What makes the game so great?

[DarkClaymore]

I one of those people who just can't understand what is so great about FFVII (please don't kill me! ). But I really want to!
I like it when most people say a game is bad, but I end up loving it anyway.
But I don't like it the other way around (not liking a game which others like)

From what I have read on different sites, most people who consider FFVII as the best FF usually say it has great: plot, characters, upgrading system (materia system).

While I admit those points are really the strong points of the game (aside the plot, which I was very good only at the beginning), I still think it is not enough to make the game the "best".

Of what I think about the those "strong points":


Plot

While the idea is amazing, I think it wasn't presented very well and I found it boring and quite "forced" at some point. It felt as they are just adding some random things in order to make to the story go on.
I liked most other FFs' plots much more.



Characters


I like most of the characters and I can admit they are the best from any other FF so far. I think it is because the game focuses a lot on each character. I usually notice similar style in some anime.
The idea is basically to give each character his own "arc", during which we learn more about the character's past, troubles and goals. Thus we feel that we know the character very well and start to like it (at most cases at least). Then, usually after we solve the character's biggest problem or making some kind change in him (way of thinking or the like), the character's "arc" is ~completed~ and another character's arc is starting.
So this way we end up with knowing a lot about our party (maybe aside the bonus characters, even though Yuffie has kind of "arc" too).
In most cases like this, the main character is the one who helps the other characters to overcome something and the like (basically to ~complete~ their arc), as he seems to be the type who doesn't have any troubles himself. Then, near the end, when the arcs of all the other characters are completed, it is revealed that the main character have some kind of trouble himself. A trouble which is even deeper and harder to deal with than with the other characters' ones. Thus starts the main character's arc. In this one arc, the main character (who so far helped others) will be helped by those who he has helped. This creates a great feling of freinedship and drama, and overall makes everything look great.

While it is all great and I like it, is isn't too uncommon as it is featured in many games, anime and even FFIX & FVIII have something similar (even though there is less focus on it).



Upgrading System

Every FF has it's own unique upgrading system. So even though the materia system is my favorite so far, other FFs' upgrading systems are almost as good.






While it is all very nice, I still think other FFs can offer as much as that and even more. So what really makes the game so great? Is it something I totally missed?
Or maybe I must play the spioffs in order to like the game more? (even though it doesn't sound much realistic to me)

 

[.Tifa]

This is a little bit personal but love Final Fantasy VII because relate to the main character Cloud alot, our weaknesses goals and struggles to fit in and the reasons why heading into a depression and changing idenity is almost the same, just relate to Cloud and just feel sorry for the mental confusion and mess he goes through during his adventre. Feel like can relate to Cloud's sadness and reasons why to hide behind a idenity that isn't really his own..

FF VII has heaps of mistakes and still struggle even today to almost understand it's messed up plot but guess love this game because feel close at home with the main character and feel like when playing the game can feel like it's almost..alright in a way to act so different from most other people and also when Cloud defeats Sephiroth in the Nibelheim reactor he was so weak and put down so much by other people, and feel like have the power to become strong and a much stronger person and Cloud gives out that strength..

Kind of feel that FF VII is great because of those reasons..

 

[GanjaKat]

Dont worry bro, no-one will kill you. I feel the same way.
The whole game in general kinda sux imo, i played into the first reactor explosion n was like fuck this...

 

[stinger]

I think the key reason for VII being so highly regarded among so many is that it really was a massive leap forward for the series and for many gamers outside of Japan it was their first introduction to the Final Fantasy series and to RPG's in general. Looking at it now it's hardly the most sensational game we've ever seen but at the time is was a massive breakthrough and was worthy of the acclaim it received.

 

[Hawaiian8o8]

For me final fantasy vii was the first final fantasy I've ever played, and I think for a lot of fans who think the game is great, this was their first FF too. Also the big jump to the PlayStation was another reason. ^^Pretty much what stinger said.... I first played it when it came out, I think I was around 12. Sure I enjoyed the story, but the characters and the materia system really drew me in, plus you know, Cloud's a sexy guy.

 

[Hightower]

what made this game so great was that cast of characters. i enjoyed playing/using all of the characters in this game. it had a lot of very likeable characters. i also like the gameplay of it, especially the limit system with each characters having more than 1 limit break and the way you had to do to get the next one. so i ended wanting to use all the characters to see all of the limit break to see which is the best

 

[Vladislak]

Quite frankly, I think it's just because for most FF fans it was their first RPG. That and because it was released at a turning point. I really don't think it has very much to do with the actual content in the game.

It pretty much came out during the gaming industry's jump to 3D, which is when gaming became less of a hardcore thing and more of a casual pastime. The same basic thing happened with Ocarina of Time in the legend of Zelda series, it was released just when people began to see gaming as something anyone can enjoy. As a result, it was most Zelda fan's first game in the series and is often said to be the best without question, despite the fact that it introduced very little that previous Zelda games hadn't already offered. It was just the same gameplay mechanics in 3D.

Now I'm not say FFVII isn't a good game, it certainly is. It's not a game that should be mocked or looked down upon... But it's not as spectacular as many fans say it is.

Edit: I'd just like to clarify something, I never said that all fans started with it. As I said earlier, it's simply that it's timing is responsible for it's unbelievable popularity with most of it's fans.
After all, as I said it is a good game so it's going to have other fans as well.

 

[JuBaggins]

Truth be told, I played FFVII for the first time in 2006 just because my friend had the game and lent me it. I had no expectations, I was not even aware that the game was huge and popular (and for that I am glad, since I played it just to have some fun and was not expecting a great experience or whatever).

In the end, I absolutely loved it. The story came for me as crazy, it was my ideal type (I usually like compelling and ambitious stories like that). Cloud was a great protagonist in my eyes, and the cast of characters was solidly enjoyable. You complained about the execution of the story, fair enough. Sometimes it was dull and pointless, I agree, but the feeling I got when I finished the game was different from any other FF I played (and just so you know, I played all the main titles and some spin-offs too). It just immersed me in a way that made me feel actually sad and contemplative after watching the ending scene. It HAD a deep meaning. I always end up liking any work that draws out such emotional reaction from me, so FFVII somewhat became a dear thing for me. Yeah.

If you played it and did not think the game is great, that's ok. In the end all that matters is your emotional reaction, really.

 

[Khadaj]

FFVII was not my first FF, much less my first RPG, nor was I wowed by zomg3Dgraphicz. It was the emotional attachment that did it for me. The plot was amazing every step of the way, and how all of the characters' stories tied in together was awesome.

The materia system was innovative, Sephiroth was badass (I love Kefka too, but he doesn't fit the badass mofo category) and the soundtrack just sucked you right in.

Work of art

 

[dress_up24h]

i agree pika-chew "FF VII has heaps of mistakes and still struggle even today to almost understand it's messed up plot but guess love this game because feel close at home with the main character and feel like when playing the game can feel like it's almost"

 

[greed378]

Final fantasy vii is kinda like marmite. You love it or hate it. I personally love it but some people don't. I don't care about the graphics which are great for the ps1 btw.

 

[Aerius Sygale]

I love just about everything about Final Fantasy VII (except the character Cait Sith. <_<'), but what I really think makes a huge part of it, is the cast.

I think the characters are the best of any FF game, Nanaki (Red XIII) being my favourite, it was a very unique character for a Final Fantasy game, FF games don't generally have a quadruped character join your party.

I really liked his part in the game when you are going through those that Cave of the Gi, and he finds out the truth about his father, which he had about as backwards as you could make it...

And I thought the soundtrack was great, I really like the battle themes, and Aerith's (not Aeris, Squaresoft/Square-Enix. ) theme was really nice, Tifa's is nice too.

And I thought the graphics were pretty good for a PS1 game, though I admit FFVIII had better graphics... >.>

 

[Bambi]

i agree pika-chew "FF VII has heaps of mistakes and still struggle even today to almost understand it's messed up plot but guess love this game because feel close at home with the main character and feel like when playing the game can feel like it's almost"

please can you elaborate with your own thoughts aswel as simply stating you agree? This is generally considered spam and against forum rules, thanks

 

[Avenger]

sigh* one word alone is all i need to say for every1 here to know why ff7 is soo great ... Sephiroth..

 

[Droge Kalmm]

Forgive me if you find this post short, but I'll tell you why I think that alot of people liked FFVII so much. What most people value as the best thing about FFVII is what other people value the worst. It's so new in the series. All the previous ones were about heroic knights in old kingdoms flying around in their airships. In FFVII though, everything was reinvented, machine guns, cars, motercycles, swearing bada**ses, and more than anything, modern(give or take a few years o.o). It was revolutionary inside the series, and some people were probably glad at the new look, and some nostalgic for the old feel. Of course, theres always the story line, it's also different, so that could be the deciding factor, completely different from my theory. So just think about that.

 

[Hal Otacon]

For me the best thing of the game is the simplicity of it - regardless of the era of the game it is rather simple in graphical content but has fantastic storyline and character reletionships.
This is the base of any good game and ffVII is a fantastic example - but why did they fail in VIII straight after? FFVII was the peak of PS1 ff games

 

[Guernsey]

I am playing the game myself and to be honest, I don't really know why it is hailed as the greatest game of all time and it is given as much praise as it has. That is not to say that it is not a good game but still I don't understand why all this extreme love and bitter hate for the franchise. I guess it is because I was expecting to find something spectacular but instead I found that is pretty okay in its own right. I guess I had just played this game, I had listened too of the hype and I had never understood the fandom. Fortunately, I played FFVIII and FFVI before this and been on enough FF forums to understand the series a bit.

 

[HighwindPilot]

Plot

While the idea is amazing, I think it wasn't presented very well and I found it boring and quite "forced" at some point. It felt as they are just adding some random things in order to make to the story go on.
I liked most other FFs' plots much more.

From my understanding in another thread, you were confused as the plot progressed - could that have something to do with the fact that you thought it got boring? Or vise versa?

Hardly any of it was really forced. And if something causes the story to progress, it's not really random then, is it? The only thing I can think of, that was outright forced, was probably the Cosmo Canyon-Nibelheim return arcs, because they dilberately made you go there for the sake of, and used a lame excuse like The Buggy having engine trouble to force you into it. That I'll give you.

But everything from Rocket Town and on, or anything before those two places - I'd love to hear how they were "forced" or "random". You're constantly reminded of your objective, and given tips or clues as to where you may need to head next in pursuit of your goal. They even go as far as to clue you in with in-game briefings to keep you caught up on what you need to do and why.

Characters


I like most of the characters and I can admit they are the best from any other FF so far. I think it is because the game focuses a lot on each character. I usually notice similar style in some anime.
The idea is basically to give each character his own "arc", during which we learn more about the character's past, troubles and goals. Thus we feel that we know the character very well and start to like it (at most cases at least). Then, usually after we solve the character's biggest problem or making some kind change in him (way of thinking or the like), the character's "arc" is ~completed~ and another character's arc is starting.
So this way we end up with knowing a lot about our party (maybe aside the bonus characters, even though Yuffie has kind of "arc" too).
In most cases like this, the main character is the one who helps the other characters to overcome something and the like (basically to ~complete~ their arc), as he seems to be the type who doesn't have any troubles himself. Then, near the end, when the arcs of all the other characters are completed, it is revealed that the main character have some kind of trouble himself. A trouble which is even deeper and harder to deal with than with the other characters' ones. Thus starts the main character's arc. In this one arc, the main character (who so far helped others) will be helped by those who he has helped. This creates a great feling of freinedship and drama, and overall makes everything look great.

While it is all great and I like it, is isn't too uncommon as it is featured in many games, anime and even FFIX & FVIII have something similar (even though there is less focus on it).

Wow, so you completely state how much you like what they did, but then go on to say that it's uncommon. And yet the two examples you used are from games that came after FFVII, so what would that tell you?

 

[Midnight Memoire]

I'll admit that I hold this game rather dear. It was not only my first Final Fantasy but also my first RPG. The storyline is just so intriguing to me. Simple, yet elaborate. I had to play through the game a few times to completely understand the story to be honest. Aside from storyline, the materia system was just so darn nifty.

Honestly though, I think that if you played a later Final Fantasy first then you may not be able to enjoy this game to its fullest potential (unless your first was 8... no offense to our 8 lovers out there).

But hey, don't feel bad! I can't seem to find any enjoyment out of Final Fantasy IX. I hear it's great, I try to play it.. I just.. can't. I think it's Steiner's fault. D:

 

[DarkClaymore]

sigh* one word alone is all i need to say for every1 here to know why ff7 is soo great ... Sephiroth..

That stupid Sephiroth probably ruined most of my enjoyment from the game...

From my understanding in another thread, you were confused as the plot progressed - could that have something to do with the fact that you thought it got boring? Or vise versa?

Hardly any of it was really forced. And if something causes the story to progress, it's not really random then, is it? The only thing I can think of, that was outright forced, was probably the Cosmo Canyon-Nibelheim return arcs, because they dilberately made you go there for the sake of, and used a lame excuse like The Buggy having engine trouble to force you into it. That I'll give you.

But everything from Rocket Town and on, or anything before those two places - I'd love to hear how they were "forced" or "random". You're constantly reminded of your objective, and given tips or clues as to where you may need to head next in pursuit of your goal. They even go as far as to clue you in with in-game briefings to keep you caught up on what you need to do and why.

The only thing I never understood is Sephiroth's goal.
If he really wanted to accomplish what he said he wanted, he could at least kill the party. He had so many chances to do so. But he didn't!!!
If he noticed that Aerith is a threat to his plans and killed her, why then not to kill her friends as well? They are even greater threat.
Maybe not at that point, but he sure should have noticed they are a threat. Besides, Cloud already beat him up in the past, so he should have at least put more effort into finishing off the party.

The goal was "to beat Sephiroth" as far as I understood.
So actually the whole things that happen in the game (aside the Beginning and the End ) just were forced in order to delay this "final battle" against Sephiroth.
I can understand that they wanted to make a RPG game, which means a lot of gameply hours, but it really was annoying because I felt that everything is like "fillers". Of course that we learn more about the characters and such, but it rather delaying the plot than progressing it. And I HATE when I don't see any real progress.
That is as well why I can't do a lot of training or doing side quests for too long. I just can't do a thing if I don't see any progress.
I think all those parts should be kind of side quests if player wants to know more about each character.

Wow, so you completely state how much you like what they did, but then go on to say that it's uncommon. And yet the two examples you used are from games that came after FFVII, so what would that tell you?

I am not really the type who says "Wow, it is the first game ever had this kind of thing. It is great!!!".
The first time I seen such a thing was actually in an anime, so I consider it as my first one.
I don't even know whatever this kind of thing is actually new to the FF series, as I haven't played FFV and FFVI yet.

I have to say, though, that FFIV has something a little similar.
But instead of one long arc about each character, we learn about each character from different parts of the plot. It is like each character has a few mini-arcs or something.
But of course that in FFVII it is taken to more extreme level.