What am I missing in Final Fantasy?

[Epona]

I was thinking, it might even be wise to start with a non-FF square game like Super Mario RPG or Chrono Trigger just to get the feel of what a JRPG could be. FF6 is almost like a hard-core version of those games, and yet it stands alone for being as awesome as it is. Besides, if you don't like Chrono Trigger, then you may as well as just stop trying the JRPGs. Those were as good as they got.

Playing Chrono Trigger before Final Fantasy VI would ruin Final Fantasy VI.

 

[Signa]

I was thinking, it might even be wise to start with a non-FF square game like Super Mario RPG or Chrono Trigger just to get the feel of what a JRPG could be. FF6 is almost like a hard-core version of those games, and yet it stands alone for being as awesome as it is. Besides, if you don't like Chrono Trigger, then you may as well as just stop trying the JRPGs. Those were as good as they got.

Playing Chrono Trigger before Final Fantasy VI would ruin Final Fantasy VI.

Yes and no. While Chrono Trigger has a far better story than FF6, there are complex elements of FF6 that CT lacks. Also, my suggestion is banking on the feeling of wanting more awesomeness after finishing CT, and finding FF6 to be a suitable substitute. After all, CT never had any customization options that FF6 allows you. There were plenty of times where I had to stress on which esper I wanted equipped on who, and even a few times where a weapon or accessory wasn't a full upgrade from the one the character was currently wearing. All the elements are more streamlined in CT so you get to focus more on the story and characters. FF6 sacrifices just a little story for a lot more gameplay tactics and choices, so it's still a net gain IMO.

 

[Volothos]

I was thinking, it might even be wise to start with a non-FF square game like Super Mario RPG or Chrono Trigger just to get the feel of what a JRPG could be. FF6 is almost like a hard-core version of those games, and yet it stands alone for being as awesome as it is. Besides, if you don't like Chrono Trigger, then you may as well as just stop trying the JRPGs. Those were as good as they got.

Playing Chrono Trigger before Final Fantasy VI would ruin Final Fantasy VI.

Yes and no. While Chrono Trigger has a far better story than FF6, there are complex elements of FF6 that CT lacks. Also, my suggestion is banking on the feeling of wanting more awesomeness after finishing CT, and finding FF6 to be a suitable substitute. After all, CT never had any customization options that FF6 allows you. There were plenty of times where I had to stress on which esper I wanted equipped on who, and even a few times where a weapon or accessory wasn't a full upgrade from the one the character was currently wearing. All the elements are more streamlined in CT so you get to focus more on the story and characters. FF6 sacrifices just a little story for a lot more gameplay tactics and choices, so it's still a net gain IMO.

Now what would happen if you mixed the 2 into a single game?

 

[Angry Camel]

Get FFIV and FF6. With those, use the j2e english retranslation for 4 and the Standing guard patch for 6. The hacked versions are much better than the original translations (but compared to some games, they actually still hold up really well).

Also, take a look at Chrono Trigger. It really is one of the best games in history and is fantastic for a Snes game.

 

[Angry Camel]

Get FFIV and FF6. With those, use the j2e english retranslation for 4 and the Standing guard patch for 6. The hacked versions are much better than the original translations (but compared to some games, they actually still hold up really well).

Also, take a look at Chrono Trigger. It really is one of the best games in history and is fantastic for a Snes game.

 

[Aurgelmir]

It's the battle/level systems which puts 10, 12 and 13 and the bottom of the list as they have the least exciting battle/level system. My favorites are 6,7,8 and 9.

Thats interesting, because I feel that FFX had one of the better battle/level systems. Made everything feel like you had some more control over it. Atleast if you used the Advanced grid from the European Japanese International version.

 

[Signa]

I was thinking, it might even be wise to start with a non-FF square game like Super Mario RPG or Chrono Trigger just to get the feel of what a JRPG could be. FF6 is almost like a hard-core version of those games, and yet it stands alone for being as awesome as it is. Besides, if you don't like Chrono Trigger, then you may as well as just stop trying the JRPGs. Those were as good as they got.

Playing Chrono Trigger before Final Fantasy VI would ruin Final Fantasy VI.

Yes and no. While Chrono Trigger has a far better story than FF6, there are complex elements of FF6 that CT lacks. Also, my suggestion is banking on the feeling of wanting more awesomeness after finishing CT, and finding FF6 to be a suitable substitute. After all, CT never had any customization options that FF6 allows you. There were plenty of times where I had to stress on which esper I wanted equipped on who, and even a few times where a weapon or accessory wasn't a full upgrade from the one the character was currently wearing. All the elements are more streamlined in CT so you get to focus more on the story and characters. FF6 sacrifices just a little story for a lot more gameplay tactics and choices, so it's still a net gain IMO.

Now what would happen if you mixed the 2 into a single game?

Mud.

I'm not usually a fan of over-streamlining in games, but in CT and FF6, the choices in design for the actual gameplay really helped each game as a whole. CT's story wasn't burdened down by making overly complex choices about your character builds, and FF6 was bolstered by the fact that you always had something to do, even in the story's dry parts.

now if a new game was made that focused on a grade A++ story and added those complex choices, we'd probably just get Baldur's Gate II (which I never got around to playing ).

 

[LilithSlave]

Specifically IV and VI.

Oohhh, good recommendation! I like you.

Well, others may disagree. But those are definitely my personal favourites. To me, those games were where Square hit their "sweet spot" as some call it. Like if you were to make a graph where I and many others would define Square at their best, it would look like a bell curve, starting low, going way up around IV, and then after a few more installments, going back down.

But then again, I'm somewhat of a retro-gamer and SNES fanboy.

 

[Ordinaryundone]

To be fair, I've only played X and XII, and have seen people play VIII, but I could never get into it. It's not just a "I don't like RPGs" thing but when it comes to the genre I expect a damn good story, and in general the series fails to deliver. The characters are border-line self parody, un-relatable, and annoying. The stories make very little sense and are generally just ridiculous. Square Enix seems to prefer style over substance when it come to this series; they give big elaborate visuals but there's no substance behind it.

Maybe It's because I've never experienced the old games, but I don't see why this franchise is so popular.

Big question: Do you like anime? If you don't, then you probably won't get into Final Fantasy, especially post-VII. They play to a lot of the same tropes and visual style. Also required is a general taste for the JRPG mold. If you don't like number crunching and griding, the gameplay is not for you.

That said, the games are popular because A: They already have a huge established playerbase and B: The cater specifically to the two demographics listed above. Maybe not quite as anime as Tales, maybe not quite as die-hard JRPG as Dragon Quest, but they hit a sweet spot which just tickles a lot of people the right way. I dunno, its hard to explain, kinda like Jazz music. If you don't like it, you probably never will, but if you do like it its hard to say why outside of "its good".

 

[Epona]

It's the battle/level systems which puts 10, 12 and 13 and the bottom of the list as they have the least exciting battle/level system. My favorites are 6,7,8 and 9.

Thats interesting, because I feel that FFX had one of the better battle/level systems. Made everything feel like you had some more control over it. Atleast if you used the Advanced grid from the European Japanese International version.

I never played that version, I played the NA version but the sphere grid felt very limited to me. You can add to an attribute or add a skill ONLY if it's within reach at the time. Just a more complicated, less flexible method of customization.

 

[Epona]

To be fair, I've only played X and XII, and have seen people play VIII, but I could never get into it. It's not just a "I don't like RPGs" thing but when it comes to the genre I expect a damn good story, and in general the series fails to deliver. The characters are border-line self parody, un-relatable, and annoying. The stories make very little sense and are generally just ridiculous. Square Enix seems to prefer style over substance when it come to this series; they give big elaborate visuals but there's no substance behind it.

Maybe It's because I've never experienced the old games, but I don't see why this franchise is so popular.

Big question: Do you like anime? If you don't, then you probably won't get into Final Fantasy, especially post-VII. They play to a lot of the same tropes and visual style. Also required is a general taste for the JRPG mold. If you don't like number crunching and griding, the gameplay is not for you.

That said, the games are popular because A: They already have a huge established playerbase and B: The cater specifically to the two demographics listed above. Maybe not quite as anime as Tales, maybe not quite as die-hard JRPG as Dragon Quest, but they hit a sweet spot which just tickles a lot of people the right way. I dunno, its hard to explain, kinda like Jazz music. If you don't like it, you probably never will, but if you do like it its hard to say why outside of "its good".

Dragon Quest is also more anime than Final Fantasy. In fact, I don't remember any Final Fantasy game being anime as the series has always strived for more realistic graphics. Maybe VII had an anime look to it but I think the lack of noses was because it was their first 3D game.

 

[Thaius]

I can see how you could think so after playing XII. That one is one of my least favorites, mainly because the characters all got little to no development. But X? How?

People often complain about this, but to be entirely honest I really, really, really don't understand how. I love the stories of almost every Final Fantasy game I've played so far, and the characters in most of them are exceptionally complex and well-developed. The stories are complex and strong in the fantasy elements, but they do all make sense.

Honestly, it sounds to me like this is an issue with Japanese storytelling. They always tell convoluted and complex stories, with characters that are rooted in certain archetypes (but rise above them in the good cases, like Final Fantasy VI, VII, and X).

Based on your complains, I say try VI (which, due to some localization stupidity, was called III outside of Japan). It's incredible, and it was on the SNES before that spectacle you think is put over substance was possible.

 

[GaWi]

Final Fantasy IV & VI have excellent stories that still hold up today.
My personal problem with FF today is that it (along with most JRPGs in general) inherited all of the shitty aspects of anime.