The Final Fantasy Thread

[Stasi]

How much do you like JRPGs? What have you played before? I'd have to know more about your tastes to know which if any to recommend.

I like JRPGs and dipped my toe into different series but not done a deep dive in any. I don't like games where annoying anime tropes are prevalent (mascots, weir loli shit, unfunny obnoxious humor) but that seems to be a modern disease JRPG wise.

I like when games keep grind to a minimum and have deep/varied combat systems - a lot of games will have buff/debuff skills which are almost useless and you can blow through the game without knowing they are there which is a turn off for me.

Some thoughts off the top of my head for context:

• Shadow Hearts Covenant - good combat, atrocious unfunny writing which fell flat for me and almost ruined the whole experience.
• Phantasy Star - IV is one of my favorite games of all time, II is good and I liked III
• SMT - really liked Persona 2 and 3 and Devil Survivor games (though those are more on the SRPG side)
• Legend of Heroes Trails in the Sky - nice story & characters, a bit grindy with too many 'collect X elephant scrotums' MMO quests
• DQ IX - good wholesome fun but felt very basic

Big fan of SRPGs/turn based games but that is a totally different kettle of fish.

 

[Your Weird Fetish]

I like JRPGs and dipped my toe into different series but not done a deep dive in any. I don't like games where annoying anime tropes are prevalent (mascots, weir loli shit, unfunny obnoxious humor) but that seems to be a modern disease JRPG wise.

I like when games keep grind to a minimum and have deep/varied combat systems - a lot of games will have buff/debuff skills which are almost useless and you can blow through the game without knowing they are there which is a turn off for me.

Some thoughts off the top of my head for context:

• Shadow Hearts Covenant - good combat, atrocious unfunny writing which fell flat for me and almost ruined the whole experience.
• Phantasy Star - IV is one of my favorite games of all time, II is good and I liked III
• SMT - really liked Persona 2 and 3 and Devil Survivor games (though those are more on the SRPG side)
• Legend of Heroes Trails in the Sky - nice story & characters, a bit grindy with too many 'collect X elephant scrotums' MMO quests
• DQ IX - good wholesome fun but felt very basic

Big fan of SRPGs/turn based games but that is a totally different kettle of fish.

You'd probably really enjoy V among the older ones then. The class system skill mix and match thing is fun and grinding isn't necessary.

 

[Duncan Hills Coffee]

I came into some classic FF games for the PS1 recently and was considering playing through the series (only mainline game I played through to completion is IV) but the time sink is extremely off-putting. What are peoples though on the older games? Worth playing through or best left in the past? If anyone has suggestions for tackling (or not) the following that would be nice:

FF Origins (I & II), FF Anthology (IV & V), VI, VII, VIII.

I like JRPGs and dipped my toe into different series but not done a deep dive in any. I don't like games where annoying anime tropes are prevalent (mascots, weir loli shit, unfunny obnoxious humor) but that seems to be a modern disease JRPG wise.

I like when games keep grind to a minimum and have deep/varied combat systems - a lot of games will have buff/debuff skills which are almost useless and you can blow through the game without knowing they are there which is a turn off for me.

With this in mind, you'd probably be best to avoid I-III because those games were super grindy in my experience. Of course, I really liked III (the real III) and if it weren't for your distaste for grinding I'd recommend it in a heartbeat. IV onwards doesn't have much grinding, and IV is the one that introduced the ATB system the series became known for, though its use evolves over the course of IV, V, and VI. You won't find much anime influence until probably VII, and even then VII's anime influence is limited to its artstyle (I don't know how funny you'll find it though). VIII meanwhile has a lot of anime influence, especially with how it handles its angsty teenage protagonist. IX dials it back to try and emulate "classic" FF.

As for deep/varied combat systems, the games do have quite a bit of depth if you're willing to sink your teeth into it. V's already been mentioned, but VIII's also got insane character customization, so much so that if you know what you're doing you can completely break the game's difficulty less than a quarter of the way through. VII's got some cool customization options with how it handles its materia system but it's not nearly as in-depth as the other games. IX's got some interesting ideas with how it handles character abilities though it can unfortunately give way to grinding at points.

If I were to give you my personal recommendations based on your tastes and what I like, I'd probably recommend V, VII, and IX (you didn't mention IX, but it is for PS1, so I believe it should count).

 

[Your Weird Fetish]

VII isn't even really just anime influenced so much as specifically Evangelion influenced I'd say. But I'm not weeb enough to be 100% confident in that assessment.

 

[Duncan Hills Coffee]

VII isn't even really just anime influenced so much as specifically Evangelion influenced I'd say. But I'm not weeb enough to be 100% confident in that assessment.

Neither am I. It's just that out of the classic FF games, VII and VIII stand out because their artstyles are influenced by anime, which gives the impression that the influence would go beyond their artstyles. I do agree that VII isn't really anime influenced beyond the artstyle, but I'm also not a weeb so I can't say for sure.

 

[Marissa Moira]

I came into some classic FF games for the PS1 recently and was considering playing through the series (only mainline game I played through to completion is IV) but the time sink is extremely off-putting. What are peoples though on the older games? Worth playing through or best left in the past? If anyone has suggestions for tackling (or not) the following that would be nice:

FF Origins (I & II), FF Anthology (IV & V), VI, VII, VIII.

Origins is still the best versions of 1 and 2 IIRC. They upgraded spritework is probably the best in the series. 1 and 2 are not long games, much like the original Dragon Quest games they can be beaten in a few hours.

FF Anthology is 5 and 6, 4 is part of Chronicles and comes with Chrono Trigger.

The Chronicles version of 4 is the Hard Type version of the game, so it's going to have huge spikes in difficulty where you need to sit and grind.

4, 5, and 6 on the playstation didn't have any major reworkings visually. Personally I prefer 5 and 6 to 4.

6 also has the means to level up real quick with spell exploits and an island filled with high level dinosaur enemies.

Final Fantasy 8 has a battle system that can be broken early and can make you cause insane damage. I personally like 8 it had interesting areas to explore as well. It also has triple triad which is a card game and a very well done one at that.

7 is still worth playing despite it's rough visuals, it also has Chocobo Breeding and many other in depth side activities.

 

[AlexJonesGotMePregnant]

I would say VII, VIII, and IX have little to no anime influence, I don't see it in the art and especially not with contemporary anime at the time. They were pushing into 3D so I think the art style was more influenced by the PSX architecture than anything to do with anime specifically. The stories are big epic JRPGs but nothing like the Tales games or SMT/Persona games. Persona 2 came out in 1999 and was way more anime than any of the final fantasies to date.

I don't think FF was really that 'anime' until FFX-2 which was somewhat anime.

 

[Shield Breaker]

I would say VII, VIII, and IX have little to no anime influence, I don't see it in the art and especially not with contemporary anime at the time. They were pushing into 3D so I think the art style was more influenced by the PSX architecture than anything to do with anime specifically. The stories are big epic JRPGs but nothing like the Tales games or SMT/Persona games. Persona 2 came out in 1999 and was way more anime than any of the final fantasies to date.

I don't think FF was really that 'anime' until FFX-2 which was somewhat anime.

Huge swords aren't anime? What about monkey boys?

Origins is still the best versions of 1 and 2 IIRC. They upgraded spritework is probably the best in the series. 1 and 2 are not long games, much like the original Dragon Quest games they can be beaten in a few hours.

FF Anthology is 5 and 6, 4 is part of Chronicles and comes with Chrono Trigger.

The Chronicles version of 4 is the Hard Type version of the game, so it's going to have huge spikes in difficulty where you need to sit and grind.

4, 5, and 6 on the playstation didn't have any major reworkings visually. Personally I prefer 5 and 6 to 4.

6 also has the means to level up real quick with spell exploits and an island filled with high level dinosaur enemies.

Final Fantasy 8 has a battle system that can be broken early and can make you cause insane damage. I personally like 8 it had interesting areas to explore as well. It also has triple triad which is a card game and a very well done one at that.

7 is still worth playing despite it's rough visuals, it also has Chocobo Breeding and many other in depth side activities.

PSX version of 6 loads slower than Bloodborne pre-patch.

 

[Smug Chuckler]

The GBA versions of 5 and 6 are better than the PSX versions if you can get them.

 

[Marissa Moira]

PSX version of 6 loads slower than Bloodborne pre-patch.

I played through it entirely collecting all the party members and Espers, I don't remember the loading times being bad. The only loading times added for an old game that bothered me was the Street Fighter ones because they happened in between character select and also every match.

 

[MightyBiteySnake]

The PC versions of 3 and 4 are pretty good as they're just updated ports of the all ready very good DS versions.

Little Known Fact there's a remastered version of the PSP FF1 that was released as part of a bundle with Final Fantasy Explorers that was only available in Japan. Its a shame because it was an enhanced version if an already very good remake, and what little footage exists of it looks gorgeous

 

[Shield Breaker]

Origins is still the best versions of 1 and 2 IIRC. They upgraded spritework is probably the best in the series. 1 and 2 are not long games, much like the original Dragon Quest games they can be beaten in a few hours.

FF Anthology is 5 and 6, 4 is part of Chronicles and comes with Chrono Trigger.

The Chronicles version of 4 is the Hard Type version of the game, so it's going to have huge spikes in difficulty where you need to sit and grind.

4, 5, and 6 on the playstation didn't have any major reworkings visually. Personally I prefer 5 and 6 to 4.

6 also has the means to level up real quick with spell exploits and an island filled with high level dinosaur enemies.

Final Fantasy 8 has a battle system that can be broken early and can make you cause insane damage. I personally like 8 it had interesting areas to explore as well. It also has triple triad which is a card game and a very well done one at that.

7 is still worth playing despite it's rough visuals, it also has Chocobo Breeding and many other in depth side activities.

PSX version of 6 loads slower than Bloodborne pre-pat

I played through it entirely collecting all the party members and Espers, I don't remember the loading times being bad. The only loading times added for an old game that bothered me was the Street Fighter ones because they happened in between character select and also every match.

I save a lot. Every time you save it takes a minute to do so.

 

[Sable]

There's a DIFFERENT version of FF1 on the PSP that's pretty neat.

It has four new dungeons, containing callbacks to final fantasies 3-6 and a superdungeon with a superboss in it.

The GBA version of V is the best version, and is my favourite standard FF.

 

[Billy_Sama]

There's a DIFFERENT version of FF1 on the PSP that's pretty neat.

It has four new dungeons, containing callbacks to final fantasies 3-6 and a superdungeon with a superboss in it.

The GBA version of V is the best version, and is my favourite standard FF.

Is the PSP FF1 the same as the one on the GBA or better?

Either way, I got found a PSP GO and once I finish YS 1&2, I might jump on a FF1 kick afterwards

 

[Stasi]

Probably unsurprisingly a lot of passionate people on a FF thread. Thanks for the comments and recommends fam.

On the anime point...I actually like anime. Its the more obnoxious aspects that I have a distaste for in anime and games that take those influences. Silly mascots, fan service (tiddies, loli etc) braindead main characters, unfunny humour (this one is probably very subjective).

 

[Dr. Geronimo]

Probably unsurprisingly a lot of passionate people on a FF thread. Thanks for the comments and recommends fam.

On the anime point...I actually like anime. Its the more obnoxious aspects that I have a distaste for in anime and games that take those influences. Silly mascots, fan service (tiddies, loli etc) braindead main characters, unfunny humour (this one is probably very subjective).

You'd hate X then. If there was ever a game that needed a redub I think it would be that one.

 

[Shield Breaker]

Is the PSP FF1 the same as the one on the GBA or better?

Either way, I got found a PSP GO and once I finish YS 1&2, I might jump on a FF1 kick afterwards

Same, but redone graphics and yet another dungeon.

 

[Smug Chuckler]

Origins FF1 have two difficulties -> Hard like the NES and Easy like the GBA/PSP. Aside from the extra content, Origins is the best version.

 

[Vault Boy]

Just beat XV last night, and will be doing the DLC episodes soonish.

Pretty good game overall, looking forward to the other games coming to GamePass.

 

[Sayon]

I still see nothing that the FF7 remake has going for it. It's obviously remolding the plot, tone, and visuals to be in line with post-Sakuguchi FF (especially FF7's sequels and its prequel). Them even inserting some new divine forces ala the Occuria from FFXII or the crystal men from FFXIII makes that super mega ultimate obvious (that happened in the Compilation also). Also, as I pointed out in an older thread it was offcially admitted that there was internal pressure to change Tifa's design for Current Year Concerns.

The worst parts of the remake I'm sure will happen are changing Reno's personality to be in line with Advent Children (slapsticky hyper loud goofball who's "one of the gang" despite being a butcher of slums) and having Zack's demise be like in Crisis Core instead of him getting gunned down like a dog.