Today is a historic day forFinal Fantasyfans.
That means we have an excuse to get nostalgic about whats come before in the series.
Some of the greatest adventures in video game history await within the packages of many of these titles.
Some of us even took a foray or two into the MMORPG world thanks toFinal Fantasy.
Buy Final Fantasy XV right here!
So, after all these years of playingFinal Fantasy, what else did we learn?
And others were… not so amazing.
Which were the best?
Which could we do without?
Here are all the major Final Fantasy gamesranked!
Many classicFFtitles hold a special place in many a gamers heart, butFFIIwasnt one of the better titles.
Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII
People just cant get enough of Lightning apparently.
So much so that Square Enix felt the need to create three titles based off ofFinal Fantasy XIII.
This third and final installment didnt feel a whole lot different from the first game.
Were over Lightning, Square Enix.
Really.Check out review of the game for more!
Final Fantasy XIII
Final Fantasy XIIIwas a serious disappointment to many hardcoreFinal Fantasyfans.
The game was extremely, extremely linear, and offered almost zero exploration.
Its a complete game on rails, and its a shame.
The character development could have also been much better.
Final Fantasy
The very firstFinal Fantasygame is, well, old.
First released in 1987, it became one of those games that all modern RPGs were partially based on.
Its safe to say Square learned a lot through the years.
Final Fantasy X-2
Final Fantasy X-2was a direct sequel toFFX, and a decent addition to the story.
It was also odd.
You know, for a couple days.
Until the novelty ran out.Check our review of the 2014 remaster.
This was good, and made the sequel a better game than the original.
Still, numerous aspects didnt click.
Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn
The original release ofFFXIVwas pretty awful.
As such, the developers went back to the drawing board and completely changed the game for the re-release.
It was kind of an unprecedented move for an MMO developer.
FFXIV: ARRwould have made an awesome single-player RPG.
As an MMORPG, however, the game world seems even smaller.
Progression takes place almost entirely in instances which just doesnt seem to fit the Final Fantasy paradigm very well.
There are lot of players who really loveFFXIV: ARR.
Unfortunately, its just not for everyone.
double-check to check outour review ofFinal Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn!
Final Fantasy VIII
FFVIIIwas one of those gamesFFfans either loved or hated.
There arent many folks that can say eh, it was okay.
Except for me, probably.
The first time I played throughFFVIIIin high school, I thought the game was amazing.
Fun story, fun characters, fun combat.
Squall really was angsty and annoying.
Triple Triad isnt fun at all the second time around.
Laguna still totally has a piece of my teenage gamers heart.
The plot was weak in parts, but the games job system was pretty amazing.
Yes, c’mon.
This is the game where many of our favoriteFinal Fantasyclasses and archetypes were born.
Final Fantasy XI
Final Fantasy XIwas the first MMORPG in the series.
No MMORPG has been made since then that encourages such dedication from its playerbase.
Many class imbalances also became an issue later on as more games became available on the market.
For its time, however,FFXIwas a cause of many, many all-nighters.
It had a ton of innovative and fun features like the gambit combat system and the free-flowing camera.
The game was also extremely challenging, which makes it a fan favorite.
The combat was improved upon dramatically from earlier titles, and the characters and plot are both top-notch.
Those pluses give it a huge rating in my book.
Fans went nuts over this one.
It had grit, romance, melancholy, depth, humor, and a fair bit of darkness.
Among all of theFFplotlines,FFVIIs might be my favorite.
Im a fan of dystopian stories, and thats exactly what this one is at its core.
It also helps that the materia system is so cool.
Around every bend inFFXwas a cinematic.
It still had open-ended exploration and areas, but it also had cutscenes for immersion purposes.
FFXwas a gorgeous game with some of the best music in the entire franchise.
The sphere grid was also quite fun.
Not as fun asFFVIIs materia system, but definitely up there in my book.
I actually didnt play the SNES version.
Rather, I experienced it a couple years later.
Those are all the things that make up a greatFinal Fantasytitle.
Every RPG fanno matter how young or oldneeds to playFFVIat least once.
Laura Hardgrave is a staff writer.
This article first appeared on March 17, 2015.
It has been lightly edited.
