Poll: When was the last time you played your favorite Final Fantasy?

[DarkLight523]

I think it's pretty weak to claim a game is your favourite game of all time if you haven't played it in over 8 years. That screams weaksauce...

My favourite game of all time is Jedi Outcast, a game no one plays anymore really, and I still play it at least a dozen times a year.

Even Final Fantasy VII, which isn't my favourite game of all time by a longshot, I still play once a year because I love the gameplay and story.

I'm pretty hesitant to call something my favourite if it doesn't stand the test of replay value. If it's only fun the first time or 2 through and then I never touch it again it obviously is missing something to put it up on that pedastal.

I actually agree that since my friends haven't played these games for so long, they might actually only remember them being better than they are.

However, there is one thing you have to understand about how we play games. After our first dozen playthroughs of a game (Until we 100% them) we usually move on to newer games. Once we're really done with a game, we shelve it in the spare bedroom at my house. Since I'm a neat freak, I store them on two bookshelves and order them by series and release dates. It's kinda like our own mini-GameStop, but without the BO. When I was considering putting some of those games out for my garage sale this year, I came across their Favorites in the Final Fantasy section and that's what got me to press the issue of replaying these games.

I'm actually more honest with myself in that I'm constantly comparing what I remember about a previous title to what I'm playing now. Thus, my opinion isn't being held back by nostalgia. Replay doesn't do the same thing for me that it does for other gamers. I like to expand my experiences and then archive the game when I'm done with it.

I did this same experiment with my brother who said Halo 1 was better than Halo 3 and ODST. So I made the same challenge to him, play the game again. I know he hadn't played it for a couple of years at least, so when I made him replay it after having just beaten ODST, his opinion changed. He forgot so many things he didn't like with the first game: no dual wielding, no driving the Wraith, no sniping Elites out of banshee without destroying the banshee, etc. Thus, my Nostalgia Theory won out again.

It's great you can keep playing the games that were your favorite. My opinion keeps changing because I like buying recent games.

I do take exception to this part of your post:

I think it's pretty weak to claim a game is your favourite game of all time if you haven't played it in over 8 years. That screams weaksauce...

First, these are my friends' opinions.

Second, I find it disrespectful that you're putting down their opinions when you don't even know them nor have you heard their arguments as to why these games are their favorites.

Hell, you like FF VII enough to replay, why not help make the arguments for them? Wait! You did:

Even Final Fantasy VII, which isn't my favourite game of all time by a longshot, I still play once a year because I love the gameplay and story.

It's fine to just say, "This is my opinion, but I disagree with their reasons." Please don't make a punchline their opinions or anyone else's posts.

 

[DarkLight523]

You know, I don't want to contribute to FF7 hate, but I want to ask something honestly:

For those who say it has aged well, what is it that makes you feel that way? Personally, I couldn't get myself to play through even the introduction less than two years after playing it through the first time. I really thought it aged badly. (And there was a time I quite enjoyed it.)

I'm curious: What was it that made it so difficult to play through the introduction again? My friend who said VII was his favorite just called me and tossed in the towel over issues he had with the introductions, too.

 

[ZeraValmar]

Played Final Fantasy V about 5 months ago.
Still love it.

 

[Glademaster_v1legacy]

Here's what started this poll:

Growing up, I never played Final Fantasy... ever. However, my friends have discussions/arguments/slap-fights over the Final Fantasy series on a weekly basis. Each one favors a different FF title from the 1990's.

Yesterday, I asked them: When was the last time you played your favorite Final Fantasy?

These were their answers (ordered in the series's succession):
VI- 14 years ago
VII- 11 years ago
VIII - 8 years ago

Each one claims that their favorite Final Fantasy is their favorite video game of all time. We're in our mid-20s now, so I asked them to go back and play their old favorites again, just to see how they stack up to recent games we've played.

I'm expecting they remember these games being better than they are in actuality. Especially since they tend to be more critical of recent games we play (such as Mass Effect, Modern Warfare 2, The Force Unleashed).

I actually played FFVII last month. No some of those games are timeless. A game that is truly good will be always good. Many of these games are good. For example your friends may be critical of ME but that game is truly good so in my eyes will always be good same as Legend of Zelda a link to the past and KoTOR.

 

[Glademaster_v1legacy]

You know, I don't want to contribute to FF7 hate, but I want to ask something honestly:

For those who say it has aged well, what is it that makes you feel that way? Personally, I couldn't get myself to play through even the introduction less than two years after playing it through the first time. I really thought it aged badly. (And there was a time I quite enjoyed it.)

I find this a problem with all games really especially FFs. Like I couldn't get into ME until I got controll of Normandy but after that same as any FF th game opened up to me and everythign was grand from then on in. If you can make it through the first intro and onto main world map the game get good again.

 

[BlindMessiah94]

snip snip snap

I wasn't trying to offend anyone really, so please don't take it personally or get defensive.
On a side note, I still stand by what I said about your friends. I don't mean it as insult, maybe I could've worded it better, but I think that generally speaking people should let things stand a test of time before declaring them to be their favourites.
I tend to hold a decade as a good measuring stick or so because in this industry especially games have changed significantly in short periods of time. If a game made a decade ago is still a game you play regularly, then it deserves to be heralded as "the best", as long as your reasons for enjoying it stem from more than just nostalgia.
It bothers me a bit when people just use something up and then toss it aside for something else. I think they miss out on a great experience of analyzing that game, and trying to understand why they keep coming back to it. (Although, I like the idea of your pool of used games with your friends). It also bothers me when somebody says something is "the best" simply because of nostalgia (Like the Ninja Turtles movies...they were the worst. Try watching them again now lol. But say it to anyone and they will argue you tooth and nail that the movies were good).

Anyhow, to respond to some of your points, I feel that there definately is a nostalgia factor tied to a lot of games. But then again, some games are just better than their sequels.

For example, I much prefer Jedi Outcast to Jedi Academy, its sequel. They "improved" a lot of things in the game, such as adding hilts and new saber styles and duel weilding, etc. But it became extremely unbalanced and it was easy to spam attacks and get one hit ko's even against the most veteran players. Which is why I prefer Jedi Outcast. It has withstood the test of time. I still finished Jedi Academy but I probably will not play it more than once every 4 or 5 years if that. Jedi Outcast I can confidently say I will still be playing a few times a year.

That said, a lot of games do improve over time, with their sequels refining parts of them. I'd be remiss to think that Starcraft 1 is better than Starcraft 2.

In terms of your 100% completing a game argument, I have 100% many games and still play them constantly:

Ocarina of Time
Castlevania : SotN
Chrono Trigger
Final Fantasy VII

All the above games are games I play annually.
Considering Chrono Trigger came out in 1995 and I 100%'d that game several years ago, that's saying a lot. I still consider that game to be much more superior to a more current game, like FFX let's say. It's not nostalgia alone that makes me feel this way. It is gameplay, story, characters, graphics (considering the relative capabilities of its time), replay value, etc.
I don't just play that game because it has a soft spot in my heart.

Games that I do only play for nostalgia sake are games like Goldeneye 007. It is my favourite FPS. Why? Nostalgia.
Most games are better than it. I don't own Call of Duty but I have played it and I can see why the game is popular. Great gameplay, great multiplayer, realistic physics, etc.
I don't think Goldeneye is a better game than COD. But I still like Goldeneye better and can give no reason other than I love that game.
I will not run around stating that it is better than COD however, because it isn't (although I think it's Single Player is in a few ways).

I suppose not everyone needs to replay and rewatch or reread things, as there is so much out there to keep choosing from, but video games are relatively new as a form of entertainment. Games that get replayed are games that define a genre or have something special about them that inspires other creators. Loosely comparing, it's like how some of Shakespeare's ideas of storytelling have inspired thousands of stories since he first made them ages ago.
Me going back and reading Taming of the Shrew and saying "It's not as good as it's predecessor, 10 Things I hate about you" and that I only liked the original play for nostalgia's sake is a bit ridiculous.
I guess I have the same philosophy with any game that I replay often.

 

[JEBWrench]

I'm curious: What was it that made it so difficult to play through the introduction again? My friend who said VII was his favorite just called me and tossed in the towel over issues he had with the introductions, too.

I find it moves way too slowly, and the combat is really dull at that point. And the knowledge of just how long it takes to get much better adds up to, "No thanks, I'll go do the dishes now."

FFVIII is very similar, and I think part of it is from the samey-ness of the all the characters (in my opinion). Empty shells for you to fill up with the magic system to flesh them out.

 

[leonnasagawa]

Lol I know what you mean, the older you get, the more your opinion differs over time, that especially goes for me because my opinions on things tend to change a lot. My favourite Final Fantasy game is nine and I believe I played that game a bit last year and I am still quite fond of it for its' characters, storyline, battle system, etc.

I also think it is awesome because of it's two player which is quite challenging to cooperate with a friend efficiently. I generally love all the Final Fantasy games I played with the exception of Dirge of Cerberus (which I like a little for Vincent Valentine and his story) but nine is probably the most nostalgic and the one I liked for everything it had to offer.

 

[Daedalus1942]

Here's what started this poll:

Growing up, I never played Final Fantasy... ever. However, my friends have discussions/arguments/slap-fights over the Final Fantasy series on a weekly basis. Each one favors a different FF title from the 1990's.

Yesterday, I asked them: When was the last time you played your favorite Final Fantasy?

These were their answers (ordered in the series's succession):
VI- 14 years ago
VII- 11 years ago
VIII - 8 years ago

Each one claims that their favorite Final Fantasy is their favorite video game of all time. We're in our mid-20s now, so I asked them to go back and play their old favorites again, just to see how they stack up to recent games we've played.

I'm expecting they remember these games being better than they are in actuality. Especially since they tend to be more critical of recent games we play (such as Mass Effect, Modern Warfare 2, The Force Unleashed).

I played VIII back when I was about 12, and fell in love. It's my favourite RPG and I can't understand why everyone hates it. I last played it a year or so ago. I have finished it roughly about 10 times, so I'm afraid in my case, your theory is completely null and void.