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Hailinel

I wrote this little thing (it's not actually a little thing): http://www.giantbomb.com/profile/hailinel/blog/lightning-returns-wha...

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In which I rank my favorite Final Fantasy games.

By Hailinel 15 Comments

Having beaten Final Fantasy XIII yesterday, I've been mulling over my experience with the game, and I'll try to write up my thoughts in a review in the near future.  In the meantime, I thought I'd somewhat arbitrarily rank the games in terms of which were my favorite.
 

  1. Final Fantasy VI
  2. Final Fantasy IV
  3. Final Fantasy X
  4. Final Fantasy VIII
  5. Final Fantasy XIII
  6. Final Fantasy XII
  7. Final Fantasy
  8. Final Fantasy VII
  9. Final Fantasy III
  10. Final Fantasy II
  11. Final Fantasy V
 
I'm leaving out Final Fantasy XI because it's an MMO, and I have yet to actually play Final Fantasy IX.  I've been led to believe however that IX isn't really worth playing beyond the first disc.  Final Fantasy VI is and may always be my favorite in the series simply because of its plot and characters, with IV coming up strong behind it.  In the end, I thought that Final Fantasy XIII was a lot of fun; better than most of the games in the series I've played for various reasons.  It could really be a toss-up between XII and XIII for which one I liked better, but XII, after a while, slowed down into a slog for me, whereas XIII always kept things moving.
 
And Final Fantasy V is a joke.  Plot?  What plot?  How did that game end up between IV and VI?  Why is the villain a tree named Exdeath?  They even fixed his name for Final Fantasy XII.  Why is he still called Exdeath in Dissidia?  Final Fantasy V is about as close to a Saturday morning cartoon as the series has ever come.
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15 Comments

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Hailinel

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Edited By Hailinel

Having beaten Final Fantasy XIII yesterday, I've been mulling over my experience with the game, and I'll try to write up my thoughts in a review in the near future.  In the meantime, I thought I'd somewhat arbitrarily rank the games in terms of which were my favorite.
 

  1. Final Fantasy VI
  2. Final Fantasy IV
  3. Final Fantasy X
  4. Final Fantasy VIII
  5. Final Fantasy XIII
  6. Final Fantasy XII
  7. Final Fantasy
  8. Final Fantasy VII
  9. Final Fantasy III
  10. Final Fantasy II
  11. Final Fantasy V
 
I'm leaving out Final Fantasy XI because it's an MMO, and I have yet to actually play Final Fantasy IX.  I've been led to believe however that IX isn't really worth playing beyond the first disc.  Final Fantasy VI is and may always be my favorite in the series simply because of its plot and characters, with IV coming up strong behind it.  In the end, I thought that Final Fantasy XIII was a lot of fun; better than most of the games in the series I've played for various reasons.  It could really be a toss-up between XII and XIII for which one I liked better, but XII, after a while, slowed down into a slog for me, whereas XIII always kept things moving.
 
And Final Fantasy V is a joke.  Plot?  What plot?  How did that game end up between IV and VI?  Why is the villain a tree named Exdeath?  They even fixed his name for Final Fantasy XII.  Why is he still called Exdeath in Dissidia?  Final Fantasy V is about as close to a Saturday morning cartoon as the series has ever come.
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Pepsiman

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Edited By Pepsiman

There's not enough Chocobo Racing in this list, if you ask me.

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Fallen189

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Edited By Fallen189

It's all about Kain.

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Video_Game_King

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Edited By Video_Game_King

Shit, what the hell do you have against FF7? I know it's pretty much the most overrated Final Fantasy there is, but it's still better than XII. On another note, I completely agree on the VI/IV thing.

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Edited By eirikr

Ewww, FFII above FFV? FFV's plot and characters might be a joke (except for THE MAN) but the job mechanics are just so damned fun. Maybe a little broken too, as it's all to easy to find nice spots for rapid job development. But at least try it again, and then try FFII to realize that Firion & Co.'s adventure is quite possibly the least balanced, most grind-intensive, asinine and boring title in the series. I will never play it again under any circumstances.

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reptilia_kun

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Edited By reptilia_kun

definitely like that 6 and 4 are top two, haven't finished XIII quite yet and i agree with 2 and 5 being near the bottom but i did enjoy 5's job system

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Hailinel

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Edited By Hailinel
@Pepsiman said:
" There's not enough Chocobo Racing in this list, if you ask me. "
Is there ever?  There can never be enough!
 
@Video_Game_King said:
" Shit, what the hell do you have against FF7? I know it's pretty much the most overrated Final Fantasy there is, but it's still better than XII. On another note, I completely agree on the VI/IV thing. "

FInal Fantasy VII is impressive in a lot of ways, but at the same time, it felt like a step back from VI.  The plot, characters, and combat all in general felt simplified.  The graphics were incredibly impressive for their day, but they haven't aged as well as FFVIII, and the original translation wasn't great, either.  On the other hand, the cross-dressing minigame is one of my single favorite parts of any game ever, but the hilarity of that segment really isn't enough to lift the game any higher up the list.
 
@Eirikr said:
" Ewww, FFII above FFV? FFV's plot and characters might be a joke (except for THE MAN) but the job mechanics are just so damned fun. Maybe a little broken too, as it's all to easy to find nice spots for rapid job development. But at least try it again, and then try FFII to realize that Firion & Co.'s adventure is quite possibly the least balanced, most grind-intensive, asinine and boring title in the series. I will never play it again under any circumstances. "

I'd be more forgiving of FFV except for one factor; it sits right between IV and VI, yet its story is non-existent.  The DS remake of Final Fantasy III felt like it had more in the plot department.  The job system is fun and progression is not the intense grind that is Final Fantasy II, that much is true.  However, Final Fantasy V is a game filled with wafer-thin cardboard characters and a primary villain that I find cartoonishly ill-conceived sitting between the two games in the series with what I consider to be the best stories and characters out of all of them.
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Edited By Video_Game_King
@Hailinel: 
 
For me, the cross-dressing mini-game (or at least a little before that, because people don't remember the train graveyard as well) was where the game became bearable; FF7 did not become truly awesome until Cloud jumped onto a motorcycle and decided that numbers and choosing attacks can go fuck themselves in favor of slashing the hell out of things. AND IT WAS AWESOME.
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eirikr

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Edited By eirikr
@Hailinel:  Yeah, that's definitely not a fair way to approach FFV. It still tells a pretty decent story about the two worlds, only the Job system keeps it from having the large, diverse casts of IV and VI. It ends up being more like a NES-era plot on steroids. But the characters are at least a bit more expressive than IV, as they can do more than just look down and spin in the air. It's lighthearted and fun, and oh yes, it definitely becomes Final Fantasy by the end. But any story is really just the icing on the cake of what I think objectively is the best system of the SNES trilogy (despite my nostalgia for IV and VI).
 
That said, I still like Bartz more than a couple characters in FFXIII (namely Snow and Hope). And Kimahri. And Amarant. And the redone cast of FFIII. And the cast of FFII. Just by default he's better than half of all FF characters. Plus he can tap dance his enemies to death. Mog's got nothing on this guy.
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Symphony

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Edited By Symphony
@Pepsiman said:
" There's not enough Chocobo Racing in this list, if you ask me. "
Don't you go making fun of my Chocobo Racing! That game was a decent mario kart clone!  
 
Oh and yay for VI being number one! That's really a no brainer, however. ;P
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Edited By Pepsiman
@Symphony: I know just as much as you do that Chocobo Racing was alright. That's why every time a Final Fantasy VII remake thread comes up, I always make sure to tell the OP that Chocobo Racing is the more necessary, nay worthy, game of such treatment.
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Hailinel

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Edited By Hailinel
@Symphony said:
Oh and yay for VI being number one! That's really a no brainer, however. ;P "
So true.
 
@Pepsiman said:
" @Symphony: I know just as much as you do that Chocobo Racing was alright. That's why every time a Final Fantasy VII remake thread comes up, I always make sure to tell the OP that Chocobo Racing is the more necessary, nay worthy, game of such treatment. "

Obviously, this means that for a Final Fantasy VII remake to truly succeed, it needs both Chocobo Racing and an enhanced cross-dressing minigame.
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Edited By asdfghasdf

I keep hearing good things about IV and VI. Out of all the Final Fantasy games I've played, X is my favourite and VII being my least (though I'll be honest - I never bothered finishing it, so I perhaps didn't give it a fair chance). XII and XIII were somewhere in between.
 
Your list pretty much matches how I'd rank the games I've played, though XII gets the edge for me over XIII, since I really disliked XIII's storytelling. Anyway, the list gives me more confidence that I'll really like IV and VI. I've now got the FFIV remake for the DS, and I'm really looking forward to starting it once I'm done with the Dragon Age expansion. I'm also planning to seek out VI at some point, hopefully very soon.
 
Nice list!

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Edited By dangerouslyCheesy

Don't be fooled, IX is definitely worth it. The ability system is one of my favorites. The only big flaw in the game is the Trance special attack system. Other than that, it's another big wonderful world to get wrapped in with an ass-load to do, a great soundtrack, and an ending that's guaranteed to bring you to the brink of tears. 

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Hailinel

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Edited By Hailinel
@dangerouslyCheesy said:
" Don't be fooled, IX is definitely worth it. The ability system is one of my favorites. The only big flaw in the game is the Trance special attack system. Other than that, it's another big wonderful world to get wrapped in with an ass-load to do, a great soundtrack, and an ending that's guaranteed to bring you to the brink of tears.  "
FFIX is on PSN now, isn't it?  Maybe I should download it and give it a chance.