Jo21 said:
a spin off it's a spin off in any language. not matter if a platformer or RPG.
battle system story and characters are not the same, even if spin off the story progresss, battle system is different (FFX-2), and the characters evolve and mature.
all that apply to kart, zelda, brawl and mario too dead seriously only megaman its more milked than mario? they are making their money good games? who cares? |
Actually there is a vast difference in sales. Many of Mario's spinoff series have become their own iconic series, and sales do reflect that. Mario Kart has actually surpassed the Mario platformer in popularity on the Wii. Now check out the spinoffs of Final Fantasy. None of them have had anything close to the sales of a numbered entry. Why is that? It's because they are diluting the name of Final Fantasy, not strengthening it.
Every Mario spinoff has a purpose. There are no platformer spinoffs. If it's a platformer, it is a main canon game, end of story. If it is a different genre, it is to expand the Mario universe into different territory, thus gaining new fans. Each has it's own mass appeal, and each spinoff is among the top of the pile in terms of both quality and sales.
Final Fantasy games are an entirely different beast. Each main canon numbered game plays considerably different and encompasses a different world from it's predecesors and succesors. Almost the same can be said for every spinoff. They too usually have their own worlds and own gameplay styles. The funny thing is, most of these spinoffs are still RPGs, so I ask if they are, why aren't they a numbered Final Fantasy?
Is it a quality issue? If that's the case then my point is proven that FF spinoffs are diluting the name of Final Fantasy, not enhancing it.
Is it a gameplay issue? Hardly. Numbered Final Fantasies have had traditional turn-based, active time turn-based, action MMO combat, strategic MMO-like combat with auto pilot attached and plenty of in-betweens. However a game like Final Fantasy Tactics also offered a new battle system, world, etc. and was developed by a fantastic team and yet was not a numbered Final Fantasy. Why is that? Why has that same series now had it's own spinoff series in Final Fantasy Tactics Advance?








), I do think the series has lost a bit of it's luster because of it's overuse. There used to be a time when a spinoff or remake was rare and you were actually holding your breath for something with the name Final Fantasy on it. Nowadays, there are five times as many games outside of the main canon than within it. Usually, in the case of something like Mario it's easy to get away with it because Mario is a character. Final Fantasy is just one world of different characters after another, so it's a question on why this one if a real FF and not another one.