FF-related stuff

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Rambaldi0503 · #26 Post by **Rambaldi0503** » Fri Jul 16, 2004 1:17 pm

FF7 - just rocked
FF8 - never beat it, but I loved the assassination plotline and cutscenes
FF9 - never played
F10 - almost as good as FF7, awesome cutscenes, GREAT story, loved the twists (like the religion turning out to be bad guys)
F10x2 - heard it's different gameplay than F10, so not interested in playing... should I?

Blackthorne519 · #27 Post by **Blackthorne519** » Fri Jul 16, 2004 1:59 pm

I quit playing after FFVI (III here in America)...... just never got into the new fangled graphics and huge quests. I guess most of the FF Charm for me was the simplistic, cartoony graphics. Not to say that later games weren't good; I just was not interested. I was SO happy though, when I found FFV, translated, on the internet about 7 years ago. I must say, I must have burned out my monitor and wore out my copy of SNES9x that year!

Bt

PumpkinChick · #28 Post by **PumpkinChick** » Fri Jul 16, 2004 2:09 pm

Rambaldi0503 wrote:F10x2 - heard it's different gameplay than F10, so not interested in playing... should I?

I don't like X-2 much, but it's not a terrible game. Depends on what you like in a game. If you're expecting there to be some great plot that ties into FFX and gives it a better conclusion, then let me just shatter all your dreams now. The plot is horrible and not pulled off well at all. The ending doesn't even do a good job of concluding itself, let alone another game. Basically the only thing it has in common with FFX is that the majority of the characters are returning ones.

Battle mode is about all this game has going for it. The battle mode I love. The dress spheres are basically a dress-me-up version of the old school class system. So while you only have 3 playable characters, there is a multitude of abilities each one has, based on which dress sphere you have them equipped with at a certain time. There are also special "hidden" dress spheres you can get which are awesome.

If you liked FFX, I would recommend at least renting X-2, because while it's not a great game by any means, it does have a little bit of the charm that FFX had. It got me in the mood to play FFX again.

Adol · #29 Post by **Adol** » Fri Jul 16, 2004 2:20 pm

I haven't played FFX-2 yet
nor do I think I'm going too
the visual style actually turned me off to it (probably one of the only Hetero males where it did that)
I've actually been quite annoyed with the current trend of more and more Fanboy Eyecandy in the games
I would much prefer to see more realistic clothing on the characters (not to mention more realistic proportions to the characters themselves).
Anybody else like that?

Quest For Glory Fan · #30 Post by **Quest For Glory Fan** » Fri Jul 16, 2004 4:35 pm

i see what you're getting at but look at lulu in FFX it's no different. Every RPG character has some fashion statement or atlest main characters. Terra wore a bikini and had muppet hair. Cloud was a big purple guy with a red belt a huge sword that weighs more then him and retarted hair (hopefully FFVII AC will change that). Squall was just gay in a litteral sense. All these woman hit on em and his great response "..." or sometimes "Whatever" and if you're lucky you will see "I don't care". I liked zidane and all bit the unessecary tail that became more and more of a prop then a story element just like the tails in DBZ or Sonic. in X...everyone looked retarted fashion wise. and again with the huge sword O BUT THIS ONE IS TRANSPARENT AND BLUE well that changes my opinion.

As you can tell I've played all Final Fantasy except for the original 2 and 3 for NES and i saw 2 at a friends a couple times but notice how they are all 40 hours long? and with every extra they strecth it to 100 hours or so?

Don't get me wrong i like FF just not the clothes and i haven't played X2 but i beat X and I don't even own the system.

PumpkinChick · #31 Post by **PumpkinChick** » Fri Jul 16, 2004 5:42 pm

Adol wrote:I haven't played FFX-2 yet
nor do I think I'm going too
the visual style actually turned me off to it (probably one of the only Hetero males where it did that)
I've actually been quite annoyed with the current trend of more and more Fanboy Eyecandy in the games
I would much prefer to see more realistic clothing on the characters (not to mention more realistic proportions to the characters themselves).
Anybody else like that?

Well, scantily-clad, impossibly-endowed-except-through-surgery girls are good for game sales I imagine. I am quite disappointed in Squaresoft for resorting to Fan Service though, as prior to FFX-2, the Final Fantasy series had been mostly devoid of it.

As far as the outfits, they hadn't really bothered me too much before X-2. Lulu's dress was a bit weird, but they sell stuff like that at Hot Topic, and she's soooo goth, so it made sense. Tidus and Wakka were both in Blitzball outfits of some sort. Though they never really explain why they dress like that for blitzball, you just kind of accept it after a while.

But the majority of the costumes in X-2 were just ridiculous. I mean, Paine's main outfit is like...buckled together. Can you imagine how long it would take to change into that thing? And Rikku with her windsails for sleeves.

I hear so many people raving about the costume designs in X-2, and yeah, they're kinda neat-looking, like something you would wear to a fashion show or on the cover of a magazine (like Playboy for example

). Not so much like something you would go fighting monsters with.

Adol · #32 Post by **Adol** » Fri Jul 16, 2004 6:07 pm

You are right, fanboy eyecandy is very good for sales
very unfortunate for us.
I didn't have a problem with the outfits in FF X, I could always explain the clothes since the characters did live in a tropical environment.
With FF X-2 I cannot be bothered to even put that much thought into it.
One of my problems is that the entire console RPG market is starting to slide into eyecandy he!!. Look at Suikoden IV. The male characters are reasonably dressed, but there are a few...notable exceptions in the female cast.
What my wife and I would like to see is a decency setting. That way we can select just how much skin we want to see. But then, we don't make games, and we still buy them (although we are buying much fewer nowdays).
My wife played through FF II, she rather enjoyed it. She found the leveling up system a little quirky, but she enjoyed the game. From what I saw, the plot reminded me of FF IV's at times.

Wolfgang Abenteuer · #33 Post by **Wolfgang Abenteuer** » Fri Jul 16, 2004 6:35 pm

I played FFII and FFIII on emulators before they were re-released on consoles. It took a while to get into FFII, but if you did it right, you could be godlike by the end of the game. Yeah, the level systems was quite bizarre, I'll admit, but overall it a was pretty good game nonetheless. Except that you could never run. Ever.

FFIII was fun with the exception of: The enemies that replicate themselves if you hit them with anything OTHER than a Mystic sword, and the few places where you have to fight while Mini (inventive, I'll admit, but you had to spend all of your job points making your characters into Mages or you'd be toast - quite annoying). Otherwise FFIII was great fun.

I actually enjoyed FFIII more than FFV because even though the storyline was somewhat bland, you had come to expect that from NES RPGs. FFV didn't have much more storyline than FFIII IMO and aside from little things like Bartz being afraid of heights and Reina and Faris being sisters, it wasn't very intriguing. At least it didn't keep me interested. I loved FFIV's storyline, and everyone AFTER FFV, but FFV missed the boat for me. Dunno why. *shrugs*

As for FFX-2, I haven't played it. FFX was awesome but I never got around to getting FFX-2. I never really paid much attention to the outfits of the characters, really, so they didn't really stand out in FFX. I've read the script of X-2, though, and it doesn't seem like it had quite the storyline that X did. I'll probably check it out some day, but I'm in no hurry.

I just want to know what the **** was going through Square's mind with FFXI. I mean, it's online ONLY, you have to PAY a monthly fee, plus extra for more characters (I've heard). Not good. I guess a lot of people like it, but it's not really worth the money that you'd have to spend just to be able to keep playing it. Dunno why they made it part of the main series instead of a off-shoot, but that's marketing for you.

~Wolfgang

PumpkinChick · #34 Post by **PumpkinChick** » Fri Jul 16, 2004 9:44 pm

Wolfgang Abenteuer wrote:I just want to know what the **** was going through Square's mind with FFXI. I mean, it's online ONLY, you have to PAY a monthly fee, plus extra for more characters (I've heard). Not good. I guess a lot of people like it, but it's not really worth the money that you'd have to spend just to be able to keep playing it. Dunno why they made it part of the main series instead of a off-shoot, but that's marketing for you.

Well...I can't really think off the top of my head of an MMORPG that you don't have to pay a monthly fee for. I'm sure there are a few, but chances are they suck. FFXI is $12 per month and $1 for each extra character, so actually not too bad comparatively, as most MMORPGs that I've played have been $13-15 per month. I agree that it's weird that they made it a number in the FF series as opposed to simply Final Fantasy Online or something of that nature. Or by "offshoot" did you mean that it shouldn't even be a Final Fantasy game at all? Cause I would disagree with that, since a ton of diehard FF fans like me have been wishing for a Final Fantasy MMORPG for a very very long time. It just wouldn't be the same without the familiar aeons (Shiva, Ifrit, Ramuh, etc.), chocobos, moogles, job, etc.

So, as you've probably figured out, I play FFXI. And I think the monthly fee is actually worth it. I've logged more hours on it than any other game I've ever played (more than 15 days worth of play time now I think). I mean you figure a new PC or PS2 game will generally run you about $50. Well, I'm paying that much over the course of nearly 4 months. So I just think of it as buying a new game every 4 months. They upgrade and add things often enough that there are always new things for you to do, so when they add a big new feature, it kind of is like playing a new game.

I do think that online games that charge a monthly fee should be less expensive to buy...the game itself, that is. They should really sell those games for like $20-$30 instead of $50, since they know they're going to get a monthly fee from the people who buy it anyway.

Jafar · #35 Post by **Jafar** » Fri Jul 16, 2004 9:52 pm

It just wouldn't be the same without the familiar aeons

Don't you mean espers? or GFs? or Eidolons? or Summon Materia?

PumpkinChick · #36 Post by **PumpkinChick** » Fri Jul 16, 2004 11:35 pm

Jafar wrote:
It just wouldn't be the same without the familiar aeons
Don't you mean espers? or GFs? or Eidolons? or Summon Materia?

All of the above. ^_^ They're called "avatars" in FFXI.

Wolfgang Abenteuer · #37 Post by **Wolfgang Abenteuer** » Sat Jul 17, 2004 12:05 am

Well...I can't really think off the top of my head of an MMORPG that you don't have to pay a monthly fee for.

Blizzard doesn't charge for the use of battle.net for their Diablo games, unless you don't consider those MMORPGs (some don't, but then again I wonder what they ARE called

). I play single player D2 exclusively, so that's not really an issue with me, but that $70 investment ($40 for the game, $30 for Lord of Destruction expansion) has lasted me 4 years. You can pay $15 a month if you like, but I'm fine with paying $15 a year (amortized every year, might I add.

).

Or by "offshoot" did you mean that it shouldn't even be a Final Fantasy game at all?

Well, a rose by any other name, they say. It wouldn't really matter if they use the Final Fantasy name for an MMORPG (although, by the same token it doesn't really matter that they call it FFXI, I suppose), but I guess if that's what people wanted. *shrugs* Would you still have bought it without the FF name on it? By "offshoot", though, I meant "Final Fantasy" something would be fine, but not "Final Fantasy XI". Use the FF name, but make it non-numeric, like they did with Mystic Quest, or Tactics, FF Legend, or FF Adventure. Final Fantasy World, Final Fantasy Online, or something along those lines would have made more sense to me. It just seems strange to have this game in the middle of a series be STRICTLY online, whereas all of the other games are single player ONLY. Then again, this is the same company that gave us The Spirits Within, so they can't be right on the money every time, can they?

~Wolfgang

Jafar · #38 Post by **Jafar** » Sat Jul 17, 2004 12:08 am

whereas all of the other games are single player ONLY.

Wrong. In most FF games, you can split the current Party between two players.

PumpkinChick · #39 Post by **PumpkinChick** » Sat Jul 17, 2004 12:30 am

Wolfgang Abenteuer wrote: Would you still have bought it without the FF name on it?

Probably. Though I would not have been nearly as excited about it. Like I said, the familiar aspects (such as chocobos, moogles, tonberries, marlboros, and even Cid! ^_^) are a major reason why I was so pumped to play the game. They're not the reason I continue to play though. The reason I continue to play is because it's just so darn fun.

I do put a lot of faith in the Final Fantasy series, but only because it's proven to be very good, with only a few games I don't like too well. FFXI appealed to me because I had been waiting for an MMORPG where things were done right. Balanced characters, in-depth plot, challenging battle mode. And who better to trust that to than the people who've made some of my favorite games?

BTW, I'm one of the few people who actually liked The Spirits Within. I think it's a cool movie in its own right, though not very Final Fantasy-esque, so I can understand how people were disappointed. I was actually disappointed the first time I saw it, because I was expecting it to tie in with the games a lot more. But the second time I watched it, I was without those expectations, and found it to be quite enjoyable.

Brainiac · #40 Post by **Brainiac** » Sat Jul 17, 2004 12:37 am

To Wolfgang:
FFIII (presuming you meant the Japanese FFIII) has not yet been remade for any system; it is the only one left that has not. As to FFXI, it was kept as part of the series directly out of a desire to innovate the series and the combined Square-Enix has decided that said drive for innovation and change Squaresoft began shall be continued while Enix's Dragon Quest/Dragon Warrior remains more tried-and-true. Finally, be aware the FF Adventure was actually the first Seiken Densetsu game (now known as Sword of Mana via the GBA remake) and the three FF Legend games were all SaGa games. Since FF was already popular over here, Squaresoft decided to capitalize on the name.

To Jafar:
I'm not sure most of the games are 2-player, and those that are only allow secondary control in battle; everything else is controlled by P1 only.

To PumpkinChick:
What is your alter-ego in FFXI? Do you know what the summons of XII will be called (Totema, perhaps)? Are you anxiously awaiting the next XI expansion?

Jafar · #41 Post by **Jafar** » Sat Jul 17, 2004 12:43 am

Thats what I meant by splitting the Party.

Brainiac · #42 Post by **Brainiac** » Sat Jul 17, 2004 12:46 am

I know; I'm just saying that only being able to split for battle really doesn't make the game multiplayer, at least nowhere near as much as Secret of Mana...

anathoth8 · #43 Post by **anathoth8** » Sat Jul 17, 2004 1:56 am

Wolfgang Abenteuer wrote:Blizzard doesn't charge for the use of battle.net for their Diablo games, unless you don't consider those MMORPGs (some don't, but then again I wonder what they ARE called ). I play single player D2 exclusively, so that's not really an issue with me, but that $70 investment ($40 for the game, $30 for Lord of Destruction expansion) has lasted me 4 years. You can pay $15 a month if you like, but I'm fine with paying $15 a year (amortized every year, might I add. ).

The difference here is that Blizzard's battle.net is simply a connection service. Once the game starts, battle.net doesn't have to remain active.

In MMORPG's, there are central servers runned and maintained by the game producers. These servers must be running constantly.

Wolfgang Abenteuer · #44 Post by **Wolfgang Abenteuer** » Sat Jul 17, 2004 3:24 am

Brainiac wrote:To Wolfgang:
FFIII (presuming you meant the Japanese FFIII) has not yet been remade for any system; it is the only one left that has not.

Really? I thought it had. I know I and II have, but I thought III was as well. Hmm...pity. III's an awesome game!

As to FFXI, it was kept as part of the series directly out of a desire to innovate the series and the combined Square-Enix has decided that said drive for innovation and change Squaresoft began shall be continued while Enix's Dragon Quest/Dragon Warrior remains more tried-and-true.

I couldn't stomach DQVII. I played I - IV (and loved them, except for the battle system in Chapter 5 of DQIV), and I haven't gotten around to playing DQV and DQVI (translated ROMs - they haven't been rereleased in English yet, have they?). DQVII was WAY too cartoony for me. My friend had it and I played it for a while, but the kiddy-type cartoony environment never did settle well with me. That's why I was glad when FF decided to go with more realistic and let DQ be anime/cartoony. Just my preference.

Finally, be aware the FF Adventure was actually the first Seiken Densetsu game (now known as Sword of Mana via the GBA remake)

That, I did know. I know they were originally going to call Secret of Mana, Final Fantasy Adventure II, but decided on SoM instead. FFA was always a fun play back on the ol' black and white GB, though.

and the three FF Legend games were all SaGa games.

That, however, I didn't know. Never played those, myself.

Since FF was already popular over here, Squaresoft decided to capitalize on the name.

Milkin' the old cash cow.

Wrong. In most FF games, you can split the current Party between two players.

Sheesh. Talk about your technicalities. Okay, yes, it's a completely multiplayer game. In fact, it is nigh impossible to beat FFIV without using two people, because it's definitely designed around a multi-player environment. I had to hook up with my friend in Phoenix to be able to beat Zeromus because my party wasn't powerful enough without him tapping in.[/sarcasm]

Happy?

The difference here is that Blizzard's battle.net is simply a connection service. Once the game starts, battle.net doesn't have to remain active.

In MMORPG's, there are central servers runned and maintained by the game producers. These servers must be running constantly.

Ah, good point. I didn't think of that.

~Wolfgang

Brainiac · #45 Post by **Brainiac** » Sat Jul 17, 2004 3:32 am

ARGH! Never speak the name of You-Know-Who, the bane of FFIV players everywhere!

PumpkinChick · #46 Post by **PumpkinChick** » Sat Jul 17, 2004 3:44 am

Brainiac wrote:What is your alter-ego in FFXI?

Alter-ego? Like my character? I have two...an elvaan red mage/warrior/monk and a mithra (cat girl) white mage/black mage.

Do you know what the summons of XII will be called (Totema, perhaps)?

No, I don't know much about XII. Just that there's a bunny girl.

And the battle system is somewhat like FFXI's.

Are you anxiously awaiting the next XI expansion?

No, because it just opens up new areas and missions, and neither of my characters are at a high enough level to complete any of this missions, and probably not high enough to even enter any of the new areas. I might consider buying it once I've completed the missions off the last expansion pack (Rise of the Zilart, which came with the US release of the game), but until then, it's pretty useless to me.

Brainiac · #47 Post by **Brainiac** » Sat Jul 17, 2004 4:01 am

PumpkinChick wrote:No, I don't know much about XII. Just that there's a bunny girl.

She's a Viera, and she'll thank you to keep that in mind.

I take it you haven't played Tactics Advance, then?

Wolfgang Abenteuer · #48 Post by **Wolfgang Abenteuer** » Sat Jul 17, 2004 4:01 am

PumpkinChick wrote:No, I don't know much about XII. Just that there's a bunny girl. And the battle system is somewhat like FFXI's.

I thought FFXI was going to be the only online one, and they were going back to the "normal" offline play with FFXII. It's been a while since I've checked any news on it, though.

I wonder what the revenues are for FFXI compared to FFX and FFX-2. I would imagine, given that the game and the service has to be bought, it's more profitable over the long run than any offline game. Normally, once a game is bought, then that's it. Revenues peter out after the first few months to a half year of the release of the game and then the developers/publishers don't earn much more from the title after that. Now, with FFXI, since there's the monthly charge in addition to the inital cost of the product (including expansions), you'd think the revenues would not only be much greater overall, but more consistant and for much much longer. Granted, they have more expenses with keeping the servers online and running constantly, plus maintenance on those, but obviously the revenues generated from the fees would exceed that or they would lose money on the whole thing (which few companies would continue to do for very long), but you've got to think this is a pretty decent sort of cash flow for Square-Enix. I wouldn't be surprised if future FF titles would be delayed in the interest of making more expansions for FFXI, since it's much more profitiable and, once it's up and running, it's quite stable to keep going.

And here's where I stop thinking aloud to myself and you guys go back to discussing...whatever the damn topic was before my post.

~Wolfgang

Brainiac · #49 Post by **Brainiac** » Sat Jul 17, 2004 4:06 am

Wolfgang Abenteuer wrote:I thought FFXI was going to be the only online one, and they were going back to the "normal" offline play with FFXII. It's been a while since I've checked any news on it, though.

Don't worry, Wolfgang; it will be offline.

Jafar · #50 Post by **Jafar** » Sat Jul 17, 2004 4:08 am

And here's where I stop thinking aloud to myself and you guys go back to discussing...whatever the damn topic was before my post

I think it was rabbits.

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