It's pretty clear that those voting against FFIII have only played the (admittedly garbage) 3DS version, and aren't judging the original on its own merits. By the standards of the time, it's absolutely fantastic, and still holds up well to this very day. Huge worlds to explore, a compelling 8-bit plot that isn't bogged down by melodrama a la FFII, a terrific score, and most importantly the gameplay was actually good!
FFIII and FFV are far-and-away the two best in the series, in my mind. FFII just blows.
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et tu, Joey Crawford?
http://i.imgur.com/HuR88.gif