I've tried mulitiple times to get into these games and beat it, but I'm wondering - which one should I try to play first. The good ones, the ones where you run in a straight line, or the MMORPGs. Which one is your favorite?
What Final Fantasy Should I Start With?
- Thread starter Cyncial_Huggy
- Start date
I prefer the old-school ones myself (I-VI, 4 Heroes of Light). If you're in the mood for something like that, VI is a great place to start. It's got that 16-feel to it, but it was a very ambitious project at the time and it shows. Over a dozen playable characters, tons of sidequests and some fairly clever story-telling even by todays standards.
If you'd rather have something traditional but not to traditional, I'd say go with IX or X, depending on what kind of polycount you can stomach and whether you want a straight-up fantasy setting or something a little more unusual (well, as far as fashion goes anyway).
VII is just kinda... weird. It's amazing, it's confused, it's a serious story about life, loss the environment and what not, but there's also awkward crossdressing for laughs and chocobo races. It's a fascinating mess. Oh, and people might yell at you if you don't worship it after playing it. VIII is weird for different reasons.
XII is the game you play if you believe Star Wars would have been better with a sexy bunny girl sidekick. It's a pretty cool game if you're willing to commit to it (a playthrough can easily be 50+ hours), though.
And XIII is like one of those cautionary after school specials: if developers obsess over fancy visuals, bad things happen. Okay, that's a bit harsh. If you're willing to accept you're basically stuck on a linair path with pretty scenery and plot points, there are actually some neat things to enjoy. The way the battlesystem allows you to control the flow of battle during boss fights is wonderful art. It also got a bitchy chick running around in a miniskirt, if you're into that.
If you'd rather have something traditional but not to traditional, I'd say go with IX or X, depending on what kind of polycount you can stomach and whether you want a straight-up fantasy setting or something a little more unusual (well, as far as fashion goes anyway).
VII is just kinda... weird. It's amazing, it's confused, it's a serious story about life, loss the environment and what not, but there's also awkward crossdressing for laughs and chocobo races. It's a fascinating mess. Oh, and people might yell at you if you don't worship it after playing it. VIII is weird for different reasons.
XII is the game you play if you believe Star Wars would have been better with a sexy bunny girl sidekick. It's a pretty cool game if you're willing to commit to it (a playthrough can easily be 50+ hours), though.
And XIII is like one of those cautionary after school specials: if developers obsess over fancy visuals, bad things happen. Okay, that's a bit harsh. If you're willing to accept you're basically stuck on a linair path with pretty scenery and plot points, there are actually some neat things to enjoy. The way the battlesystem allows you to control the flow of battle during boss fights is wonderful art. It also got a bitchy chick running around in a miniskirt, if you're into that.
Um...honestly, if you've tried multiple times and haven't been able to get into the games, then I suggest just giving up on them and moving on. But, for the sake of discussion, I shall attempt to give you some pointers. Er-hm...
VII.
Well, discussion is done. Moving on.
Kidding, of course. Let me see if I can break this down...
I would not suggest starting with V. It is very bare-bones I feel, at least in terms of story. This is back before epic tales were spun by Final Fantasy. I hear VI is the best from a lot of people, but I have never played it, so I can't speak for it.
VII. It is the most popular by far. In fact, it is so popular now that many people will tell you to stay away from it because it's overrated, it's stupid, the characters are annoying, blah blah blah. It is good. The story is long, the combat is solid (assuming you like turn based), the characters are actually very well written with more than just a shallow personality cliche, and there is so much more to do in the game than just the main quest. This game is massive, but in a good way. It's not just filler fetch quests or collecting stuff. Everything really does have a purpose, or is at least mindless fun.
VIII. Personally, my favorite. It was the first one I played, so it has a special place in my heart. It is certainly different from the others in the series though. Much more sci fi than fantasy here, with motorcycles, flying cities, machine guns, and so forth. Also, before X, this is the game that looks the most realistic. As in, the characters are super deformed or anything. A lot of people think this game is the black sheep of the series, and that the Junction system was crap, but I think they're wrong. If Sci Fi is more in line with your tastes, I'd say give this one a try.
IX. If you want to see what Final Fantasy was before VII, give this one a shot. When it came out, it was hailed as a return to form for the series. Cute character designs, a heavy fantasy setting, with knights and castles and an evil queen, and sky pirates and all that stuff. If classic Japanese style RPGs are to your liking, this is probably the best one to start with.
X. Honestly, find out if you enjoy another one of the games first. X is Final Fantasy through and through. It has VIII's character design (people look like people) but it has the fantasy elements in there too, such as riding giant birds and people relying on magic instead of tech because "tech is bad!". If you liked any of the previous ones, then you'll enjoy this one. Or, you can just jump right into this one. It is probably the best mix of all the previous games and strikes the right balance. If you don't like this game (and no, not liking it because the voice acting isn't what I'm talking about), then Final Fantasy as a series probably isn't going to be for you.
XI. Never played. MMO therefore not my thing.
XII. Ugh. Look, people say XIII was the low point of the series. I think XII was, but I tend to be in the minority opinion. Everything that makes a Final Fantasy game a Final Fantasy game--great characters, epic story, expansive world, fun side quests--was just missing from this game. The plot was...I don't even remember what the plot was. All I know is that it relied heavily on politics, which is not what I want from a FF game. The fact that every character could use every weapon made them all bleed together in my head and I still have trouble remembering them. No one had any great revealing side quests or backstory. The only real side quest in the whole game is hunting down beasts, which gets real boring, and to top it all off, the game can literally play itself. If you set up the right commands, you can set the controller on the floor and just watch as your characters do the work. That's just...ugh.
XIII. Okay, this one gets a lot of crap. And rightly so. Yes, for a good chunk of the game, you are going to be running down a straight path. Yes, the characters aren't as great--and Hope is downright annoying--as they should be. Yes, the plot is kind of dumb, even for a Final Fantasy game. But with all that said, I STILL think this game is better than XII. At least I can remember who these characters are, what their motivations are for doing things, and what the plot of the game is about. To me, this was a step back in the right direction for Final Fantasy after XII completely derailed it. Is is perfect? No. Should you start with it? Heck no. But if you have to choose between XII and XIII, I'd vote for XIII.
Here's a bonus one. Tactics. A lot of people love this game because of its in-depth job and battle system. They also say the story is amazing too. While I did enjoy it, I still don't really understand what went down in that game beyond the basic "civil war is going on in the background, but you are trying to stop a much larger threat.". If numbers and strategy are more to your liking, and story isn't really that big of a deal, this one might be worth a try.
VII.
Well, discussion is done. Moving on.
Kidding, of course. Let me see if I can break this down...
I would not suggest starting with V. It is very bare-bones I feel, at least in terms of story. This is back before epic tales were spun by Final Fantasy. I hear VI is the best from a lot of people, but I have never played it, so I can't speak for it.
VII. It is the most popular by far. In fact, it is so popular now that many people will tell you to stay away from it because it's overrated, it's stupid, the characters are annoying, blah blah blah. It is good. The story is long, the combat is solid (assuming you like turn based), the characters are actually very well written with more than just a shallow personality cliche, and there is so much more to do in the game than just the main quest. This game is massive, but in a good way. It's not just filler fetch quests or collecting stuff. Everything really does have a purpose, or is at least mindless fun.
VIII. Personally, my favorite. It was the first one I played, so it has a special place in my heart. It is certainly different from the others in the series though. Much more sci fi than fantasy here, with motorcycles, flying cities, machine guns, and so forth. Also, before X, this is the game that looks the most realistic. As in, the characters are super deformed or anything. A lot of people think this game is the black sheep of the series, and that the Junction system was crap, but I think they're wrong. If Sci Fi is more in line with your tastes, I'd say give this one a try.
IX. If you want to see what Final Fantasy was before VII, give this one a shot. When it came out, it was hailed as a return to form for the series. Cute character designs, a heavy fantasy setting, with knights and castles and an evil queen, and sky pirates and all that stuff. If classic Japanese style RPGs are to your liking, this is probably the best one to start with.
X. Honestly, find out if you enjoy another one of the games first. X is Final Fantasy through and through. It has VIII's character design (people look like people) but it has the fantasy elements in there too, such as riding giant birds and people relying on magic instead of tech because "tech is bad!". If you liked any of the previous ones, then you'll enjoy this one. Or, you can just jump right into this one. It is probably the best mix of all the previous games and strikes the right balance. If you don't like this game (and no, not liking it because the voice acting isn't what I'm talking about), then Final Fantasy as a series probably isn't going to be for you.
XI. Never played. MMO therefore not my thing.
XII. Ugh. Look, people say XIII was the low point of the series. I think XII was, but I tend to be in the minority opinion. Everything that makes a Final Fantasy game a Final Fantasy game--great characters, epic story, expansive world, fun side quests--was just missing from this game. The plot was...I don't even remember what the plot was. All I know is that it relied heavily on politics, which is not what I want from a FF game. The fact that every character could use every weapon made them all bleed together in my head and I still have trouble remembering them. No one had any great revealing side quests or backstory. The only real side quest in the whole game is hunting down beasts, which gets real boring, and to top it all off, the game can literally play itself. If you set up the right commands, you can set the controller on the floor and just watch as your characters do the work. That's just...ugh.
XIII. Okay, this one gets a lot of crap. And rightly so. Yes, for a good chunk of the game, you are going to be running down a straight path. Yes, the characters aren't as great--and Hope is downright annoying--as they should be. Yes, the plot is kind of dumb, even for a Final Fantasy game. But with all that said, I STILL think this game is better than XII. At least I can remember who these characters are, what their motivations are for doing things, and what the plot of the game is about. To me, this was a step back in the right direction for Final Fantasy after XII completely derailed it. Is is perfect? No. Should you start with it? Heck no. But if you have to choose between XII and XIII, I'd vote for XIII.
Here's a bonus one. Tactics. A lot of people love this game because of its in-depth job and battle system. They also say the story is amazing too. While I did enjoy it, I still don't really understand what went down in that game beyond the basic "civil war is going on in the background, but you are trying to stop a much larger threat.". If numbers and strategy are more to your liking, and story isn't really that big of a deal, this one might be worth a try.
I grew up playing the older games, though VII was the first one I actually completed, then went back and beat all of the games before that. Almost finished with IX and....someday I'll break down and play VIII.
In general, It's felt that the series peaked either with VI or VII, and which one of those you consider better probably depends on how much you liked the older(or "classic" FF games). Both are great in their own ways, and both have their drawbacks. VII is kind of the dividing line, because while it plays much like a classic FF with much better graphics, it did set the stage from the heavy spectacle games that would come after, not to mention the shift from fantasy with sci-fi elements to mostly sci-fi with magic(or a more cyberpunk feel).
VIII was weird(so I've heard) and I think few would consider it their favorite or recommend it as your first FF game. Like II, it used a gameplay system was that awesome in theory, but it turned out it was much easier and sanity preserving to just abuse the system to beat the game.
IX is very much a love letter to the classic games, with a massive number of shout outs, a return to the old quasi-medivel with airships and steampunk feel and all the classes the series was built around until 7 came along. It's gameplay system has core classes inherent to the character but uses a materia-like system to learn new skills. Also, the characters are pretty likeable and diverse(for the most part).
X is apparently the last GOOD FF with a great changeup of the gameplay system, however, the game is a lot more linear then all the previous ones(which had a semi-open world). I haven't played it yet, so I'm going off what I've heard.
Which one to start with?
I'd say either VI, VII or IX. All have good stories, fairly interesting characters and good gameplay. If none of those float your boat, maybe you just don't like Final Fantasy or JRPG's. If you don't, that's cool. Accept it and move onto something you find more rewarding.
In general, It's felt that the series peaked either with VI or VII, and which one of those you consider better probably depends on how much you liked the older(or "classic" FF games). Both are great in their own ways, and both have their drawbacks. VII is kind of the dividing line, because while it plays much like a classic FF with much better graphics, it did set the stage from the heavy spectacle games that would come after, not to mention the shift from fantasy with sci-fi elements to mostly sci-fi with magic(or a more cyberpunk feel).
VIII was weird(so I've heard) and I think few would consider it their favorite or recommend it as your first FF game. Like II, it used a gameplay system was that awesome in theory, but it turned out it was much easier and sanity preserving to just abuse the system to beat the game.
IX is very much a love letter to the classic games, with a massive number of shout outs, a return to the old quasi-medivel with airships and steampunk feel and all the classes the series was built around until 7 came along. It's gameplay system has core classes inherent to the character but uses a materia-like system to learn new skills. Also, the characters are pretty likeable and diverse(for the most part).
X is apparently the last GOOD FF with a great changeup of the gameplay system, however, the game is a lot more linear then all the previous ones(which had a semi-open world). I haven't played it yet, so I'm going off what I've heard.
Which one to start with?
I'd say either VI, VII or IX. All have good stories, fairly interesting characters and good gameplay. If none of those float your boat, maybe you just don't like Final Fantasy or JRPG's. If you don't, that's cool. Accept it and move onto something you find more rewarding.
The games are all so different. It can be a difficult series to jump into.Cyncial_Huggy said:
VII- My personal favorite, by far. It's definitely the most philosophical of the series. Life and death, love and loss. It's weird, messy, raw, honest, and beautiful. It's frankly my favorite game. It's intelligent without being pretentious, and emotional without any brooding. It's deals with serious themes, but the humor keeps the tone pretty steady throughout. Even if it's not your favorite in the series, it's certainly the best one to start with. There's a lot of exploration, as well, and a lot of lore to discover. I always find something new. The graphics haven't aged so well, but the story is so well told, does it even matter? Just make sure you play this instead of the remake or the film.
X- Possibly the most accessible "modern" final fantasy. It's the one I started with, and goofy moments aside, it's fairly solid. The music and art direction are some of the best in the series. It's a really weird game, maybe the weirdest in the series, but it's an experience worth having. The main character is highly annoying, but he's balanced out by a decent cast. The HD re-release make this a great place to start.
IV- Probably the best retro title in the series. VI is okay as well. IV had some strong character moments and a pretty interesting story. The game was re-released on the Gameboy and PSN, and was remade with modern graphics and voices on the DS. If you're a retro fan, start here.
The series is good, but I don't want to overwhelm you. Start with one of these, and explore from there.
When your endorsement of a title is an ultimatum between the two worst games in the series, it's time to put them both up and play Persona 4 instead : PSniper Team 4 said:
It really depends what you're looking for. The series has gone through so many changes over the main games alone with so many spinoffs it's hard to keep track.
There's also the problem of age as not everyone can look past the clunky menus of the earliest ones and the various levels of Bits. Personally I'd say though if you want the best starting one it's either;
FF I for the begining of it all, the psp or GBA versions are probably the best, though it is one of the most rereleased games of all time, so in a week we'll have one on 3DS or vita announced probably.
FF IV for the best 2D experience, try and get the psp or DS versions for the best effect.
FF IX for the best 3D experience that stands as a loveletter to their past.
FF X for the best 3D game with the realistic model proportions. Though prepare for the early days of VA and a strange story.
As for spinoffs;
Theatrythmn is a strange rythmn game using FF music from their entire library and will let you get a tate of the stuff you'll be listening to, even if it will have minor spoilers for later games you'll play.
Disidia is a great fighting game though being on the psp it went unheard of for most people. probably best to pick up once you have a few games under your best to enjoy the cameos.
FF crystal chronicles my life as a king; not a real recommendation but I just like to bring it up for having possibly the longest videogame name in english audiences.
There's also the problem of age as not everyone can look past the clunky menus of the earliest ones and the various levels of Bits. Personally I'd say though if you want the best starting one it's either;
FF I for the begining of it all, the psp or GBA versions are probably the best, though it is one of the most rereleased games of all time, so in a week we'll have one on 3DS or vita announced probably.
FF IV for the best 2D experience, try and get the psp or DS versions for the best effect.
FF IX for the best 3D experience that stands as a loveletter to their past.
FF X for the best 3D game with the realistic model proportions. Though prepare for the early days of VA and a strange story.
As for spinoffs;
Theatrythmn is a strange rythmn game using FF music from their entire library and will let you get a tate of the stuff you'll be listening to, even if it will have minor spoilers for later games you'll play.
Disidia is a great fighting game though being on the psp it went unheard of for most people. probably best to pick up once you have a few games under your best to enjoy the cameos.
FF crystal chronicles my life as a king; not a real recommendation but I just like to bring it up for having possibly the longest videogame name in english audiences.
IV was the first FF that really engaged me(even it wasn't the first one I beat) and I love V for different reasons. The biggest complaint against IV is that it's difficult and you really can't do much more then just grind to overcome. It probably has the highest difficulty curve of any of the post 8-bit games(The first 3 games could be anywhere from brutal to mega-super-brutal). Which may or may not be appealing to you depending on how you feel about JRPG's in general.Fox12 said:
I would go with 4 or 6, maybe 5. I've played them all up through IX, and here's some thoughts on them.
The first three are very YMMV. I think I and III are damn fine games, but you have to be very tolerant of NES-era RPGs' quirks to get anything out of them. III is interesting in that you can see a lot of the themes that define future Final Fantasies rise up in it. And as for Final Fantasy II, I could only get through the Dawn of Souls version.
IV - This is where Final Fantasy started to become what it is. As for what version of the game to play, that's a good question. The original SNES translation was done by three Japanese people and it shows. Modern translations are generally cleaner, but they remove some greats lines like changing "[final boss]! For the sake of all things on Earth I will destroy you!" to "I can't lose! I... just... can't!" which is a huge step down. There's a fan retranslation of the SNES version, but according to this article [http://legendsoflocalization.com/final-fantasy-iv/] it tends to make stuff up and is very Working Designs inspired.
V - The story isn't the strongest the series has to offer, but the Job system is a ball to screw around with.
VI - One of my favorite games of all time, and my favorite RPG.
VII - I'm always reluctant to say anything nice about this game because of how awful its fanbase is. Maybe it's because a lot of people were teenagers when this came out so any discussion of it changes them into mental 13-year-olds, but damn do people get mad when you say anything negative like how pointless some of the minigames are (i.e. CPR, mashing a button to warm up on a mountain), how convoluted the story is, or how Sephiroth barely does anything. Hell, just a week ago I got lynched at another forum over the Aeris vs. Aerith thing when all I did was make the observation that you don't see wars break out over Tina vs. Terra, Butz vs. Bartz, or Frioniel vs. Firion[footnote]And I'm not looking to start one here. I call her Aeris for all the same reasons I still call the Sonic villain Dr. Robotnik and Enix's premiere RPG series Dragon Warrior. Call her whatever you want. Call her Shirley if that suits you.[/footnote], and Jim Fucking Sterling Son got yelled at for "spoiling" a scene everybody already knows about [https://twitter.com/JimSterling/status/623188180292886528]. I try to compartmentalize and treat it as a decent RPG, just not the divine gift it's treated as.
VIII - Mechanically the most obtuse Final Fantasy, at least of the first nine. Also, enemies level up with you, which means the final dungeon still has you fighting enemies from the first area. And the characters are kind of lame.
IX - Generally forgotten and called "the Final Fantasy that came between 8 and 10", and having played through it just last month I can kind of see why. It's mostly a nostalgia trip for the series, full of nods and winks to characters and plot points from previous Final Fantasies. Unfortunately, this means the game tends to forget to forge its own identity. Oh, and the encounter rate is a right ass.
The first three are very YMMV. I think I and III are damn fine games, but you have to be very tolerant of NES-era RPGs' quirks to get anything out of them. III is interesting in that you can see a lot of the themes that define future Final Fantasies rise up in it. And as for Final Fantasy II, I could only get through the Dawn of Souls version.
IV - This is where Final Fantasy started to become what it is. As for what version of the game to play, that's a good question. The original SNES translation was done by three Japanese people and it shows. Modern translations are generally cleaner, but they remove some greats lines like changing "[final boss]! For the sake of all things on Earth I will destroy you!" to "I can't lose! I... just... can't!" which is a huge step down. There's a fan retranslation of the SNES version, but according to this article [http://legendsoflocalization.com/final-fantasy-iv/] it tends to make stuff up and is very Working Designs inspired.
V - The story isn't the strongest the series has to offer, but the Job system is a ball to screw around with.
VI - One of my favorite games of all time, and my favorite RPG.
VII - I'm always reluctant to say anything nice about this game because of how awful its fanbase is. Maybe it's because a lot of people were teenagers when this came out so any discussion of it changes them into mental 13-year-olds, but damn do people get mad when you say anything negative like how pointless some of the minigames are (i.e. CPR, mashing a button to warm up on a mountain), how convoluted the story is, or how Sephiroth barely does anything. Hell, just a week ago I got lynched at another forum over the Aeris vs. Aerith thing when all I did was make the observation that you don't see wars break out over Tina vs. Terra, Butz vs. Bartz, or Frioniel vs. Firion[footnote]And I'm not looking to start one here. I call her Aeris for all the same reasons I still call the Sonic villain Dr. Robotnik and Enix's premiere RPG series Dragon Warrior. Call her whatever you want. Call her Shirley if that suits you.[/footnote], and Jim Fucking Sterling Son got yelled at for "spoiling" a scene everybody already knows about [https://twitter.com/JimSterling/status/623188180292886528]. I try to compartmentalize and treat it as a decent RPG, just not the divine gift it's treated as.
VIII - Mechanically the most obtuse Final Fantasy, at least of the first nine. Also, enemies level up with you, which means the final dungeon still has you fighting enemies from the first area. And the characters are kind of lame.
IX - Generally forgotten and called "the Final Fantasy that came between 8 and 10", and having played through it just last month I can kind of see why. It's mostly a nostalgia trip for the series, full of nods and winks to characters and plot points from previous Final Fantasies. Unfortunately, this means the game tends to forget to forge its own identity. Oh, and the encounter rate is a right ass.
1. I like that tower defense game - My Life as a Darklord - better.Roboshi said:
2. That title is nothing! Fear the title that is Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Summoner - Raidou Kuzunoha vs. the Soulless Army! Or how about...
Holy Invasion of Privacy, Badman! - What Did I Do To Deserve This?
(Which was later changed to What Did I Do to Deserve This, My Lord?
)Still, these titles are but grains of sand compared to what may very well the longest title a videogame will ever have:
夏色ハイスクール★青春白書 ～転校初日のオレが幼馴染と再会したら報道部員にされていて激写少年の日々スクープ大連発でイガイとモテモテなのに何故かマイメモリーがパンツ写真ばっかりという電実と向き合いながら考えるひと夏の島の学園生活と赤裸々な恋の行方。～
Or
Summer-Colored High School ★ Adolescent Record ? A Summer At School On An Island Where I Contemplate How The First Day After I Transferred, I Ran Into A Childhood Friend And Was Forced To Join The Journalism Club Where While My Days As A Paparazzi Kid With Great Scoops Made Me Rather Popular Among The Girls, But Strangely My Camera Is Full Of Panty Shots, And Where My Candid Romance Is Going. ~
Japan likes words very much.
4 is a good place to start . why? because you don't have to micro manage and your character roster is ever changing giving you different classes to play with all the time. its starts easy and gets mildly challenging slowly but steadily.
If you want glorious retro 2D goodness then check out FFVI. If you want to experience the PS1 era which was very much doing its own thing, go with FFVII. For the modern era I'd recommend FFX.
So, I've played Final Fantasy V-XIII (excluding MMO XI) and out of those I CANNOT recommend only VIII, X-2 and XIII.
V is just a solid JRPG. The story and characters are fine, the world is fine, the gameplay is fine, nothing too good, nothing too bad.
VI is considered to be one of the best ones. It has about 12 (I think) playable characters, each one with their own unique skills on top of those that can be learned by everyone, it has great music and storyline and one of the best villains in FF games. And no, Lightning, you are NOT the first female protagonist in FF games. Terra is one.
VII is not the best game in the franchise, nor it is overhyped. It is really good, solid JRPG with rather nice story (albeit with some elements being a tiny bit hard to grasp), highly memorable characters and really intersting Materia system.
IX I did not play as much and am willing to start over when I'll have more free time, but my first impression is that it's a lot more humorous, light-hearted FF, that was created with an intent to go back to fantasy roots (compared to, um, sci-fi-ish themes of VII and VIII). My biggest complaint with it is that your party members enter their Trance as soon as Trance gauge is filled, not when you actually need it.
X is my favourite one. It has great story, characters, it features my favourite Summons designs and is fully turn-based (compared to previous games with ATB system). Sure, it is not flawless (main character looks like nightmare, Kimahri lacking his own development way, messed up blue magic) but I still enjoy it and it the closest one to my heart. Many say that one of it's flaws is lack of open world. Well, I always thought that old ones aren't actually open world too. You just go from point A to point B, C or D to get your Uber Sword. None of them had any, I don't know, random encouters with an interesting NPC, or some simple dungeon where you get a few potions and some average gear (you know, like in actual open world games). FFX just cut out the middle man: the world map.
XII is... Well, it's interesting. But I can't recommend it for a first timer, because of the battle system at least. Also, at least 2 of your 6-person party are a late addition to the roster. What I mean is, at first it was supposed to be a story of a wrongfully accused knight, who gets accompamied by a princess in exile (is that correct?) and two sky pirates. But producers, or PR-managers or some other dumbo thought that this game would benefit from having two dumb kids as protagonists and so they were froced into party AFTER the story was already written.
To conclude: In my humble opinion, if you want to play a 2D game from SNES era that was later ported to PS One, go for part VI. If you want to play an early 3D FF, go for part VII. If you want to play something from PS2 era, play part X. Avoid playing any FF game that was released on PS3 that is not PS classic or a remaster.
V is just a solid JRPG. The story and characters are fine, the world is fine, the gameplay is fine, nothing too good, nothing too bad.
VI is considered to be one of the best ones. It has about 12 (I think) playable characters, each one with their own unique skills on top of those that can be learned by everyone, it has great music and storyline and one of the best villains in FF games. And no, Lightning, you are NOT the first female protagonist in FF games. Terra is one.
VII is not the best game in the franchise, nor it is overhyped. It is really good, solid JRPG with rather nice story (albeit with some elements being a tiny bit hard to grasp), highly memorable characters and really intersting Materia system.
IX I did not play as much and am willing to start over when I'll have more free time, but my first impression is that it's a lot more humorous, light-hearted FF, that was created with an intent to go back to fantasy roots (compared to, um, sci-fi-ish themes of VII and VIII). My biggest complaint with it is that your party members enter their Trance as soon as Trance gauge is filled, not when you actually need it.
X is my favourite one. It has great story, characters, it features my favourite Summons designs and is fully turn-based (compared to previous games with ATB system). Sure, it is not flawless (main character looks like nightmare, Kimahri lacking his own development way, messed up blue magic) but I still enjoy it and it the closest one to my heart. Many say that one of it's flaws is lack of open world. Well, I always thought that old ones aren't actually open world too. You just go from point A to point B, C or D to get your Uber Sword. None of them had any, I don't know, random encouters with an interesting NPC, or some simple dungeon where you get a few potions and some average gear (you know, like in actual open world games). FFX just cut out the middle man: the world map.
XII is... Well, it's interesting. But I can't recommend it for a first timer, because of the battle system at least. Also, at least 2 of your 6-person party are a late addition to the roster. What I mean is, at first it was supposed to be a story of a wrongfully accused knight, who gets accompamied by a princess in exile (is that correct?) and two sky pirates. But producers, or PR-managers or some other dumbo thought that this game would benefit from having two dumb kids as protagonists and so they were froced into party AFTER the story was already written.
To conclude: In my humble opinion, if you want to play a 2D game from SNES era that was later ported to PS One, go for part VI. If you want to play an early 3D FF, go for part VII. If you want to play something from PS2 era, play part X. Avoid playing any FF game that was released on PS3 that is not PS classic or a remaster.
Throw my vote in for a split between VI, VII and IX. VI if you like the sprites of earlier games. VII if you like Popeye arms on your protagonist. Those two are about equal on my list (maybe second place), and they embody was FF is. Both have plenty to do besides stopping the nutjob bent on destroying the world.
IX is the last true FF before they really started to change things, like removing the explorable world map and ATB. Some people hate it for the art style or characters. Some love it. It's one of my favorites because once you get past the cutesy art and the introduction, the story becomes one of the darkest in the series (I'm talking genocide passed around like popcorn.). Also, the female lead is a gorgeous princess with a lot of guts (for a naive princess) and the male lead is a womanizing, partying, lovable scoundrel of a thief (much different than the 4 surrounding games). Oh, and the Chocobo Hot and Cold minigame can unlock lots of powerful equipment very early on.
You could also go with X, if you want voice acting and a more guided progress through the world (ie. it's linear until you beat a late game boss, then you select points on a map to travel), until you get used to the series. X also has the best summoning and Limit Break systems of the series.
IX is the last true FF before they really started to change things, like removing the explorable world map and ATB. Some people hate it for the art style or characters. Some love it. It's one of my favorites because once you get past the cutesy art and the introduction, the story becomes one of the darkest in the series (I'm talking genocide passed around like popcorn.). Also, the female lead is a gorgeous princess with a lot of guts (for a naive princess) and the male lead is a womanizing, partying, lovable scoundrel of a thief (much different than the 4 surrounding games). Oh, and the Chocobo Hot and Cold minigame can unlock lots of powerful equipment very early on.
You could also go with X, if you want voice acting and a more guided progress through the world (ie. it's linear until you beat a late game boss, then you select points on a map to travel), until you get used to the series. X also has the best summoning and Limit Break systems of the series.
Overall consensus here is pretty much spot on: IV or VI for the retro style. IX for old-3D style. X was the last truly great one so if you want the most modern experience play that.
Personally I'd put up IX as one of the greatest games of all time and one that you really must play.
V and VII are okay. VIII is much maligned by a lot of people (the game mechanics can be very broken) but I have a soft spot for it, its not to everyone's taste. I, II and III are still solid games and fascinating to look back on the history of the series but they feel very dated now, much more so than IV I always felt.
Personally I'd put up IX as one of the greatest games of all time and one that you really must play.
V and VII are okay. VIII is much maligned by a lot of people (the game mechanics can be very broken) but I have a soft spot for it, its not to everyone's taste. I, II and III are still solid games and fascinating to look back on the history of the series but they feel very dated now, much more so than IV I always felt.
FF9 best FF. It's how an old school FF would play out in 3D and as others have said, it has one of the best stories in the series. The only real gripes are that you'll need a guide handy for the hidden stuff (not important to the story) and the encounter rate is stupid.
