Looks like FF8 wins.
It was the richest experience offered in the series after all:
* Multithreaded plotline
* Steampunk/Victorian setting with orchestrated style music
* Multiple layers to advancing characters
* The ability to turn off random battles (there isn't even a need for them except for gaining AP and items to refine and construct weapons).
* A world with a lot of depth, interesting cultures and history
* Much cleaner graphics than previous games (FF7 was blocky, FULL of pop-up, and had scenes where characters shrank to a pinpoint).
* Best secondary cast in an RPG (Xenogears/Saga is the only rival I can think of).
* The first FF game with a great translation job (not the first Square game, Xenogears was probably the first where they really did well).
I describe myself as a little dose of toxic masculinity.
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