With the latest franchise for debate being Final fantasy I thought I might share my two cents (curse the limit of 300 words!):
Whilst I’ve enjoyed the FF series in the past, I must however join the haters.
To me the FF series can be divided into two halves: the Nintendo era and the Sony era. The Nintendo era is the series at it’s most pure: When Square were tying out new things, taking risks and seeing what the medium of video gaming could actually accomplish. Whilst not all of the games on the NES and SNES were successful, it’s interesting to see well thought out characters, compelling stories, unforgettable music and making great video games – all of these aspects reaching their zenith with FFVI.
Conversely, the FF of the Sony Era is more about show: Characters you’d rather punch in the face, flashy graphics, dumb plots leaning more towards melodrama, character designs more intended to challenge cosplayers, and an opening designed to grab attention but not to maintain it throughout the whole game. And more importantly, little thought to what constitutes as a video game.
True I have enjoyed VII and even IX and X but as the series continues, the FF series is more like a golden goose: It’s makers trying to figure what worked before and trying to replicate it (Lightening is the female Cloud? Hrmmm…..). It is indeed a telling sign that every FF that’s followed VII has people willing to condemn and defend it in passionate fashion.
To me FF is in the same camp as Sonic the Hedgehog: A series whose glory days have come and gone. A series that a) belongs to an era long gone, b) no longer has the people that made it good and c) keeps pumping out titles to the point of becoming embarrassing. Maybe it’s time to put the Final Fantasy series to rest? If Bungie did so with Halo….
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