#4 Final Fantasy Tactics

Why did it make the list?
This year I have been obsessed with Final Fantasy Tactics more than any other game on my list.  More specifically, I have been looking for a game that is like it and also “good enough”.   For example, I tried Stella Glow this year which is heavily inspired by FFT, and of course the entire Disgaea series is based on FFT, and there quite a few games with worse ratings all based on FFT.  Really almost every tactical JRPG made in the past couple of decades, outside of Fire Emblem, is based on FFT, and none of them come even close in quality.  The more I looked the more I came to appreciate just how remarkable a game FFT really is.  (And the game I finally found that was closest was Final Fantasy Tactics Advance + a GBA player on a Gamecube, my #41 game on the list.)

So, what is it about Final Fantasy Tactics that keeps me obsessed with it?  The first thing is the job system.  The job system of Final Fantasy Tactics is easily the best character progression system I’ve ever seen in any RPG.  It is the same Job/Subjob system used in FF5, FF11 and Bravely Default.  There are 19 different jobs in FFT and each character in your party can combine any two jobs together (although they are unlocked gradually through gameplay).  On top of that you can learn an extra ability when you move and a reaction ability for when you are attacked.  Put all of this together and there are a huge amount of options for how you want to build each of your characters.

The next thing is just the tactical combat itself.  This is really what makes the gameplay so much more interesting than a typical turn-based RPG, because movement and positioning and areas of effect now all become important factors.  But FFT does this so much better than all of its imitators, because its maps are so interesting.  You might fight on a high cliff, or on rooftops, or in a swamp, or on castle battlements….  Each battle feels like its own adventure, because of the interesting environments where you can position your characters.

And of course there is the story.  Final Fantasy games often have an amazing story, but FFT really has one of the best stories in any video game.  It is both a story about Ramza and his close friends and family, and it is also a story about political intrigue and class struggles and church corruption and so much more.  It easily competes with both Final Fantasy 6 & 7 for the title of best story in a video game, especially if you like a story with political intrigue.

FFT does have one strike against it which is its uneven difficulty.  The first 2/3 of the game can have some extremely challenging battles, while the last 1/3 is pretty much a cake walk.  However it also has tons of end game content to make up for all that.  I have played this game for I several hundred hours and it has still left me wanting more.  Damn you Square-Enix!  Make another sequel already!

Original Experience:
This game came out just a few months after Final Fantasy 7.  It was mind blowing that Squaresoft could come out with two of my favorite games ever in just the span of a few months.  This was a real high point for me in gaming.  The only other moment that could compete was when the NES resurrected console gaming from the dead.

How does it hold up today?
Final Fantasy Tactics still has the very best gameplay of any tactical RPG out there.  Nothing else even comes close.

#2 Tales of Symphonia / GCN

The game that ruined RPGs, (Me and Super_Boom, 2017).

I’ll keep it short (sort of), since I could go on and on about this game. I love it too much at times I feel.

This is a game that I hold very close to my heart, it was my first Tales game and my first RPG with the usual deeper focus on the story and characters, because of that it left quite an impression on me, and after over 10 years of playing this game regularly, it still remains at the top for me when it comes to the genre.

Besides my sentimental attachment to the game, on its own is still really good, a solid and engaging storyline, that deals with many themes, like racism, dealing with responsibilities, burdens, justice, etc. I think is a game in which at least one part of it can resonate with somebody from life experiences similar to the themes of the game or just the ideals presented through the characters, as such this RPG’s central theme “RPG that resonates with you”. Also the story takes a lot of cues and elements from Eternia and Phantasia, but I feel Symphonia perfects these plot points, generally the Tales of series tends to stay with some general ideas and plot devices, but Symphonia executes them the best.

One of the great aspects about the series as a whole is the character interaction, either be jokes, opinions on the current situation or just something random, it adds that extra special touch to an already really solid cast and something that the Tales series has mastered like no other; I find every character in this game quite likeable, each with their own arcs of development and I think is the most solid cast the series has had. Mad props to Zelos’ story and overall personality, it takes some challenge to get his whole tale (if you don’t use YouTube anyways) but is worth it as he becomes one very complex character and a favorite of mine and the fan base. Also it has a pretty great villain, both intimidating and sympathetic, which making an intimidating, imposing and really fleshed out villain is something this series tends to struggle with. All this mixed with a memorable soundtrack and great cell shaded style, plus a great English dub which equals and for me tops the original Japanese dub, they really wanted to push this game in the west and it shows with the talent they got for this game, just a great experience overall.

Of course the gameplay is great too, the first pseudo 3D game in the series really added a nice layer of strategy by minding the position of your character in the field, something that would be refined later in the series, but it is still quite fun and solid to play, which I actually prefer at times (some basic skills like back steps and recovery are locked behind level ups which makes combat slower at the start in later games, but are in your basic moves in Symphonia for example). Is not overly complicated on numbers, auto equip for fast item management and a pretty clear line of progression for each character, all of them are set with one job to fulfill, your healer, your mage, heavy hitters, etc. I don’t mind complexity but a simpler take can usually lead to a more fun time overall.

Dungeon design is pretty good as well, each with a unique puzzle or mechanic that makes them stand out and being memorable on their own (for better or for worse at times).

There is also a lot of nice world building sprinkled across the game, either from fairytales and legends that makes the world feel more believable, the different ambiences in the towns and how some can tell you about the state of the world just by the visuals, there is a lot of love and care into the world of Symphonia and I can’t get enough of that.

As a whole, Symphonia is a fantastic fantasy RPG with some nice twists here and there, predictable yes, but they are really well executed within the storytelling, great presentation and gameplay. I have spent hundreds of hours on this game across 9 playthroughts, enjoying every bit of dialogue, story and interactions that this game offers every time.  I could spend all day talking about this game and never get tired, I just love everything this game offers. 

The Legend of Zelda, the first one.

Correct!

Nice.

It's not on my list, I'll make an honorable mention of it, but objectively it should be in anyone's list because it's such a monument.

Also, even with that wall of text-hint I still have no idea on that other game lol.

4

Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island

• Super Nintendo Entertainment System, GameBoy Advance, Nintendo 3DS
• 1996
• 2D Platformer
• Nintendo EAD

Actually named 'Super Mario World 2', but hardly a real successor, 'Yoshi's Island' was the start of the character's own series of platformers. And an excellent start it was. People often seem to complain of a certain baby-noise, but the gameplay is so perfect, that it doesn't even matter to me and my ears have grown deaf to the sound as a nuisance. Though of course, it does still do it's job of making me make mistakes that get me killed perfectly.

Not a Mario game, not a Donkey Kong one, nor classic Sonic the Hedgehog or one of the popular modern "indie" platformers; no, 'Yoshi's Island' is the best 2D platformer. It's originality slips through into it's gameplay. The concepts of the game have all been implemented in perfect ways and it should be the textbook example for developers about how to make a 2D game. The music is terrific, memorably catchy and ranks among all-time greatest soundtracks. The art direction is one of the best to ever come out of a video game and it still makes this beautiful game look good today. It is vertainly one of the prettiest looking games ever in fact.

I played this game plenty of times when it had come out on Super Nintendo and together with 'The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past' it is most likely my most played game on the system and even of that generation. It is a long game however, so as a kid I never finished it. It wasn't until many years later when I was happy to buy the port to GameBoy Advance, when I finally saw the final boss. And then I wanted to play it again. And again.

#3
The little guy in this game saved 3D games in it's early years as he solved a whole bunch of camera-problems. Such a great little guy!

Nah you're right, it was obvious.

I should have went with something like the fact that you can only see him in that one mirror after the intro but he can see you all the time, or something lol. So yes, Super Mario 64 is correct.

5. Hint 1: Killing things with heavy metal music never felt so good. Depending on the character you play as you could have a full retinue of bodyguards following you around. For example in addition to the standard 8 bodyguards, if you are the leader, many groups of elite troops may also follow you around.

4 Hint 1: One of the earliest games to have an achievement like system.

3 Hint 1: Who will fight the war? The students of course!

2 Hint 1: For a game, religion surprisingly makes an appearance at the forefront.

1 Hint 1: My favorite character in this game used to have a skill that allowed him to block and counterattack 20 opposing attacks.

Oops, nothing to see here.