So I did a marathon of sorts for the last few months trying to play through the PS1 installments of Final Fantasy. These were probably the more memorable ones because people were playing RPGs and I could actually talk storylines with them. In a decade since setting the controller down on these though, I can look at them with differet opinions. There's no denying that all three of them (even IX) outdo the PS2 installments, and there is no denying that they are games you'd play again. Here's my thoughts on each one, years after their release. I'll post VIII and IX later...
Final Fantasy VII: It's not overrated, period. FFVII still holds up well today and it makes me laugh that Square Enix is feeding us this dogshit that remaking this would be too much money/too many resources. Sure it would, but you'd get that money back by your fanbase that has in unison said you need to make it.
Note to Tetsuya Nomura: Less is more, look at your designs here. The character designs in FFVII are without a doubt, his best. Cloud and Sephiroth are simple, yet detailed. Vincent doesn't have an overabundance of zippers on his clothes, and Tifa, despite her top-heaviness is a good design. The graphics took a bit to get used to again, but that was just the in-game. Those pre-rendered backgrounds continue to hold up and are always pretty.
I'd be lying if I said Phoenix doesn't open the same way FFVII did, and rightly so, my novel was me trying to do a story in Midgar...but since I don't own the rights to it, I made the continent of North America Midgar. FFVII's story is its strong suit, but it has a few kinks. For one thing, a decade ago, I got turned off on the second half of disc one just traveling the world map in pursuit of Sephiroth, and it's no different here. They just insert party members with a storyline blurb and keep you moving. All of this could have been cut and the characters could have stayed in Midgar for a much longer time. Midgar IS FFVII. I agree with what Pat R on SMPS.net said where it would have been a lot more disorienting if Cloud and co were locked in the city a bit longer. I wanted to explore that city.
Sephiroth wasn't exacatly hated by me, but he got the job done. I felt more sorry for him than anything because it wasn't his fault he went insane, but I hated the Shinra Co. for their shananigans in the whole shindig.
Cloud in itself is the posterchild for main characters. From the moment he steps on the screen and says "I don't care what your names are" he's in control and he's intriguing to keep you going. While I hate the fact his storyline ends towards the middle of disc 2, up to that point he makes FFVII. That and his sword is awesome (again, LESS IS MORE).
Finally the combat. This game felt like a SNES FF game with a fresh coat of paint-and the battle system really never got broken. Yes, some materia combos made the game easier, but it wasn't near as ridiculous as the Junction system and being able to kill bosses in three hits by hour 3. FFVII can still kill you if you'r e not careful, though it's rare. Furthermore, I'm always compelled to DO EVERYTHING in each playthrough of the game...well minus chocobo breeding.
Overall, I liked Final Fantasy VII. I still like it. My favorite Final Fantasy is tied between IV and VI, but FFVII is my second favorite game of all time. If you still haven't picked it up-go give it a whirl, you'll be happy about it.
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