Final Fantasy – DaveGladow.com

Final Fantasy VI: Retro Gaming Essentials (No. 22)

I’m going to address this right out of the gate: This game is too low on the list of retro gaming essentials at No. 22.

That’s a statement of quality in itself, that a game can be underrated as a best-of list’s No. 22.

But it’s true. I can’t deny it.

And it’s not because of industry standards, or impact on the genre, or critical consensus, or anything quite so grand as all that.

No, it’s actually too low among my own personal favorites.

How? Why? What?

Well, I covered the why right here. I wanted variety at the top of any list of recommendations.

And the how is covered right here. I went with Final Fantasy VII up high (No. 12!)* instead by the slimmest of margins, leaving Final Fantasy VI in the uncomfortable position of having to tumble down the list to accommodate my “no series repeats” criteria.

* One might have a problem with the FF7 choice, and that’s fine. I can only say in my defense that it was a REALLY close call.

Well, that criteria of no repeats, I decided, should only apply to the top 20. The rationale being, yeah, you want some variety at the very top, but gosh, if a game is great, it still deserves to be advocated for.

And Final Fantasy VI is undeniably great.

Final Fantasy VI
Genre: RPG
Released: 1994
Platform: SNES
Electronic Gaming Monthly’s No. 9 console game of all-time

Final Fantasy VII — Retro Gaming Essentials (No. 12)

We all have to be honest with ourselves.

I thought it might be a good idea to slot a Final Fantasy game in this general area (somewhere in my first 15 games listed), because although the first game I dropped in this entire series is a Squaresoft classic and my favorite game of all time, it’s not especially relevant to the medium at large (apart from its impeccable soundtrack, which literally everyone should listen to at some point). Final Fantasy, as a series, is a different animal. It’s perhaps the most recognizable RPG brand on the planet, probably the most successful RPG brand on the planet, and arguably the most important RPG brand on the planet. It’s absolutely massively critical when it comes to understanding video game history, let alone that of the genre of the JRPG.

You can’t tell a complete story of gaming without Final Fantasy.

But…

Which of the Final Fantasy games is most essential?

Ah, that’s the fun part of it. For many gamers of a certain age, this debate typically boils down to two choices: The “taken as far as they could take it” 16-bit excellence of Final Fantasy VI (perhaps the best possible example of why the Super Nintendo continues to be held in high esteem for its RPG library), OR the “let’s get wacky with something slightly different” new direction boldness of Final Fantasy VII (which itself makes the case for the Playstation being the golden era of RPG gaming).

Since I’ve already got Chrono Cross on my list, I should go with Final Fantasy VI here to represent that different era of gaming, right?

Right?

Well, there’s just one small problem with that:

I like Final Fantasy VII a little bit more.

Final Fantasy VII
Genre: RPG
Released: 1997
Platform: Playstation
GameSpot’s 2nd Most Influential Game Ever Made

60 Video games I’d recommend to anyone

Let’s throw some love out there. These are my favorite video games of all time. Yes!

As is always the case with a list like this, mileage may vary. Tastes differ, and more importantly, unless you’re a fanatic collector or work in the industry in some fashion, it’s impossible to play everything. To wit, I have a giant honking blind spot in my list for basically anything released over the last 15 years or so. I thought of calling it “favorite retro games” or some such, but let’s just go with this.

But the point is this: it’s my list. These are 60 games I’ve loved experiencing, and I thought in the interest of saving my thoughts for posterity — in case anyone would find them of value — it would be good to have it all written down. Maybe my kids will look at this list someday and want to explore it or my wife will get better insight into my gaming life, or maybe it will drum up nostalgia for you regardless of your connection with me. Cool, mission accomplished!

The best Super NES games of all time

Ranking Super Nintendo games is basically an impossible task. Go through any “best-of” list around the interwebs and you’ll see an absolutely loaded selection of games, featuring some of the true all-time greats.

Looking through the selection of games for other video game systems, I have little doubt this was the greatest console of all time. There’s just so much depth.

So how do you sift through all of that?

After making my own list, I still don’t know.

I do know my inspiration came about in part because of the release of the Super NES Classic, a retro system release (featuring 20 games from the original lineup … and one new one) which I recently read has been outselling “new” consoles like the Switch and Playstation 4.

That it’s resonating in a major way is no surprise to me. I bought one myself!

Read on for a list of 30 reasons why Super Nintendo nostalgia is at an all-time high.

Continue reading The best Super NES games of all time