Why has the Final Fantasy franchise lost its edge?

1. 73

   EJ Lambertposted 10 years ago

   Why has the Final Fantasy franchise lost its edge?
   
   There was a time when gamers couldn't conceive of life without the Final Fantasy series.  Now the once great franchise is an afterthought.  Why is that?
   
   

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2. 59

   ashkeoghposted 10 years ago

   As a kid I was mesmerized by the first ff I played on ps2 boy it was great...now. They need to let the franchise die there is only so much you can take of Japanese RPGs

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   1. 73

      EJ Lambertposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      That seems like the logical answer.  It just seems like the franchise hasn't been able to adapt to the new systems.  They aren't willing to re-imagine their platform and try something new.  It's too bad.

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3. 75

   Chris Quposted 10 years ago

   The desire to do something different instead of doing something that worked alienated a lot of its fans. What made games like FF7 and FFX masterpieces, was that they embraced the JRPG genre, and perfected it. Strong gameplay, engaging stories, memorable characters, the works. Somewhere along the line, Square stopped doing that, though.
   
   They are of the opinion that "different and bad" is better than "derivative, but very good." It's not true though. Which is why Lost Odyssey was so much better-received than Final Fantasy XIII.
   
   Fans of classic Final Fantasy still appreciate a good JRPG, and I'm sure they'd be delighted if Square went back to making them. It's just, these days they tend to get those from companies like Atlus. Test the waters, and gauge peoples' interest. Is there more optimism for Persona 5, or for Final Fantasy XV?

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   1. 73

      EJ Lambertposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Lost Odyssey was unreal.  The depth of the story took me by surprise.  I would be totally okay if they made more games like that.

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4. 76

   JohnGreasyGamerposted 10 years ago

   I think what made certain FF games for me was that they were easy to get into. Take FF7 for example - a completely different story to anything else in the game's universe (as far as I know, I'm hardly an FF buff) with explosive gameplay, gorgeous FMVs, brilliant dialogue and a loveable cast. Characters like Tifa, Sephiroth and Barrett can really tug at your heartstrings at times. Now, I find the games are all about big monsters with big guns and big explosions and big cars and big cities. There's no depth to the amount of fluff, and the designers are afraid to move on. FF is not revolutionary outside of its graphics, whereas before it completely changed the way we look at turn-based RPGs, interacting with characters and resource management whilst in combat.
   
   Ask yourself this: you've done everything you can with FF, but people will pay for more. Why put a bullet in the cash cow when it's healthy and has more than enough milk for years to come?

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   1. 75

      Chris Quposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      You have to be careful with that way of thinking though. Final Fantasy 14  so poorly received that their stock values were completely slashed by its release. People are more receptive to the FF games, but they are not blinded by them. Not anymore.

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   2. 73

      EJ Lambertposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      I think gaming companies don't give customers enough credit to know when they're being ripped off.  The same thing happened to me with Command and Conquer 4.  What a travesty compared to its predecessors.

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5. 80

   Souther29posted 10 years ago

   Every time a new Final Fantasy game was released I was so excited in the past.
   
   Final Fantasy XIII was pretty much an absolute mess. It was the first true Final Fantasy game for the PS3 and had big expectation thrust upon it (as it should). Despite graphically looking stunning as well as the well known jaw dropping cutscenes, there were just too many bad changes to the formula as well as really bad pacing and actual boredom, which for me is a cardinal sin for any game. So many people were involved in its development, so lack of communication and a solid direction is why it just didn't work - too many cooks basically.
   
   Luckily XIII-2 was a much improved sequel after consumer feedback was recognised focussing on a few key characters rather than trying to appease everyone with a 'demographic pleasing selection' like the first. The issue is that many big franchises are thinking of their bottom line, extending franchises for no good reason, then thinking of the story as an afterthought.
   
   Lightning Returns is the final game in the 'saga' for the PS3 and I certainly haven't got the buzz or bought into any hype quite yet.

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   1. 73

      EJ Lambertposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      I really believe the franchise lost its magic when Nobuo Uematsu retired as the music coordinator.  Once that part of the formula was gone, everything else just sort of fell apart.

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6. 0

   Zynkahposted 10 years ago

   i think the reason final fantasy is not as epic as it was when i was growing up playing it because the older games really focused on the character story building and you had a more open map with more side game options. plus there was more customizing the individual character itself.

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