I’m with you on that track and FF soundtracks overall. Even in the case of like 13 and 15, which are merely okay games, imo, the soundtracks are top notch I think the new versions of the songs from FFVII in Remake are maybe the best things Uematsu has done in a very impressive career
It's funny, I've been jamming to the XIII music this week. I've not really enjoyed an FF game since 10. 13 was probably the best since then that I've played, and it was just ok. I was hyped for the 7 remake but was just really disappointed with the whole thing. I'm waiting for 16 to come out on PC before giving it a go, but in general liked FF when it was more fantasy focused and not trying to be "modern"
I really didn’t enjoy 13. Felt so linear for 95% of the game, and the story was kind of meh. I’ve thought about going back and playing 12 again. I’m wondering if I was too young/lacked the attention span for 12’s story because I’ve read some positive things about it as of late. But I never got into it when I played. Wasn’t a big fan of 15 either. It was fine. Nothing special. Mixed feelings on 16. Thought they did a lot of stuff really well, and I liked the story for the most part. 10 and 7 are still the GOATS for me. I’ve wondered if I’d like 10’s story now as much now as I did when I was younger. Tempted to replay it. Remake of 7 was just okay. I’m looking forward to February for the next step, but my expectations aren’t super high.
Have y’all gone to or thought about going to that distant worlds orchestra thing? Looks like they’ll be in DC in early 2024. Thinking about going.
13 was definitely linear, but I enjoyed the hotswapping of battle tactics. Also I still mourn the death of the overworld map despite the fact it's been 20 years. FF3/6 will always be my favorite as it was my first one. Love 7 and 10. Despite the Draw System I liked 8 until the very in where the story went full retard. And really enjoyed the storybook feel of 9 up until ALIENS. The first half of that game is peak fantasy RPG. 12's story was intriguing and I really wanted to like it but the game pushed you into automating your character battles so it felt more like a simulation by the midway point. Plus Vaan just isn't very likeable IMO.
If I lived in a market big enough to attend something like that I would. I mean it will be full of weebs, but I would still enjoy it.
I never played 6, 8 or 9 but have thought about trying them many times. 15 did an okay job of the open world, but the story was just meh. 16’s story with 15’s style of world would be great. Throw in a great mini game (like blitzball or chocobo racing), and you’re rolling. Personally, I’d love for them to go back to turn based combat, but idk if that’s ever gonna happen.
The thing to me is, an “okay” FF game (and that’s what I mean when I call any of them “okay”) is still a top tier video game to me. But yeah I agree with most of what LJ said. My biggest issue with 13 is the linearity and 6, 7, and 10 are the pinnacle. 12 would be there if the main character actually had, you know, agency. Now, I personally loved the first part of 7 Remake. Thought they did an absolutely fantastic job of keeping the same themes and feel of the first game while taking it in a new direction both gameplay and story-wise. I’m really excited to see what happens now that it opens up. I understand some of the criticism of 16, like some of the pacing and the main villain. I have some personal bias as far as that one is concerned and it will always hold a special place for me because of it. Still, despite the move to an action first game I loved it
16 is just such a hard game for me to judge. There were certain things that I absolutely loved, and certain things that I strongly disliked. It was definitely a step in the right direction from a story perspective, which has always been the most important piece for me with FF games. Clive is a great character, weird yelling sounds aside, and the story is complex and meaningful. My issue with 7 Remake is that they didn't really NEED to change it. 7 has a claim to being the GOAT video game. My perception of what most people who were asking for a remake wanted was the same game, but with better graphics, voice acting, etc. Essentially, modernize the same FF7 game that came out years ago... the same exact game, but as it would have been created in 2023. Even just the voice acting alone, vs reading the text for the entire game in the original, would have been huge. We didn't get that, but I still don't hate everything we got. I don't mind switching it from turn based to more action/fighting based. I wouldn't have done that, but I'm fine with it. I also don't mind broadening the story out. The additional background and spending time on the Avalanche characters was a cool idea and well done in a lot of ways. Even spacing it out into 3 separate games, which I think was a shameless money grab, isn't something that kills it for me. More content tends to be a thumbs up for me if it's quality. My issue is that the core of the story itself seems to have changed significantly. I recognize the Sephiroth challenge. Everyone knows who the villain is going to be, so hiding him until late in the Midgar section doesn't work the same way it did in the original. But why is he popping up in the game so much? Why is Cloud fighting him at the end of part 1 (when he should have no chance whatsoever to keep up with him)? And what the [uck fay] is all this "Harbinger of Fate" nonsense? Stretching it into 3 installments sort of creates this problem. Part 1 has to end with a big boss fight because it's a standalone game, but where do you find that in the original story? It doesn't exist, so you have to create it. And adding "new" to an already complete, wonderful story opens you up for problems. The direction they went just feels way overcomplicated. And at the end of the day, I didn't want a new game/story. I wanted the same story, maybe with some deeper expansion into certain sections/characters, but with better graphics, cutscenes, and voice acting.
While attempting to refresh my memory on FFVII and the remake, I came across this post on reddit, which I think sums up how I feel:
I am as big a fan of the original as you are likely to find, but I’ve also played through it a half dozen times and know the story backwards and forwards I was actually happy that they took a chance and changed some things up a little. So a whole new generation gets to experience the story, which most of the same story beats and a different ending to the first section, and then I get to continue to be surprised despite knowing essentially everything there is to know. Now, are some people not going to like that? Sure. But I think it’s a bold move. As for action v turn based… turn based jrpgs are pretty niche these days. Persona 5 worked and sold a ton, but that’s an exception to the rule and it still didn’t even come close to FF7R numbers. I know that wasn’t something you disagreed with, but it’s just an example of something that had to change.
It’s actually funny because the other game I am most looking forward to next year is Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth. The Yakuza series went from action to turn based (at least for main entries) and it worked really well, imo
I’ve been dreaming of a ff tactics remake. But after the 7 remake shit show I’m not sure I want to see it. Big issue with 7 was essentially throwing the old story away and kinda going full retard with the new one. Really felt like a bait and switch. It was sold as the original game with a deeper story and updated graphics. I get the challenge there but if it’s gonna be a new game just tell us. Treat it like Crisis Core or Dirge of Cerberus. Just tell us from the get go its not 7. Remake implies at its core it’s the same game not just the same cast of characters doing who knows what. Also in the base game it takes 3 hours to leave Midgar. Making the first installment Midgar only suffers from a severe lack of original content and the game just felt like a lot of stuff was just thrown in as filler.
I agree with most of this. I love the idea of allowing us to explore Midgar further... but don't make it the entire Part 1 of the game. And then there's the whole thing with taking characters who died in the original and allowing them survive. It damages the story of the game. I'm willing to give them until the end of the trilogy before I finalize my opinion because they may end up taking it somewhere I love. But so far, haven't been super pleased with it.
Gonna just agree to disagree with yall on this one. I like the whole meta thing they have going. I also have never really had a problem with multiple timelines/universes. My favorite theory is that this story is more of a sequel than a reimagining.
Without getting to far into it, I like the idea that the Lifestream doesn’t follow time linearly. So with both Sephiroth and Aerith able to interact with it in ways that others can’t, they are able to influence themselves at other points within the timeline So that creates the divergent timeline, and the Whispers spend the first game trying to keep the divergence from happening.
I don't love the meta thing, but I probably wouldn't hate it if not for what seem like obvious flaws. You probably know a ton more about this than I do, but from what I was reading today, the biggest flaw is Aerith. The game implies she can see the future, but she choses to step through the portal and "alter" it anyway. Why would she do that? They win in the original story. At the end of the original story, they defeat Sephiroth and save the planet. So why would she want to change things? You could say that it's because she knows she will die. Well, yeah, but her character isn't the type to say "I'm going to risk losing to Sephiroth and the planet dying so that I, personally, can survive." I don't know. I feel super nerdy after typing all of that out. Maybe I should just leave it and wait for February.
But Sephiroth can do the same thing, and she presumably knows this. My guess is she believes that this time around she needs to live, at least at this point in the story, and they will spend a good deal of the second game trying to convince you that she may not, only to rip your heart out again. If your biggest plot point is known by essentially the entirety of the player base, I think it’s a fair move to try to change it up in some way to make it hit for everyone.
Conversely Sephiroth could realize her death led to his ultimate demise and go after someone else. I’m just not sure who makes sense in that case besides Cloud, and that would be one of the most mind-blowing twists I’ve ever seen if they did it
Meh. Give me the sword through Aerith in the exact same way, but with better graphics. I wouldn’t mind changing up the story if the original wasn’t so damn good.
