Could Final Fantasy ever go back? (characters)

I was thoroughly annoyed with FFXIIIs characters. Not just the bad writing, but even the way they look. Now I'm seeing these videos for XIII-2 and even though they're really addressing the issues that FFXIII had as a game, the overall styIe of the characters just doesnt work for me.

It really sucks. I forced myself to deal with it among other issues and finish XIII, but I'm not sure if I can do it again. Not that you guys care, or should care, just stating my personal predicament.

Anybody think FF could ever be like this again?

A main character like this?

I mean why not do something like FFs 4, 5, 6, or 9?

I don't mean copy those games, but just step away from the androgynous male, spikey hair, clothes-ridiculous-for-the-sake-of -being-ridiculous look? Why not step away from the ditsy teen girl flailing her arms and squealing?

Do you think we will see another FF that doesnt have stuff like

This.

And this?

Or this?

Do you guys think SE could ever go back to high fantasy characters and settings while avoiding all the "anime" (for lack of a better description) cliche stuff they've been doing over the years?

Would you want them to as well? Am I just an old fart that cant appreciate this new ****?

Its coz they keep using that guy whats his face the Director of Versus ,its his art style that heavily influences FF these days if they had some else do the designs we would probably get different stuff.

Its coz they keep using that guy whats his face the Director of Versus ,its his art style that heavily influences FF these days if they had some else do the designs we would probably get different stuff.

musalala

Yeah Nomura -______-

I always wonder why SE gives him so much control, but people like his stuff I guess.

Is Amano no longer with SE? Or do they just keep him in the basement drawing logos?

FF12 was pretty high fantasy in some aspects with some more modernised tweaks to it :S

FF12 was pretty high fantasy in some aspects with some more modernised tweaks to it :S

razgriz_101

I'll admit XII wasnt bad at all. There were a few characters that were really cringe worthy, but not to the levels of XIII. Vaan and Penelo were never meant to be around in the first place, but SE forced them in.

And I did enjoy the setting.

I think the things that were introduced in 7 and 8 and even a little of 10 were ramped up and overdone in 13. I guess 13-2 just has to follow 13 by default, but Versus is looking to be even worse. I wonder if this is just their thing now?

Dont hold your breath.

Final Fantasy 6 was the last time I really loved all the characters in a FF game. Not to say the FFs since have had horrid casts, but its been a gradual decline with 13 being the crash.

Why are all the characters in 13 all a bunch of manic depressants. Whinge, cry, sneer is all the emotional content all the characters have.joojtzu

Pretty amazing that Square was able to put more personality, class and charm into voiceless sprites than SE can with fully rendered and voiced characters. Sad too. I know imagination has a bit to do with it. In a way you fill in the blanks in the old games, but they were still more interesting and relate-able.

[QUOTE="joojtzu"]Why are all the characters in 13 all a bunch of manic depressants. Whinge, cry, sneer is all the emotional content all the characters have.ConanTheStoner

Pretty amazing that Square was able to put more personality, class and charm into voiceless sprites than SE can with fully rendered and voiced characters. Sad too. I know imagination has a bit to do with it. In a way you fill in the blanks in the old games, but they were still more interesting and relate-able.

That picture of Vaan is absolutely terrifying.WithoutGraceXII

It looks like he is all oiled up :lol: and that pose classic

Final Fantasy 1-9 had anime based characters...after that they started making the characters look japanese more and more. I dislike that method because the anime characters were for the most part racially ambigious so I could connect with them. now I know for a fact they aren't me and am reminded by it at every turn.

I've about had it with people *****ing about FFXIII. Everything single thread that even hints at JRPGs contains at least a handful of people moaning about how terrible a game it is and how they miss (*insert favorite FF title here*). Y'know what? Nobody cares how much you hate FFXIII. Every criticism applied to it since its release has been established thousands of times over. So SE put out a FF that you don't like. Just wait for the next numbered installment. The best thing about the series is that each new numbered title is different. Chances are that you'll eventually get one you like again. So please, shut up already.KH-mixerX

We need more FF characters like this guy:

Even though he's not from 1-9, Auron is probably the most badass character the franchise has ever had. At the very least, he's top 3.

How it went from him to characters like Snow in a span of ten years is beyond me.

We need more FF characters like this guy:

Even though he's not from 1-9, Auron is probably the most badass character the franchise has ever had. At the very least, he's top 3.

How it went from him to characters like Snow in a span of ten years is beyond me.

We need more FF characters like this guy:

Even though he's not from 1-9, Auron is probably the most badass character the franchise has ever had. At the very least, he's top 3.

How it went from him to characters like Snow in a span of ten years is beyond me.

drinkerofjuice

Auron was a great character.

And KH Mixer you can gtfo my friend. You're the one that came in here raging.

You didnt see me in the "FFXIII2 on the horizon, so lets circle jerk about FFXIII" topic did you? No. You guys had your opinions and I left it alone.

Excuse me for having preference. Excuse me for disliking Nomuras tired styIe. Excuse me for sharing the same sentiments that so many other fans share. I should love every piece of sh*t that SE prints to disc these days, right?

**** off.

Final Fantasy 1-9 had anime based characters...after that they started making the characters look japanese more and more. I dislike that method because the anime characters were for the most part racially ambigious so I could connect with them. now I know for a fact they aren't me and am reminded by it at every turn.

WilliamRLBaker

thats slightly ironic a lot of western protaganists are deepely rooted in western conventions.

I've about had it with people *****ing about FFXIII. Everything single thread that even hints at JRPGs contains at least a handful of people moaning about how terrible a game it is and how they miss (*insert favorite FF title here*). Y'know what? Nobody cares how much you hate FFXIII. Every criticism applied to it since its release has been established thousands of times over. So SE put out a FF that you don't like. Just wait for the next numbered installment. The best thing about the series is that each new numbered title is different. Chances are that you'll eventually get one you like again. So please, shut up already.KH-mixerX

[QUOTE="KH-mixerX"]I've about had it with people *****ing about FFXIII. Everything single thread that even hints at JRPGs contains at least a handful of people moaning about how terrible a game it is and how they miss (*insert favorite FF title here*). Y'know what? Nobody cares how much you hate FFXIII. Every criticism applied to it since its release has been established thousands of times over. So SE put out a FF that you don't like. Just wait for the next numbered installment. The best thing about the series is that each new numbered title is different. Chances are that you'll eventually get one you like again. So please, shut up already.GloriousNippon

I laughed sooo hard :lol:....But you joking right ...obviously your joking ........ please tell me your joking :?

FFIV's characters weren't really that great. Moreover, FFIV had child characters too.

Is Amano no longer with SE? Or do they just keep him in the basement drawing logos?

sandbox3d

Why should they go back? I enjoy Nomura's designs. They are not archaic and dull like most Final Fantasy games before him. One of the reasons why I still think Final Fantasy 9 and 12 were so dull and uninspiring.

But then again, they are all personal preferences. To each their own.

FF6 / FF7 character look nothing like FF9

imo

FF4/FF9 had similar character that looked bad

cid looks horrible in ff4 ppl look horrible in ff9

i loved the spirtes in FF6

and i loved the character design in FF7

so basically FF6 and ff7 were well done an a few in ff4 were ok like kain/cecil

but i mean like still some looked horrible tellah looked bad cid looked bad porom/polom stupid

basically ff6 doesn't have any bad character an neither does ff7 they all are awesome

FF4/FF9 sucked for character imo so dont put them in the same boat as the good ones

FF6 / FF7 character look nothing like FF9

imo

FF4/FF9 had similar character that looked bad

cid looks horrible in ff4 ppl look horrible in ff9

i loved the spirtes in FF6

and i loved the character design in FF7

so basically FF6 and ff7 were well done an a few in ff4 were ok like kain/cecil

but i mean like still some looked horrible tellah looked bad cid looked bad porom/polom stupid

basically ff6 doesn't have any bad character an neither does ff7 they all are awesome

FF4/FF9 sucked for character imo so dont put them in the same boat as the good ones

ZarbonX

I enjoy Nomura's designs. They are not archaic and dull

hayato_

That's funny, because he has been rehashing the same designs for well over a decade now.

I enjoy the characters in FFXIII.

But anyways I think they will go back sometime.

If i want to see people that just look like regular people I will go outside. Yes bring back the old FF look. (LOVED 9s look!)

The men of Final Fantasy have always looked girly. The old school character had even more effemnite appearances, you just didn't see it since the limitations of the hardware. The character design is the least of Final Fantasy's problems today.vashkey

I agree that character design is one of FFs lesser problems these days, but I think you need a refresher.

The men of FFVI.

Locke and Setzer are the worst offenders, but still not as bad as most of what has come after.

I dont really want to post pics from each game to make my point, but here is a link to a site that has it all in order.

http://www.ffcompendium.com/h/ff4characters.shtml

If i want to see people that just look like regular people I will go outside. Yes bring back the old FF look. (LOVED 9s look!)

mojito1988

Yes!

FFIV's characters weren't really that great. Moreover, FFIV had child characters too.

hakanakumono

Does that somehow make it bad? I'd rather hang with a witty couple of kids than a bunch of teens that are either angsty, depressed, or oblivious.

it could be worse....much...much worse i actually like snow and lightning campzor

We need sakaguchi back, since he left at the end of 10, the games havent been the same. Not saying theyre bad, but not on the calibre of the restfirebolt53

I agree. I'm not one of these people that thinks the Gooch was responsible for all the awesomeness, but it seems he was that extra ingredient that made each dish turn out just right.

Why should they go back? I enjoy Nomura's designs. They are not archaic and dull like most Final Fantasy games before him. One of the reasons why I still think Final Fantasy 9 and 12 were so dull and uninspiring.

But then again, they are all personal preferences. To each their own.

hayato_

I agree with the red. I like the old styIe, but obviously many like the new.

I think the blue is a load of ****. At least Amano has a bit of range with his characters and clothing. His styIe is instantly recognizable, but within his styIe there has been so much variation over the years.

Nomura is a one hit wonder and keeps recycling his designs. When he tries to step outside his box he just exaggerates his same old tired aesthetics to an even more laughable degree rather than doing anything original. At this point his designs make it look like he has a library of heads, hair, feet and clothing accessories that he simply kit bashes together on the fly.

And TC, I gave up on this idea years ago. Something drastic would have to happen for SE to change things up. It is funny though. They keep saying they desperately want to appeal to regions outside of Japan (mainly the US), but they don't realize (or don't care) that the character designs in FFXIII, XIII-2 and Versus are probably the biggest issues with their reception.

And yes, you are an old fart. The younger generation is probably just as disgusted by the old styIe as you are by the new.

I thought Sazh and Hope (however whiney he may be) were some of the best characters to date.

Did I like Hope? No, not at all, I hated him lol. But still, he was one of the better developed characters in XIII.

Sazh is awesome. Nuff said.

I think it's time to let go of the old man. Final Fantasy is as good as ever. Roll with the good times.

I remember Balthier was the last character I really liked. Every other chracter in that game sucked imo, but Balthier really made it for me, but I digress.

But yeah, the characters of final fantasy of late have been really really weird, but then again...It's Japan. So....

No ff7 or ff10 ? if anything go back to this magicness again.

No ff7 or ff10 ? if anything go back to this magicness again.

JETS-JETS-JETS

FF 10 I can agree with..

but FF7 had some damn awful characters. :(

No ff7 or ff10 ? if anything go back to this magicness again.

JETS-JETS-JETS

I love both games, but each one still carries some of those designs I dislike. I mainly left out VII because even though I enjoyed it, it is the game that introduced a lot of what I dislike in the series today.

Sure, I would love it! Characters in the past were much more diverse. :)

They should tone down on the uber feminineness and go back to stuff like this:

^^^ Yes ^^^

I dont see why people are trying to act as if the old is as bad about it as the new.

Sure, I would love it! Characters in the past were much more diverse. :)

bbkkristian

I know!