LogFAQs > #973844094

So yeah. Just like the final act of any good FF game, this is the part where everything becomes nonsense, and we all collectively suspend our disbelief:

#1. Final Fantasy VII

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/9/1/1/AAK53VAAEhxf.jpg

I mentioned earlier that FF6 is basically a perfect game, and it's aged better than FF7, and therefor is probably the best game in the series.

But this is my list, and FF7 is my Citizen Kane rosebud. This is what happens when Anton Ego eats ratatouille. The OG FF7 is my comfort food. It was my first JRPG, and to this day Im still playing old skool JRPGs trying to chase that high.

Even so much as just hearing the music instantly takes me back to that point in time. I actually make it a point not to listen to this games soundtrack too often, ya know - just to savor it.

But heres the thing - Ill be the first to admit FF7 isnt a 10 anymore. Back then, sure. But by todays standards? Maybe like a low 9, high 8? It leaned heavily on Rule of Cool, but what's cool changes over a few decades and isnt timeless. Dialogue was notably bad in some areas, even for the time, but only worse now with better standards. Characters, combat, pacing, worldbuilding and most of the story are still pretty solid with various minor issues here and there.

The materia system is amazing, and its cool you can turn off random encounters in the remaster, which I didnt know until just now. But also Im gonna come at chocobo breeding: shit was tedious and esoteric, which could be fine if it didn't lock out the best transport in the game that's required to access most cool late-game quests. So yeah, I think 8.9 is fair by modern standards. (We can't let it be exactly on par with FF8 now can we?)

But for my personal list, FF7 sits at the top. There's a reason why its so iconic, and why it got a gazillion spinoffs (they should really just call the remake FF7 Spinoff. Also I will never not be salty about this. If you like FF7R, then I'm sorry, and you deserve to be happy. Go live your life!)

So yeah, thanks for sitting through this list just to get to such a predictable outcome. Like yeah okay, FF6 and 7 are the best in the series, what else is new? Thanks grandpa.

The Final Ranking
#1. FF7 - 10
#2. FF6 - 10
#3. FFT - 10
#4. FFX - 9.5
#5. FF4 - 9.4
#6. FF9 - 9.3
#7. FF5 - 9.0
#8. FF14 HW - 9.0
#9. FF8 - 8.8
#10. FFX-2 - 8.5
#11. FF12 - 8.4
#12. FF14 ARR - 8.4
#13. FF11 - 8.4
#14. FF1 - 8.3
#15. FF7R - 8.2
#16. FF15 - 8.0
#17. DoC FF7 - 6.0
#18. FF2 - 5.0
#19. FF13 - 3.0

So yeah, this was actually pretty cathartic for me, getting all this into words. I haven't been enthusiastic about this series in a long time, but ya know, I might finally feel something again. I might actually be excited for FF16 now, who knows. Im always gonna miss the old skool menu-based combat, but I hear the Devil May Cry guy is working on 16, so well see. Just gonna try to stay optimistic and open minded.

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/9/1/2/AAK53VAAEhxg.jpg

So far this year I've played through Heavensward, FFX-2, FF1 on NES, and FF5 Pixel Remaster, and every single one of those gave me a new perspective on the series in their own way. Like damn, this truly is a series grounded in history and appreciation for what came before. I wanted to play through FF3 as well, but I don't think Ill have time with Tears of the Kingdom happening right now and all.

Ill definitely return to this ranking someday, but for now, we can let this topic purge, and thanks for sticking around till it was done. I genuinely appreciated you guyss insights throughout this entire journey. And when I do eventually return to this series, you all will be the first to know.