Final Fantasy XII

In recent years the respect and prestige the Final Fantasy franchise earned from providing a stellar storytelling experience, backed up by graphics beyond the confines of the other console games, has slowly deteriorated. This is due to the awfully poor Final Fantasy X-2 and the online rendition of the series which has only gained a small cult following (sorry ya losers the FF MMO sucks).

Most of the people I know just gave up on hoping the next game would break Square Enix out of their rut and bring Final Fantasy back up to speed with current games. Some people even fooled themselves into believing every game after X-2 was still amazing, ignoring the stink of mediocrity that currently plagues the series that used to set trends for the market.

The tutorial turns out to be a massacre. Poor Reks.

Genre: JRPG
Developer: Square Enix
Release Date: 16th March, 2006
Platforms: PS2, PS4
Score: 6/10
Similar Titles: Grandia, Dragon Quest, Star Ocean
Worth playing: If you are a fan of Final Fantasy or are running out of alternative RPGs to play.

Final Fantasy XV may put Square Enix back at the top.

This years E3 has been interesting. Aside from Microsoft being outclassed in presentation in every possible way by Sony and Nintendo, new footage for the exciting new Final Fantasy XV. In the past couple of years we've seen a couple of trailers, ones that lack any kind of substantial information about gameplay. That's all about to change. This video shows how Square Enix have finally accelerated themselves into the new era of action RPG.

I am not ashamed to admit that watching this video sent my body into goosebump overdrive. I am trembling with anticipation for this game. I have played every Final Fantasy title to date, and haven't thoroughly enjoyed or respected one after X. Every release after FF10 made at least one gamebreaking mistake, one that defined the entire title in a bad way. Final Fantasy X-2 had the abysmal dress sphere system and the distinct lack of any story aside from concluding the previous game. FF13 was terrible in the sense that the only break from the first 20 hours of following one linear path was to press auto-battle repeatedly until you won. It's no secret nor something people can argue about: they were all distinctly lacking that Final Fantasy feel that made you lock yourself in a room and quit your job until you had finished it.

Final Fantasy XV looks like it is going to bring us all back from the brink. Dare I say it for fear of jinxing the whole production? We're actually going to get a good Final Fantasy game again. One that us fanboys can actually defend on an intellectual level. We've got a main lead that seems to be cool for once, unbelievable graphics, intense third-person action, and some colossal enemies that look truly terrifying. Final Fantasy XV looks promising indeed.

This video just looks awesome. Square Enix could still fuck it up, but from what we've seen they are definitely on the right track to making a titanic game. Here's hoping I don't end up posting a review next year about how disappointing it is. My biggest fear is that the protagonist Noctis will turn out to be a douche. Ever since Tidus I've never liked the main character.

Top 5 PSP RPG titles

After owning a Playstation Portable for several months and buying dozens of games, I've finally decided on my top 5 favorite RPGs. Surprisingly, there's a huge market for roleplaying games on the PSP. I find countless new titles every time I go game shopping.

This list is by no means definitive, it is merely my favorite RPGs on the PSP. If you don't like it, just remember that. If you have any suggestions for games I should include, comment away! 

Top 5 PSP RPG titles:

1- Final Fantasy: Crisis Core

I don't like that Crisis Core is the best RPG on the PSP. Because it's a dying franchise, and it's really 'mainstream' to put a Final Fantasy at the top of the list. However, it's easily the best game on the PSP. The graphics are top notch, the combat is brilliant, and it's got hours of content. It is a healthy prequel to Final Fantasy 7, that anyone can enjoy. Even though I didn't want to put this at number 1, there's no doubt in my eyes that it deserves the spot.

2- Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3 Portable

When I came across Persona 3 sitting lonely on a shelf, I bought it without a second thought. It was a brilliant game for the PSX, and it's even better on a handheld. It's got a great story, that can't be fully experienced in a single playthrough. The combat is challenging, demanding that you climb up over 200 floors of enemies in under a year. Persona 3 Portable is basically tied with Crisis Core for first place.

3- Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep

Birth By Sleep is the best handheld Kingdom Hearts game. It has addictive and layered combat, a brilliant plot, and 3 separate characters to play the story with. The only shortcoming this game has is that it's too short. That and the Disney part, which I'm okay with. Even if you know nothing about the Kingdom Hearts universe, this game is still worth playing.

4- Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth

I hated this game at first. It was overly complicated, without much explanation. 5 hours later, I was balls deep in dungeons, recruiting new characters and perfecting them before I could toss them up to Valhalla. Although it has a patchy plot and is difficult to pick up, Valkyrie Profile is yet another game from the PSX that made a wonderful transition onto handheld.

5- Star Ocean: First Departure

I've always liked the Star Ocean games, they've been a solid RPG over the years with less appreciation than deserved in the west. First Departure brings some of that old school spice onto the PSP. The combat is a little basic, but the story and the characters are amazing. You can't recruit every character in one playthrough, and there's loads of side content to complete. I really loved grinding on this one.

If you're looking for PSP games, this list might help you. The PSP almost has more RPG titles than I can buy, but I will keep on purchasing the ones that I can. Feel free to comment if you have an opinion on your favorite PSP games!

Top Five Final Fantasies

The greatest Final Fantasies, listed by order of awesome
I know this article may open a can of angry fanboys that I am not prepared to deal with, but I decided to do it anyway. I will be writing about what I believe are the best Final Fantasy games. I will not be including the online version, FFXI in the list, since it has practically nothing in common with what Square-Enix usually produces. The earliest games with empty plots obviously can't compete, no matter how addictive they were, sadly I shall disinclude them too. I'll mainly be covering the games on consoles like Playstation 1 2 and 3.

There would be no contest if I were to judge by graphics, in that respect the newest edition will always win. So I have made my decisions based on the quality of storyline and combat. As always, these are my opinions and therefore open to discussion. Comment if you think I should change the ranks, please provide a good reason.

Let's get started with honourable mentions, the Final Fantasies that didn't make the list but are still excellent.

Honourable Mentions:

Final Fantasy IX (9):

 Great game, colourful cast of characters. Combat is nothing special, but interesting nonetheless. Sadly, it's just not quite there as the best that Square-Enix has to provide.

Read the review for Final Fantasy IX here.

Final Fantasy XI (11):

Square tried to launch themselves into the MMORPG market with FFXI, and did fairly well. Although the game had it's flaws, it was a great online Final Fantasy experience and many people enjoyed it before World of Warcraft.

Final Fantasy I (1):

Final Fantasy I the original definitely deserves a mention, released as a last resort to become the first game of one of the most popular franchises of all time. Despite it not being entirely original, it was still wonderful. It pulled it's company out of the ground, and allowed them to bring us many great games to date.

Final Fantasy Tactics:

I can't believe I missed this earlier, such a boss game. FF Tactics originally appeared on the PSX and was a hit with pretty much everyone. With an awesome combat system and interesting characters, this was probably the game closest to reaching the charts in the honourable mentions. Now avaliable on DS and Iphone, try it.

If you think one of these games isn't where it should be, let me know. Also, if you think I missed a Final Fantasy that deserves an honourable mention, comment!

Top Five Final Fantasy games:

5. Final Fantasy IV (4)

FF4 was nothing less than epic. It was the first of the series to implement the fabled ATB system, spicing up the combat. Characters with depth and personality as developed as Cecil and Kain were practically unheard of in RPGs back then. As one of the first games to integrate a real plot, you wouldn't expect it to be so good. Even though it gets a little freaky later on, the plot is immersive still today, and for that reason FFIV is rank 5.

If you haven't played Final Fantasy IV, it is now avaliable on DS and PSP. Grinding isn't an issue, you can make it all the way through the game without spending a few hours running in circles for battles to level up. The spells and abilities are pretty awesome, if you have played newer games in the series you will recognise them. Since they overhauled the graphics for the PSX, there are even cut-scenes that are quite pretty, this game should be on one of your to-do lists.

4. Final Fantasy VIII (8)

After the slightly over-hyped Final Fantasy 7, 8 had a lot to live up to. Despite the mixed response, the game had fresh but fun combat, a love/hate story, and the annoying ass protagonist we all come to accept. The weapon and GF (Summons) upgrade system is intimidating but worthwhile.
If you are curious to learn more about FFVIII, read the review here.

For all the haters out there for this game, there is a lover. So you'll have to play it to find out. I believe this ranking for FF8 is a little optimistic, but in my eyes, this game is my rank 4.

3. Final Fantasy VI (6)

FF6 kicked ass so much, it has been ported to more consoles than I can count. A couple of games after IV, Final Fantasy VI was an all rounded version of it's predecessors, with an epic unforgettable plot and badass characters. It is the best of 2D RPG games that Square has to offer.

Not only was it just a boss game in general, it had 14 party members in it, the most in any Final Fantasy game. Pretty much all of them can learn magic too, so you can power up who you want. If you want a blast from the past RPG, look no further.

2. Final Fantasy VII (7)

I'll start by saying this game doesn't deserve all the fanboys it has. But FF7 is by no means a bad game. As the first edition of Final Fantasy to hit the PSX, it was groundbreaking in terms of graphics and combat. The Materia system was well designed, making battles difficult and fun. Minigames present themselves as you progress, some so awesome I spent hours on them when I was a kid.

The game is flawed in many ways, but the plot is extremely addictive. Sephiroth is still one of the most awesome bad guys to date, and while Final Fantasy VII arguably isn't the greatest of the series, it deserves rank 2 for how popular it was alone. If you want to read the Final Fantasy 7 review, you can find it here.

1. Final Fantasy X (10)

Read the FFX review here.

It took me a lot of thought to decide on the best Final Fantasy. After much deliberation, FFX seemed like the most natural choice. Why? When Final Fantasy 10 first hit the market for PS2, nobody really expected it to be so well designed and polished. The sphere grid system is simple and fun to use, providing a class like level up system. This is an RPG where you'll want be eager to run into random battles, they are awesome. 

The plot is the good old Final Fantasy mix, with an unexpected twist or two. On my first playthrough, I was captivated from start to finish. Your party of characters have a wide range of personalities and depth, one that weaves an incredible story. Sadly, a few of the bad guys are cringeworthy douchebags. In my case that made me want to kill them more.

You will put hours of time into this game, the side content and blitzball is like an entire game in itself. I believe Final Fantasy 10 is the epitome of Square-Enix. It is one of the major contributions that brought a far wider audience to the world of RPGs, and defined it into the genre it is today.

I'll say it once more, if you disagree with the rankings, please comment why below. Thanks for reading.