Is Final Fantasy 4 (FF2 SNES) still the best JRPG ever?

While I love Final Fantasy IV, I'll be the first one to admit that it wasen't even the best JRPG of its generation. Did it break new ground in storytelling in JRPGs and try to have unique characters? Did it try to evolve the turn based battle system common in RPGs of that era? The answer to those is yes, and FF IV deserves its place as an important milestone in JRPGs.

But the game is far from perfect and in some place falls short of FF III. Character customization is out of the window in FF IV and your characters(aside from Cecil) are locked into the same class for the entire game. Forget about custom parties to suit your needs, the game dictates who you keep based on the storyline.

I would say that Earthbound, Phantasy Star IV, Final Fantasy VI, Chrono Trigger and Dragon Quest V are all better games then Final Fantasy IV. Hell, it could even be argued that Final Fantasy V could be considered just as great or better then FF IV since V went in the opposite direction and focused on letting players create custom parties. FF V is a very strong game and outside of storyline and characters it matches or exceeds what Final Fantasy IV did.

FF IV is a classic but its far from being the best game in its genre. Did it help inspire future JRPGs and change the direction of the genre? Yes it did those things, but so did Final Fantasy I, Dragon Quest, and Phantasy Star.

Are we going to suddenly call those great, yet dated JRPGs the greatest of all time?

FF7 was the best, you just can't argue with that.ab_souss

FF7 was the best, you just can't argue with that.ab_souss

Thats the one with cecil the dark knight??? (Not sure =p)

Not the best, but 4 and 5 are fantastic games. Much better than 6.

[QUOTE="VendettaRed07"]

It really sucks that I dont think anyone else in here has mentioned a game that has come after 2000 for being the best jrpg ever instead of FF4

Chickan_117

I enjoyed Eternal Sonata and loved Crisis Core however I wouldn't say either are the BEST. The problem is that the JRPG format has been around so long it is hard for a current one to surpass it's predecessors in terms of qualifying. Most of the people who play JRPGs today are going to compare them to the ones they played years ago and it would be very difficult for a game to voercome the memories we have of first playing these games. Many of the big "breakthrus" in the genre are either WRPGs or FF13 type games. One doesn't qualify to compete with JRPGs and the other is not widely held as an example of where JRPGs should go... or even if it is a JRPG anymore.

I don't agree. i Played chrono trigger for the first time a few years ago, and that was the first time i had EVER touched the game. And i still rank it as one of the best JRPG's i have ever played. While nostalgia may be a big factor with many people, i still feel the gameplay, speed of the game, storyline were far more involving in a game like chrono trigger over games today!

I recently purchased a DSi because I was asked to be a touring guitar player for a nationwide radio tour and I take 15 flights a week and the first game I bought was FF4 because of the fond memories I have of it from my youth. It is still engaging, gripping and groundbreaking in its story and gameplay, mostly its balancing and thought that goes in to each battle. I love chrono trigger and the other FF's in that vein, but I've played a lot of JRPG's over the years and I'm gonna maintain that FF4 is still the pinnacle of the genre. Every JRPG since pulls from this game...

TheEroica

[QUOTE="ab_souss"]FF7 was the best, you just can't argue with that.siLVURcross

NO!!!!:P When it comes down to which is the best FF its always going to be split since every game is different. So some will like or dislike some.

I recently purchased a DSi because I was asked to be a touring guitar player for a nationwide radio tour and I take 15 flights a week and the first game I bought was FF4 because of the fond memories I have of it from my youth. It is still engaging, gripping and groundbreaking in its story and gameplay, mostly its balancing and thought that goes in to each battle. I love chrono trigger and the other FF's in that vein, but I've played a lot of JRPG's over the years and I'm gonna maintain that FF4 is still the pinnacle of the genre. Every JRPG since pulls from this game...

TheEroica

[QUOTE="ab_souss"]FF7 was the best, you just can't argue with that.siLVURcross

You can close the thread now. It has been decided.

[QUOTE="ab_souss"]FF7 was the best, you just can't argue with that.texasgoldrush

Haha, you better believe they did at one point in time.

I'm sorry but Ultros just wins this thread. FF VI is far better than 4, for so many reasons other than Ultros...but he just takes the cake.

Remember kids, Don't tease the Octopus!

[QUOTE="siLVURcross"][QUOTE="ab_souss"]FF7 was the best, you just can't argue with that.finalfantasy94

NO!!!!:P When it comes down to which is the best FF its always going to be split since every game is different. So some will like or dislike some.

[QUOTE="finalfantasy94"]

[QUOTE="siLVURcross"] Course I can by saying FF9 was the best.Ragnarok1051

NO!!!!:P When it comes down to which is the best FF its always going to be split since every game is different. So some will like or dislike some.

The battles are kind of weak.

It's not even the best Final Fantasy game, IMO. Try playing Chrono Trigger, Grandia, or FF VIII and IX. Personally, I think JRPGs have come a long way and the more modern ones like Persona 3 and 4 are really great.

[QUOTE="texasgoldrush"][QUOTE="ab_souss"]FF7 was the best, you just can't argue with that.hakanakumono

Haha, you better believe they did at one point in time.

[QUOTE="hakanakumono"]

[QUOTE="texasgoldrush"] not says IGN, Gamespy, or Gamesradar.texasgoldrush

Haha, you better believe they did at one point in time.

You should love gamesradar, they gave FFXIII a perfect 10.

[QUOTE="texasgoldrush"][QUOTE="hakanakumono"]

Haha, you better believe they did at one point in time.

hakanakumono

You should love gamesradar, they gave FFXIII a perfect 10.

[QUOTE="texasgoldrush"][QUOTE="hakanakumono"]

Haha, you better believe they did at one point in time.

You should love gamesradar, they gave FFXIII a perfect 10.

[QUOTE="hakanakumono"]

[QUOTE="texasgoldrush"] one point in time, but not now. In fact, Gamesradar has a love and hate relationship with FFVII.luis1972

You should love gamesradar, they gave FFXIII a perfect 10.

lmao... True...

god. Idk how anyone could play that game for more than a few hours. I only got about 14 in before I just couldnt take it anymore it was absolute torture.. People were like BLAH yYOU DONT KNOW WHAT YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT IT OPENS UP GREATLY 30 HOURS IN......

Really?.... OH yeah Im going to torture my self for 16 more hours of doing nothing but battling, battling and more battling in hopes that the game becomes slightly less monotonous.. Yeah sounds great lol

[QUOTE="luis1972"][QUOTE="hakanakumono"]

You should love gamesradar, they gave FFXIII a perfect 10.

VendettaRed07

lmao... True...

god. Idk how anyone could play that game for more than a few hours. I only got about 14 in before I just couldnt take it anymore it was absolute torture.. People were like BLAH yYOU DONT KNOW WHAT YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT IT OPENS UP GREATLY 30 HOURS IN......

Really?.... OH yeah Im going to torture my self for 16 more hours of doing nothing but battling, battling and more battling in hopes that the game becomes slightly less monotonous.. Yeah sounds great lol

[QUOTE="hakanakumono"]

[QUOTE="texasgoldrush"] one point in time, but not now. In fact, Gamesradar has a love and hate relationship with FFVII.texasgoldrush

You should love gamesradar, they gave FFXIII a perfect 10.

Did they really?

[QUOTE="hakanakumono"]

[QUOTE="texasgoldrush"]

You should love gamesradar, they gave FFXIII a perfect 10.

luis1972

I don't think it deserves a 10 either, but the reviewer thought it was a great game despite "no towns" and other things.

lmao... True...

god. Idk how anyone could play that game for more than a few hours. I only got about 14 in before I just couldnt take it anymore it was absolute torture.. People were like BLAH yYOU DONT KNOW WHAT YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT IT OPENS UP GREATLY 30 HOURS IN......

Really?.... OH yeah Im going to torture my self for 16 more hours of doing nothing but battling, battling and more battling in hopes that the game becomes slightly less monotonous.. Yeah sounds great lol

VendettaRed07

If you think FFXIII is monotonous, then I'd hate to see what you think of other games in the series.

i liked final fantasies 6,7,9, and 10 after that they went downhill with the mmo and 12 and 13 dissappointed me greatly. I am of the school of if you make it real time go all the way dont go half way and then make me do all the work of setting crap up just let me control them all or just give me control of one person and make the comp intelligent enough to not get itself killed. Best final fantasy is between 6 and 10 for me. And to answer another question i like tales of vesperia and lost oddyssy for this gen and last gen i liked final fantasy 10 10-2 and tales of the abyss and tales of symphonia

It was the best, until FFVII and IX came.

Chrono Trigger, Xenogears, Vagrant Story and Parasite Eve most definitely disagree. As does even FFVI.

If this is going to just be a thread about which FF is better...then I'll just put down my opinion and leave

FF1-6 > FF7-13

And out of that FF1-6, I did enjoy FF4 and FF6 equally

If this is going to just be a thread about which FF is better...then I'll just put down my opinion and leave

FF1-6 > FF7-13

And out of that FF1-6, I did enjoy FF4 and FF6 equally

TalesofRaGnArOk

I'm getting pretty sick of the whole "old school FF > new FF." The only good old school FF's were 4 and 6.

[QUOTE="TalesofRaGnArOk"]

If this is going to just be a thread about which FF is better...then I'll just put down my opinion and leave

FF1-6 > FF7-13

And out of that FF1-6, I did enjoy FF4 and FF6 equally

I'm getting pretty sick of the whole "old school FF > new FF." The only good old school FF's were 4 and 6.

[QUOTE="TheEroica"]

I recently purchased a DSi because I was asked to be a touring guitar player for a nationwide radio tour and I take 15 flights a week and the first game I bought was FF4 because of the fond memories I have of it from my youth. It is still engaging, gripping and groundbreaking in its story and gameplay, mostly its balancing and thought that goes in to each battle. I love chrono trigger and the other FF's in that vein, but I've played a lot of JRPG's over the years and I'm gonna maintain that FF4 is still the pinnacle of the genre. Every JRPG since pulls from this game...

lucky_star

Only to "fans" of the series....:roll:

The best one is the one that started it all....the FIRST Final Fantasy.

[QUOTE="Ziek-AAT"]

[QUOTE="TalesofRaGnArOk"]

If this is going to just be a thread about which FF is better...then I'll just put down my opinion and leave

FF1-6 > FF7-13

And out of that FF1-6, I did enjoy FF4 and FF6 equally

texasgoldrush

I'm getting pretty sick of the whole "old school FF > new FF." The only good old school FF's were 4 and 6.

FF1....great?

You serious? omg...

[QUOTE="Ziek-AAT"]

[QUOTE="TalesofRaGnArOk"]

If this is going to just be a thread about which FF is better...then I'll just put down my opinion and leave

FF1-6 > FF7-13

And out of that FF1-6, I did enjoy FF4 and FF6 equally

texasgoldrush

I'm getting pretty sick of the whole "old school FF > new FF." The only good old school FF's were 4 and 6.

This is actually true.

[QUOTE="texasgoldrush"][QUOTE="Ziek-AAT"]

I'm getting pretty sick of the whole "old school FF > new FF." The only good old school FF's were 4 and 6.

Raymundo_Manuel

FF1....great?

You serious? omg...

Maybe it doesn't stack up to modern standards, but it's a good game.

FF1....great?

You serious? omg...

Raymundo_Manuel

It is...it IS the game that saved Squaresoft from financial bankruptcy and has the spirit of Sakaguichi, Umetsu, Amano, and various programmers and artists with their jobs on the line to make what they felt was their last masterpiece.

A simple story of 4 heroes banishing the world of evil, a simple story, yet the most cherished story. No Kefkas, no Sephiroths...no WHICH CHARACTER IS TEH POPULARZ, or which story is "DEEP"...FFI represented the core theme of good vs evil in the most SIMPLEST form. And for that it earns itself as the BEST.

[QUOTE="Raymundo_Manuel"]

FF1....great?

You serious? omg...

Zanoh

It is...it IS the game that saved Squaresoft from financial bankrupcty and has the spirit of Sakaguichi, Umetsu, Amano, and various programmers and artists with their jobs on the line to make what they felt was their last masterpiece.

A simple story of 4 heroes banishing the world of evil, a simple story, yet the most cherished story. No Kefkas, no Sephiroths...no WHICH CHARACTER IS TEH POPULARZ, or which story is "DEEP"...FFI represented the core theme of good vs evil in the most SIMPLEST form. And for that it earns itself as the BEST.

So you think FFI is better than later games because it's shallow and subscribes to nonexistent concepts devised to manipulate people?

[QUOTE="texasgoldrush"][QUOTE="Ziek-AAT"]

I'm getting pretty sick of the whole "old school FF > new FF." The only good old school FF's were 4 and 6.

Raymundo_Manuel

FF1....great?

You serious? omg...

I enjoyed the first 2 Final Fantasies very, very much

Great games in their own right

Anyone who says otherwise I guess really is too "New school" to have good taste

The original NES version of FFI is great, the ports are not.texasgoldrush

Hey, hey now. Let's not get crazy.

[QUOTE="Zanoh"]

[QUOTE="Raymundo_Manuel"]

FF1....great?

You serious? omg...

hakanakumono

It is...it IS the game that saved Squaresoft from financial bankrupcty and has the spirit of Sakaguichi, Umetsu, Amano, and various programmers and artists with their jobs on the line to make what they felt was their last masterpiece.

A simple story of 4 heroes banishing the world of evil, a simple story, yet the most cherished story. No Kefkas, no Sephiroths...no WHICH CHARACTER IS TEH POPULARZ, or which story is "DEEP"...FFI represented the core theme of good vs evil in the most SIMPLEST form. And for that it earns itself as the BEST.

So you think FFI is better than later games because it's shallow and subscribes to nonexistent concepts devised to manipulate people?

No, it is better for what it stood for: a Last Stand....when you plug in the cartridge and hear it in 8 bit form and the story it told as simple (and not highly complex as our games are now) story. 4 heroes versus the Chaos of the world.

[QUOTE="hakanakumono"]

[QUOTE="Zanoh"]

It is...it IS the game that saved Squaresoft from financial bankrupcty and has the spirit of Sakaguichi, Umetsu, Amano, and various programmers and artists with their jobs on the line to make what they felt was their last masterpiece.

A simple story of 4 heroes banishing the world of evil, a simple story, yet the most cherished story. No Kefkas, no Sephiroths...no WHICH CHARACTER IS TEH POPULARZ, or which story is "DEEP"...FFI represented the core theme of good vs evil in the most SIMPLEST form. And for that it earns itself as the BEST.

Zanoh

So you think FFI is better than later games because it's shallow and subscribes to nonexistent concepts devised to manipulate people?

No, it is better for what it stood for: a Last Stand....when you plug in the cartridge and hear it in 8 bit form and the story it told as simple (and not highly complex as our games are now) story. 4 heroes versus the Chaos of the world.

So FFI's superiority rides on the fact that it saved Square from financial failure and because it's shallow?

^ Lol beat me to it. FF4 was good and all but I do not it to be the best JRPG title. It's not even in my top ten JRPGs.

You know what was better than FFI? Pong. None of those complex classes, stats, levels, and magic. None of those colored graphics. Just a simple game of a ball being hit back and forth. No story, just simple fun.

[QUOTE="Zanoh"]

[QUOTE="hakanakumono"]

So you think FFI is better than later games because it's shallow and subscribes to nonexistent concepts devised to manipulate people?

hakanakumono

No, it is better for what it stood for: a Last Stand....when you plug in the cartridge and hear it in 8 bit form and the story it told as simple (and not highly complex as our games are now) story. 4 heroes versus the Chaos of the world.

So FFI's superiority rides on the fact that it saved Square from financial failure and because it's shallow?

Again you fail to see the point. It is the best because of it's simplistic nature. What you dub shallow, it actually wasn't. It was a story engrossed with a tale of four heroes saving the world by bringing the light back to the four crystals of the world and the evil that is trying to merge the universe of time and dimension together into one.

It brought us the slew of final fantasy games to follow, Without one, there wouldn't be a final fantasy 4, 6, 7, or 9.

[QUOTE="texasgoldrush"][QUOTE="Ziek-AAT"]

I'm getting pretty sick of the whole "old school FF > new FF." The only good old school FF's were 4 and 6.

Raymundo_Manuel

FF1....great?

You serious? omg...