Chronicles of the Last Fantasy Part 1
It was December 1997, and I was waiting expectantly for the most important Christmas present of all. The Playstation sat warmly waiting, countless reviews suggested this was going to be the best game ever. With a quick unwrapping of the paper I held it in my hands; Final Fantasy VII. The box was bigger than any other playstation game and it shined. It was to be my first adventure into the Final Fantasy series.
It’s been a long time, yet even today Final Fantasy VII is considered the most important game to be released at the end of the 20th Century. It has culminated in soundtracks, posters, new releases and even an entire movie devoted to it. The fanbase of the Final Fantasy series testifies to it, though whether it is considered the best of the series still sparks fierce debate. Many (including myself) would argue that Final Fantasy X is the true king of the throne.
FFVII holds a sort of emotion you don’t really expect from a game; it tells a story, allows you to decide how the story unfolds and makes sure to keep you involved. The story itself is rich in detail and character; every member of your group has a background, every important character you meet has a story, a reason for existence. This culminates in a game that is rich in detail and makes the player actually care for all those involved in the game.
The iconic villian, Sephiroth, has almost become more famous than the game put together. A cloned madman of a once former hero, Sephiroth is a true menace that no other Final Fantasy game has really been able to mimic. Their is hatred and both sympathy in the villian and nemesis of our hero Cloud that hasn’t been carried on in other games quite as well. Could you name me for instance the arch villian in Final Fantasy 8? Or 10? Or in other fantasy games like Lost Odyssey? And yet to a gamer the word Sephiroth will immediately ring a bell even if the player has not touched upon the FF series. The only game that almost mimiced the madness of Sephiroth was Lost Odyssey, whose villian had a similar character psychology to that of Sephiroth, but unfortunately just didn’t have the name to be remembered.
It’s peculiar really if you consider that Final Fantasy was hardly the most graphically powerful of games (apart from the FMV sequences) compared to others at that time. The game was composed of spiky square blocks moving through an artistically genereated world, and it was only the battle sequences that saw more in depth drawing of characters. These characters though did surprisingly well in attempting to supply the emotion for the story, despite their spiky ways. Perhaps what really made the world of Final Fantasy shine even with its badly rendered players was the artistic scenery. Midgar was a huge city that boasted that you’d need a bigger TV to fit it all in. Cosmo Canyon was a bright native American styled canyon town. Junon’s cannon with a city built in a stepping stone fashion was a fascinating place to visit.
Then there was the music, perhaps one of the reasons many love FFVII. The music was a mix of orchestral sound effects, eerie sounds and military parades all mapped out excellently on Midi keyboards. Players of FFVII could probably whistle the tune for you of Cosmo Canyon or the Shinra theme or Aeries (It’s Aeries, not Aerith, bugger off with your th!) theme. Where Square has failed in some area of their Final Fantasy series, they have succeeded in always been able to make entertaining memorable music for their games.
So what is that makes Final Fantasy VII the most loved of the FF games? Where did Square go so right? It’s difficult to say really. Perhaps the time was so right for a classic RPG to come out for the Playstation at that time that it became a memorable experience not to be forgotten. The next iterations never really were able to bring that magic moment back because it was such a unique moment. FF7 was very much unique and a once in a life time experience.
Next, Final Fantasy VIII
Categories: Gaming
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