Is Final Fantasy VII the Best RPG Ever Made?
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Spanning three discs, Final Fantasy VII was unparalleled, both in size and in scope, for a console RPG. The new medium let Square craft a series of CG-animated cutscenes for which the company is now known for, for better or worse. While the dedicated Final Fantasy audience followed along without question, these cutscenes and other commercialized aspects of the game were responsible for introducing the genre to a whole new audience of gamers. After all, these heroes did not exist as flat sprites in a world of repeating backgrounds and eight-level-deep menus. Hellzapoppin magic effects filled the screen. Characters looked somewhat adult, which dovetailed nicely with Sony's plot to bring games to an audience that had previously dismissed them as playthings.Those of us who prefer Western-style RPGs would argue that Final Fantasy VII is just a small blip on a 30+ year history of role-playing video games, but it's still interesting to read why so many JRPG fans seem to think FF7 is the pinnacle of gaming.
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Final Fantasy VII's gameplay is perhaps more focused than its narrative. The game employs turn-based battles with random encounters like most RPGs released up to this point, although Final Fantasy VII does move at a faster pace due to its active turn-based combat, which means while your main hero is waiting for a turn, other characters are acting. This speeds the battle process, which could be considered a mercy since there are a lot of random battles in Final Fantasy VII.
