Got to be 8 for the next HD remaster. I'm still having a great time with 7. I've just realised there are two 'cheats' in addition to the 3x speed. When you click both thumb sticks it means you get no random encounters. Not too bad. But then when you just press in the right thumb stick every player keeps getting their HP, MP and limit break bars filled up to max. Breaks the game as a challenge, but I've been using it when I've been about to die in a few boss encounters.
It's great if you're mainly playing for nostalgia. It's only taken me 11 hours to get to Wutai, and I'll probably finish the game in less than 25 hours. If it wasn't for the 'cheats' I can't imagine I'd finish it. I forgot just how many random encounters there are.
I don't know how you can not play a game like FF7 and not want to do everything and max out your characters' stats. Imagine not omnislashing Sephiroth for 9999 per hit. Outrageous.
It would take forever, but I think that was part of the charm. Probably another reason I'm not playing these games anymore.
Yeah I figured it would just take a while, FF7 really did nail that first hour or two of gameplay when you compare it to the other games.
The last thing I did was hit the Evil Forest and fight the first boss there so that bit is out of the way now. If that style of battle had happened 10 hours in then I probably wouldn't have even mentioned it, but with FF games you always want to spend the first few battles getting to grips with the basics and the acting stuff was just a minor gripe with it.
I found XI's gameplay to be one of the more frustrating ones. Partly I think because the most damage that you can do at end game is 10,000 in one hit. I also didn't love that you had to learn skills from equipment.
But I think it has some real heart. Of VII, VIII and IX, I think it's comfortably the one that makes the most sense as a story by the end. I don't remember ever thinking.. 'gee, this is plot-twist is pretty absurd'. Which is not bad, considering I played this when I was a little bit older than when I played 7 and 8. Zidane is a more likeable and believable main character than probably anyone from Cloud to Tidus. Steiner, Beatrix, Vivi are also solid supporting cast. In terms of music, the main theme and the song with vocals both match up pretty well with those of VII, VIII and X.
And.. the villain is a genuinely well-rounded character with more to him than Seifer, Sephiroth, and certainly that jerk from X whose name escapes me.
I feel like when you compare it to the other PS1-PS2 games, to use an anime metaphor, the whole thing is a bit more Studio Ghibli. There's a loveliness about it, that feels like a fond childhood memory.
That said, when I tried to replay it I couldn't get past maybe the 5th hour, mostly because I didn't find the gameplay to be particularly enjoyable.
