For me it's
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Final Fantasy Tactics
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Final Fantasy VII
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Final Fantasy XI
The three games I keep coming back to in the franchise.
Tactics has the best writing imo as well as gameplay.
Visually speaking VII's aesthetic and music are peak FF.
And then when it comes to getting lost in the lore and world of a virtual game, I like XI.
Granted all 3 share similar themes like good writing, music, gameplay, etc. but those are my standouts.
How about you?
tactics, 6, 4
10 is very close to 3rd
I need to sit down with 10, I don't think I gave it a fair shake.
it's very melancholy. the whole thing is just kinda depressing without getting into spoilers. great game, fun battle system, loved the summons (even the secret ones!)
but also if you finish X you can play the sequel X2 which gives you 3 pretty ladies in your party with a sick job system, the story is whatev
Pro tip/hot take for FFX2: don't worry about getting the "perfect" ending - just play the game as-is
If you want to hear some discussion about what people like about it (and don't care about spoilers), Abnormal Mapping has a pretty good episode.