Currently playing through each of the Final Fantasy games and ranking them as I go. For some of these games, it’s my first time. For others, this might be my fourth or fifth play through. For the most six mainline entries, I’m playing the Pixel Remaster. For VII, VIII, IX, X-2, and XII, I’ll be working through the Switch re-releases. The XIII trio are going to be played on X-Box 360, while the rest are being played on the most modern consoles available.

I suppose you can call me Mr. Hot Takes, because I’m going to diverge from the hive mind of Final Fantasy fans. Hold your hate mail!

Currently playing: Final Fantasy III

1. Final Fantasy X

FFX is an incredibly strong game due to its cast and its setting. Pulling JRPGs out of medieval times into the sunlight was the desperately needed trend that got us games like Skies of Arcadia and Chrono Cross. These games often run from 40 – 60 hours, and you just want to see something beyond brown and grey sometimes. The cast also stands several cuts above par, as does the central villain. The critical drag, though, happens toward the end of the game and its incredibly cheap and infuriating ultimate weapon missions.

2. Final Fantasy II

With a very unique leveling system, FFII has become the black sheep of the series. I’d argue, after the quality of life fixes in the Pixel Remaster, that it’s time to reassess this gem. Other than some highly annoying backtracking throughout the story, Final Fantasy II is a thoroughly underrated treasure to play. The previous game in the series prompted you to name your blank-slate characters, while this one gave the protagonists default names and personalities. Yet the battle system, which rewards stats by the ones you use most, let you put a bigger stamp on your characters. Are you a heavy magic user by default? Then your characters will shift in that direction. Delightful.

3. Final Fantasy I

Yup, it’s a classic and incredibly hard to fairly position a property that set the rules of the game. Given that it’s the modern era, I had several available ways to play the game — Final Fantasy Origins on PS (through Polymega), Dawn of Souls on GBA (through Analogue Pocket), Final Fantasy I on PSP, etc. I decided to do my run-through on Pixel Remaster, because I wanted the right balance of modern convenience and the game’s original spirit. The game had a paper-thin story, the villain was… there, and I generally think that JRPGs with named characters work better than “hey, this main character could be YOU.” Positives: it’s a peppy and quick game and the six available classes offer a ton of flexibility for the time. All in all, this game is the par for the series — the games below this are sub-average, the games above it are above average.

4. Final Fantasy XII

FFXII is a love-it-or-hate-it game. You can count me in with the hate-it crowd. Unlike the usual hater, I was impressed with the license system and the idea of programming a game to effectively play itself. I sincerely appreciate flexibility in a JRPG. I was substantially less enamored with the obnoxious characters and the endless desert vistas. I honestly cannot think of a character I liked. Even Balthier rode on my nerves within a couple hours. Worst of all, the story initially seemed deep and shadowy, but is ultimately brain dead.