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It's getting harder to write my cut text as quotes from the game without giving it TOTALLY away like yesterday (where I just didn't care). Also, as a runner-up to this, Mario 64. The level at which I dislike that game is surprising considering I'm a Mario fan.
DAY 12: A Game That You Dislike
I know. This is one of the most popular, most enjoyed, most worshipped JRPGs out there. It is the pinnacle of mid-90s JRPGdom, the bar by which all other games were judged. It singlehandedly shaped the entire PSX RPG era, and a large amount of how RPGs were played out on the PS2 and XBox as well.
It is also the most goddamn painful slog I have ever sat through. I never even got past the first disc in all of my five attempts to finish it.
The really sad part? I can SEE where it would be popular. Though the pacing does need a little work and certain scenes (Hi, Aeris!) need more suspension of disbelief than should be expected of this sort of story, Final Fantasy 7's story as a standalone? Isn't really that bad! The characters have some sort of depth, the plot has a fair number of twists that are neither asspulls nor predictable, and if it were better-translated I might actually want to read it as a book. (Of course, then Square proceeded to drag the characters through the dirt by turning them into shallow, one-dimensional fanfic representations for their "Extended Universe" but that's a story for another time)
The game itself, however, is sheer, unmitigated proof of why Japan hates video game players. Not only does the game basically start by slapping you across the face by graphical limitations - the cutscenes are lovingly-rendered CGI which transition nigh-seamlessly... into blocky, polygonal, Popeye-armed player characters with no warning - but then we're left to deal with the battle system, sometimes confusing walkpaths - starting a Squaresoft trend of making pre-rendered backgrounds walkable but NOT ALWAYS WHERE THEY SHOULD BE - and a tutorial boss that was mistranslated into being vulnerable ONLY WHEN THE SCRIPT SAID IT WASN'T.
Even barring those technical limitations, it could be an enjoyable if flawed game. And then, we come to the one design decision that ruined it for me.
The minigames. Every five minutes, at times, you were forced into some sort of oddly-controlled genre change or minigame. It isn't so bad at first, but then you get to the Shinra Tower, the escape from Midgar, Junon, and finally the Golden goddamn Saucer. That last one is ignorable since it's optional, but until then, EVERY LAST MINIGAME IS MANDATORY.
Because, hey. I'm playing a Final Fantasy game, I want to be randomly shoved into a badly controlled motorcycle beat-em-up, and then I want to play a simon-says MARCHING MINIGAME! Oh, and let's not forget the requisite snowboarding level, bitch slapping minigame, and DOING SQUATS SO THAT I CAN DRESS IN DRAG.
Because that's totally what an RPG is about.
I want to like FF7. I really do. But I just.. CAN'T. I'm sorry.
Day 1: Your current favorite game
Day 2: The most Underrated game you’ve ever played
Day 3: A game that makes you really happy
Day 4: A game that makes you sad
Day 5: A game that reminds you of someone
Day 6: Favorite puzzle game
Day 7: The game with most surprising game plot twist or ending (don’t share the actual twists, and if you do, mark them spoilers for the love of all that is nerdy)
Day 8: A game you’ve played countless times
Day 9:A game with the best or most original soundtrack
Day 10: Favorite Retro game
Day 11: A game that changed your opinion about something
Day 12: A game that you dislike
Day 13: A game that is a guilty pleasure
Day 14: A game that no one would expect you to love
Day 15: A videogame character who you can relate to the most
Day 16: A game that you used to love but now hate
Day 17: A game that disappointed you the most
Day 18: A game that you wish more people would’ve played
Day 19: Favorite game based on a movie/book/comic/etc
Day 20: Favorite stress relieving game
Day 21: Favorite Fighting Game
Day 22: Favorite table-top RPG
Day 23: Favorite racing game
Day 24: The one awesome game idea that still hasn’t been done
Day 25: The most hilarious game you’ve ever played
Day 26: A game you’ve left sitting at the final boss fight and still haven’t returned to
Day 27: A game that you wish you could play, but suck at
Day 28: A game that makes you feel guilty
Day 29: A game from your childhood
Day 30: You favorite game (or series) of all time
DAY 12: A Game That You Dislike
I know. This is one of the most popular, most enjoyed, most worshipped JRPGs out there. It is the pinnacle of mid-90s JRPGdom, the bar by which all other games were judged. It singlehandedly shaped the entire PSX RPG era, and a large amount of how RPGs were played out on the PS2 and XBox as well.
It is also the most goddamn painful slog I have ever sat through. I never even got past the first disc in all of my five attempts to finish it.
The really sad part? I can SEE where it would be popular. Though the pacing does need a little work and certain scenes (Hi, Aeris!) need more suspension of disbelief than should be expected of this sort of story, Final Fantasy 7's story as a standalone? Isn't really that bad! The characters have some sort of depth, the plot has a fair number of twists that are neither asspulls nor predictable, and if it were better-translated I might actually want to read it as a book. (Of course, then Square proceeded to drag the characters through the dirt by turning them into shallow, one-dimensional fanfic representations for their "Extended Universe" but that's a story for another time)
The game itself, however, is sheer, unmitigated proof of why Japan hates video game players. Not only does the game basically start by slapping you across the face by graphical limitations - the cutscenes are lovingly-rendered CGI which transition nigh-seamlessly... into blocky, polygonal, Popeye-armed player characters with no warning - but then we're left to deal with the battle system, sometimes confusing walkpaths - starting a Squaresoft trend of making pre-rendered backgrounds walkable but NOT ALWAYS WHERE THEY SHOULD BE - and a tutorial boss that was mistranslated into being vulnerable ONLY WHEN THE SCRIPT SAID IT WASN'T.
Even barring those technical limitations, it could be an enjoyable if flawed game. And then, we come to the one design decision that ruined it for me.
The minigames. Every five minutes, at times, you were forced into some sort of oddly-controlled genre change or minigame. It isn't so bad at first, but then you get to the Shinra Tower, the escape from Midgar, Junon, and finally the Golden goddamn Saucer. That last one is ignorable since it's optional, but until then, EVERY LAST MINIGAME IS MANDATORY.
Because, hey. I'm playing a Final Fantasy game, I want to be randomly shoved into a badly controlled motorcycle beat-em-up, and then I want to play a simon-says MARCHING MINIGAME! Oh, and let's not forget the requisite snowboarding level, bitch slapping minigame, and DOING SQUATS SO THAT I CAN DRESS IN DRAG.
Because that's totally what an RPG is about.
I want to like FF7. I really do. But I just.. CAN'T. I'm sorry.
Day 2: The most Underrated game you’ve ever played
Day 3: A game that makes you really happy
Day 4: A game that makes you sad
Day 5: A game that reminds you of someone
Day 6: Favorite puzzle game
Day 7: The game with most surprising game plot twist or ending (don’t share the actual twists, and if you do, mark them spoilers for the love of all that is nerdy)
Day 8: A game you’ve played countless times
Day 9:A game with the best or most original soundtrack
Day 10: Favorite Retro game
Day 11: A game that changed your opinion about something
Day 12: A game that you dislike
Day 13: A game that is a guilty pleasure
Day 14: A game that no one would expect you to love
Day 15: A videogame character who you can relate to the most
Day 16: A game that you used to love but now hate
Day 17: A game that disappointed you the most
Day 18: A game that you wish more people would’ve played
Day 19: Favorite game based on a movie/book/comic/etc
Day 20: Favorite stress relieving game
Day 21: Favorite Fighting Game
Day 22: Favorite table-top RPG
Day 23: Favorite racing game
Day 24: The one awesome game idea that still hasn’t been done
Day 25: The most hilarious game you’ve ever played
Day 26: A game you’ve left sitting at the final boss fight and still haven’t returned to
Day 27: A game that you wish you could play, but suck at
Day 28: A game that makes you feel guilty
Day 29: A game from your childhood
Day 30: You favorite game (or series) of all time
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...as long as you ignore all the sequels, the fanboys calling it the best game ever, the bad translations, etc.
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The materia system is good :<
Easy to break the game with, but that's half the fun :<
From:
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And hell, I love me some broken battle systems.
But the minigames and the crawling around in airvents for materia and the minigames and the minigames... considering I'm an OCD perfectionist, that's basically a giant kick square in the dick, kind of like the Excalibur 2 in FF9, but more prolonged.