Pokemon is something I don't really understand. I mean, it's not that I dislike Pokemon, just that I don't understand why it's still so popular at this point. I look at it in much the same light as I do Madden or CoD. It's a game that people re-buy because it's comfortable.
I'll agree with FF7, as well, when measured from an objective standpoint. Subjectively, it's one of the most important games ever made. This is the game that literally made me and many other people switch from Nintendo to Playstation. However, I will always consider it a step down from FF6. I will always think of it as the game that took Final Fantasy down a lesser path. The story is a mess and Cloud is really lame as far as RPG protagonists go. Relative to most RPG criteria, it really wasn't all that great. I very much disagree with you about Tifa, though. She held the game together in the second half and made a very compelling character with her contrasts of strength and insecurity. I still think giving the confident girl (Aerith) the long, demure dress, and the unsure, conflicted girl the sexy outfit was a brilliant, stereotype breaking design choice.
As for Grand Theft Auto, I've never cared for any of them.
