I think the only reason FFVII was so poular was because it was the first to feature fully 3D graphics. I guess that was the big thing at the time.
Poll: Final Fantasy VII - Why is it so popular?
- Thread starter Novan Leon
- Start date
Hmm, I'm just wondering something from the rest of you guys. Do you think that FFVII would be nearly as popular if it had stuck with the same company that it had always? FFI-VI was by Nintendo, FFVII being when the series switched over to Sony. The reason that this happened, according to the creators, was because the N64 was just too limiting, not having enough space on the cartridges (I need to find the citation somewhere -_-). Sony's take on Final Fantasy was different from the rest of the series, and that's probably why it became as stupidly popular as it is today.
Here's a run-down of all of the (major) Final Fantasies up until this point in the US/Japan:
FFI: This guy started it all, and it plays a great deal into the trend of RPGS at the time: world in chaos, darkness vs. light, all of these traditional motifs.
FFII: Bleh, this one was decent, introduced new concepts, but kinda weak.
FFIII: The US didn't get to taste this one until the remake for the DS. Therefore, it's not really that applicable, but the themes were still there.
FFIV: The first kind of epic Final Fantasy, it spanned multiple lands and came to the states on the SNES. It was a typical tale, though: still with the same sort of motifs as before.
FFV: Lost to the states until later, it really wasn't that great a story. Job classes made it interesting, but the characters weren't that memorable.
FFVI: FFIII in the states, this is what I think was the best FF of all. Epic story, stretching the limits of graphics and music for the SNES, and an incredible cast of characters. But there are three main problems with this: One, the main character is a girl (I'm NOT being sexist, but overall there is a tendency for people to attach faster/more to a male protagonist than a female). 2nd, it was clear after this game was stretching the limits of the system (meaning that they couldn't very well expand on the same system). Thirdly, even though the game was dealing with a dystopic steampunkish world, at the same time there were so many cliches and traditional themes within the story (though they were blended masterfully).
The Dragon Quest series, a huge hit in Japan, has never really caught on in the United States unlike Final Fantasy, and the reason why may be the same reason why Final Fantasy VII is so popular. Dragon Quest has never really dealt with tragic, dark, twisted motifs, at least not in terms of their heroes, and the worlds have always been very colorful and happy.
So jump back to the 1990s: Sony has just been given the series from Nintendo, and they are making the jump from 2d to 3d. They're trying to make themselves different from the Nintendo approach, but also draw from its' successes. They look at FFVI, no doubt, seeing the dystopic world, but proceed to take it one step further. They strip the traditional staples of every RPG out, and proceed to make something as fleshed out as possible. As a result, FFVII is born, and whether you love it or hate it, it has your attention.
This post is way too long-winded, but let me try to simplify all my ideas. Basically, VII is popular because: 1. It was produced by another company, Sony. This is their debut game in the series, and they feel the need to out-do their predecessor, Nintendo. 2. They jump from 2D to 3D, something bound to warrant attention. 3. Sony's recognition that while traditional JRPG concepts might have worked in the past, it was equally viable to simply throw out all of those things and try and make things as emo(tional) as possible.
VII, Tactics, and VIII were all ways that Sony tried to show their different and "better" approach to the series. IX was an attempt to go back to the old Nintendo formula, (which might be why the gamers that came later in the series hated it). X,XI, and XII were attempts to re-define and re-shape the engine that had always been called Final Fantasy. But whichever one you love the most, VII is popular at least because it's Sony's flagship, their first game.
Here's a run-down of all of the (major) Final Fantasies up until this point in the US/Japan:
FFI: This guy started it all, and it plays a great deal into the trend of RPGS at the time: world in chaos, darkness vs. light, all of these traditional motifs.
FFII: Bleh, this one was decent, introduced new concepts, but kinda weak.
FFIII: The US didn't get to taste this one until the remake for the DS. Therefore, it's not really that applicable, but the themes were still there.
FFIV: The first kind of epic Final Fantasy, it spanned multiple lands and came to the states on the SNES. It was a typical tale, though: still with the same sort of motifs as before.
FFV: Lost to the states until later, it really wasn't that great a story. Job classes made it interesting, but the characters weren't that memorable.
FFVI: FFIII in the states, this is what I think was the best FF of all. Epic story, stretching the limits of graphics and music for the SNES, and an incredible cast of characters. But there are three main problems with this: One, the main character is a girl (I'm NOT being sexist, but overall there is a tendency for people to attach faster/more to a male protagonist than a female). 2nd, it was clear after this game was stretching the limits of the system (meaning that they couldn't very well expand on the same system). Thirdly, even though the game was dealing with a dystopic steampunkish world, at the same time there were so many cliches and traditional themes within the story (though they were blended masterfully).
The Dragon Quest series, a huge hit in Japan, has never really caught on in the United States unlike Final Fantasy, and the reason why may be the same reason why Final Fantasy VII is so popular. Dragon Quest has never really dealt with tragic, dark, twisted motifs, at least not in terms of their heroes, and the worlds have always been very colorful and happy.
So jump back to the 1990s: Sony has just been given the series from Nintendo, and they are making the jump from 2d to 3d. They're trying to make themselves different from the Nintendo approach, but also draw from its' successes. They look at FFVI, no doubt, seeing the dystopic world, but proceed to take it one step further. They strip the traditional staples of every RPG out, and proceed to make something as fleshed out as possible. As a result, FFVII is born, and whether you love it or hate it, it has your attention.
This post is way too long-winded, but let me try to simplify all my ideas. Basically, VII is popular because: 1. It was produced by another company, Sony. This is their debut game in the series, and they feel the need to out-do their predecessor, Nintendo. 2. They jump from 2D to 3D, something bound to warrant attention. 3. Sony's recognition that while traditional JRPG concepts might have worked in the past, it was equally viable to simply throw out all of those things and try and make things as emo(tional) as possible.
VII, Tactics, and VIII were all ways that Sony tried to show their different and "better" approach to the series. IX was an attempt to go back to the old Nintendo formula, (which might be why the gamers that came later in the series hated it). X,XI, and XII were attempts to re-define and re-shape the engine that had always been called Final Fantasy. But whichever one you love the most, VII is popular at least because it's Sony's flagship, their first game.
3-D was a pretty big thing (as pointed out previously Organization_XIII), and I think that's the real issue here. We remember how much we loved it, and that nostalgia tastes oh so good going down. I'm not trying to discount the grand gameplay or the zip zappa storyline, but I think we all latched onto and humped the leg of this particular game because we were looking at something we hadn't seen...ever.
Actually, I think this may have begun in FF6 or before. With the Magicite system in VI, there was no incentive not to teach almost every character almost every spell. Sure, the heavier hitters would be mostly just attacking and healing, but everybody else would be casting Ultima or Curall or Flare like all the time.LordKaT said:
My first and only FF game was Final Fantasy VI, (the GBA port) only because of Kefka. And I did notice something rather excellent about that game, and that was that there was NO main character, and you it was singularly unique to not be following one man's quest, but everyone's quest.
i hope that was a joke. cait sith was a horrible character. i never found any use for him, ever. but perhaps i'm racist towards toys.i_am_undead said:
Yeah, it was the first Final Fantasy I ever played and adored it at the time. It was only the second true RPG I ever played though (Panzer Dragoon Saga being the first, and prefered slightly more).
Amazing at the time; I could never play again. I just can't stand the battle system. I liked it at the time but I was too young to understand how much of a waste of time it is just standing in a line taking turns hitting each other.
I shall not be playing one of the newer Final Fantasys in any case. Japan can keep its scantaly clad, cute blonde blokes to themselves.
I can see why some now slam the game for being overrated as people who do so generally have the same opinion I do about Star Wars- Amazing at the time, but not the best of what the genre has to offer by any standard.
PS sorry if this has already been mentioned, has anyone seen similarities to FFVII and Castle in the Sky?
Amazing at the time; I could never play again. I just can't stand the battle system. I liked it at the time but I was too young to understand how much of a waste of time it is just standing in a line taking turns hitting each other.
I shall not be playing one of the newer Final Fantasys in any case. Japan can keep its scantaly clad, cute blonde blokes to themselves.
I can see why some now slam the game for being overrated as people who do so generally have the same opinion I do about Star Wars- Amazing at the time, but not the best of what the genre has to offer by any standard.
PS sorry if this has already been mentioned, has anyone seen similarities to FFVII and Castle in the Sky?
It's a good question. Why was FF7 so popular?
I'm not sure. I know that one of the reasons I played it so much WASN'T that it was incredibly popular. It's popularity led me to buy it, alongside recommendations from friends. What drove me to keep playing it? Maybe it was the materia system, which I had a lot of fun with. Maybe it was the minigames, like the classic "defend the eaglenest" strategy game. I really think the argument about this game being the first to deliver a "movie-like" experience is spot on. I played Mario 64 and several other N64 titles, but none had produced the movie magic that FF7 brought. I mean, talk about openings! You (kind of) start off in a raid on the big evil corporate city, as rebels risking their lives to (can't remember what), and your rag-tag crew is already starting to look like family. These were characters I could really get into, and sympathize with.
Anyway, I've said enough. I think that people have a good right to bash this game, as I'm sure it had plenty of flaws. I didn't see them, I was too caught up enjoying the game.
I'm not sure. I know that one of the reasons I played it so much WASN'T that it was incredibly popular. It's popularity led me to buy it, alongside recommendations from friends. What drove me to keep playing it? Maybe it was the materia system, which I had a lot of fun with. Maybe it was the minigames, like the classic "defend the eaglenest" strategy game. I really think the argument about this game being the first to deliver a "movie-like" experience is spot on. I played Mario 64 and several other N64 titles, but none had produced the movie magic that FF7 brought. I mean, talk about openings! You (kind of) start off in a raid on the big evil corporate city, as rebels risking their lives to (can't remember what), and your rag-tag crew is already starting to look like family. These were characters I could really get into, and sympathize with.
Anyway, I've said enough. I think that people have a good right to bash this game, as I'm sure it had plenty of flaws. I didn't see them, I was too caught up enjoying the game.
Thank you. I've played it a couple of times, and most of the playtime is spent finding where you're supposed to go next. If you don't participate in sidequests, you can go the entire game without caring about the characters at all. I finished the game the first time, and just felt like I'd finished a chore. There was no fluidity to the story; it seemed to go in sputters and halts. Sometimes it was seamless from one area to another, other times it felt like I had no idea what was going on, and just going through the motions to get done.Count_de_Monet said:
I liked FFVI, don't get me wrong, but the "masterful story" seemed more like I had to fight the system to get it. Instead of giving me even a teaser about people's histories, and offering me a way to learn more, it was "if you happen to stumble into the right area by trying to explore ever crack and crevice of the world, we'll make you fight through a dungeon to learn a little about Locke"
I'm not going to claim that FFVII was perfect, by any stretch, but it was (and still is) a good game. There's a reason why people still reference Aeris dying with the kind of reverence used for an actual death. No following game had the kind of impact on an emotional level that FFVII had for a lot of people, which is a real feat considering the games that have come since have a lot more advantages.
A complicated plot isn't a weakness, and my major complaint about FFVIII (and I liked it) and FFX (and I loved it) was that both games at the end said "here's everything about everyone's past, present, and future, have fun". There's a good balance between too little information (FFVI), and too much (FFX), and I think FFVII found it pretty well.
It's worth noting that most of the "criticism" of the game are people saying that it wasn't quite perfect. I have my own complaints, but every game has some of those.
The ability to raise a golden chocobo was perhaps the greatest invention in all of FF
Then they dropped it
I hated them