What consumers expect of a FF-title

[Chezen]

This post is written in response to the posts of Betelgeuzah and Malakhim, although I will not be quoting any specific part of them.

I was 20 when FFVII came to America. 21 before I was able to play it. Before that, I had never heard of Final Fantasy. Although I was amazed by what was then cutting edge graphics and 3D world like everyone else, it was the story and gameplay that truly caught my attention. I love that game, and it's successor, so much that I have played each several times over the years.

The notion that appreciation for the story and game goes in hand with age (and to some degree implying the level of one's education), I think is a little bit insulting to the players here, even if unintentional. While I would hardly consider myself to be an intellectual, I am by no means uneducated in literature. When I was younger, I was an avid reader, not only of (then) modern books, but of many classical stories as well. I was the only person in my high school English class who didn't need Shakespeare explained to me. The only reason I do not read as much today, (or for that matter, play games as much as I used to) is because I have very poor eyesight, and my eyes strain easily.

I wouldn't say that FF stories have as much depth as a classical book. Movies are not able to recreate the depth a book can give, imo (and thus why VOs are not the greatest thing to happen to games since sliced bread, again imo). But you can certainly create something very special within a game, being it's own medium. And I can very much recognize the craftsmanship that goes into FF games, both in gameplay, and in story. Even in the titles I personally didn't care for such as XII.

If one cannot recognize the depth that went into VII and VIII's story, then I would surmise that you weren't looking hard enough, or that it at least went over your head. The ending of FFVII is probably the easiest to point out for example. That confused a lot of people for a long time. There was never supposed to be a definitive answer as to whether Midgar suvived that day. Obviously the planet did, and Red XIII did. There was also no definitive answer as to whether Aeris/Aerith had anything to do with it the planet's survival. If she had not have died, would the planet have been saved, or was her death truly senseless? Did she call forth the lifestream, or did the planet save itself? It wasn't until later that official stories were written to answer these questions and more, because of popular demand. But these things were originally left out on purpose, for the players to interpret for themselves.

In conclusion... my choice of stories and games has changed little throughout my life. There are things that I understand better now than I did as a child, but it didn't change my enjoyment of those things. In any case, I wasn't a child when I became a Final Fantasy fan in the first place, which renders that idea as moot in regards to myself. The only thing that changed as I played FFVII over and over was my continued understanding of the story and game. There was enough depth to it that there were things I missed or that went over my head the first or second time through, and I appreciated the craftmanship of it all the more.

[grandm]

This post is written in response to the posts of Betelgeuzah and Malakhim, although I will not be quoting any specific part of them.

I was 20 when FFVII came to America. 21 before I was able to play it. Before that, I had never heard of Final Fantasy. Although I was amazed by what was then cutting edge graphics and 3D world like everyone else, it was the story and gameplay that truly caught my attention. I love that game, and it's successor, so much that I have played each several times over the years.

The notion that appreciation for the story and game goes in hand with age (and to some degree implying the level of one's education), I think is a little bit insulting to the players here, even if unintentional. While I would hardly consider myself to be an intellectual, I am by no means uneducated in literature. When I was younger, I was an avid reader, not only of (then) modern books, but of many classical stories as well. I was the only person in my high school English class who didn't need Shakespeare explained to me. The only reason I do not read as much today, (or for that matter, play games as much as I used to) is because I have very poor eyesight, and my eyes strain easily.

I wouldn't say that FF stories have as much depth as a classical book. Movies are not able to recreate the depth a book can give, imo (and thus why VOs are not the greatest thing to happen to games since sliced bread, again imo). But you can certainly create something very special within a game, being it's own medium. And I can very much recognize the craftsmanship that goes into FF games, both in gameplay, and in story. Even in the titles I personally didn't care for such as XII.

If one cannot recognize the depth that went into VII and VIII's story, then I would surmise that you weren't looking hard enough, or that it at least went over your head. The ending of FFVII is probably the easiest to point out for example. That confused a lot of people for a long time. There was never supposed to be a definitive answer as to whether Midgar suvived that day. Obviously the planet did, and Red XIII did. There was also no definitive answer as to whether Aeris/Aerith had anything to do with it the planet's survival. If she had not have died, would the planet have been saved, or was her death truly senseless? Did she call forth the lifestream, or did the planet save itself? It wasn't until later that official stories were written to answer these questions and more, because of popular demand. But these things were originally left out on purpose, for the players to interpret for themselves.

In conclusion... my choice of stories and games has changed little throughout my life. There are things that I understand better now than I did as a child, but it didn't change my enjoyment of those things. In any case, I wasn't a child when I became a Final Fantasy fan in the first place, which renders that idea as moot in regards to myself. The only thing that changed as I played FFVII over and over was my continued understanding of the story and game. There was enough depth to it that there were things I missed or that went over my head the first or second time through, and I appreciated the craftmanship of it all the more.

quoted for the truth +a million

if you can't see great story telling in FF games, then you have a problem identifying storys

[VenusDoom]

With every Final Fantasy I've ever played (except maybe X-2), I got sucked into them like a good book. I felt for the characters, was eager to learn what happened next, and felt a sense of accomplishment when I uncovered more of the story. When the game was over, I felt both happy and sad. Even when I quit FFXI after only completing Chains of Promathia (which was a blast!), I was saddened that I wouldn't see the story end, and still am after many years. RPGs are about escaping reality for a little bit, after all. Entering a world that isn't your own and where you don't have to abide by the rules that bind you 24/7 in real life.

That's what I want most from FFXIV, is that drive to know what happens next, the NEED to find out the fate of your character. So far it isn't there, but I am hopeful.

[Lucifer]

Metal Gear Solid 2 has the best script ever written in video game history.
I think the story proved FAR too complex for the fans of Metal Gear Solid. Hideo must have realized this when he made MGS4.

Or maybe I'm overestimating his writing abilities..
Regardless, MGS1 and MGS2 are works of art.

[Lucifer]

FF7 had a great story line.
Deep? Sure. You could have given the script to someone with far better grammatical efficiency, and it would have toppled any claims about FF7 being simple.

[Rubicon]

Question: where is the next good mana game since Legend of Mana? God, it has been waaaaay too long.

[Charismatic]

Question: where is the next good mana game since Legend of Mana? God, it has been waaaaay too long.

I say FFXI is it, aside from FF jobs and being called Final Fantasy, I feel it has more of a Mana vibe to it. I felt that way ever since I heard the name of the game's world.
Obviously the whole 'diel thing isn't exclusive to the Mana games but it just seemed that with TP (which is kinda like SD3's system) and various other things I noticed about the game it seems like it was originally planned to be Seiken Densetsu Online or something.
Maybe I'm just crazy but w/e.


Though, I guess the Mana and Final Fantasy games have never really been all that far removed from each other... especially with Mana games always having Chocobos and Moogles and the like.