I just covered a lot of information, but even though it is a summary of the Final Fantasy history, I can see a pattern, and I show it in the following table:
Final Fantasy I:
Well-received, pulled Square from bankruptcy, invented jrpg
Final Fantasy II:
Well-received, but reviews mixed as jrpg formula was explored
Final Fantasy III
Well-received, but reviews mixed as jrpg formula was explored
Final Fantasy IV:
Very good, jrpg formula well-developed, called one of greatest games ever
Final Fantasy V:
Well-received, but reviews mixed as excellent gameplay overshadowed shallow story
Final Fantasy VI:
Extremely good, called one of greatest games ever
Final Fantasy VII:
Extremely good, called one of greatest games ever, possibly best ever, cult following
Xenogears:
Very good, very complex story, one of my favorite games ever, cult following
Final Fantasy VIII:
Extremely good, beginning and ending cutscenes considered to be among greatest in gaming
Final Fantasy IX:
Extremely good, nostalgic feel caused divide in East and West perceptions
Final Fantasy X:
Extremely good, but high linearity criticized by some
Kingdom Hearts:
Very good, unexpectedly brilliant combination of Final Fantasy and Disney
Final Fantasy X-2:
Well-made game, but generally considered by fans to not exist
Kingdom Hearts II:
Extremely good, more brilliant combinations of Final Fantasy and Disney
Final Fantasy XII:
Extremely good, but music and high linearity criticized by some
Final Fantasy XIII:
East good, West mixed; technically brilliant, high linearity, other elements poor compared to predecessors
Final Fantasy XIII-2:
East good, West mixed; 'repairs XIII', filler content shallow, high non-linearity; derided for stalling XIII Versus
Final Fantasy XIII Versus:
Extremely highly anticipated
From this list, it appears that major criticisms were first leveled at the series in Final Fantasy X. What happened there? Examine the following list for what I believe to be a significant series alteration:
Final Fantasy I:
World map allows exploration with controllable airship mid-story
Final Fantasy II:
World map allows exploration with controllable airship mid-story
Final Fantasy III
World map allows exploration with controllable airship mid-story
Final Fantasy IV:
World map allows exploration with controllable airship mid-story
Final Fantasy V:
World map allows exploration with controllable airship mid-story
Final Fantasy VI:
World map allows exploration with controllable airship mid-story
Final Fantasy VII:
World map allows exploration with controllable airship mid-story
Xenogears:
World map allows exploration with controllable airship mid-story
Final Fantasy VIII:
World map allows exploration with controllable airship mid-story
Final Fantasy IX:
World map allows exploration with controllable airship mid-story
Final Fantasy X:
No world map, so no exploration of world with controllable airship
Kingdom Hearts:
World map allows exploration with controllable airship mid-story
Final Fantasy X-2:
No world map, so no exploration of world with controllable airship
Kingdom Hearts II:
World map allows exploration with controllable airship mid-story
Final Fantasy XII:
No world map, so no exploration of world with controllable airship
Final Fantasy XIII:
No world map, so no exploration of world with controllable airship
Final Fantasy XIII-2:
No world map, so no exploration of world with controllable airship
Final Fantasy XIII Versus:
World map and controllable airship rumored, but not certain
Do you see the pattern here? Highly-linear Final Fantasy titles arose at the precise time that an explorable world map was removed. I do not believe that this is coincidence. The purpose of the explorable world map was EXPLORATION. Looking into every little room and every little corner in a game is not exploration in my opinion; that is nit-picky and completionist. By 'exploration' I mean 'discovering entirely new areas of the world that are different than all the others and that you are not necessarily supposed to be at yet storywise'. Exploration allows discovery of something you don't expect at a time that even the developers did not foresee. It allows a sense of immersion in the world. Removing a connecting environment between important areas segments the world, removes immersion, and summarizes events. Some games are fine with this and work in a justification such as being at a central location and having to take an aircraft to each new location, but other games suffer. I think that Final Fantasy, as well as some notable Western rpgs (Mass Effect 2, Dragon Age 2), have all suffered from a delusion that interconnecting environments should be removed. I say that removing it compartmentalizes segments a game that prides itself on world immersion. Now I ask who is responsible for this decision. The high linearity has been justified in Final Fantasy because it allows the writers more control over the story. Thus I conclude that the decision for high linearity either lies with the head director, the head writer, or both. Consider the following list to pick out a pattern:
Final Fantasy I:
Director(s): Hironobu Sakaguchi
Writer(s): Hironobu Sakaguchi, Kenji Terada
Final Fantasy II:
Director(s): Hironobu Sakaguchi
Writer(s): Hironobu Sakaguchi, Kenji Terada
Final Fantasy III
Director(s): Hironobu Sakaguchi
Writer(s): Hironobu Sakaguchi, Kenji Terada
Final Fantasy IV:
Director(s): Hironobu Sakaguchi
Writer(s): Hironobu Sakaguchi, Takashi Tokita
Final Fantasy V:
Director(s): Hironobu Sakaguchi
Writer(s): Hironobu Sakaguchi, Yoshinori Kitase
Final Fantasy VI:
Director(s): Yoshinori Kitase, Hiroyuki Ito
Writer(s): Hironobu Sakaguchi
Final Fantasy VII:
Director(s): Yoshinori Kitase
Writer(s): Yoshinori Kitase, Hironobu Sakaguchi, Kazushige Nojima, Tetsuya Nomura
Xenogears:
Director(s): Tetsuya Takahashi
Writer(s): Tetsuya Takahashi , Maori Tanak, Masato Kato
Final Fantasy VIII:
Director(s): Yoshinori Kitase
Writer(s): Yoshinori Kitase, Kazushige Nojima, Tetsuya Nomura
Final Fantasy IX:
Director(s): Hiroyuki Ito
Writer(s): Hiroyuki Ito , Hironobu Sakaguchi
Final Fantasy X:
Director(s): Motomu Toriyama, Takayoshi Nakazata, Toshiro Tsuchida
Writer(s): Kazuchige Nojima
Kingdom Hearts:
Director(s): Tetsuya Nomura
Writer(s): (unable to determine)
Final Fantasy X-2:
Director(s): Motomu Toriyama
Writer(s): Kazuchige Nojima, Daisuke Watanabe
Kingdom Hearts II:
Director(s): Tetsuya Nomura
Writer(s): Tetsuya Nomura , Kazuchige Nojima, Daisuke Watanabe
Final Fantasy XII:
Director(s): Hiroyuki Ito, Hiroshi Minigawa
Writer(s): Daisuke Watanabe, Miwa Shoda, Jun Akiyama, Yasumi Matsuno
Final Fantasy XIII:
Director(s): Motomu Toriyama
Writer(s): Daisuke Watanabe, Motomu Toriyama
Final Fantasy XIII-2:
Director(s): Motomu Toriyama
Writer(s): Daisuke Watanabe
Final Fantasy XIII Versus:
Director(s): Tetsuya Nomura
Writer(s): Tetsuya Nomura, Kazuchige Nojima
I conclude from this list that the best Final Fantasy games or side projects resulted from having a head writer also direct the game's development. In doing so, the person or persons who are creating the world in their heads and on paper can have control over how the world is created digitally. Although the disconnect between director and writer first occurred at Final Fantasy X, I personally liked the game, and it is my favorite Final Fantasy title just behind Final Fantasy VI. The disconnect between director and writer only worked well in this one example though, and in X-2, XII, XIII, and XIII-2, the disconnect becomes apparent to me and the story focus alters significantly. Consider the following list for clarification of what I mean by a disconnect in goal:
Final Fantasy I:
Save world from evil force
Final Fantasy II:
Save world from evil force
Final Fantasy III
Save world from evil force
Final Fantasy IV:
Save world from empire and evil force
Final Fantasy V:
Save world from evil force
Final Fantasy VI:
Save world from empire and evil force
Final Fantasy VII:
Save world from evil force
Xenogears:
Save world from empire and evil force
Final Fantasy VIII:
Save world from evil force
Final Fantasy IX:
Save world from evil force
Final Fantasy X:
Save world from incarnation of man's sin (basically evil force)
Kingdom Hearts:
Save world from evil force
Final Fantasy X-2:
Hunt for treasure, dance, sing maybe, perhaps bring boyfriend back into existence
Kingdom Hearts II:
Save world from evil force
Final Fantasy XII:
Save world from empire
Final Fantasy XIII:
Save main characters' free will (maybe save a few million people while you're at it)
Final Fantasy XIII-2:
Find a main character from previous game (maybe save world by repairing space time)
Final Fantasy XIII Versus:
Save world from empires and (likely) evil force
I hope you can see the changes to game feel when a director and writer have to compromise on the goal of the game. I conclude that Motomu Toriyama and (possibly) writer Daisuke Watanabe are right in the middle of the Final Fantasy titles that have upset the Western gamer.