Ok, so I have never played a Final Fantasy game (don't be mad), and having seen this on PSN for £8 I'm tempted into buying it. Given also the large apparent love for this game, is it a worthy game for me to play even a decade after it came out?

Btw, do I need to learn the backstory to make the story make sense, or will it be good on its own?
Thanks.

The only relation between Final Fantasies are Chocobos. You should definitely play FF7, but if you need a Final Fantasy to start with, I think that IX or I are the best starting points.

Its fine on its own with any backstory and you definetely should. Dont listen to all the idiots who ae bound to swarm this thread saying how bad it is.

If you've got a PSP sure.  On today's TVs however, the visuals in this game might give you a headache.

FF7 is definitely an old game, and it kind of shows its age. The game itself is fine, though. It's the most popular, but I don't think it's the best. If you have the money to burn, I guess you could go for it.

Also, it's standalone from the rest of the FF games, unless those ones are also named FF7

You should not play it. If you missed in it's time, you most probably won't like it.

If you like classic jRPGs, you should definitely pick it up. It still holds up pretty well. Not the best (its 3d isn't just aging; it's died, decomposed and moved on to the netherworld) in terms of anything (gameplay, story, graphics) but still enjoyable.

It depends on if you enjoy retro gaming and don't mind a bit of blocky graphics.  Personally, I still enjoy the hell out of Final Fantasy VII, and I vote go for it.  But keep in mind it's pretty traditional turn-based role-playing.  You don't need any sort of backstory to play the game, as each FF game is unique unto itself until you get to FFX-2.  Hope you enjoy it!

Final Fantasy VII, more than any other video game classic of that era, has suffered from the ravages of time. The reason everyone likes it is because of how awesome it apparently was in 1997, but now it looks terrible, the translation is of questionable quality, and the gameplay is... not great. Nonetheless, it might be a good history lesson to see what almost every J-RPG has aspired to be for the last 12 years. It's up to you.

Start with either a more recent one (X, XII) or an old-school game (I, II, III, IV, V, VI) to see if you like the formula. FFVII will likely only be entertaining to a modern day player if they have a stake in the series, not that there is anything wrong with that. If you do, you may still not enjoy it for some of the odd querks (as i did), but i'd still give it a shot. 

I'm really not sure.Just keep in mind that it's over a decade old when you're playing it I guess.

There's no continuing story to worry about, so if you can handle random encounters in '09 then go for it.  7 was the first FF game I played - it was pretty awesome.

All Final Fantasy games should now have the option to skip all fights that aren't bosses.

No, FF VII has dated really badly. It is only good for its nostalgic value.

As has been stated already, keep in mind that it's a game from 1997, so the visuals, gameplay, translation, etc.will almost certainly be below your current standards and expectations. However, as a nostalgia piece and/or history lesson, it's practically a steal at that price. Plus, translation issues aside, the basic plot is still quite intricate and well-executed. I say go for it.

I still love playing it today, but I agree that you will have to get past it's dated visuals.  Play it just for the history lesson in gaming. 

FFVII was the game that got me into gaming in the first place and it is one of the better Final Fantasy games. If you've never played a FF game before 7 is a good starting point, probably 7 and 9 are the best places to start. The SNES and Playstation era FF games are the best so if you want a good idea of the series stick with those, the PS2 games (X and XII) are the weakest entries in the series as they were made after the creator of FF was on his way out of Square-Enix and I never liked the NES ones as they are a tad on the boring side.

FFVII is one of those "life games" that contrary to your feelings on the genre/game itself you need to ply it. I don't share the level of love as many others do for VII, but I recognize it for being arguably the best (and most talked about) game ever made. If you went to it today, however, it'll probably seem way out of date. If you're not bothered by the conventions of older games, get it.

If you have thumbs you should play this, simple as that.

FF12 anyone?

Buy it. Play it. The game shows its age, but it also holds up well. Newer FF games have lacked any customization system that compares to the Materia system, which is how you build up your characters in ff7. The story is good, the boss fights were highly original, and it offers much in the way of side quests, hidden secrets, and simple adventuring beyond just the storyline. It's a classic for a reason, and keep in mind that most of the kids that bad-mouth FF7 never actually had a chance to play it whlie it was new.  :)

no if you never than I'd play 10 because you would be able to appropriate what the game was when it came out
that's the whole reason everyone love FF7  because like 10 years ago it was fucking amazing
if you play it now not having played it before you'll think its not that good

I'm going to be the voice of descent and tell you that FF7 is the LAST FF game you should pick up and play at this poitn in time.

Yes it's a great place to start. Don't listen either haters or fanboys. Just sit back, take your time and enjoy the game with all its flaws. It's a wonderful ride.

If you don't mind the out datedness, then you should definitely play. If you're wanting to play it already, might as well find out what all the hype was about.

FFXII was my favorite. I did not enjoy FFVII, I guess I played it too late.

Check out some screen shots and see if you can handle the graphics. The game is amazing thought. I would just get it and play. You'll enjoy it.

This game is probably most people's first experience with Final Fantasy, so I say go for it! Just bare in mind that things might seem a little dated to today's standards, but I think that just makes it more cute.

Wow, thanks, If i manage to scrape enough time together, I think I'll get it, see what gaming was like in the Old days.

Yes, it's an great game that I recommend to everyone!
It has aged horribly but it's still an great game.

To be honest, there's nothing really wrong with the core gameplay at all. It has random encounters, which are slightly annoying, but the encounter rate is medium-low compared to other games of the time period in my non-numeric opinion. Someone might know the algorithms, who knows. The maps are tiny and the camera can be weird, but aside from very retro-gen menu systems and design, it still plays perfectly fine.

Funny, I've played every FF except FFVII.

I do recommend FFVIII, FFIX, and FFX though :)

Nothing wrong with the core gameplay at all as Jayge says.  The story is fantastic.  If you can put with the visuals and clunkiness that comes with a PS1 game it's really a classic.

FFIX reigns supreme, you can get copies of it still.
Chrono Cross as well :p

The environment interaction is heavier than in any FF before it, there are no significant loading times, you can turn the "cinematic" camera off and how in the world could anyone describe the materia system as "dumbed down", especially considering that everything that came before with the exception of VI and most that came after can only look at it's splendour and possibilities from afar? ._.

I agree that VII hasn't aged well and that the TC shouldn't play it, but your reasoning is very... er. Smug-ish.

I agree with starting with IX first if you're looking to play a PSOne Final Fantasy.  It was the most polished of the 3.  VII was great for its time, and fantastic to come back to for nostalgia.  I picked it up for the PSP and I'm enjoying it, but I know what to expect; convoluted plot, really bad graphics, but great music and solid RPG system.  At the end of the day, it's 10 bucks so if you hate it, no big loss.

final fantasy 7 is a good game but its hard to go back to because of its age.  I prefer 6 over all of them and i think the 2-d ones hold up a little better, but i do agree that it would work well for a handheld

Get the PC version d/l high res textures if you're that bothered about graphics.

Either way I still think it's awesome and worth giving a go, it's got a nice story line, it's not the strongest but it's still well done with a view twists, and likeable characters, I think part of the fact I liked it was no voice acting, I could give them the voice I wanted them to have in my head.

FFVII remains my favorite (I finished the game when I was 6 years old).