Wanna get a FF

ive never played any final fantasy games, are the games a continuing story? do i have to get FF1 then FF2 and so on?

What, seriously? Not a one? Huh, that’s… defintiely an oddity around here.

Anyway, no, worry not, the games are defintiely not linear. THey are basically seperate worlds entirely, with only a few common themes. Well, except in the case of FFX and FFX-2, and all the sequel games to FFVII, but thos can come later.

If you have a Game Boy, I suggest picking up a copy of FFIV Advanced. it’s a remake of the fourth game in the series, and a pretty decent one to start out with. it was defintiely one that revolutionized gaming as we knew and know it.

FFIV is a good place to start, and I recommend you move up from there through V and VI. Definitely play VI no matter what. There’s a GBA remake version out already in Japan and the port should come in English around February.

Please, PLEASE do not play VII first. It’s a good enough game, but those who “got their cherries popped” by it have a tendency to believe it’s the greatest fucking thing beyond anything ever. I’m thinking of your own best interests here, only play it after you’ve gone through the older titles.

The first three games are a problem. They are pure “oldschool”, meaning simple games with relatively simple stories. They were the norm back then and we played them happily, but the thing is, for people accustomed to today’s level of difficulty, those older games will RAPE YOU THROUGH EVERY SINGLE ORIFICE YOU HAVE AND THEN RIP YOU A FEW NEW ONES JUST TO RAPE THOSE TOO. Ok, maybe not that badly, but they are painful by today’s standards. They have their merits and you should give them a try, but be aware of what you are getting into.

For now, get IV and then play up from there.

“got their cherries popped”? You make it sound so… painful. You’re right, though, VII was my first and I have a hard time seeing its flaws. But then the same could be said of any FF, couldn’t it?

I actually found the PS and GBA versions of FFI to be rather not hard, but FFII is a bit of a challenge. Same goes for FFIIIDS. Still, the later ones (FFX and XII in particular) are by comparison much easier.

Don’t feel bad. I’ve never eaten before. I’ve never watched TV either.

V, V, VI, VII, Tactics and X

VIII, IX, X2 and XI are complete ass. Avoid those. Havent done much with FFXII so I cant say.

All of them have their merits. Play the games yourself and then decide which ones you do or don’t like. IX is my favorite, for the record.

In my opinion, you should start with VI and move up from there. Or start with X. That’s ones my fave, but it might spoil you. Anything before VI bored me to death–but I’ve only played the NES versions, so…

So that’s two FF you admit you haven’t played. Trust me, the SNES games were probably the best. IV is what established the main gist of plot and characterization in RPGs, FFV was so much FUN! Seriously, it doesn;t amtter if you felt the characters were nothing mroe than a walking pile of stats. You got to play Dressup! =D

Which is really old and overused game system…

Anyway, I meant that I’ve also played the original versions of pretty much all the FFs. The only remake I’ve played, though, is FF3DS, which also sucks pretty badly.

It might be old and overused, but FFV was the first (well,s econd, i guess) to use it. And trust me, it’s still fun, no matter how amny other people have done it. THis game was perfection.

4 was the first RPG I played, so that’s why it’s the most memorable to me,
but I’ll admit it has no customization aspects (in a series built around allowing the player to determine the characters’ skills and such).
So, it will probably feel the most “generic” of the bunch.
Good points being that it had a good storyline (certainly for its time) to back it up), and this may have been the first RPG to factor time into the battle scenes.
Maybe because it was the first I played, it remains one of my favorites. 6 was also a good one with a pretty dramatic (for its time) storyline, though the game is pretty easy to finish (after about the first quarter of the game, player characters start to overpower enemies).
Final Fantasy Mystic Quest was a game designed for beginners. It has some great music, a basic (but decent for a budget-priced game) storyline, really simplistic gameplay. More like a tutorial game (armor is automatically equipped and newer stuff never has any drawbacks, player only needs to choose from 4 weapons, newest magic is always the best. And halfway through the game the player can cheaply buy enough poitions and seeds to ensure they’ll never run out of life or magic for the rest of the game)

2 feels like the spiritual pilot of a seperate series called SaGa, which is remembered because characters grow by actions they perform (like if somebody uses weapons alot, strength increases but magic power goes down), though the time those stat changes take effect is random (and thus can get annoying/boring).

Don’t listen to him, play FF IX you’ll enjoy it.

ok so ill buy FFIX than play all of them in order from there, hows that?

That’s… well, it’s your call. I really think you should give the earlier games a try, but it’s your decision. IX is actually a pretty good game for beginners who are also picky about graphics, since it doesn’t have any overly complicated systems or anything.

Playing them all in order…you do mean you’ll go back to the earlier titles, right? VI, VII, VIII, and IX are all truly fantastic titles. VIII is my personal [second] favorite in the series, so…

Starting with IX is fine, as long as you don’t skimp out on the earlier titles.

Start with 6 or 7, since <i>everyone</i> likes them. The other games have big enough problems that opinions on them vary.

4 has a simplistic story and the gameplay is relatively dull. 5 has flat characters and ‘quest-by-quest’ sort of story. 8 trails away after disc one and the gameplay is ridiculously easy. 9 tries to be simple and lighthearted and ends up seeming pretentious. And so forth. Only 6 and 7 have engaging stories, characters with personality, challenging gameplay, and no major flaws.

I should add that I’ve been playing 12, and I’ve enjoyed it thoroughly. I’m not clear yet on why it’s had a mixed reception.

I don’t remember seeing any criticism on FFX. Haven’t played that one though. 6 and 7 are both very good choices if perhaps a bit graphically dated.

No, seriously [ ] just plain sucks, and [ ] is pretty boring. [ ] is ok at first but then trails off. Play [ ] instead, and then [ ], they are the best.

Now replace the blanks with whatever you want. The point is, everyone likes different games and just because one guy says he likes a certain game and hates another, it doesn’t mean that’ll be true for you. Some people hate FFVII and some think it’s the greatest thing ever. Some discard IX and some, like me, love it. Many people felt underwhelmed by XII and yet some liked it. It goes on forever.

My advice is: Play them all and make your own judgements. IV/V/VI are perfect starting points for newbies and good games in their own rights. IX is a nice enough start for someone who can’t stand SNES graphics. I can only give you advice regarding difficulty and preparation, which one will be the most enjoyable is up to you.

Ok, no. FF Mystic Quest is the best FF. Get that, or die.

Thread over.

I’m going to be more objective and just recommend that you check out The Final Fantasy Compendium, as it’ll give you an idea of what to expect from each one of the games. Just don’t read the “Full Story” sections of each game if you don’t want spoilers. Oh, and remember that the games’ graphics only get good from FF7 up on, before that they were really simple, though that doesn’t mean the games weren’t great. Good luck!

http://www.ffcompendium.com/low/index-frames.shtml