No I am not a Troll, I'm a new user. I realize this has probably already been done to death, but I was typing up a reply to another thread and I just kept adding and adding and adding until eventually it became a full blown rant. It felt a waste not to share it. Here it is in all of it's shameless and slightly disorganized glory. I don't think I have to go into a whole lot of detail about how this is just my opinion and how you're entitled to your own and everything I say is probably biased etc you get the idea. Read at your own risk and leisure.
----------
If I had to pick a game that was removed from history forever, it would be Final Fantasy 7. Convoluted plot (yes I know you've heard that one before, guess what, it is! Might be why you hear it so often), shitty game play, and irritating characters. They pushed no boundaries other than in the graphics and music section which quite frankly were some of the most irritating pieces I've ever had to endure.
Take special note that I am not comparing it to another Final Fantasy game, I'm not even comparing it to another game. The story was trite cliche and boring to anyone who's ever read a book in his life.
The main character is also the most lifeless sod I'd ever had the misfortune of controlling. He has no real expressions or personality that the fan-wanking community doesn't try to imply that he might have by retconning what his personality is from later media. He's a dull lifeless schizophrenic with amnesia (OH wow! Amnesia?! Square hadn't tried running THAT one into the ground 13 times before FF7) and even after the game, when he supposedly gets a personality in the movies, he's still a lifeless sod!
As an aside: I absolutely despised that part of advent children when all the goody goody gang from back in the day are all "Oh wow hey Cloud! Good to see you great times! Lets kick some ass just like the good old days! God it's great to see you again! :D" And he's all "Hurr...I must talk softly to be badass since I can't grow facial hair, nothing says hardcore badass like an even MORE feminine version of Gackt." Back in the day never happened! They were busy dealing with the deaths of their friends and loved ones! Cloud showing up would be nothing more than a sullen reminder of everyone they lost, but WOOP screw making sense! Lets make them all happy and crap cuz lord knows the fans are hyped to shit.
Anyone who wasn't a fan, wasn't hyped to shit when this incredibly awkward moment hit the big screen, and then little screens everywhere the second bit torrent got a hold of it. It was out of place. It was painful to watch.
Back to my main point, FF7 the game. This was the first FF I played, so I'm not going to explain to you in a 20 paragraph essay why FF8 was better because I happened to play that one first - it's got tons of other reasons - I burned through this game, and I'm a completionist. I've failed at it a hundred times but I swear on this life and the next I will get the Mile High Club achievement on Call of Duty 4, but I was not moved AT ALL to pursue the side quests. I got nothing from them, I was already ungodly powerful just casually strolling through the game. The most original thing about this game was Jenova, which got her ass kicked in the originality department by the rest of the game what butchered her. Barely sentient super alien statue lands on a planet and is supposedly hellbent on destroying the life stream or...whatever. Cool, I can live with that, I've seen weirder shit, I'm not going to down the game for being NEW and ORIGINAL. However, shortly after that revealing tidbit of information it's discovered that a mad scientist (mad you say? And a scientist?!) used these super alien cells to infect soldiers (and not say, cats or orphans?) to create an (I bet you can tell I'm going to say elite) elite team of (I bet you can tell I'm going to use the term "super soldier") super soldiers to do...battle...against...someone or something. That's right, you've got an elite squad of Jenova warriors fighting for what?! Who funded this guy?! What need was there! I refuse to believe that before this game was put out that they had anything else attached to this story, so the only history in-game is that some time in the past Jack got in a piss fight with Sephiroth, got his ass handed to him and Cloud had a nervous break down, because lord knows if you're a super soldier in god's divine mako army you couldn't handle a friggen DEATH. All the countless murders up to that point didn't do it for you?
There is also no internal monologue for a guy who is apparently always deep in thought. And even though Cloud doesn't think a damn word the 48 hours you're controlling him, there is such a thing as too much internal monologue. Before Tifa head-dived into Cloud he was a random thickie who was along for the ride. After the head-dive he was a random thickie who happened to be along for the right but now remembers his friends death, which doesn't hamper his ability to press on with unusual fervor. Yes I suppose with a game that gives you an empty speech bubble you're supposed to fill in the words on your own right? But why in an RPG?! Everything else is chiseled hardcore into stone, why the heck is this one free floating variable allowed to exist? And are we ALL supposed to come to the same conclusions with this? He is such an open ended character it means LOADS of people can enjoy his personality! Wrong. It means the writers didn't feel like putting any effort into it so they'll just put in the reactions of everyone around Cloud and hope you come to the conclusions you want them to based on THEIR reactions like Cloud is some sort of mindless thickie.
OH WAIT.
Wrapping this up, and honest to god I really should have just made my own thread but I don't think that would have been in good spirit. I did not cry when Aeris died. That's right, I said Aeris. When the game came over here, they changed her name to Aeris. So it's Aeris. Aerith isn't a different name, its the same damn name. Aerith is pronounced "Aeris" in Japan so why in gods name would Square-Enix make it difficult for us? Bunch of fanboys throw a tissy and the name gets spelled back to Aerith, hundreds of fanboys everywhere who think they're right then begin mispronouncing her name in the most ignorant way possible - by ignoring the culture and language gap. For people so hell bent on getting everything right, you'd think they'd be dedicated to that cause. She was some random flower girl you meet in the beginning of the game. Apparently she's being chased by bandits or some nonsense and hires you to protect her. Naturally Cloud accepts for some unexplained reason, starving mercenary could always make a few extra Gil right? Even if it's only a few extra Gil, like literally a handful. She sells those flowers for how much?
Yeah.
Somehow some sort of bond developed between her and the silent thoughtless blondie and his companion the metallic compensator. When did this happen?! Am I supposed to assume when I walk out on the overworld that these people frequently camp outdoors and have actual moments of bonding? Because that's the only time I could imagine anything other than lots of pointless shouting at were we need to go next happening. So she gets killed later, big woop. And anyone who couldn't tell the useless materia wasn't made out of pure Grade-A Plot-Deviceium has a skull thicker than Cloud's sword.
RPGs do well with a certain amount of sandbox. But when there is nothing in the game lending to sandbox style gameplay it is unwise to let the players make up the mind of the protagonist. Millions of gamers aren't all going to come to the same conclusions, some of them actually want Cloud to have more motivation beyond having the big breasted lady telling him what he's thinking. It's not even a little bit insulting that no matter what conclusion you come up with to explain Cloud's actions, he's still stuck doing the programmed scripted events in the order they were destined to be played out. Really, I don't mind a plot set in stone, but don't get sloppy and hand me an empty sheet for a soul and tell me I'm supposed to fill in the blanks. I may have been able to second guess the whole plot halfway through the first disc but your average gamer/book reader really doesn't pay mind to that stuff and keeps conjecture and assumption out of his experience. So how the hell are THEY supposed to know what Cloud's motivations are?! It's a book that occasionally stops to force you into a battle of menus and lens flares. A book doesn't hand me a protagonist and tell me to make something up about him then set him down in the middle of the 'well developed' storyline does it?
FF8 was indeed better, and yes they use the Amnesia and orphans bit, I didn't hear anyone complain when FF7 pulled that stunt, but the narrative was better. The director knew where he wanted his game to go, and we got to see his creative vision. Instead of being forced to make one up for ourselves and then be proven horribly horribly wrong toward what we were supposed to be thinking. FF8 did what FF7 probably wanted to do with their main character. Make someone who was thought provoking and compelling. "Squalls emo!" And Cloud isn't?! There's a big difference between the two - notably in that Squall gets better over the course of the game. Sure you can argue that Cloud does too but the movies and extra games are obviously cannon. He's still a moody confused hush hush trying-to-be badass well after he destroys Sephiroth and saves the world. How impenetrable does your character have to be that saving the world doesn't alter his view on life? SAVING THE WORLD.
Squall went from being a disconnected jerk who didn't want anything to do with anyone because as a small child he never knew his mother, his father was off fighting a war, and his only sister was ripped away from him to go into hiding because a berserker witch was capturing them from all over the continent. I'd get pretty distant too if I was a small timid frail child and everything I new and loved was ripped haplessly from my grasp. And you see him struggle with that throughout the entire game. When his rival cuts his face, he cuts it right back.
Cloud? He was a soldier, injected with Jenova Cells(tm) and saw his commanding officer(?) die in front of him. This was apparently so mind altering that it requires no further commitment to his personality disorder since it's pretty obvious death can be pretty traumatizing for a hardened super soldier. It barely comes up twice in the game, excluding when Tifa reminds us that Cloud is screwed up and needlessly head dives him back into shape. Which you don't really get the effects of since Cloud doesn't express anything throughout the game, you cant tell if he really got anything out of it, or if your sense of urgency has something to do with the orchestra strike that kicks up once you're mind is whole again and Tifa tells you that you're supposed to be kicking ass and taking names. You sort of just pretend Cloud's better since that's obviously what the game wanted you to think right? When his rival cuts down his boss, he gets huffy and then has his ass handed to him.
Cloud, the complete opposite of weak and pathetic, was traumatized by his day job, and has no motivation of his own without the player.
Squall weak and pathetic, grows out of it. You get to watch read and sometimes even think as he does. His opinions might not match up with your own, but then, he isn't you. He turns slowly from an unlikeable jerk to someone you generally want to see succeed. We call this an evolution in narrative and it is one hell of a jump from its predecessor. But both of these games fail to grasp the twisty plot that was FF6.
If FF7 was in 2D like its predecessor, FF6 would have overshadowed it. Yes a major step in the evolution of graphics does hamper ones ability to squeeze in enough forethought for a decent plot, but I've waited a few extra months for a game before, why was I handed this garbage? Sephiroth wasn't even that much of a villain. Only 6-7 people in the world knew he was up to no good and the rest of the world is completely unhelpful in locating him. He cracks open the earth, summons a bunch of rocks, then unobtanium saves the day. Holy gods...who saw that coming.
FF8's ending wasn't much better even though the whole planet is in dire need of your aid by the time you get to the end and everyone is clamoring at you to solve your problems and you can only hope to god Squall had grown up enough between discs 1 and 3 to effectively come up with a solution to these problems, but eventually with the help of a powerful sorceress prodigy and the planet's top scientist (a man who figured out how to engineer friggen magic) you somehow manage to compress time, but unobtainium doesn't come to save the day, oh no. Kick Ultimecia's ass with whatever tools god and the Dev team decided to give you or the universe is F*beep*ing screwed!
Cloud was also needlessly badass in every appearance after FF7. He wasn't this badass during the game so its not coming off as a particularly honest rendition of the character. Squall on the other hand, it's established within the first 10 minutes of game that he IS a genuine badass, he just happens to get his ass kicked by people who are more badass, and emotions. Those funny things people have that make them feel?
If Cloud got out of his emo shoes for ten minutes and fought for something other than the love of friends and love and the friendly power of love and friendship on behalf of all of the plucky sidekicks that tell him to while his visually displayed disposition screams out in such a way as to be contradictory to how loving he is of his friends, they might eventually make a decent game for that helplessly milked sub-franchise.
Wow... that's alot of hatred for something that no one ever forced you to play. But if you want to hate it thats fine, go ahead. I'll just be over here in the other side of the room with everyone else, not hating it.
Wow, you have totally convinced me. I now hate Final Fantasy 7.
Not really, your post was too long and you lost all your credibility after "No I am not a Troll". Why bother spending time and energy on such a long post that all boils down to "I didn't like FF7"? I can see only two reasons, either you're trying to persuade fans to your opinion, which is a pointless exercise, or you're just going against the flow for the sake of controversy, in which case yes, you are a troll.
There are plenty of worse ones that get more zombie fanboy drool \ rabies. Like gaylo. Absolute crappy-mediocre FPS and people still vomit joygasm over it. It's pure filth, ffs... FF7 has, infact, brought enjoyable gameplay, then-groundbreaking graphics, masterfully composed, *AWARD-WINNING* music (You disliking it simply means you have no taste. I'd bet ten bucks right here you listen to mainstream crap like emingem or limp bizkit or something stupid like that).
It was easily the game of the year, nothing came close to it - not even remotely close. I see no reason for the BAWWW, other than perhaps attentionseeking?
varulfic: Wow, you have totally convinced me. I now hate Final Fantasy 7.
Not really, your post was too long and you lost all your credibility after "No I am not a Troll". Why bother spending time and energy on such a long post that all boils down to "I didn't like FF7"? I can see only two reasons, either you're trying to persuade fans to your opinion, which is a pointless exercise, or you're just going against the flow for the sake of controversy, in which case yes, you are a troll.
Or, you know, he could be just voicing his opinion of the game on a game forum.
Yes, we know FF7 isn't the best game ever made. Yes, this topic has been done to death. Yes, Cloud is a twat. Yes, the game is way overrated.
I personally enjoyed the game back when I first played it. It has since been corrupted (in my mind) by fanboys, remakes, and some truly horrific porn, but I still fondly recall the time we had together.
Blackwingdragon: There are plenty of worse ones that get more zombie fanboy drool \ rabies. Like gaylo. Absolute crappy-mediocre FPS and people still vomit joygasm over it. It's pure filth, ffs... FF7 has, infact, brought enjoyable gameplay, then-groundbreaking graphics, masterfully composed, *AWARD-WINNING* music (You disliking it simply means you have no taste. I'd bet ten bucks right here you listen to mainstream crap like emingem or limp bizkit or something stupid like that).
It was easily the game of the year, nothing came close to it - not even remotely close. I see no reason for the BAWWW, other than perhaps attentionseeking?
I like how you bash Halo (GUFFAW GAYLO I GET IT) then glorify FF7.
Rahnzan: The story was trite cliche and boring to anyone who's ever read a book in his life.
I can only assume from this comment that you didn't play the game when it was first released. That makes a big difference.
I'm not usually one to play the "I was there at the time" card but it really was incredible in the context of 1997. It's a similar story with Metal Gear Solid 2 -- the people who dislike it usually weren't there to feel the hype, see the trailers, wait months on end and then get hit by Raiden & the crazy Colonel. On the contrary, they heard about Raiden & the crazy Colonel and then played the game. Aeris's death is a similar thing -- if you knew it was coming it obviously wouldn't have the same effect.
I also think most of your other criticisms are invalid but I don't want to get into a long-winded debate.
edit: or did you just make this thread to get the pencil badge? :o
Woah, that's a lot of replies in a short amount of time for me.. =o
I'm used to a much slower paced community so I wrote to last. I don't hate it nearly as much as I make it seem I do. I had fun playing it, I just don't think it achieved anything spectacular other than being the first 3d RPG to make it big. Well, okay I hate it a little, it does spawn a lot of needless debate from the internet, not something I'm exactly helping right now. I'd be more than happy to destroy the possibility of a good many debates ever having taken place that tried to compare FF7 to Shakespeare.
Well yeah, it was bad. But it was still fun. Cloud WAS the most depressing pile of pixles ever concieved and does have the emotional depth of a rusty tea-spoon BUT we still laughed when he cried, we chortled when he died, and cried when aeris died because she only ever used a stick and still kicked ass, but im losing my train thought. Noone forced you to like or even play the game. Abe's Oddysee was better.
Blackwingdragon: There are plenty of worse ones that get more zombie fanboy drool \ rabies. Like gaylo. Absolute crappy-mediocre FPS and people still vomit joygasm over it. It's pure filth, ffs... FF7 has, infact, brought enjoyable gameplay, then-groundbreaking graphics, masterfully composed, *AWARD-WINNING* music (You disliking it simply means you have no taste. I'd bet ten bucks right here you listen to mainstream crap like emingem or limp bizkit or something stupid like that).
It was easily the game of the year, nothing came close to it - not even remotely close. I see no reason for the BAWWW, other than perhaps attentionseeking?
I like how you bash Halo (GUFFAW GAYLO I GET IT) then glorify FF7.
You're like the OP, except your post is shorter.
Invalid. Rabid fanboys won't ever accept gaylo being the crap it is, despite it having absolutely mediocre gameplay, music, slightly above average visuals and HORRIBLE level design (Because I LOVED shooting those stupid swawrm\flood\zombie whatevers for HALF AN HOUR through IDENTICAL LOOKING CORRIDORS YES). It was nothing new at all, it was quite average but people still get hardons from just hearing the name and blindly insist on it being TEH GREATEST GAME EVER LULZ.
Blackwingdragon: There are plenty of worse ones that get more zombie fanboy drool \ rabies. Like gaylo. Absolute crappy-mediocre FPS and people still vomit joygasm over it. It's pure filth, ffs... FF7 has, infact, brought enjoyable gameplay, then-groundbreaking graphics, masterfully composed, *AWARD-WINNING* music (You disliking it simply means you have no taste. I'd bet ten bucks right here you listen to mainstream crap like emingem or limp bizkit or something stupid like that).
It was easily the game of the year, nothing came close to it - not even remotely close. I see no reason for the BAWWW, other than perhaps attentionseeking?
I actually dislike the white rapper, and the synthesizer (staring some people who might be able to sing.) I'm kind of confused why you would relate my character to another group of people you don't associate with simply because I dislike one of your beloved games.
My taste in music is ....well everything besides rap. Days of the New, Brad Paisley, the Bee Gees...Sara Bareilles, Kenny Wayne Shepard, Lenny Kravitz, Led Zeppelin, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Barenaked Ladies. I've got over 3000 bands on my old laptop, everything from AC/DC to ZZ Top. I guess that includes one or two songs by Limp Bizkit but they're not my go to band for sure. The music that irritates me the most of FF7 is actually the Sephiroth theme. It annoys me, yes I know tons of people love it, but I just can't take it as a threatening introduction to a villain I wasn't taking seriously to begin with. I also don't need attention, my post count is 14 or something, you guys wont know my real name unless you do a bit of seeking so getting any notoriety on the internet for being the guy who hates FF7 is a bit of an empty goal.
I also thought Halo was mediocre in the extreme. I somehow managed to avoid hearing anything about it when it came out and picked it up because it looked interesting. I didn't have a FPS at the time for my xbox and thought "why not this one." I wasn't particularly amazed by the plushie grunts and the funny sounding squids, and Yahtzee better describes the choice of weaponry. Nerf guns.
Blackwingdragon: There are plenty of worse ones that get more zombie fanboy drool \ rabies. Like gaylo. Absolute crappy-mediocre FPS and people still vomit joygasm over it. It's pure filth, ffs... FF7 has, infact, brought enjoyable gameplay, then-groundbreaking graphics, masterfully composed, *AWARD-WINNING* music (You disliking it simply means you have no taste. I'd bet ten bucks right here you listen to mainstream crap like emingem or limp bizkit or something stupid like that).
It was easily the game of the year, nothing came close to it - not even remotely close. I see no reason for the BAWWW, other than perhaps attentionseeking?
Sigh. Another one.
What is it about The Escapist that attracts snobby elitists that call everyone who doesn't share their opinions dumb and tasteless?
Blackwingdragon: There are plenty of worse ones that get more zombie fanboy drool \ rabies. Like gaylo. Absolute crappy-mediocre FPS and people still vomit joygasm over it. It's pure filth, ffs... FF7 has, infact, brought enjoyable gameplay, then-groundbreaking graphics, masterfully composed, *AWARD-WINNING* music (You disliking it simply means you have no taste. I'd bet ten bucks right here you listen to mainstream crap like emingem or limp bizkit or something stupid like that).
It was easily the game of the year, nothing came close to it - not even remotely close. I see no reason for the BAWWW, other than perhaps attentionseeking?
I actually dislike the white rapper, and the synthesizer (staring some people who might be able to sing.) I'm kind of confused why you would relate my character to another group of people you dont associate with simply because I dislike one of your beloved games.
My taste in music is ....well everything besides rap. Days of the New, Brad Paisley, the Bee Gees...Sara Bareilles, Kenny Wayne Shepard, Lenny Kravitz, Led Zeppelin, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Barenaked Ladies. I've got over 3000 bands on my old laptop, everything from AC/DC to ZZ Top. I guess that includes one or two songs by Limp Bizkit but they're not my go to band for sure.
I'm saying your taste is horrible, that you stick so much to the mainstream spotlight crap that anything that DARES violate mediocrity and threatens to be special is automatically mocked. Edit : It could be the dumb and tasteless people?Hm yes...
Blackwingdragon: There are plenty of worse ones that get more zombie fanboy drool \ rabies. Like gaylo. Absolute crappy-mediocre FPS and people still vomit joygasm over it. It's pure filth, ffs... FF7 has, infact, brought enjoyable gameplay, then-groundbreaking graphics, masterfully composed, *AWARD-WINNING* music (You disliking it simply means you have no taste. I'd bet ten bucks right here you listen to mainstream crap like emingem or limp bizkit or something stupid like that).
It was easily the game of the year, nothing came close to it - not even remotely close. I see no reason for the BAWWW, other than perhaps attentionseeking?
I like how you bash Halo (GUFFAW GAYLO I GET IT) then glorify FF7.
You're like the OP, except your post is shorter.
Invalid. Rabid fanboys won't ever accept gaylo being the crap it is, despite it having absolutely mediocre gameplay, music, slightly above average visuals and HORRIBLE level design (Because I LOVED shooting those stupid swawrm\flood\zombie whatevers for HALF AN HOUR through IDENTICAL LOOKING CORRIDORS YES). It was nothing new at all, it was quite average but people still get hardons from just hearing the name and blindly insist on it being TEH GREATEST GAME EVER LULZ.
You've basically said FF7 is "TEH GREATEST GAME EVER LULZ" and you won't accept criticism for it. That's the very definition of a fanboy.
Also nobody cares about halo, rant about it in a thread that actually pertains to it.
Also invalid. It was a spectacular game that fell an inch short of perfect, but it's old and I've moved on to better. All I'm saying is that it performed wonderfully for its' time, bringing unparalelled graphics, storyline and action to the then-stale PC gaming. at that time all we had was theme park and some horribly crappy games (Diablo anyone)?
Blackwingdragon: Also invalid. It was a spectacular game that fell an inch short of perfect, but it's old and I've moved on to better. All I'm saying is that it performed wonderfully for its' time, bringing unparalelled graphics, storyline and action to the then-stale PC gaming. at that time all we had was theme park and some horribly crappy games (Diablo anyone)?
Look your jrpg fetish isn't a convincing argument, bring some facts to the table.
Descriptive words like "spectacular, inch short of perfect, performed wonderfully, unparalleled graphics storyline and action" aren't logical arguments.
harhol: if you knew it was coming it obviously wouldn't have the same effect.
I also think most of your other criticisms are invalid but I don't want to get into a long-winded debate.
edit: or did you just make this thread to get the pencil badge? :o
Played it when it came out, wasn't extremely impressed, years of over-hyping an experience I didn't quite understand turned me bitter but I'd since grown out of being a moody opinionated teenager. And I honestly would like to hear your long winded opinion. I'm just sitting in college bored as all hell waiting to go home, and if I can read something that changes my mind or at least gives me a new perspective on things you're welcome to it. I was also not aware of badges until you mentioned them.
I've approached games from a cynical perspective long before Yahtzee started grooming a legion to do it. You guys could probably tear this one up, but one game I absolutely loved was Star Ocean 2. Three doesn't exist, which makes me wonder why the newest one is titled 4.
In the context of it's time period it was a good game and the only Final Fantasy i've played through to the end- it even tricked me into thinking I LIKED Final Fantasy and wasting 50 bucks on FF12 (baw).
The game is over a decade old, so it's washed with nostalgia. Yeah, I get it, it wasn't the bestest game ever. It was the best RPG IN IT'S TIME, and people have fond memories of it and the characters, who were all fairly unique and interesting. The most I think about Final Fantasy 7 is that it's narrative, plot, and world had a great deal of potential that was wasted/never lived up to. This is probably why so many people clamor for a remake; it was good, but not AWESOME, and could've been better but for the limitations of the time- OH GOD BLOCK PEOPLE BY EYES!
Still i'm not going to say your WRONG, your entitled to your opinion on the end. I would like to point out some inconsistancies:
Cloud? He was a soldier, injected with Jenova Cells(tm) and saw his commanding officer(?) die in front of him. This was apparently so mind altering that it requires no further commitment to his personality disorder since it's pretty obvious death can be pretty traumatizing for a hardened super soldier. It barely comes up twice in the game, excluding when Tifa reminds us that Cloud is screwed up and needlessly head dives him back into shape. Which you don't really get the effects of since Cloud doesn't express anything throughout the game, you cant tell if he really got anything out of it, or if your sense of urgency has something to do with the orchestra strike that kicks up once you're mind is whole again and Tifa tells you that you're supposed to be kicking ass and taking names. You sort of just pretend Cloud's better since that's obviously what the game wanted you to think right? When his rival cuts down his boss, he gets huffy and then has his ass handed to him.
SOLDIER's weren't injected with Jenova, Sephiroth was, as were a -few- other candidates (such as Cloud). Hence he goes all Parasite Eve on us and tries to destroy the world, or something. Admittedly i'm kind of vauge on what his motivation was, I chalk it up to 'crazy'. SOLDIER's were injected with Mako, which is effectivly liquid magic sucked out of the earth through a very environmentally unfreindly process that renders the world a barren wasteland. It also provides all electricity in the game. Anyway, Cloud was never a SOLDIER because, well, he just couldn't cut it- he was one of those faceless grunts in the blue uniforms and gas masks. Due to whatever wierd radiation had thickied up his brains he mixed himself up with his freind Zack, who WAS a soldier and a badass- so yes Cloud was NOT a badass, he was living vicariously through another badass who was dead (this sort of brain melting also happens to the majority of the other candidates who were injected with Jenova, they're the gibbering lunatics in back robes who occasionally show up and kill themselves in amusing ways).
No I am not a Troll, I'm a new user. I realize this has probably already been done to death, but I was typing up a reply to another thread and I just kept adding and adding and adding until eventually it became a full blown rant. It felt a waste not to share it. Here it is in all of it's shameless and slightly disorganized glory. I don't think I have to go into a whole lot of detail about how this is just my opinion and how you're entitled to your own and everything I say is probably biased etc you get the idea. Read at your own risk and leisure.
----------
If I had to pick a game that was removed from history forever, it would be Final Fantasy 7. Convoluted plot (yes I know you've heard that one before, guess what, it is! Might be why you hear it so often), shitty game play, and irritating characters. They pushed no boundaries other than in the graphics and music section which quite frankly were some of the most irritating pieces I've ever had to endure.
Take special note that I am not comparing it to another Final Fantasy game, I'm not even comparing it to another game. The story was trite cliche and boring to anyone who's ever read a book in his life.
The main character is also the most lifeless sod I'd ever had the misfortune of controlling. He has no real expressions or personality that the fan-wanking community doesn't try to imply that he might have by retconning what his personality is from later media. He's a dull lifeless schizophrenic with amnesia (OH wow! Amnesia?! Square hadn't tried running THAT one into the ground 13 times before FF7) and even after the game, when he supposedly gets a personality in the movies, he's still a lifeless sod!
As an aside: I absolutely despised that part of advent children when all the goody goody gang from back in the day are all "Oh wow hey Cloud! Good to see you great times! Lets kick some ass just like the good old days! God it's great to see you again! :D" And he's all "Hurr...I must talk softly to be badass since I can't grow facial hair, nothing says hardcore badass like an even MORE feminine version of Gackt." Back in the day never happened! They were busy dealing with the deaths of their friends and loved ones! Cloud showing up would be nothing more than a sullen reminder of everyone they lost, but WOOP screw making sense! Lets make them all happy and crap cuz lord knows the fans are hyped to shit.
Anyone who wasn't a fan, wasn't hyped to shit when this incredibly awkward moment hit the big screen, and then little screens everywhere the second bit torrent got a hold of it. It was out of place. It was painful to watch.
Back to my main point, FF7 the game. This was the first FF I played, so I'm not going to explain to you in a 20 paragraph essay why FF8 was better because I happened to play that one first - it's got tons of other reasons - I burned through this game, and I'm a completionist. I've failed at it a hundred times but I swear on this life and the next I will get the Mile High Club achievement on Call of Duty 4, but I was not moved AT ALL to pursue the side quests. I got nothing from them, I was already ungodly powerful just casually strolling through the game. The most original thing about this game was Jenova, which got her ass kicked in the originality department by the rest of the game what butchered her. Barely sentient super alien statue lands on a planet and is supposedly hellbent on destroying the life stream or...whatever. Cool, I can live with that, I've seen weirder shit, I'm not going to down the game for being NEW and ORIGINAL. However, shortly after that revealing tidbit of information it's discovered that a mad scientist (mad you say? And a scientist?!) used these super alien cells to infect soldiers (and not say, cats or orphans?) to create an (I bet you can tell I'm going to say elite) elite team of (I bet you can tell I'm going to use the term "super soldier") super soldiers to do...battle...against...someone or something. That's right, you've got an elite squad of Jenova warriors fighting for what?! Who funded this guy?! What need was there! I refuse to believe that before this game was put out that they had anything else attached to this story, so the only history in-game is that some time in the past Jack got in a piss fight with Sephiroth, got his ass handed to him and Cloud had a nervous break down, because lord knows if you're a super soldier in god's divine mako army you couldn't handle a friggen DEATH. All the countless murders up to that point didn't do it for you?
There is also no internal monologue for a guy who is apparently always deep in thought. And even though Cloud doesn't think a damn word the 48 hours you're controlling him, there is such a thing as too much internal monologue. Before Tifa head-dived into Cloud he was a random thickie who was along for the ride. After the head-dive he was a random thickie who happened to be along for the right but now remembers his friends death, which doesn't hamper his ability to press on with unusual fervor. Yes I suppose with a game that gives you an empty speech bubble you're supposed to fill in the words on your own right? But why in an RPG?! Everything else is chiseled hardcore into stone, why the heck is this one free floating variable allowed to exist? And are we ALL supposed to come to the same conclusions with this? He is such an open ended character it means LOADS of people can enjoy his personality! Wrong. It means the writers didn't feel like putting any effort into it so they'll just put in the reactions of everyone around Cloud and hope you come to the conclusions you want them to based on THEIR reactions like Cloud is some sort of mindless thickie.
OH WAIT.
Wrapping this up, and honest to god I really should have just made my own thread but I don't think that would have been in good spirit. I did not cry when Aeris died. That's right, I said Aeris. When the game came over here, they changed her name to Aeris. So it's Aeris. Aerith isn't a different name, its the same damn name. Aerith is pronounced "Aeris" in Japan so why in gods name would Square-Enix make it difficult for us? Bunch of fanboys throw a tissy and the name gets spelled back to Aerith, hundreds of fanboys everywhere who think they're right then begin mispronouncing her name in the most ignorant way possible - by ignoring the culture and language gap. For people so hell bent on getting everything right, you'd think they'd be dedicated to that cause. She was some random flower girl you meet in the beginning of the game. Apparently she's being chased by bandits or some nonsense and hires you to protect her. Naturally Cloud accepts for some unexplained reason, starving mercenary could always make a few extra Gil right? Even if it's only a few extra Gil, like literally a handful. She sells those flowers for how much?
Yeah.
Somehow some sort of bond developed between her and the silent thoughtless blondie and his companion the metallic compensator. When did this happen?! Am I supposed to assume when I walk out on the overworld that these people frequently camp outdoors and have actual moments of bonding? Because that's the only time I could imagine anything other than lots of pointless shouting at were we need to go next happening. So she gets killed later, big woop. And anyone who couldn't tell the useless materia wasn't made out of pure Grade-A Plot-Deviceium has a skull thicker than Cloud's sword.
RPGs do well with a certain amount of sandbox. But when there is nothing in the game lending to sandbox style gameplay it is unwise to let the players make up the mind of the protagonist. Millions of gamers aren't all going to come to the same conclusions, some of them actually want Cloud to have more motivation beyond having the big breasted lady telling him what he's thinking. It's not even a little bit insulting that no matter what conclusion you come up with to explain Cloud's actions, he's still stuck doing the programmed scripted events in the order they were destined to be played out. Really, I don't mind a plot set in stone, but don't get sloppy and hand me an empty sheet for a soul and tell me I'm supposed to fill in the blanks. I may have been able to second guess the whole plot halfway through the first disc but your average gamer/book reader really doesn't pay mind to that stuff and keeps conjecture and assumption out of his experience. So how the hell are THEY supposed to know what Cloud's motivations are?! It's a book that occasionally stops to force you into a battle of menus and lens flares. A book doesn't hand me a protagonist and tell me to make something up about him then set him down in the middle of the 'well developed' storyline does it?
FF8 was indeed better, and yes they use the Amnesia and orphans bit, I didn't hear anyone complain when FF7 pulled that stunt, but the narrative was better. The director knew where he wanted his game to go, and we got to see his creative vision. Instead of being forced to make one up for ourselves and then be proven horribly horribly wrong toward what we were supposed to be thinking. FF8 did what FF7 probably wanted to do with their main character. Make someone who was thought provoking and compelling. "Squalls emo!" And Cloud isn't?! There's a big difference between the two - notably in that Squall gets better over the course of the game. Sure you can argue that Cloud does too but the movies and extra games are obviously cannon. He's still a moody confused hush hush trying-to-be badass well after he destroys Sephiroth and saves the world. How impenetrable does your character have to be that saving the world doesn't alter his view on life? SAVING THE WORLD.
Squall went from being a disconnected jerk who didn't want anything to do with anyone because as a small child he never knew his mother, his father was off fighting a war, and his only sister was ripped away from him to go into hiding because a berserker witch was capturing them from all over the continent. I'd get pretty distant too if I was a small timid frail child and everything I new and loved was ripped haplessly from my grasp. And you see him struggle with that throughout the entire game. When his rival cuts his face, he cuts it right back.
Cloud? He was a soldier, injected with Jenova Cells(tm) and saw his commanding officer(?) die in front of him. This was apparently so mind altering that it requires no further commitment to his personality disorder since it's pretty obvious death can be pretty traumatizing for a hardened super soldier. It barely comes up twice in the game, excluding when Tifa reminds us that Cloud is screwed up and needlessly head dives him back into shape. Which you don't really get the effects of since Cloud doesn't express anything throughout the game, you cant tell if he really got anything out of it, or if your sense of urgency has something to do with the orchestra strike that kicks up once you're mind is whole again and Tifa tells you that you're supposed to be kicking ass and taking names. You sort of just pretend Cloud's better since that's obviously what the game wanted you to think right? When his rival cuts down his boss, he gets huffy and then has his ass handed to him.
Cloud, the complete opposite of weak and pathetic, was traumatized by his day job, and has no motivation of his own without the player.
Squall weak and pathetic, grows out of it. You get to watch read and sometimes even think as he does. His opinions might not match up with your own, but then, he isn't you. He turns slowly from an unlikeable jerk to someone you generally want to see succeed. We call this an evolution in narrative and it is one hell of a jump from its predecessor. But both of these games fail to grasp the twisty plot that was FF6.
If FF7 was in 2D like its predecessor, FF6 would have overshadowed it. Yes a major step in the evolution of graphics does hamper ones ability to squeeze in enough forethought for a decent plot, but I've waited a few extra months for a game before, why was I handed this garbage? Sephiroth wasn't even that much of a villain. Only 6-7 people in the world knew he was up to no good and the rest of the world is completely unhelpful in locating him. He cracks open the earth, summons a bunch of rocks, then unobtanium saves the day. Holy gods...who saw that coming.
FF8's ending wasn't much better even though the whole planet is in dire need of your aid by the time you get to the end and everyone is clamoring at you to solve your problems and you can only hope to god Squall had grown up enough between discs 1 and 3 to effectively come up with a solution to these problems, but eventually with the help of a powerful sorceress prodigy and the planet's top scientist (a man who figured out how to engineer friggen magic) you somehow manage to compress time, but unobtainium doesn't come to save the day, oh no. Kick Ultimecia's ass with whatever tools god and the Dev team decided to give you or the universe is F*beep*ing screwed!
Cloud was also needlessly badass in every appearance after FF7. He wasn't this badass during the game so its not coming off as a particularly honest rendition of the character. Squall on the other hand, it's established within the first 10 minutes of game that he IS a genuine badass, he just happens to get his ass kicked by people who are more badass, and emotions. Those funny things people have that make them feel?
If Cloud got out of his emo shoes for ten minutes and fought for something other than the love of friends and love and the friendly power of love and friendship on behalf of all of the plucky sidekicks that tell him to while his visually displayed disposition screams out in such a way as to be contradictory to how loving he is of his friends, they might eventually make a decent game for that helplessly milked sub-franchise.