mousebiscuit
Chocobo Breeder
Hi everyone. I've been playing the FF series since it's very first incarnation on the 8-bit NES (Famicom) system and have been with the series and other Squaresoft (now Square-Enix) for literally most of my life. I have seen the FF series grow from a rather basic, D&D inspired level-grinder into a platform for magnificent storytelling and cutting edge graphics.
However, I did not come here to heap Square with praise. Quite the contrary, I've come to express how utterly disgusted I am with them and how I feel that they have become a company who exploits it's adoring fan base for profit, and who's products have taken a severe dip in quality in terms of storytelling and the use of compelling (and even controversial) themes.
Once upon a time I would of never found myself writing this. I would of been beaming with joy at all the amazing games that Square was producing, games like FF6, Crono Trigger, Super Mario RPG, FF7, FF Tactics, and Xenogears. But slowly, insidiously, something went terribly wrong. For me it all started with FF8. Whereas FF7 was a game which pushed taboos (such as your main characters being a group of eco-terrorists, something which hardly any game company these days would have the chutzpah to do) FF8 seemed to avoid these taboos altogether, instead favouring a more teen-friendly approach. (Also note the disparity between the characters Cloud and Squall. Despite their similiar names they are quite different. Cloud is angry for a reason, whereas Squall is merely an unlikeable jerk.) FF9 was a breath of fresh air, as I appreciated the light-hearted nature of it's characters and environment, and the gameplay, although traditional, was to me much more fun than what 8 had to offer.
Then came FFX.
Where do I begin? The insipid, moronic characters? The dull, meandering plotline? Ultra-linear (even tunnel like) area design? How about the atrocious English voice overs, a glaring hack job if ever there was one? The game has one redeeming quality, and that's the graphics. Otherwise it heralded the death of a franchise and the beginning of something new, something dreadful...
FF-Lite.
I will not even go into further detail into the mess that is FFX and it's horrific sequel, FFX2. Nor will I talk about FFXI, the uninspired online grind-fest that is Square's attempt at making a mark in the MMO arena. (I will however mention that their decision to force players into paying for extra character slots, seeing as that you initially only have one, is exploitation at it's most blatant.) Instead I will turn my ire towards Advent Children, the CG movie which sought to tell the story of what happens on Planet after the events which transpire at the end of FF7.
Now if Squaresoft is one thing, it is this - They have mastered the art of CG. Advent Children is oozing with visual quality. It is a stunning display of graphical prowess and a treat for the eyes. As a movie and a as a successor to the crazy storyline of FF7, however, it fails on pretty much every level. The movie was nothing more than fan-boy gratification and an insult to my love of the source material from which it is made. "Oh look, there's Yuffie! Was that Aeris's hand I just saw?!?! Wow, Vincent looks SO cool!" That is about the extent of what the movie has to offer. It's crap, pure and simple. Uninspired, unintelligent (and unintelligible) crap which serves no purpose other than to fatten Square-Enix's collective wallet.
Where else has the series gone in recent years... well there was Crystal Chronicles, the god awful spin-off on Gamecube which tried to emulate the action-RPG formula of Seiken Densetsu but added several design features which rendered it well-nigh unplayable, except for the most die hard of masochists. (Trust me, I tried to get through that game using a room mate's copy and gave up in disgust.) Then there were those several GBA ports of FF classics, unforgivably lazy products which did nothing but take old, beloved games and re-sell them for an easy profit. In some respects they were even worse than the cartridges from which the code was taken. Square didn't even have the time (or money, apparently, what a joke) to update the graphics on these titles, as they did for the DS release of FF3. Not even FF classics are save from the rampaging money machine it seems.
FF12 in some ways has made up for this terrible new legacy although in other ways it failed miserably. Strong characters and their development have always been the heart and soul of the franchise and unfortunately FF12 has little to no character development, despite it being the longest FF game thus far. Although it does try to re-capture (to some success) the convoluted politics and backstabbing of FF Tactics, another game also set in the world of Ivalice, it does so at the price of good characterization. We learn very little of these people and their histories, their motives, their hopes and dreams... Remember FF6, with it's motley cast of characters, the largest in any FF game to date? (Except for Tactics, of course.) That game packed more backstory for all 12 of them then FF12 does for it's cast, which is only half the number! And FF7, 8, and 9 all boasted excellent characer development (I know I admitted early on to not liking 8 that much but I certainly can appreciate it's strong points.) To me 12 only feels like half a FF game. The gameplay, storyline, graphics and voice acting are all top notch, but the characters lack the soul of older games in the series. But at least they're nothing like that bunch from X and X-2. Yuna, a pop singer. Really Square, what is your major malfunction?
In conclusion, I'd just like to point out that I've been a long time Square devotee and the company sure has made alot of money of my patronage alone. To think of millions of others like myself who have helped that company grow from it's humble beginnings into the giant it is today is kind of scary. Scary because it's not a benevolent giant. It's an arrogant, swollen behemoth so sure of the selling power of it's licenses that it will circumvent all of the things that made it's flagship series so great in the first place in favour of watered down trite and PEOPLE WILL STILL BUY IT. As the gaming consumer it is our responsibility to send a message to the companies whose products we purchase. Yet so long as people continue to mindlessly buy up any drivel that a publisher decides to put on the market said publisher will continue to get away with it. It sickens and saddens me to see things come down to this but these are the observations of years worth of experience and gaming. Square-Enix is guilty of exploitation and god help me if people aren't shelling out big dollars and taking it with a smile.
However, I did not come here to heap Square with praise. Quite the contrary, I've come to express how utterly disgusted I am with them and how I feel that they have become a company who exploits it's adoring fan base for profit, and who's products have taken a severe dip in quality in terms of storytelling and the use of compelling (and even controversial) themes.
Once upon a time I would of never found myself writing this. I would of been beaming with joy at all the amazing games that Square was producing, games like FF6, Crono Trigger, Super Mario RPG, FF7, FF Tactics, and Xenogears. But slowly, insidiously, something went terribly wrong. For me it all started with FF8. Whereas FF7 was a game which pushed taboos (such as your main characters being a group of eco-terrorists, something which hardly any game company these days would have the chutzpah to do) FF8 seemed to avoid these taboos altogether, instead favouring a more teen-friendly approach. (Also note the disparity between the characters Cloud and Squall. Despite their similiar names they are quite different. Cloud is angry for a reason, whereas Squall is merely an unlikeable jerk.) FF9 was a breath of fresh air, as I appreciated the light-hearted nature of it's characters and environment, and the gameplay, although traditional, was to me much more fun than what 8 had to offer.
Then came FFX.
Where do I begin? The insipid, moronic characters? The dull, meandering plotline? Ultra-linear (even tunnel like) area design? How about the atrocious English voice overs, a glaring hack job if ever there was one? The game has one redeeming quality, and that's the graphics. Otherwise it heralded the death of a franchise and the beginning of something new, something dreadful...
FF-Lite.
I will not even go into further detail into the mess that is FFX and it's horrific sequel, FFX2. Nor will I talk about FFXI, the uninspired online grind-fest that is Square's attempt at making a mark in the MMO arena. (I will however mention that their decision to force players into paying for extra character slots, seeing as that you initially only have one, is exploitation at it's most blatant.) Instead I will turn my ire towards Advent Children, the CG movie which sought to tell the story of what happens on Planet after the events which transpire at the end of FF7.
Now if Squaresoft is one thing, it is this - They have mastered the art of CG. Advent Children is oozing with visual quality. It is a stunning display of graphical prowess and a treat for the eyes. As a movie and a as a successor to the crazy storyline of FF7, however, it fails on pretty much every level. The movie was nothing more than fan-boy gratification and an insult to my love of the source material from which it is made. "Oh look, there's Yuffie! Was that Aeris's hand I just saw?!?! Wow, Vincent looks SO cool!" That is about the extent of what the movie has to offer. It's crap, pure and simple. Uninspired, unintelligent (and unintelligible) crap which serves no purpose other than to fatten Square-Enix's collective wallet.
Where else has the series gone in recent years... well there was Crystal Chronicles, the god awful spin-off on Gamecube which tried to emulate the action-RPG formula of Seiken Densetsu but added several design features which rendered it well-nigh unplayable, except for the most die hard of masochists. (Trust me, I tried to get through that game using a room mate's copy and gave up in disgust.) Then there were those several GBA ports of FF classics, unforgivably lazy products which did nothing but take old, beloved games and re-sell them for an easy profit. In some respects they were even worse than the cartridges from which the code was taken. Square didn't even have the time (or money, apparently, what a joke) to update the graphics on these titles, as they did for the DS release of FF3. Not even FF classics are save from the rampaging money machine it seems.
FF12 in some ways has made up for this terrible new legacy although in other ways it failed miserably. Strong characters and their development have always been the heart and soul of the franchise and unfortunately FF12 has little to no character development, despite it being the longest FF game thus far. Although it does try to re-capture (to some success) the convoluted politics and backstabbing of FF Tactics, another game also set in the world of Ivalice, it does so at the price of good characterization. We learn very little of these people and their histories, their motives, their hopes and dreams... Remember FF6, with it's motley cast of characters, the largest in any FF game to date? (Except for Tactics, of course.) That game packed more backstory for all 12 of them then FF12 does for it's cast, which is only half the number! And FF7, 8, and 9 all boasted excellent characer development (I know I admitted early on to not liking 8 that much but I certainly can appreciate it's strong points.) To me 12 only feels like half a FF game. The gameplay, storyline, graphics and voice acting are all top notch, but the characters lack the soul of older games in the series. But at least they're nothing like that bunch from X and X-2. Yuna, a pop singer. Really Square, what is your major malfunction?
In conclusion, I'd just like to point out that I've been a long time Square devotee and the company sure has made alot of money of my patronage alone. To think of millions of others like myself who have helped that company grow from it's humble beginnings into the giant it is today is kind of scary. Scary because it's not a benevolent giant. It's an arrogant, swollen behemoth so sure of the selling power of it's licenses that it will circumvent all of the things that made it's flagship series so great in the first place in favour of watered down trite and PEOPLE WILL STILL BUY IT. As the gaming consumer it is our responsibility to send a message to the companies whose products we purchase. Yet so long as people continue to mindlessly buy up any drivel that a publisher decides to put on the market said publisher will continue to get away with it. It sickens and saddens me to see things come down to this but these are the observations of years worth of experience and gaming. Square-Enix is guilty of exploitation and god help me if people aren't shelling out big dollars and taking it with a smile.
