Well a few things are wrong here,

pretty much all the FF games have had growing Scifi theme to them since FF IV and the huge gigantic walking robot. FF VI opened up with people walking in mechs had a level entirely wrapped around a train(ghost train) and introduced the opera house(casino in FF VII).
The main character has amnesia and doesn't know what she is and there is a love story in VI not too mention an enemy that is actually evil. The story in VI is so much better than VIIs it isn't even funny.
However VII is a fun RPG it carries over a lot of the story elements from VI and upgrades the battle system(ultima is like the precursor to the summons IMO). It introduced a new way to connect to the charcters emotional through FMV and finally broke the genre free from sprite based technology and allowed for detailed prerendered backdrops like Myst had. It gets a lot of hate perhaps for the style change or for the fact that new generation of gamers who played it call it the best FF ever while I would garner that many who have played FF IV would beg to differ.

To me it represents the schism between old school and new school gamers. Where the presentation of a game of the game matters more than the content of the game(though both still matter) Super mario 64 was the final nail in this coffin(some peopel call that the best platformer of all time).

It doesn't matter if it's "cool" to dislike something or not, so long as there's a valid reason to dislike it. For the Final Fantasy games, specifically FF7, it's:

-The horrid "ATB" system. Not only does our turn-based battle system involve pressing X to attack; now, you have to WAIT to press X to attack. Exciting!

-Lack of any real customization. You'll use the few materia that are any good, and throw away the other 90% of them.

-Poorly-aged graphics. Most every 3D game on the PS1 is ugly as hell, and FF7 is no exception. Displays in 320x240, low polygon count, "shifty" textures, and the characters look like Lego people with Popeye hands.

-Boring setting and atmosphere. Once you get out of the starting city, the game looks just like every other fantasy JRPG out there - and the soundtrack is your generic "sweeping orchestra" shindig.

Those are just the major ones. I could complain about the story and characters, but really, complaining about story and characters in most video games is like complaining about the quality of Naruto fanfiction. It's just not worth it.

@Twestern

The complete opposite of what you said is my opinion.

FFVI is outdated while FFVII had the best everything.

And yes, I did experience FFVI before FFVII and will have to say FFVII > FFVI IMO in every way possible.


*FFVI Spoilers!*
I hate how people say Kefka is the greatest villian every, and how he managed to destroy everything but the main cast, that seems way to cliche to me compared to sephiroth/jenova plot.

I like both Japanese and Western RPGs. I've been playing them since the NES. I think that VII was flawed in many levels. I'd put at least 5 other mainline FF games over it, like V, VI, IX and X. I thought It was overrated, repetitive and unfinished back then, and I think the same way now.

I'd rather have Chrono Trigger, Xenogears, KotoR or Baldur's gate than any mainline Final Fantasy though. Xenogears is actually the game that I'd like to see redone, instead of the bore that Xenosaga was.

FFVII is and was sex on the beach. It's just fantastic.

I guess I'm a bit of an oddity then, I began with FFIV, loved both it and VI and I also really enjoyed VII.

I can totally see the reason why some of the oldschoolers wouldn't like VII however, going all 3d and having bigger and longer animations for summons and whatnot, but I thought in the end its story telling was quite good which really made it a great game for my money.

FF7 is a vey love-it-or-hate-it game, it's true. The exceptionally dated visuals and laughably bad MIDI mapping make it the weakest entry in the series on the aesthetic side. The gameplay is remarkably easy, but then so is FF6's. The story is confusing thanks largely to the sub-par translation it got, so unless you're willing to muddle through the occasionally Engrish-worthy dialogue to figure out what's really being said, you're unlikely to enjoy the game for its story.

I personally find that I have less trouble picking up and playing FF6 than FF7. It has nothing at all to do with FF7's visual, audio, or gameplay shortcomings, and everything to do with pacing. FF7 starts off slow and monotonous, and doesn't pick up considerably until you leave Midgard. FF6 starts you out running, and doesn't really let up on this until you've managed to get back where you started. It's a perfect polar opposite of focus, going from slow to fast in FF7 and from fast to slow in FF6. FF6's method works better for me, for whatever reason.

I love 1-6 the most but 7 was ok. The rest I didn't get into much. I also like crystal chronicles a little just bought it the other day.

Honestly, I cheered when she died. I was hoping Cloud was next but alas, I was forced to let the Emerald Weapon trample him until I got bored with the game and quit.

I haven't really enjoyed a FF game since the SNES (unless it's an old port) and have only enjoyed some pieces of each installment since then. I loved the Weapons in VII, the card game in VIII, and overall IX wasn't too bad. Probably my favorite since the series went 3D. Still didn't think it was great, though.

I don't mind the sci-fi so much but I absolutely cannot stand every whiny bitch Square has used as a main character over the past decade of games.

I'll put it this way, Final Fantasy 7 is where I started hating my previously most loved game series, Final Fantasy 8 had me disgusted enough to melt the cd's. Final Fantasy 9 made me happy because there was a lot of fan service. Final Fantasy 10 made me break the DVD with a hammer and I stopped buying until 11 which I simultaneously loved and hated. As for Final Fantasy 12... it's another case of hammer though I haven't gotten angry enough at it to do that.

4 is the best, Kefka could kick Sephiroths a$$ and Rhydia is the only summoner I'll acknowledge.

P.S. "Ha take that b*t*h!" -Me to Aeries death scene.