RPGs

[Foggle]

The overall love for 9 only just started from what I can tell. A couple years ago I never saw anyone talk about it, let alone praise it. Nowadays it seems to be (rightfully) recognized as the best PS1 FF game by hardcore fans.

[Rynnec]

So as I continue to absolutely power my way through FFVIII (I'm really trying to give the game a chance, guys, I really am), am I the only one who thinks you can pinpoint this game as the reason JRPGs went so downhill for a while? Or, at least, why the series died? When you hear common complaints with the genre, you'll hear "They are joyless" or "They are so pretentious" or "They care too much about story and not about gameplay". These are all things that cropped up in FFVIII (even the use of FMV cutscenes, while used lightly, appear more than in VII and are advertised on the game's case as a reason to play it). I almost wonder if it all has to do with this game's success (which, quite frankly, probably is mostly because it's a sequel to FFVII, I mean I think they could have taken an empty soda can out of a dumpster and labeled it "Final Fantasy VIII" and make good money off of it), and the fact that IX, which went in a different direction, wasn't nearly as commercially successful.

This is probably why people graviate toward Tales and Nippon Ichi games. The former actually strike a balance of darkness and light-heartedness, and the latter actively parodies stuff like FF and don't take themselves seriously most of the time.

The overall love for 9 only just started from what I can tell. A couple years ago I never saw anyone talk about it, let alone praise it. Nowadays it seems to be (rightfully) recognized as the best PS1 FF game by hardcore fans.

I'd say it started around 2007 around the youtube seen (back when several big name youtubers then called FFVII and VIII overrated), and only got more popular from there.

[talonmalon333]

I think one way I could put it is that most Final Fantasy fans love every game from I-XII, while most RPG fans love I-VII and IX with differing opinions on the rest.

The overall love for 9 only just started from what I can tell. A couple years ago I never saw anyone talk about it, let alone praise it. Nowadays it seems to be (rightfully) recognized as the best PS1 FF game by hardcore fans.

It seems to have happened at the same time as VII's love slightly diminishing. People still consider VII a great game, but I remember, many years ago, people constantly debated what the best video game of all time was between Final Fantasy VII and Ocarina of Time. Now, people still make that claim for Ocarina frequently, while looking back on FFVII and saying "Yeah, FFVI was better after all".

[Foggle]

This is probably why people graviate toward Tales and Nippon Ichi games. The former actually strike a balance of darkness and light-heartedness, and the latter actively parodies stuff like FF and don't take themselves seriously most of the time.

Makes sense. I prefer Shin Megami Tensei (main series and offshoots) and Drakengard (plus Nier, minus 2) because they're extremely dark and bizarre, but without all the 90's edginess and teenage angst most JRPGs (especially FF7 and 8) are known for. They also have far better narratives and (sometimes) characters. Tales is great too, and a series I really need to start digging into, but I can't stand NIS games.

[talonmalon333]

I wasn't too big on Tales of Symphonia, when I played it years ago.

[Foggle]

The English voice acting is generally what stops me from playing Tales and NIS games. Some of the dubbing legitimately hurts my ears and makes me cringe.

[Rynnec]

Tales and NIS games have some of the best dubbing, IMO. Especially Vesperia and Symphonia. Square Enix games, by contrast, have some of the blandest voice acting I've ever heard.

[Foggle]

I will fight you if you're implying that Symphonia has better acting than Nier or Drakengard 3. Final Fantasy dubs are usually fairly bland, though, and Type-0's is straight up horrific. Auron and Sazh have awesome voices, at least.

Vesperia has an excellent dub, and Xillia's is okay, if only because of Alvin. That said, maybe it's not the acting so much as it is the voices themselves. Every character sounds squeaky and/or whiny as fuck in NIS games, to me; like a Sentai dub.

[gunswordfist]

I will fight you if you're implying that Symphonia has better acting than Nier or Drakengard 3.

[Rynnec]

I will fight you if you're implying that Symphonia has better acting than Nier or Drakengard 3.

From what I've seen, Drakengard 3's acting is about on par with Symphonia, which had a lot of good performances. Especially from Scott Menville and Cam Clarke.

As for NIS dubs, most seem to have normal sounding voices from what I've seen.

[Spark Of Spirit]

It could be worse.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BAtC1SzWSXg

[Nel_Annette]

Troy Baker will be remembered as many characters, but he'll always be Yuri Lowell from Tales of Vesperia to me. That game has one of the most all-over-the-place plots in the series but the cast is what made that game strong. The characters and their personal stories is great. And the way the game used cel-shading still makes it look like the best Tales game to me. Like, Graces, Xillia 1/2 and Zestiria are years later, and Vesperia still looks superior to me graphically.

[talonmalon333]

Aside from Chaos Wars, nothing could beat the laughing scene from FFX.

[talonmalon333]

Isn't Cam Clarke the guy who voiced Liquid Snake from MGS? I haven't heard him in much, but I do have to say his Liquid performance was pretty bad.

[Spark Of Spirit]

He's also Leonardo and Kaneda. He's done a LOT of voices.