The original Final Fantasy was thought to be the last game Square would ever release, giving the game its name. However, the game proved successful and saved the company from bankruptcy, going on to have 15 main titles and numerous spinoffs that have experimented with various genres, keeping the company not only alive but thriving since 1987.

Of any of the franchise's titles, spinoffs included, what are your favorite and least favorite and why?

I'd have to say two of the games I'd rate the highest would be Final Fantasy XII and Final Fantasy Tactics.

Final Fantasy XII probably ranks in my top ten favorite games of all time. It was a move away from classic Final Fantasy gameplay and many argue it's flawed in that it doesn't have a real protagonist or they'll have complaints with the license board, but despite such a huge leap away from the formula, I think they pulled it all off excellently. The Gambit system places much more emphasis on strategy rather than reflex and timing, letting you set up a battle plan and automating as little or as much as you want.

Final Fantasy Tactics is one of my favorite tactical RPGs. The characters have personality, The plot's thick and paced reasonably well and it overall one of the greatest games on the PlayStation.


There are a lot of games in the Final Fantasy series which I haven't played extensively or at all, but at the moment, I really can't think of a title in the series I dislike more than Final Fantasy X-2. While Final Fantasy X's default to and inability to switch away from strictly turn-based combat might be a good introduction to the series for those of us who find their first experience with ATB (active time battle) overwhelming and don't have enough sense to look in the options and switch it to wait, but I found it lowered replay value because of how much it slowed the battles down. Final Fantasy X-2 return to ATB was a positive thing in my opinion, but that's about all I can say for it. Extending the Final Fantasy X story was a terrible decision and, if they were set on doing it, they should've given Jecht a game instead of focusing on the TidusXYuna ship. Final Fantasy X's atmosphere was serious and dark and its sequel is the equivalent of a 2001: A Space Odyssey J-pop Broadway musical. It should've been it's own game, not an extension of X. My opinion of it could change completely as I don't have much progress, but I haven't been ab le to make myself play it more than a couple hours yet.