Ranking the Mainline Final Fantasy Games (MMOs and Tactics Included)
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- Опубліковано 28 чер 2024
- #FinalFantasy #FinalFantasyXVI #FFXVI #FF16
To celebrate the release of Final Fantasy XVI, I decided to release 16 videos ranking different aspects of the Final Fantasy series. In this video, we're going to look at my overall ranking of the series.
Final Fantasy Ranking Playlist: • Final Fantasy Ranking ...
Timecodes:
0:00 - Intro
1:42 - 16. Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn
5:22 - 15. Final Fantasy XII
7:36 - 14. Final Fantasy XI
11:06 - 13. Final Fantasy I
12:42 - 12. Final Fantasy V
14:35 - 11. Final Fantasy VI
19:06 - 10. Final Fantasy III
20:35 - 9. Final Fantasy II
22:00 - 8. Final Fantasy XV
24:32 - 7. Final Fantasy XIII
26:15 - 6. Final Fantasy VIII
28:55 - 5. Final Fantasy X
30:19 - 4. Final Fantasy Tactics
31:44 - 3. Final Fantasy IV
34:23 - 2. Final Fantasy IX
38:46 - 1. Final Fantasy VII
Video Source Credits:
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LordCloudStrife - / @lordcloudstrife
Dangs08 - / @dansg08
Korvana - / @ffxithemovie
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Tails - / @chespintk
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Long 'n Play - / @longnplay
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Google Play - play.google.com/music/preview... - Ігри
If you enjoyed this video, be sure to check out the other rankings in the series!
ua-cam.com/play/PLXjn34wFCMP-6Kl56Fn2Ig3msOHqZAVhv.html
Dang I'm so sad this series is about to end, these videos have got me through the last few days which have been rough for me. Thanks so much!!!!
I'm sorry the last few days have been rough bud but I'm glad you enjoyed these videos. It makes me happy to hear they were able to entertain and uplift, if even a little. And I would be happy to hear all of your rankings.
Hell, if you want easy content, you have my blessing to react and comment on these videos on your channel if you want. I hope everything goes well for you. : )
Came here from Nockat! I’m always in for FF ranking videos ❤❤
Awesome! Thanks for checking these out!
hey dude, I really enjoyed your series. And I absolutely agree with the top 3 picks, but that's not why I write this comment. This comment is to acknowledge a matured person who knows what he wants and likes and is able to eloquently communicate his stance. Nobody would be able to expend such effort for something they didn't love. Keep on shining.
Thank you for the kind words. It means a lot. There's still 2 videos left in the series, so I hope you enjoy the final two as well. I appreciate your taste, but more than that, I appreciate the kind words.
Great series of vids, great list. I think you did a great job here of valuing excellence over perfection, the latter of which is a trap most of these kinds of rankings fall into. The connection with the characters and story, and the emotional connection (driven by the music), so outweigh all other factors, I really like that your list followed this kind of reasoning, even if I didn't have it in the exact same order I would have.
Thank you for the kind words. I've appreciated reading your comments on my videos. I respect the nuances of your takes.
I am not understanding excellence over perfection. I don't quite my own list but that statement doesn't make sense to me
@@kickpuncher1892 Excellence vs perfection example:
Exhibit A. A game with no inherent flaws. Solid cast, solid characters, solid music. Nothing about it is bad per se, it's technically "perfect" but it doesn't transcend any particular category.
Exhibit B. A game with some flaws, like perhaps a weaker leveling system or clunky combat mechanics, but an incredibly strong lead character and villain that leads to a powerful emotional narrative, stronger than anything in Exhibit A. It's not perfect, but it does achieve high excellence in a few particular categories.
Exhibit A can be hard to rank below Exhibit B because the flaws are more apparent in Exhibit B, but Exhibit A doesn't do anything as great as the best parts of Exhibit B. Exhibit A would be perfection, Exhibit B would be excellence.
@@gregtroyan can't get a better explanation than this! Thanks!
@@kickpuncher1892 You're welcome! I'm glad I was able to convey that coherently!
VII is my favorite game in the series, but I think VI is arguably the best one, or at least tied with VII.
Hi, which should i get if i want good gameplay with strategy?: FF 7, 9, 10 or 12?
7
To keep it short, for me personally my favorite has always been 10, and my least favorite is probably 16. When starting off, it felt like a definite 10, but it eventually turned into a drag that wouldn't end to me
A lot of folks seemed to have that experience with XVI. I haven't played it yet, but I LOVED the story (watched all the CS on UA-cam), so I don't expect it would rank last for me.
Man this was a great series! Thanks for posting all the videos and reminding me how great Final Fantasy can be.
Thank you so much for watching these! There are two additional videos that came out after this one, so I hope you managed to catch those too (the Fan Reception video and the Order of Beating video, the latter containing personal anecdotes and stories). What are you favorites?
I started on 7 and it’s true what you said in the video. A person favorite is normally which one they started with. My top 3 is 7, 9, 12. Honestly though it’s so close because 6 was great, 4 was amazing and of course 1 was great for its time and started everything.
@@edgarramos2611 We share two of our top 3, which is pretty cool. And I agree. These games are all great. : D
i love the choices you made. ff7 was my 1st so sticks in a happy 3rd, ff9 made me cry the most and feel like has best story so comes 2nd. FF10 comes 1st for being a purely solid game which i feel is the replayable game of the series. the sphere grid allows for so many custom runs.
I'm glad you liked the ranking. Cheers mate!
WOW, a very refreshing and new opinion (aside from VII being first place). I don't necessarily agree with everything, but it is good to see a tier list of the FF series that isn't the same as every other one.
Thanks mate. Just my honest opinions on the series. I've had some folks tell me that wished I had ranked VII lower because it would be more interesting, but I feel honesty is more important than being edgy. I know that's not what you were saying, but I figured I'd let you know I'm aware of being basic with VII being my fav, but I'm fine with that. It's popular for a reason, hahaha.
I think a reason why my list is different from most FF UA-camr content is that I am less of a gamer and more of storyteller (working on some television pilots as we speak) and I never intended to make gaming content in general. I think there are a lot of folks like me in terms of opinions on the series, but they just don't make content, which is why my opinion seems a bit more rare. At least that's my hunch based on my chats with other fans of the series.
Idk dude lol I personally felt like when you talked about FF11 over 14. You had the tiniest bias due to the fact you played some expansions on 11. Even tho you said you didn’t count that into your decision. I feel like you did regardless of intention. So with that said; hopefully you actually play at least 2 expansions for FFXIV to give it a fair shot story wise. Cause it certainly gets better, maybe not CRAZY but it’s a great journey and it’s got a lot of growth.
Factoring in expansions, XI would rank above VIII (I said this in the video). I straight up liked base XI more than base XIV, which is why I kept playing XI. I do play XIV once a week with a buddy of mine (he's going through ARR and I'm hanging with him).
After I finish Another Eden, I'm going to rewatch the cutscenes for 1.0, watch a story recap for ARR, and will marathon the rest of the expansions. I will finish it.
I played all of the XI expansions. I will say this: the more of XIV I play, the less I like the gameplay mechanics. If I did my ranking today, XIV might rank lower in some categories (like combat). However, I'm a story first guy, and I'm hoping I love the rest of the story (I've read the spoilers).
You sir, are a true fan of final fantasy. I appreciate your work on this video series. I found myself agreeing with you, more often than disagreeing. Ive apent years analysing and replaying all of the titles (minus the mmos, im one of those guys). Id love the opportunity to have discourse with you on them. Do you do streams?
Hey mate! I don't really do streams, mainly because it's hard for me to commit to set times to do them. I've got a pretty busy schedule between the two jobs and usually just record my videos whenever I'm able to find the time. I'm working on two video essays right now (one on the Chrono series and one on Final Fantasy XI's expansions) that I'm hoping to have out in Q1. I'd be down with having a chat about the games and uploading it to the channel as content, it's just a matter of finding a time when we are both available. Are you on Discord?
@@gregtroyan oh awesome, I look forward to the Chrono series video! And I feel you on all of that. Finding time for the things we enjoy is always a struggle. I'm not on discord but I can look into it and would be down to make the content
@@jessewaidler Just let me know. My contact info is in my channel info, so just reach out to me whenever you get yourself on Discord. And I do also recommend the FFXI video, as it's meant to serve as an explainer for folks who might have skipped the game but are curious about what the story in and general vibe of each expansion is. It's going to be paired together with the Chrono video, and I'll say that the Chrono video has some surprises in it you might not expect. I'm very much looking forward to dropping those two bad boys. Chrono video looks like it'll be about 1.5 hours long.
Sweet I look forward to the content then! I'll hit you up soon!
@@jessewaidlerHe Jesse. Would still be down to chat sometime if you're interested. Send me email sometime. Best! - Greg
world of ruins IS the best part of ffVI. main reason why the game is so good. It is the first time we see the vilain win and actually destroy the planet. we see it again in ff7. We are meant to feel devastated by the consequences and only think "is there anything left? can we still win?" its an outstanding moment in story development.
It's a good moment followed by a narrative slog. I like the concept, but the pacing and individual scenarios in WoR aren't as strong as the idea behind the WoR.
I'll get my caps lock ready, just in case...
I both don’t like how little you consider the leap that ff6 was. But also love how much I agree with you on the WOR in ff6 - that place was a chore to get through.
I consider VI a leap, but I don't think it necessarily landed completely. I like VI, but it doesn't get points just for being a leap forward in terms of graphics and presentation, the substance is not as good as the substance in other games, at least for me. I go into my thoughts in great detail in all of the other videos in this series. TL;DR, it's great, but I like other stuff in the series more.
Still, I'm glad somebody else appreciates my WoR take.
It was the first game to introduce extremely adult concepts like torture, suicide, betrayal, and genocide.
@@almeidalopes FFIV had all of those.
FF2, on the NES, had genocide.
Its interesting that you always take FFTactics in this list what nearly nobody do. I am not into tactic RPGs but many of them have a very good reputation, maybe I find a way someday to get into these games.
My last try was DioField and after a couple of hours, the game was so hard that I stuck and couldnt finish.
I've seen so many ranking videos where they mention Tactics and say they won't rank it, and then people get sad in the comments, so I decided to just go for it.
16 is insane
Looks like it!
It's good action game, but no rpg, exploration, etc.
@@jeetusingh3030 I agree on the RPG parts but unless you use a guide then *you have to explore* to do the hunts since you just get hints and nothing marks them on a map
Turbo-nerd time. My ranking
1. VII
Very few games have transported me into a world or story like this game did. And if you played it in 1997- things like the polygonal world map or the summons were simply mind blowing, it felt like the beginning of the future of gaming (which... it kind of was). Anyone who thinks the graphics were ugly, you aren't totally wrong. But please, go check out the 11 JRPGs that released on PS1 before FF7 did. There's a youtube video on it. The jump in quality when VII came out was absolutely insane. When it comes to JRPGs, there was before FFVII and after FFVII.
2. IV
I've been playing video games since the mid-80s. While not even 10% the cultural event that VII was, this game was way more groundbreaking and influential than many people today seem to realize. There were other great games before this but not with the same level of story, characterization, narrative, and emotional resonance. I really liked that the story treats the characters (mostly) like adults and (mostly) didn't just feel like a bunch of anime tropes. Soundtrack is a banger and matches the moods so well. Exploring random caves or hilltops had a early 90s video game magic to it that can't really be done justice in any remake. Combat was fun and balanced. You cared about character level ups, not many other FF games can say that. I worry that a lot of people miss how good this game is because they played a mediocre remake and not the classic original.
3. VI
The least flawed FF game. Great pixel art. Combat is the cleanest in the series. Does a great job of feeling less linear than it actually is. I didn't see the mid-game plot twist coming at all. One of the few games in video game history that actually allows the villain to "win." Interesting villain that transitions from a "fun" villain to a "hate-able" one, not an easy thing to pull off. Two characters can die based on your choices and actions, which is almost unheard of in the other games of the series. The side characters were fun too, particularly Ultros.
A few reasons it's not higher:
The battles are insanely broken in many different ways (Vanish/Doom kills almost everything and is accessible early in the game, characters like Edgar and Strago that can easily 1 shot whole enemy groups if using the right relics, etc, the Osmose spell is probably the most OP spell in RPG history as it makes it so you never run out of MP, and is acquired early in the game).
Esper system is incredibly homogeneous. Limit breaks barely exist and don't really matter. Character commands usually come down to you just using whichever one is the best one over and over again with very little tactical consideration.
The characters are a mixed bag though some of them are certainly great. That said, almost every single one of them has a backstory that is melancholy as fuck. The soundtrack to the game, which is quite good, is also very heavy on melancholy moods. The more "upbeat" moments in the game are only just bittersweet and the ending is a bit weak. Some of these melancholy moments pay off in a huge huge way, but it feels like it's almost the only note this story knows how to play.
4. IX
Probably my favorite first play-through of any FF game. I got this the day it came out and played it 15 hours a day til I beat it. Fantastic characters, music, atmosphere, and world building. Balances moods and emotions roughly as well as FFIV did, which is saying a lot. The best ending of any FF game, easily.
What holds this game back are slow, laggy combat, a find item system that is cool at first but feels sweaty on replay, a handful of fairly major plot holes, and that the game kind of feels like a polished amalgamation rather than something super fresh and new. I also didn't love not attacking bosses for 40 minutes straight while Zidane failed to steal 150 times in a row, which felt like every other boss fight this would happen.
5. VIII
I didn't like this game too much when it first came out. It was released at a time when JRPGs were really trying to be as experimental as possible. Not only is the draw system not fun, but when you do it correctly, it pretty much breaks the entire game. Though, I came to appreciate this game more in subsequent playthroughs. This game is not challenging, but is still kind of fun in a "how fast can I become a god" kind of way.
The music in the game is amazing, especially when it matches the moods correctly, though that doesn't happen often enough. But when it does, holy fuck. Eyes on me, Man with the Machine Gun, The Salt Flats, Ride On... this is GOAT material by the GOAT gaming composer.
Something I never hear talked about is how FFVIII was the only FF game to rely on low, more cinematic camera angles, similar to Resident Evil games around the same time. This allowed some beautiful views of mountains, the moon, the sky, stars, or even just the interiors of various futuristic places, that greatly added to the atmosphere and "potential" of the game. Coupled with some amazing art, an incredible soundtrack, and stylish characters, it created an almost movie-like atmosphere.
While the plot is laughably stupid (we're talking The Last Jedi levels of carelessness), and the characters are too homogeneous (all of them teenagers who act like teenagers), I didn't actually mind the character writing. Squall is undeniably an emo kid at the start of the game, but he's also pragmatic, skilled, and intelligent. And by the end of the game, he grows into the leader everyone tells you he's supposed to be, which is I think the whole point of him being an emo kid at the start, it's to show his personal journey and growth. The Squall you get by the end of the game is one of my favorite characters in the franchise.
The writing for Quistis was also pretty strong, she felt believable as a real character. Zell, Selphie, and Rinoa were all annoying characters, but they felt like people I actually knew growing up, they were believable if flawed.
There are times I play this game and I feel like, if they just had the benefit of scrapping the whole thing and redoing it like FF14 had, it could have been an even greater game than VII was. The ingredients were that good. Some of what attracts me to this game is just thinking about what could have been.
6. V
In terms of story, characterization, and music, and arguably even graphics, it feels like a step back from FFIV. I barely finished this game the first time I played it back in the 90s (on emulator). That said, I enjoy V more with every subsequent playthrough, much like VIII.
Everyone talks about the job class system, but to be honest, it was still a fairly unpolished system back in 1992. Years later, FFT did a similar job system much better, IMO. Of course, it was the best that existed at the time and was still very addicting to play.
Rather, I think the charm of this game comes from the fact that the battles are actually kind of hard, and you have to be smart with how you build your characters to navigate dungeons more easily. Every playthrough I feel like I discover smarter and more efficient strategies.
The game was also the last FF to feel like exploration took center stage over narrative, which is a cool thing I definitely miss. All those caves and forests and abandoned ancient ruins had atmosphere and charm. You wonder if these types of games will ever be made by a AAA company ever again.
7. X
This is one of those games where, I think it's good, but I don't get the popularity. At the time it was released, it was widely accepted that X was a very average FF game. Later that decade, a video essay by Noah Antwiler would go viral making the case that FFX was in fact the worst FF game ever made.
A lot of things about the game took a step back from its predecessors. The voice acting was a mixed bag, with a few good performances sure (Auron in particular), but also some of the cringiest voice acting moments in the history of gaming (the infamous laugh scene, the JarJar Binks ferryman, etc). The NPCs suddenly looked insanely generic with their designs, whereas in previous games care was given to make NPCs seem cool and stylish. The music was, mostly, sleepy and wallpaper-y. The blitzball minigame was about as well designed and fun to play as Madden '93, which is to say, repetitive and easily gamed/exploited.
The characters were a mixed bag as well. Tidus was corny and almost looked like a boyband member. Yuna was mousy. Wakka was loud, dumb and annoying. Kimahri joined late and didn't really get enough development or dialogue. Rikku was definitely fun but also annoying, kind of like Selphie in VIII. Seymour was a cliched, underwhelming antogonist. Most of the side characters were unremarkable at best or extremely annoying at worst (hard to think of a more annoying character in FF history than Brother).
Lulu and Auron were mature adults who were easy to respect. And Jecht seemed pretty cool, though still under-developed. So it wasn't all misses, but there were a lot of misses with the cast. I did like that the main villain, "Sin", was kind of a force of nature more than a nefarious villain.
I've beaten this game a few times, but it would probably be a lot more if not for the game having such a sleepy atmosphere and slow, boring, unskippable cutscenes.
The sphere grid system was brilliant, easily the best feature of the game by miles, and was heavily influential for games that came later, such as the Diablo or Path of Exile franchises. FFX's turn based battle system is quite mid, but to be fair, every FF battle system that came after appears to be much worse. I think the limit system of the game was pretty smart, as was the overkill system. Innovation was a easily the best feature of this game.
But seeing so many put this game anywhere near the top of the list is a bit baffling to me. I understand that it was probably the biggest entry point for FF fandom, due to it being one of the better games on the best selling console of all time. So, I'm guessing that has a lot to do with it.
8. I
I think the original holds up okay. Like V, it's a game that is about the journey not the destination. Even the original NES version has some charm (I think the NES versions of II and III are unplayably bad). This game came out around the same time as Dragon Quest II and is a much better game than either DQ1 or DQ2 were. It was a huge innovation for its time. This game is also nice if you like a challenge. But it is very rough around the edges, huge drop off form FFX to FFI on my list.
9. XII
As someone who puts FFT on a pedestal, I desperately wanted to love this game. I bought this game the day it came out. I read about in magazines for years before it released. I was HYPED. And the first 10 hours or so, the game was actually pretty good.
But over time, the lack of "juice" really just sucked the life out of this game. No battle music, and there was a definite "dead MMO" kind of feel (i love MMOs, but think about how depressing a dead MMO is). But what really killed it was how repetitive the battle system was, that effectively plays the game for you. The progression is too slow and requires too much grinding to advance. It just killed the game for me, and I've never been able to finish this one. I always tap out right near the very end. Talking to friends, I hear very similar experiences from them.
That isn't to say that the game is trash. I really liked the characters, even the supposedly annoying ones. The story is pretty blah though, and there just is zero emotional resonance in the game, which is really surprising given the staff connections to FFT, which is one of the most emotional games of all time.
I heard that the remaster version had a 4x speed option. I might try it again some day with that feature, it might help me at least get over the finish line.
10. II
It was hilarious playing this for the first time on NES and getting immediately deleted by super monsters only a few steps out of the first town. The game is so poorly explained and not particularly intuitive to beginners. I genuinely wondered if the NES version of this game was the worst game I had ever played.
Thankfully, remakes of this game have provided dramatic improvements and it's not only playable, but addicting. Stay way far away from the NES original though.
11. III
I still haven't played a remake of this game, if I did, it might rank higher. But, having played the original NES version for maybe 15 hours worth, I just never found it fun or involving in any way at all. That plus, I found myself constantly getting stuck and not knowing where to go or who I needed to talk to next, which is something very unusual for a FF game. This and XII are the only FF games I couldn't force myself to keep playing until I beat it.
Still haven't played 11, 13, 14, 15, 16. Other than 11, I'll probably play the rest of those eventually. Didn't include Tactics because it is a spinoff game, although if I did include it, I'd have it and Chrono Trigger ahead of any game on this list.
@@KipEarlywine Wow! Thanks for the long comments! I have a few responses I want to make, mostly in areas of polite disagreement:
IV - “I worry that a lot of people miss how good this game is because they played a mediocre remake and not the classic original. “
Having played both the 3D remake and the original, I have to concede the remake is a better game. I played the OG first, so I have more nostalgia for the original, but I think the remake (3D version) is just better. Of course, I'm talking about the Steam port and not the DS version.
V - “The game was also the last FF to feel like exploration took center stage over narrative, which is a cool thing I definitely miss.”
You might appreciate XV.
X - “This is one of those games where, I think it's good, but I don't get the popularity. At the time it was released, it was widely accepted that X was a very average FF game. Later that decade, a video essay by Noah Antwiler would go viral making the case that FFX was in fact the worst FF game ever made.”
I played X as a new release and it was immediately hailed as one of the best in the series from most fans, aside from a few grumpy old-timers on message boards who hated everything after VI. I remember everyone gushing about the game. While there are some games in the series I'm not as hot on, I get the popularity of them. Also, I don't think Spoony's FF reviews are particularly good. It was the early day's of the internet, and so he had the advantage of being one of the first UA-camrs, but quite frankly, his critiques of the series are intellectually lazy and quite frankly bad. I think it was only popular because basically nobody else was doing FF video reviews back then.
I think the laughing scene is good, I think the cast is good, I think the battle system is good, I think Sin is a good villain for the story (I think a force of nature villain can be done well, and is), etc.
“But seeing so many put this game anywhere near the top of the list is a bit baffling to me. I understand that it was probably the biggest entry point for FF fandom, due to it being one of the better games on the best selling console of all time. So, I'm guessing that has a lot to do with it.”
It wasn't my entry point and I haven't met many fans who played X first. Over the course of my videos, I've articulated as to why I think the game has its merits, and thus why fans rank it so highly.
III - “I still haven't played a remake of this game, if I did, it might rank higher. But, having played the original NES version for maybe 15 hours worth, I just never found it fun or involving in any way at all.”
I liked both versions and think III on NES is waaaaaaaaaaaayyyy better than I. I'm a bit surprised by this take, but different things resonate with different people.
“Still haven't played 11, 13, 14, 15, 16. Other than 11, I'll probably play the rest of those eventually. Didn't include Tactics because it is a spinoff game, although if I did include it, I'd have it and Chrono Trigger ahead of any game on this list.”
You know I think highly of Chrono Trigger and FF Tactics. I do think XI is top shelf Final Fantasy and hate to see you skip it. I would humbly suggest you watch my video on Final Fantasy XI, which goes over the entire 20+ year history of the game to give you an idea of the game's story content. It's a great overview so you can at least know what it's in the game (story-wise) in a non-spoiler way. I also did a video ranking all 11 Chrono games that I paired with it, which you might find interesting as a curiosity.
It's fascinating how much we both love VII, IV, Chrono Trigger and Tactics yet how much we disagree on a lot of the series. Thanks for your comments. They gave me something to think about. Have a great day!
Pretty good ranking except for FF6
FFIX is an absolute masterpiece. I totally agree.
One of the GOATs
Top tier: FF4, FF6, FF7, FF8, FFX
Mid Tier: FF12, FF13
Low tier: FF1, FF2
Bottom Tier: FF3, FF5, FF9
Haven’t played: FF11, 14, 15, or 16.
I just recently played the first 10 Final Fantasy remasters on Nintendo Switch. So my opinions are fairly fresh. Some of the games, namely FF5 and 9 felt like they were over twice as long as they should have been, while others (namely FF4, 6, 8, and X) I couldn’t get enough of. FF7 slowed down a lot toward the end, but I thoroughly enjoyed it as much as my other top tier FF games.
FF1-3, 5, and 9 were also too much ensembles of Mary Sue characters for my tastes. So I didn’t enjoy them as much as the others.
What characters are Mary Sues in your opinion?
@@gregtroyan All the characters in those particular games I mentioned above. Although some have character wounds, those wounds don't manifest as character flaws. To illustrate what I mean, look at Vivi from FF9 and the replicants from Blade Runner (who Vivi is based on, even if the writers of FF9 kind of missed the point); both of them are synthetic and have a limited lifespan, but its only with the replicants where these wounds manifest in character flaws - it's because of the existential crisis they are driven to deep flaws, cruelty, hubris, rage which translates to sociopathic and murderous behaviour. A similar wound can be seen in the more recent example of Breaking Bad's Walter White, who is diagnosed with cancer, this drives his character into deep flaws and tragic character arc (to get Creative Writing 101 on the subject).
I can see the appeal of having more simplistic characters without anything dislikable about them, no baggage, nothing wrong with their personality. There's something elegantly simple to the struggle of "we're the good guys, the light warriors fighting the fiends of darkness" and moving through a story that is more or less a series of events with obstacles to overcome and objectives to achieve without needing to worry about the characters. I get that, and even enjoy some games with characters like that - Skies of Arcadia for example - it keeps the focus on the exploration element, and that world is wonderful to explore. So I'm not condemning the idea, only saying that those games are usually not my taste.
@@lindenstromberg6859 So you're saying Vivi needs to sell some blue crystals to be more interesting. 😜
Final Fantasy X-2 (49)
Final Fantasy IV: The After Years (67)
Final Fantasy (71)
Final Fantasy III (71)
Final Fantasy Dimensions II (75)
Final Fantasy Tactics (75)
Final Fantasy V (77)
Final Fantasy Dimensions (79)
Final Fantasy VII (80)
Final Fantasy II (81)
Final Fantasy IX (82)
Final Fantasy Tactics A-2: Grimiore of the Rift (83)
Final Fantasy IV (83)
Final Fantasy VIII (88)
Final Fantasy X (91)
Final Fantasy VI (92)
I may have already shared this with you but i can't remember haha. I promise I'm not tryna be a contrarian who just likes 6 to like 6, it's actually my favorite. I adored the world of ruin haha. I agree that some 6 fans are so horribly cringe tho!! But most of the games have some annoying fans haha, so i cant be too mad.
And for FF7, after leaving Midgar was my World of Ruin moment like you said. I thought the beginning and ending of 7 were good, but I kinda thought most of the rest was uninteresting :( I'm sure I'll like remake a lot judging that's all Midgar... I honestly wish I adored Final Fantasy VII as much as most, I'd give a lot to do that 😂
I don't think it's contrarian AT ALL to rank VI as #1. A contrarian pick would be FFII or FFXIII, hahaha. I respect your list, even though I love TAY.
@@gregtroyan definitely 😂 I just know you said in one of your videos that a lot of people used to like 6 better than 7 because they wanted to have a different opinion, but I actually liked it better haha
@@rpgrankedOh for sure. There's plenty of people who sincerely dig it better, but that said, those are also the folks who don't get upset at my VI criticisms (like yourself). Hahaha.
@@gregtroyan yeah, and I totally understand your viewpoint! I just love the world of ruin so much! (Which is your least favorite part of I remember correctly, my brother wholeheartedly agrees with you haha. Same reason I love dragon quest iv)
@@rpgranked I like it in concept a lot, and some parts of it are great. 🤘🤘🤘
Damn you right about the first one you play ending up being your favorite for wich its ffx for me.
A great one to start with!
6 has always been my favorite... Haha. I don't think popularity matters too much for me in the end, i like 2 better than 7 😅
I mean, II is fire. Also, this isn't technically the final video in the series. There's also that bonus video where I discuss the order I beat the games in and share personal stories. : D
@@gregtroyan it is!!! I watched that one already... Haha. Saved this one for last 😅
@@gregtroyan twas a great series. Bought you a coffee over on Patreon, man. You more than deserve it.
@@rpgranked Thanks fella! I appreciate it! :D
@@gregtroyan ofc!!
Great series. I am a ff4 fan as well. ❤❤❤
Thanks mate. Cheers!
Ok, so not doing all off shoots, but why does NO one mention type-O, good or bad
I do talk about Type-0 in my Expanded Universe Content ranking. The reason I limited the number to just the mainlines and Tactics for (most) of these videos is because I made 16 of these videos, over 10 hours worth of content, and that's already like...a lot of video to make. I'm just one guy, hahaha.
I think FF6 deserves a higher ranking, but i respect your list.
My ranking is:
1. VII
2. IX
3. VI
4. IV
5. V
6. Tactics
7. X
8. VIII
9. XII
10. I
11. III
12. II
13. XVI
14. XIII
15. XV
Never played XI and XIV.
VI is a great game, but this list is the personal preference list. I just vibe with the games above it more, but I love all of them.
I really want to play XVI.
Good list (though I obviously enjoyed XV and XIII more than you did hahaha).
Cheers mate!
🍻@@gregtroyan
Hope to see more rpg videos soon!!
In general I don't have too much time to do videos like these, but I just started work on two RPG videos that I think you'll find interesting, and hopefully those will be out in a couple months. I hope you'll watch them when they come out. Make sure you hit the bell icon so you see that they come out, and apologies you'll get a Thin Lizzy notification once a week until then. Hahahaha.
Once again, you leave FFVIII, my favorite game of all time, alone.
I ranked it just below my top shelf FF games (XI, including expansions, is top shelf IMO). VIII ranked pretty high.
I'm also so happy that XIII is this high in your list
the more people that just appreciate this game for what it is and soak of its strengths instead of getting hung up on its weakness these days is awesome
I spent the last decade and a half doing hair metal, a genre of music critically derided and often treated with disrespect. I did it boldly and with confidence, without worry of cool points and consensus, and thus have always been willing to buck the trends in my tastes. So, when it was "uncool" for rock guys to like Miley and Taylor, I sang their praises, and now all my rocker FB friends have caught up. While I did like XIII from the jump, it looks like a lot of folks in the community are catching up and willing to acknowledge the game's strengths. I don't believe in being contrarian for the sake of being contrarian, though. I tend to be slightly ahead of the curve of pop culture consensus in a lot of ways (I was an early proponent of the Paddington films), but I think things catch up eventually, and people are finally going, "You know what? XIII wasn't terrible." It makes me happy to see, not out of who vindication, but to see good art get more respect.
I think XV will also age better with time and will be less hated over the years.
I'm glad you appreciate my take and I'm glad you and I are both starting to see more people willing to acknowledge XIII's strengths.
@@gregtroyan'm not even a huge fan of XIII or XV but it's makes me incredible happy that you had positive opinions about those games, instead of hearing the exact same ranking list from other content creators. Plus, you being a fan of XI, VIII and II... I really love your tastes.
@@cerealguy9979 Well, thank you! And again, I'm looking forward to diving into the rest of XIV and seeing how it changes my view on the game. I had low expectations for XI and ended up loving it. So who knows how I'll feel after the rest of XIV. I appreciate the kind words, mate. : )
@@gregtroyan it's always good to start with, not exactly low but moderate exceptions. If exception are moderate, the better you'll be satisfied.
@@cerealguy9979 I'm hoping to become a big fan of it like XI. That's my hope. But I'm going in open-minded, and I do plan on rewatching the 1.0 cutscenes and an ARR summary when I fully dive back in.
Not big on Triple Triad!? Who ARE you!?
I'm Greg.
Pity you are not including the expansions for XIV, because by the end of Endwalker you have experienced the best story in any FF, or any game I've ever played. ( Tip, turn down the battle effects, you can go blind if you don't)
Yeah, I need to remember to do that when I get back to XIV.
Also, better than Xenogears???
@@gregtroyanI'm in Australia and there never was a PAL version of Xenogears, or FF Tactics either, so never played them. Yes, I know I could use emulation now, but who has the time?
@@robbaskerville253 They're worth the time. 😎
@@robbaskerville253 Xenogears isn't too long compared to the entire MSQ of FF14 so I think you could probably find the time lol
This man hates FF6
I love FFVI. It's a masterpiece. I ranked it high in a number of categories like Side Content, Villains, Party Members/Cast and Fan Reception. It's just that I like the other games in the series more. I don't hate any mainline Final Fantasy game. I love the whole series, there are just some that vibe with me more than others. : )
Also, I think it's funny that you say "This man hates FF6". I clicked on the FFVI section of the video and the first sentence is "I love Final Fantasy VI." Hahahaha.
He's a 7 fanboy that irrationally devalues 6 because he perceives 6 fans of doing it to his anointed 7. His "rubbing salt in the wounds" comment is such a tell for his reasoning. At the end of the day this is an opinion piece.
He's missing the point that every final fantasy is made up of a combination of unused and reused ideas from previous entries. The brainstorming from 6 led to 6,7, 9, and arguably also 8. Ff6; was the last time the length and depth of their story was restricted by hardware and the move to cd allowed them to dial that story telling craft honed in the first six games up to 11 .
Tldr: he's devaluing 6 to improve the strength of his argument for 7
@@stanstockton544 Not really. Go and check my video on ranking by fan reception. I don't hate FFVI, I ranked it high in a lot of categories, I just think the game has actual flaws and that it's good, but not perfect, and since so many people say it's perfect, I find I need to go into greater detail about why I find there to be flaws.
But yeah, I'm just a VII fanboy and my criticisms are all illogical. 😜
@@stanstockton544 sounds about right
I'd definitely give XIV another go
You can run with duty support trusts if you don't want to play with other people/don't want to wait
unfortunately you still have to party up to a full party for trials/boss fights which haven't all been given duty support trusts yet
I agree with a lot of your criticisms of it despite my love for it though
the game doesn't really fix it's bullshit until around late Heavensward and Stormblood expansions and its a massive time investment
You can also turn off a lot of the clutter UI elements by right clicking them in the HUD edit option lol
I love XII but it is an acquired taste
If you don't vibe with Ivalice and Vagrant Story the game is gonna feel very foreign
to the other mainline games and for some that is a huge deal breaker
I adore XI far more than XIV just for the atmosphere and class system alone
but it's incredible vagueness of quest progression and technical issues with play online definitely hampers that experience
that and the sub cost is still pretty high for a very old MMO
I've actually edited the HUD to try to be as minimal and functional as possible and I still find it a mess, hahaha. I do need to remove the visual effects from spells and specials still.
I do plan on finishing XIV, but I have other FOMO games above it. I've already beaten half of Brave Exvius and the base game for Another Eden. Both are freemium games, which means their life cycles are precarious, and I've enjoyed them both for different reasons. Brave Exvius has great visuals, outstanding music, great characters, and a plot that truthfully varies in quality, but has enough highs and points of interest along with a solid dose of shonen camp that makes me want to finish it. Another Eden is a really good old school jrpg made by Kato, and it feels like it, but it has the scope and continued expansion of an MMO. It's really excellent and I would like to finish the story content available. Dimensions 1 I've heard is really great and is basically a Snes FF, while Dimensions 2 I haven't heard much praise for but was originally supposed to be a Chrono sequel. I've beaten every Chrono game (including major fan games), so I want to play it while it's available because Square doesn't take care of a lot of its titles.
I do really want to go back to XIV, but I'm confident the game will still be there in 6 months, where the other games I'm not so sure on.
I actually generally vibe with most Ivalice games, except for XII. It just didn't land the way it was supposed to with me.
XI is incredible and I'm excited for the Voracious Resurgence epilogue on the 10th. It's bittersweet to have beaten all of XI, but God did I love it.
I only played FF6 this year. I intentionally kept myself from seeing anything about 6, for I wanted to play it with no spoilers. I knew this game was frequently said to be the best in the series so I went in with high expectations. I was surprised with how much humor was in the game. I never heard people talk about the humor in the game. Some of the funniest moments in the whole series are in 6. I like to only compare the series based on the gaming generation it was released. Therefore, 6 I felt was the best of the 16 bit generation.
VI has a lot more humor than it's given credit for, I agree. I still prefer IV for the reasons listed, but I also see no issue comparing games between console generations. I think it would be just as fair to compare FFVI and FFVII as it would be to compare FFXV and FFXVI.
Thank god someone call ff6 overrated
It's still great, just not leaps and bounds better than other entries.
Also why 2 mmos?
Are you asking me why I ranked them or why they were made in the first place?
@gregtroyan two in first place, just seems odd, seems like they should of just made expansionons to their existing game, like wow
@@user-gw9ff5un6c XI has a ton of expansions. So does XIV. I don't know if I agree with the idea of making two MMOs either, tbh.
1 ff7
2 ff10
3 ff9
4 ff8
5 ff12
6 ff6
7 ff4
8 ff15
9 ff5
10 ff1
11 ff3
12 ff2
13 ff13
the top 7 are the ones I consider the best ones.
I'm surprised to see another human rank VI so low! Hahaha. Joking aside, good list!
@@gregtroyan My top 7 are the ones that I consider the best. It got dropped to 6th place because I just like the other 5 a little better.
B... but... Tangled is a better movie
Lol
III over VI? Yes, you are insane. That’s okay, unfortunately.
III made me smile more. I left III feeling more satisfied. Interstellar may be more complex than Paddington, but I much prefer Paddington.
Time to do redo the whole thing with FF16 🤣🤣
I need a PS5 for that first, hahaha. If I'm gonna redo the whole thing, I would want to include all XI expansions, all of XIV, and XVI. But making these many videos....yeah. That's a lot of work.
@@gregtroyan I know haha. Just trolling. I think that, if you think you could beat the FFXI and FFXIV expansions by the time XVII or XVIII is out, you should do it right after either you finish either of those. I'd love to see a new version in the distant future!
Due to Square Enix announcing they are going to cut off a lot of their more minor projects to focus more on FF and Dragon Quest, I'm hoping to get 17 a little faster. Probably too much to ask for though, haha
@@rpgranked I beat all of the XI expansions already, so it's really just a matter of beating XIV's expansions and XVI. I might wait until XVII. I dunno. Right now I'm just focusing on Another Eden before I even begin to think about taking on the massive entity that is XIV, hahaha.
When I do go back to XIV fully (I play once a week with a friend), I plan on rewatching 1.0 cutscenes and a story summary of ARR to fully refresh, so I can best savor the rest.
@@gregtroyan sorry I meant just 14 🤦 duh, I literally watched your whole 11 video today haha.
14 is gonna be so big 😂 I'm thinking about playing 14 1.0 on a private server to check out just how bad it actually was (or how it is secretly good 😂).
@@gregtroyan that's definitely a good idea. From what I've heard, XIV 1.0 sounds kinda mid. On the contrary, I've been LOVING my time with FFXI so far (except the first limit break quest... Gotta be one of the worst FF things I've ever done, wayyyyy too many bats in that dungeon haha)
Final Fantasy 12 is the best one
Not for me personally, but I can see why some players gravitate towards it. I'm glad you love it so much!
Couple problems with 12 is the music. Isn't the best in it didn't have Battle music either. The characters weren't particularly interestin And the story wasn't the best but the combat was probably the shining part plus the quests
I agree that XIV is last. But A REALM REBORN is the best
By far.
My Ranking of Main Installments if anyone cares lol.
I cannot yet Rank XVI (still playing it) or XI (not enough knowledge to judge it... YET).
1) XIV
2) VIII
3) VII
4) V
5) XII
6) I
7) IX
8) IV
9) VI
10) XV
11) III
12) II
13) X
14) XIII
15) XIV
And yes, XIV is the best (ARR) and the worst at the same time (1.0).
I LOVE FINAL FANTASY!!! ALL OF THEM!!!!!
PS: If we added Side Instalments, DUODECIM would be #2 above VIII for me. :)
PS2: A REALM REBORN can be played solo. For a few years now. You cannot rank it as it used to be. It's not fair.
Interesting ranking! So are you saying A Realm Reborn, by itself, without the other expansions like Heavenward, only by itself, is the best Final Fantasy? Or are you saying the new version of XIV, with all expansions included is the best FF?
@@gregtroyan
Well, for me XIV as a whole is basically miles ahead now than all other Instalments.
My favourite Main Instalment was VIII from 2000 to 2014 (outside of DUODECIM that became my favourite in 2011 if we count Side Instalments), for me A REALM REBORN tied it around the time of Patch 2.4/2.5.
HEAVENSWARD, made it my absolute favourite. From then on it's just no contest.
So yeah, if we judge it alone, A REALM REBORN is my favourite, a little bit above VIII.
It set up the best World of all Instalments, best Music by far, Characters (not even talking about Main ones, just even Hildibrand, Godbert, Postmoogle, effing Titus lol) and above all, Protagonist. Nothing compares to XIV's Warrior of Light.
And it becomes even more perfect if you take into account how the Expansions change your perception of A REALM REBORN's Events.... I wish I could tell you.
Of course, gameplay too. Nothing in the series compare to XIV gameplay wise, except maybe Triple Triad from VIII, the Materia System from VII, Chocobo Hot n Cold from IX, Blitzball from X, the Eikon fights of XVI (so far), the Gambit System of XII, and the Job System of V. Scattered Systems in between Instalments.
XIV has numerous perfect gameplay systems by itself.
But do not misunderstand me. A REALM REBORN for me is the best of XIV too.
If you care, my Ranking of XIV's parts are:
ARR > EW > SB > HW > SHB > 1.0
I love all of them too.
A REALM REBORN is a timeless and absolute Mastepiece to me. The only game EVER to actually fully capture the essence of Adventuring. I actually became an Adventurer by trade. Not just in "narrative". Levequest Income in A REALM REBORN was a masterpiece of an experience to me. I helped so many people, made so much money, and when I had grown, people knew me, again not just by narrative, but my deeds too, the plot opened up like a flower and went places.... that I will never forget.
Masterpiece.
@@gysahlfields7506 That's awesome to hear! I usually hear people say that ARR is the worst part of XIV, so it's surprising and refreshing to hear it's your favorite. I'm definitely looking forward to playing through the rest of XIV when I finish up my FOMO list. Thanks for sharing your thoughts about it. It's a great perspective and one I'll reflect on as I go through my XIV journey.
@@gregtroyan
Well, it doesn't mean that someone has to agree with me regarding A REALM REBORN.
But I can promise you one thing, by the end of ENDWALKER, XIV as a whole will definitely not be your last.
Also, whenever you get to play it again, make sure to at least play the "big" Sidestories per Expansion, at each Expansion's Endgame (well, for me better to play all, but anyway):
For example:
A REALM REBORN ->
COILS OF BAHAMUT ->
CRYSTAL TOWER ->
HEAVENSWARD ->
etc.
Generally, Expansion Story -> Raid Series -> Alliance Raid Series -> Trial Series (ARR doesn't have a Trial Series, it is interwoven in the Main Story. All other Expansions, do have).
@@gysahlfields7506 I thought the Crystal Tower was a requirement?
To be fair on the dumb choices the characters make in FF8 disk 1 is because they are still new to the whole soldier for hire thing. So they end up making dumb decisions. They are high schoolers
Right. They're dumb teenagers. Hence why it's hilarious.
Note: I'm pretty sure I addressed this in one of my 16 video rankings, but I don't remember which one.
Well, I'm glad I'm not the only person who thought ff VI was boring at parts. To this day, it's the only FF I put down and didn't finish on my first playthrough. Most will say we are contrarians for not liking 6 as much as the others, but the FF series just has so many good games. 6 just didn't resonate with me like the other games did.
Exactly. VI is still great, but it has flaws and doesn't vastly outshine the rest of the series. According to the comments section, I'm a hater because of that take. If you think the game is anything less than perfect and isn't vastly superior to the rest of the franchise, you are a contrarian hater, rather than just a person with a different opinion. Glad to see someone else who gets my stance.
Bro what did FF 12 do to your butt ?
Nothing, it was just kinda mid compared to the other games in the series.
Yeah well, Final Fantasy VI doesn’t like you either!
But I like FFVI! I just don't subscribe to the theory it's leaps and bounds better than the rest of the series.
Which Google Translates to "I hate this it sucks rarrr"
those ff V graphics are worse than the original...
I used to dislike them but I like them now. They have their charm.