What consumers expect of a FF-title

[grandm]

this is exactly the case, there has been huge change, some ppl like the change some don't. and for the most part you can split the camps very easily. younger players like the change, older players do not.

[Holy_Dragoon]

I think that FF did need to evolve into the next generation, but it tried to do too much. It would have been better left to another series, or an FF spin-off series like the Crystal Chronicles. Gradual evolution might have kept more current fans interested, while adding in game-play elements to entice a new generation.

grandm hit it right on. Personally I like the changes, and have enjoyed every FF to this day, but I find I am a rare breed who embraces change fairly well.

[Zezlar]

this is exactly the case, there has been huge change, some ppl like the change some don't. and for the most part you can split the camps very easily. younger players like the change, older players do not.

You can't define it like that. I'm an older player, and I accept and embrace the change. Everyone does have that right to dislike the series direction, but it gets so unbelievably tiring having to listen to these complainers just bitch, and moan about EVERYTHING. They don't care about the series but yet, here they are in every thread spewing about what needs to happen. When is enough, enough? Those people need to change.

Final Fantasy is controversial because no one main game is like another, not everyone will enjoy each entry. I'm tired of being told that everyone hated Final Fantasy XII/XIII because that's a lie. If the internet was prominent around the time VII/VIII/IX were released I guarantee you this same crap that we are seeing with XII/XIII would have been going on back then.

[grandm]

You can't define it like that. I'm an older player, and I accept and embrace the change. Everyone does have that right to dislike the series direction, but it gets so unbelievably tiring having to listen to these complainers just bitch, and moan about EVERYTHING. They don't care about the series but yet, here they are in every thread spewing about what needs to happen. When is enough, enough? Those people need to change.

Final Fantasy is controversial because no one main game is like another, not everyone will enjoy each entry. I'm tired of being told that everyone hated Final Fantasy XII/XIII because that's a lie. If the internet was prominent around the time VII/VIII/IX were released I guarantee you this same crap that we are seeing with XII/XIII would have been going on back then.

i said for the "most part" i understand you can't pigeon-hole everyone, but i do think if you did a survey of FF fans asking which like the new direction and which never, i would bet more over 28's would like the older turn based, over dramatic huge open world experience of pre FF10, and the youngsters would like the quick paced, sober feeling, graphicly driven games of today. but like i said not every1 can be pigeon-holed

but i think holy_dragoon makes a very good point if they had left the FF series and started a whole new franchise with the new image of an RPG, then the old would not feel like their beloved final fantasy is changing before their eyes, and the new generation would have something the could call there own and bore their kids with story's of "when i was a kid computer games were much better" like we do ours :P

[Crazy]

My Final Fantasy XV wish list.

Hiroyuki Ito as producer and designer.
Hironobu Sakaguchi or someone with simular style for the story.
Nobuo Uematsu or Yasunori Mitsuda or someone with their caliber of story telling music.
More like a fable than a TV drama PLEASE!
No decerniable main character, just a lot of characters each with a small background story like FF6.

Sakaguchi wishes all his fans Happy Holidays with a cool picture. look
http://auuo.tumblr.com/

[Lucifer]

Technology happened to Final Fantasy ; ;

[Blarp]

Am I the only one that thought XII was awesome?

[Soralis]

I love FFXIII , played it for 4th time, and reached 80 % of trophies so far, when i play final fantasy game the most important aspect for me is the story, i would play ff13 linearity any day compared to the crapy boring scyrim non linearity. ff13 best graphics and story, ff8 and 9 always a special place in my heart, ff7 said and strong game, ff10 amazing, ff10-2 best battle system, ff12 amazing world, ff6 Terra ftw

[Malakhim]

Am I the only one that thought XII was awesome?

Not by a long shot.

Final Fantasy XII did a lot of great stuff. Problem was that Nomura's legion fanbase and the Final Fantasy X fans all poo pooed it likely because they just can't handle Matsuno nuance and intrigue.

"Everything is automated! The game is playing itself!"

Of course many didn't realize that if you never wanted to use Gambits(and why wouldn't you?), then you could easily just operate the game like any other ATB-styled entry in the series.

"The story is crap!"

The story is about an overarching conflict and all the motivations, machinations, and history behind it(also Han Solo). You aren't going to find some water physics-defying Tidus/Yuna sap going on here.

"But the music, man! The music!"

Sakimoto created a pretty sweeping score for a a sweeping epic(noun, not adjective) that had plenty of musical themes throughout, although they were much more nuanced than Uematsu's work. I guess it's all up to interpretation, but everything from Cerobi Steppe to Golmore Jungle to the Dalmascan Estersand was pretty fitting.

"But what about Vaan!?"

Well... You got me there. If it's any consolation, Vaan(and probably Penelo as well) was never supposed to be in the game to begin with, as the main character was always supposed to be Basch.

[AmyRae]

I've said in the past to those who defend XIII by referencing it's massive sales that the game sold well because it was branded "FF".

They did not know all the gameplay and exploration was streamlined out of it to make way for a 30hr soap opera.

I do like FF games but I'm not blind to the lack of content or interactivity in modern games. I think the sales reflect the fact that I'm not the only one who feels this way:

http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/3..._Franchise.php

Public is not making the same mistake twice it seems.

In summary my assumption(totally subjective mind you) is that the general public has caught on the fact that Motomu Toriyama can not direct a good game to save his life.

Please SE bring forth new designers that can design games without streamlining everything we love away from this franchise.

In the end money talks and right now people are voting with their wallets.

FF13 was a gamble that didn't pay off. It was an attempt to create a "Call of Duty" style adventure where circumstances pushed your characters along (in pretty much every chapter, there's someone after you). It wasn't a bad idea, but it didn't resonate with RPG players as much as was hoped. The game still did well: it was well-received among critics and sales were pretty strong.

FF14 went very wrong for many reasons, not the least of which was an engine that didn't accommodate an MMO very well.

But I think what you'll see in FF13-2 and FF14-2 is a very different style that addresses the sorts of complaints players had.

However, SE still needs to take risks. FF7 wasn't the success it was because it played it safe. If we get nothing but content designed to please most players most of the time, we'll never get to experience an edgy Final Fantasy title ever again.