeling this game when I played it. It's the last FF game I played, only a couple years back, and well... it felt dated a lot, in plot and gameplay alike and really didn't have anything interesting to offer. It had its moments for sure but as a complete package it's kinda messy. It has the classic ridiculousness of plot points common also in FFV (CAN'T STOP THE MOVING HAND OF GOLBEZ FROM STEALING THE CRYSTAL, AAH) but wasn't self-aware and tongue in cheek about it like that game was. The fakeout deaths didn't help either.

8. Final Fantasy VI

Pretty damn good game. The combat system is pretty fun and the characters are really memorable. The overarching plot regarding magitek and espers I could kinda take or leave but it gets dropped halfway through anyways to focus solely on the characters which are the best part of the game so, uh, good choice there. I might have to replay the game to really feel where I stand on it nowadays but for now I can say there's many things I like about it, but it hasn't left that great an impact on me personally.

7. Final Fantasy IX

Ah man, now there's a game I really need to play more. FF IX has some of my all time favorite moments in the series and is overall really enjoyable on every level; plot, characters and gameplay all play together very well. Really I'm relatively certain it'll climb the ranks if I just play it some more, but for now it'll have to take a backseat.

6. Final Fantasy VII

The game that started it all for me. Even nowadays it's a game I gladly return to every now and again. It just flows so damn nicely and rarely leaves you feeling like you don't want to do what comes next in line. While I'm not particularly attached to the story it's nonetheless engaging every time. It's not the most amazing game ever, but I enjoy it for what it is a lot.

5. Final Fantasy V

My favorite of the SNES era. It's such a fun game. The pacing is beautiful and you always get to play around just enough with the different options you have to keep you engaged the whole way. The story is a joy to follow along, it's not a serious story and it knows it's not, and the end result is amazing. Plus it has Gilgamesh. How can you not adore this gem.

4. Final Fantasy X-2 HD

This game is a real joy to me, I gotta admit. The combat system is up there as one of the best the series ever had and the sheer amount of fun content the game has is staggering. I don't really give a damn about the main plot, but overall the game did have some real good story moments; I especially loved getting closure on all the different areas in Chapter 5. Also I love the Creature Creator, it's a whole new additional system just littered with amazing and fun side content.

3. Final Fantasy VIII

Huh, didn't expect this one to end up as high as it did before I started writing this list. FF VIII is a really damn fun game to play for me. Yes the combat and character progression systems are broken to hell and back but it still strikes that sweet spot of giving you just enough options and satisfaction in playing to make it real fun nonetheless. I also enjoy the story quite a bit, in particular just about everything surrounding Squall. I've grown to like this game more and more every time I played it.

2. Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age

Holy smurf this is an incredible game. The kind you could play nonstop for days if you had no obligations. The Zodiac Job System allows for incredible playing around with different job setups making every playthrough feel unique, and while the game probably could've used simply having all enemy stats increased by 50% or something, it is still the one game in the series where walking around areas slaughtering everything in your path is actually fun to do and not tedious at all. All the different areas have a damn distinct feel to them, in design and music; whereas games of old had mountains or forests that looked identical, in FF XII the Lhusu and Henne Mines feel nothing alike, nor do the Golmore Jungle and Salikawood, or even the Estersand and Westersand, which for such an expansive world is mighty impressive. Much credit to Hitoshi Sakimoto here for composing a score that very much supports this.

The plot is hit or miss between a few mcguffins and unrealized plot points but some pretty decent struggles and character moments along the way. But I'll be straight I'm really not playing this game for the plot much, I could just grind around Ivalice for days without getting bored one bit.

1. Final Fantasy X HD

I love this game. It's frankly the one game in the series that has a storyline that really gets to me on a personal level. The cast of protagonists is really damn great, and while the cast of human antagonists (sans Jecht) is admittedly lackluster, it was never the point of the story to pit the heroes against a big bad villain anyways. The plot of the game is told superbly through a narrative with actual cinematography and scene direction the series hasn't really used as well before or since. And I dare say this is the only game in the series where the entire cast of protagonists has a very noticeable presence for pretty much the entirety of the game.

The gameplay is excellent and while it's not necessarily balanced and a lot of the nuances of combat don't become relevant until way late in the game when enemies regularly survive more than one hit, you are never low on options and experimenting always tends to feel rewarding, and the OVERKILL system does a lot as well to incentivize doing more than the most mindless rock-paper-scissors technique.

It's a blast to play every time and a game that will hopefully stay with me for many more years.

0. Final Fantasy Epic RPG

Yeah no that's cheating.