What is Digg?124 Comments
- FireAtWill, on 12/17/2007, -12/+52Remake VII! Please? I don't want a movie, I just want to see Tifa's boobs bounce under my control in high-def.
- wiggles, on 12/17/2007, -3/+39TWENTY YEARS? God, am I old.
- Klarth, on 12/17/2007, -1/+30A massive universe? Try 15+ completely separate yet equally convoluted universes.
- Braingoo, on 12/17/2007, -10/+37I used to be a big Final Fantasy fan back in the day, but as of late I have lost my taste for Japanese flavored RPGs.
They have always had great art style, but the stories are all pretty much identical. There is a chosen one that either knows they are or will soon find out they are. They go on a journey finding friends along the way. battle alot of evil things. Get uberpowerful, beat main bad guy and save the planet / universe. - CerMakAlot, on 12/17/2007, -5/+27I kind of want to call BS on some of his FFVII problems. The PC ones are known issues, and i can believe that. But just how many times can a game self destruct on you like that? The Playstation problems he is having sound like straight up gameshark file corruption, not problems with a legit save.
- Jazzanova, on 12/17/2007, -4/+24After I saw the newly released FFXIII and FFVersusXIII trailers, I was at once excited and disappointed. It's a progression of FF into the next gen but in a greater sense it remains a regression when compared to FFXII.
Matsuno Yasuno's FFXII is when Final Fantasy grew up--boldly evident in it's art direction, but most conspicuously in it's narrative. It was a narrative flushed with florid, even occasionally literate, dialogue, a story arc concerned with political intrigue and worldly repercussions rather than the vanity of a girl-boy-girl love triangle, and a manner of characterization and direction that placed greater value in nuances of expressiveness rather than the gauche, teenage bravado and superficiality of Tidus, Cloud, Squall, or any of their similar spawn. A Final Fantasy without Matsuno (FF Tactics, Vagrant Story, or FFXII) is akin to a Jerry Bruckheimer production but with a Dawson's Creek ethos slathered in, very thickly.
While FFXII eschewed the teenage melodrama and ungainly storytelling of recent and past Final Fantasies, it also melded the best in western and Japanese RPGs and did away with long outmoded mainstays and annoyances in both: no more random battles or time wasting end-battle EXP/gil summary screens; seamless integration of exploration and battle modes creating an amplified sense of immersion; a choice to micro- or macro-manage battles allowing for leisurely or frantic fighting via the Gambit system; the creative synthesis of single player RPG and MMORPG mechanics; a 3D camera control allowing for full view of Ivalice's grandeur, again adding to the immense sense of immersion; a strong female lead (Ashe is inarguably the lead) who is neither feeble nor whiny nor a submissive stereotype; locales (especially the metropolises) that felt alive with the denizens and not a static contrivance of NPCs. The innovations, evolution, and discarded conventions are considerable. FFXII is not without its faults, even though it's one of only six games to get a perfect rating in Famitsu (not that Famitsu still holds value for everyone), but it does represent the first time Final Fantasy can be considered entertainment for more than mostly kids and teenagers. Along with games like FF Tactics, Ico, Bioshock, and Half Life 2, FFXII is one of those rare times where a video game has a story to tell that won't make you blush too much. It's not on par with finer cinema or literature, very far from it, but at least it displays an ambition to get there someday.
Those who dislike FFXII are likely to enjoy FFXIII. It's a return to the maturity level before Matsuo came in; a return to the cliches of a vapid but sullen hero with an elemental name (Lightning meet Cloud) and a farcically huge sword, zippered sportswear and asexual garments, and--because of the staff involved--a story that might rival FF7-10 in it's attempt to perfectly mirror a Ben Affleck summer blockbuster with inconsequential love interest and inconsequential ass kicking of inconsequential baddies who are equally as vapid as the hero and his love interest.
And yet inspite all that, I am completely hyped for FFXIII. FFXII's art director, Kamikokuyrou Isamu, is XIII's art director and as the trailer's have revealed, Isamu's breathtaking baroque aesthetic seems to have tempered the plastic, futuristic-sacharinity and over-simplicity of everything that Nomura Tetsuya touches--ostensibly the character designs are still very Nomura. The worlds the trailer briefly unveils looks like something I wish to immerse myself in. The music sounds as captivating, though not as ornate, as Sakimoto's FFXII score. So while my expectations for the direction, story, dialogue, and voice acting remain low, the art direction, music, and gameplay adequately retains my considerable interest and excitement.
As for FFVersusXIII, the music in the trailer while competent does sound a bit like a poor man's opera--watered down for an audience that doesn't know of Bellini or Puccini. The game itself looks dreadfully Nomura. If FFXII is an indictment of the maturity level of previous Final Fantasies and FFXIII a tearing down of the maturity level FFXII had achieved, FFVersusXIII looks to abolish all adult ambitions by winning the hearts of the demographic not quite old enough to get a driver's license--or those who enjoyed Kingdom Hearts. I don't know if I have the patience for a main character more sullen than a Prozac-popper on Medicare and so exceedingly self-absorbed he wears all black cause he thinks it's slimming. - cmiller1, on 12/17/2007, -1/+17"I actually have an ex-girlfriend who loves this game very much, but personally, I just got bored of it after I found out that Tellah was a spoony bard. I must have been spoiled since I played it after completing FFVI."
WTF!!! Tellah isn't the spoony bard, prince Edward was! - Shawn4168, on 12/17/2007, -4/+18Seriously? Final Fantasy X was a good game. Certainly not the best of the Final Fantasy series, but it was far from the worst.
- az0madman, on 12/17/2007, -0/+13If you like this, definitely check out the FF Retrospective: http://www.gametrailers.com/game/4831.html
Ahh the memories. - andrewk21, on 12/17/2007, -3/+16This could have been a really interesting article, but the author can barely write, gets details wrong, and doesn't appear to have any particular insight into the series. A properly done retrospective would be welcome.
- ronaldmonster, on 12/17/2007, -2/+13Can we get a Chrono Chross sequel in my lifetime? Cause you know it's the only RPG worth having a sequel too coming from Square.
- Dreamscar, on 12/17/2007, -10/+21I'm so glad Final Fantasy XII showed the series can still be truly be incredible. I was convinced it was doomed after X, and even more doomed after X-2
- Surreal, on 12/18/2007, -2/+11Wow, this gets a bury for the horrible review, confusing screenshot placement, and overall just ridiculousness.
- Myonosken, on 12/17/2007, -4/+13I don't understand the FFVIII hate. I mean, sure, the story wasn't on a par with VI, VII and X, but it was really fun. The graphics, at the time, were absolutely lovely and the sound was brilliantly orchestrated. Even more than that, it had so many sidequests and the junction system was actually pretty fun (unlike the ***** sphere grid). Tell me you didn't get a kick the first time the FMV of the first flight of the Ragnarok played and that soundtrack kicked in and you shot around the world.
- volacide, on 12/18/2007, -0/+9I don't know, I mean I can see where you're coming from, but when you get right down to it, most storylines with heros and heroines are pretty much the same. There's a formula, and they never get old because it's always fun to be the underdog and overcome insane obstacles.
Plus the worlds Square creates are just amazing, always fun to dive into. - CerMakAlot, on 12/17/2007, -2/+9I'm just saying, ultimate weapon disappearing? Memory cards erasing? Seems a little hard to believe barring some kind of save file altering through gameshark or something. The fact that he tried multiple discs and memory cards only adds to how ridiculous it seems. But, we've all had a dark force that wanted to stop us from playing games before...
- kefkastudio, on 12/18/2007, -2/+9The only reason I'm buying a PS3 is for the next installment.
- Taciturn, on 12/17/2007, -1/+8I was just about to post this! Author doesn't know his spoony bards from a hole in the ground. This story is so buried.
- staticneuron, on 12/17/2007, -4/+11You say that as if it is exclusive to japanese rpgs. I remeber playing quite a few western games that have similar arcs recently.
- DookieCantRead, on 12/17/2007, -1/+8Many people would argue that FFVII is actually better than VI, which is a close second, or a different animal since it's a 2D game. Regardless, his LACK of experience with VII makes this whole article less legitimate.
- inactive, on 12/17/2007, -1/+8i just recently played final fantasy tactics all over again, still a greatly entertaining game
- yohnstoppable, on 12/18/2007, -1/+7I stopped reading after the review of FF 4. For some reason this guy hates the ATB, which is apparently all that was in the game, but says 6 is "perfection". Well you obviously don't find it perfect, considering it has the SAME ***** battle system. And Tellah wasn't the bard, Edward was. I mean, I agree that 6 was the best of the series, but the biggest leap forward was when 4 came out.
I would like to see an actual article on the history of final fantasy, rather than blogspam by someone who obviously hasn't played most of the games. Buried - leffunov, on 12/18/2007, -0/+6He complains that the Ruby weapon never fought back? I wish I was that lucky!!
- postalblowfish7, on 12/17/2007, -2/+8dugg for the giant black mage right at the top of the article. FFII has always been my favorite (that's FFIIj, not FFIV) - yeah, the leveling system is as broken as digg's comment system - but it's simply the best story that's ever been told within the confines of an 8-bit cart.
- joehobbes, on 12/17/2007, -1/+7wow -- nice comment :o
- JackSrenton, on 12/17/2007, -2/+7Was this translated? Much like your comments on FFVIII and beyond, it really just fell apart after awhile.
- geoffreyireland, on 12/18/2007, -0/+4http://project-apollo.net/text/rpg.html
- inactive, on 12/18/2007, -1/+5If you don't have a regular group of friends to play with, sitting around Jeuno with your party searching flag on is a really boring experience...
- TheZorch, on 12/17/2007, -2/+6Final Fantasy XI is a great game and the Wings of the Goddess expansion is really good too.
- spectre_25gt, on 12/18/2007, -0/+4It's called "The Hero's Journey" or The Monomyth. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monomyth. It's the basis for a whole lot more than JRPGs.
- wenomspitta, on 12/18/2007, -1/+4lol, chrono trigger?
- sgtpppr, on 12/17/2007, -2/+5I'm with you there. I really liked X and X-2 (mainly because it was like a continuation of a game I liked). I did like 12 though, but not nearly as much as previous titles. It was basically FFXI single player. It had an MMO battle system and interface. What I find the most strange is that the Enix/grinder crowd that love dungeon crawling and level building weren't more into FFXII. The game required an INSANE amount of leveling time. Getting all the espers was ridiculously difficult.
- Saea, on 12/18/2007, -1/+4The Chrono series:
We all know we cry for more at night. - racketboy, on 12/17/2007, -4/+7He actually detailed his problems more in his original draft. I edited it down since I figured most people wouldn't want to read it all. But he really did try multiple discs and multiple memory cards along the way. It's like some outside force didn't want him to play it :)
- Gir53457, on 12/17/2007, -2/+5What ruined the game for me was the lack of character classes, sure you could make them yourself but by the time you figured out how to do so you were stuck halfway through the game with six Jacks and Jills of all trades, master of none. Though not necessarily a plus or minus was the lack of a romance story. And The sound compression was horrible, though I can understand why.
- ArchAngel21x, on 12/18/2007, -0/+3I'd embrace FF XI with open arms if they made soloing a lot easier. The last straw for me is when they nerfed black mage to the point where no one wants to party with them anymore.
- inactive, on 12/18/2007, -0/+2Final Fantasy 8 would be much better except for one problem. Once you get siren and quezacotle (is that right?) plus the right cards you can have 4000 hp and be going 3000 dmg within the first 2 hours of game play. That kind of ruined it for me.
- inactive, on 12/18/2007, -0/+2Final Fantasy was one of the main reasons i picked PS3 over 360.
- Treshnell, on 12/18/2007, -0/+2You can boil the plot of all movies, books, games, whatever to the same basic elements in the same way...
- fisherdr, on 12/17/2007, -2/+4And AFTER VII came out, Squaresoft started doing something else. Lighting their cigars and wiping their asses with $100 bills. It makes good financial sense to remake VII now, and VI down the road.
- inactive, on 12/18/2007, -0/+2Like??? Playing Blu-Ray movies and Playstation 3 games. I am a PS3 fanboy and I am gonna burry you.
- Kyouto, on 12/18/2007, -0/+2Yes indeed. I played 3/4 through the game before I finally figured out what was going on..... after figuring it out, the game kicked a ton of ass. Not to mention the story was pretty good.... not as good as VII, but a bit better than IX I thought. They're all solid games, though.
- ayeroxor, on 12/18/2007, -0/+2How's that chip on your shoulder? Hope it's not too heavy for ya...
- shredswithpiks, on 12/17/2007, -2/+4:timeparadox: (linkin part didn't debut until after VII or something)
- inactive, on 12/18/2007, -3/+5The only game that I've enjoyed playing more than this franchise was Vagrant Story. I only buy Sony consoles so I can play the next Final Fantasy installment.
- ronaldmonster, on 12/18/2007, -0/+2Damn I had a feeling I messed up something, I feel smart.
- Asianwaste, on 12/18/2007, -0/+2I've mainly grown out of Japanese style RPGs. There's one series I do like: Shadowhearts. Good story, great characters, original battle system, and *gasp* real sequels. The third one wasn't so great, but if you want what everyone loved about Japanese RPGs, play Shadowhearts, then Shadowhearts: Covenant. It's worth the time.
- neodorian, on 12/18/2007, -0/+2He also doesn't know the difference between "too" and "to". I'm not a spelling nazi normally but he did it like 10 times in the same paragraph.
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