Which FF games should I play?

[kurczaczak]

Hello. I finished Crisis Core FF VII on the hard mode. I really enjoyed the game - the ingame world was amazing, though a bit tight. I especially liked the simple, yet demanding mission system which provided a variety of monsters I could beat by inventing numerous strategies that didn't require any cryptic elements. It was pretty straightforward unlike the main story which I completed with a guide open on my PC (I hate missing secrets). Since it wasn't that long it was a nice break between the missions. I hated the parts that relied on luck, not my skills (Magic Pot, materia levelling). Then I read about FF series. I decided to give the first game a try. It turned out to be... boring. Moreover I was disappointed with the fact that without a guide I wouldn't have known what to do. Could you advice me which games should I try?

 

[FinalxxSin]

.....

From a combat aspect you may consider looking into Final Fantasy Type-0, Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII, and/or Final Fantasy XV in the future. All of those games have a more action oriented feel to the combat and may be up your alley.

Final Fantasy Type-0: Mainly mission based game where you can take one to three characters on missions. The game has difficulty levels to it and provides better items on the harder difficulties. It's not a requirement to max out every single character in the game. If you do decide to max all characters, expect to do a lot of grinding. There is a New Game + option to where non-quest related items and characters levels will carry over.

Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII - The combat is a hybrid of ATB (active time battle) and Action RPG. You pretty much switch off from using defensive and offensive tactics to bring down your foes. The game is meant to be played through multiple times and does have difficulty levels as well. The story imo isn't the greatest, but the main portions are pretty good for the most part. There is a time clock in the game, but after some time you'll be used to it and it won't have an impact on your gameplay experience. The game does have a New Game+ where your character stats and non - quest related items will carry over.

Final Fantasy XV: This game will be coming out sometime in 2016. It is an Action RPG where you play as a single character (far as we know thus far). To be successful at the game, you'll need to know how to dodge and make sure you keep your ally A.I alive if possible.

 

[Razberry Knight]

Hello. I finished Crisis Core FF VII on the hard mode. I really enjoyed the game - the ingame world was amazing, though a bit tight. I especially liked the simple, yet demanding mission system which provided a variety of monsters I could beat by inventing numerous strategies that didn't require any cryptic elements. It was pretty straightforward unlike the main story which I completed with a guide open on my PC (I hate missing secrets). Since it wasn't that long it was a nice break between the missions. I hated the parts that relied on luck, not my skills (Magic Pot, materia levelling). Then I read about FF series. I decided to give the first game a try. It turned out to be... boring. Moreover I was disappointed with the fact that without a guide I wouldn't have known what to do. Could you advice me which games should I try?

The original Final Fantasy is a difficult one to start off with, and yes it does emphasize a guide at times, but the game (for its time) required you to just "discover" the answer.

Here's my recommendation: I suggest getting started with Final Fantasy 3, 4, 5, or 6. I especially recommend playing it in order to gain the value of each one and seeing where the series evolved.

Final Fantasy 1 is easier in the "dawn of souls" or "Final Fantasy Origins" version. I do not recommend the original version for new players. The newer versions definitely give a better start for the series.

Otherwise, FinalxxSin only recommended the games that don't follow the traditional turn-base gameplay. still, its worth a try to play the turn base, especially when you discover their strengths.

 

[iSmiff]

How has no one recommended VII? You should definitely follow up Crisis Core with that!

My personal recommendations are

VII, VIII , IX , X , and VI, probably in that order too. See the games progress and then go back and gain a deeper respect with the franchise with the title that is considered to the best by many fans.

My personal favourites are VII and X, although i've played IX and VIII many times each.

 

[FinalxxSin]

To add on to what iSmiff mentioned, if FFVII ends up being a poor experience for you, there is a remake for the game that is currently in progress. The game probably won't come out until late 2017 or in 2018 if my speculating is somewhat remotely accurate.

How has no one recommended VII? You should definitely follow up Crisis Core with that!

Well the OP didn't give a lot of information in terms of what types of stories they like...nor if they enjoyed the story aspect of Crisis Core specifically. It seemed to me the OP mainly focused on the combat aspect of his/her experience. I could be wrong though.

 

[kurczaczak]

Well the OP didn't give a lot of information in terms of what types of stories they like...nor if they enjoyed the story aspect of Crisis Core specifically. It seemed to me the OP mainly focused on the combat aspect of his/her experience. I could be wrong though.

Yeah, I mainly enjoyed the combat system. I didn't follow the story as a whole because it didn't seem interesting, but all the story parts as single units were a very nice refreshment from the battles, which had a very positive impact on the whole gameplay. Still, I can play a game for the story. It's hard to tell what kinds of stories I like... I guess I'm not much into that whole surprise aspect, so I can enjoy a film even after having everything spoiled. I think I love these parts that are funny or thought-provoking the most. And I feel awful when good people die and evil ones don't, haha. Two things I hate for sure are dull stories that have nothing to tell and complicated systems of events that something bigger consists of. I just forget what was two cutscenes earlier. And I really like it when I can achieve and see everything in one beating. Playing 200 hours on one savefile is okay, but 50 hours following one storyline path and 50 hours the other is out of the question, so far only once a game was so good I beat it again. It was for the story though.

 

[FinalxxSin]

Yeah, I mainly enjoyed the combat system. I didn't follow the story as a whole because it didn't seem interesting, but all the story parts as single units were a very nice refreshment from the battles, which had a very positive impact on the whole gameplay. Still, I can play a game for the story. It's hard to tell what kinds of stories I like... I guess I'm not much into that whole surprise aspect, so I can enjoy a film even after having everything spoiled. I think I love these parts that are funny or thought-provoking the most. And I feel awful when good people die and evil ones don't, haha. Two things I hate for sure are dull stories that have nothing to tell and complicated systems of events that something bigger consists of. I just forget what was two cutscenes earlier. And I really like it when I can achieve and see everything in one beating. Playing 200 hours on one savefile is okay, but 50 hours following one storyline path and 50 hours the other is out of the question, so far only once a game was so good I beat it again. It was for the story though.

Well in that case if you do decide to play Type-0, there will be a choice you make toward the end of the game that will give you one of two possible endings. Besides that, the other games mentioned I believe only have a single ending.

 

[The Welsh Paddy]

If gameplay's more your thing, I might suggest FFX-2. *awaits cries of outrage to die down* Story is "okay", there's a fair bit of fan service which I find annoying, but I personally think it has the most fun and dynamic version of the ATB in the whole series. Especially when you have it set to 'Active' rather than 'Wait'. Unfortunately the game disappoints itself in most other aspects though, I find.

FFX, on the other hand, is amazing. While the ATB isn't as refined as X-2, there's a nifty feature that allows you to switch characters in battle, and each character has their own unique style. There's a really cool levelling up system that uses this thing called a Sphere Grid, in which you need to collect stuff like Power Spheres, Ability Spheres, etc. to boost specific stats. It also offers more unique qualities for characters too because they each start off on different parts of the grid and you can chose which way to send them along. Of course, as you near completion and have almost the whole grid unlocked for each character, they eventually wind up pretty much the same. Battles are fun though and there's some nice moments of character interaction at the start or end of battles.

As for story, FFX probably has the most emotionally charged story in the series. The visuals certainly helped, and the game has some of the coolest cutscenes ever. It's easy to relate with the main character, because he's a complete outsider in the game, and the more he gets drawn into the events of the game, the more you get drawn in too. I found it really easy to put myself in his shoes. It's a pretty linear game too, until much later. There's some pretty frustrating puzzles at times but they're very very few and far between. There's much more opportunity for exploration later in the game when you can finally go back to all the locations you previously visited. There are some extremely tough challenges with some of the optional bosses, particularly the Dark Aeons and in the Monster Arena and there are some neat perks to be had from unlocking the characters' ultimate weapons. Fully unlocked, they grant you abilities such as Break HP limit, which allows for you to gain far more HP than the normal 9999, and Break Damage Limit that allows you to deal damage in the tens of thousands. Gaining new Aeons (Summons) is also a really rewarding experience, especially since you get to control them in battle. And Blitzball is the most fun minigame in the series. If that minigame is to your taste, then it certainly justifies having to backtrack later in the game because you can recruit some of the various NPCs wandering the world to join your team.

Other than IX, X is probably my favourite game in the series. Though, from what I read, I kinda have a feeling that anything before X might not be all too appealing for you. As amazing as some of the stories for those games are, the gameplay is repetitive and they often require considerable amounts of grinding in order to get through the game.

 

[Shaissa]

since you talked about only the gameplay and not much of the story I have to agree with what @FinalxxSin said and a little with what @The Welch Paddy said. The main series is very much ATB, and although I love that type of gameplay I don't know if you would, also on top of that graphics might play a big part in what games you like... The only real recommendation I can make that no one else has yet is Dissdia, they are fighting games on the PSP, and I think they fit more with the action of Crisis core than any other game.

 

[FinalxxSin]

To add onto what Chip n Dale had suggested, there is a PS4 Dissidia game that is in the works, but Idk when it will come out. Here's some gameplay footage from the game:

since you talked about only the gameplay and not much of the story I have to agree with what @FinalxxSin said and a little with what @The Welch Paddy said. The main series is very much ATB, and although I love that type of gameplay I don't know if you would, also on top of that graphics might play a big part in what games you like... The only real recommendation I can make that no one else has yet is Dissdia, they are fighting games on the PSP, and I think they fit more with the action of Crisis core than any other game.

I had completely forgotten about Dissidia. Thank you for bringing that up.

 

[Alexander]

All of them.