Gaming has a plethora of long standing franchises with numerous entries, and a lot of times it's hard to know where to start with eventual gaps that have developed in your own path. I was thinking about this as I wanted to try to get into Final Fantasy more and then figured many of you also have franchises you kind of want to get into but don't know where to start. So this thread is to ask the rest of the community for their recommendations on where to start with franchises.

I'll start by asking, where should I get "started" with Final Fantasy? I say "started" because I did play FF13 about 8 years ago and it really left a bad taste in my mouth. I hardly paid attention to the story (I found it convoluted and pointless at the same time) and the characters irked me. I also gave FF15 a shot but only made it about 15 hours in before I found the open world nature tedious. And I guess a big secondary question is should I play FF7 original before Remake or would it be possible to jump into the remake right away?

For some context of my JRPG background, I really enjoy Lost Odyssey, the Dragon Quest series (I've played 7, 8, and 11), and Chrono Trigger (which I only played about 7 years ago for the first time). I loved Tales of the Abyss on 3DS but haven't been able to get into another Tales game since (tried Symphonia, Vesperia, and Zestiria) because I don't think the gameplay can hold up for the ~60 hour lengths. I also played Xenoblade Chronicles 2 and tried 1 and X but those games are a fairly large commitment so I didn't get more than a dozen hours in. 

Final Fantasy IV Pixel Remaster or Final Fantasy VI Pixel Remasters as far as 2D Final Fantasy goes - go with the PS4/NS versions instead of the PC version due to the console versions having QoL features like no encounter, exp/money boosts).

Final Fantasy VII (OG) or Final Fantasy IX as far as 3D goes

Final Fantasy X for modern style 3D FF.

FF1 (NS, PS4 and PC - but play them on NS and PS4 due to the QoL features) - avoid for now due to its simple and outdated playstyle, its worth visiting but only after you play the good ones
FF2  (NS, PS4 and PC - but play them on NS and PS4 due to the QoL features) - one of the last games to play, the gameplay is for advanced players
FF3 (NS, PS4 and PC - but play them on NS and PS4 due to the QoL features) - the pixel remaster version is ideal because there is quick save, any other version including the 3D remakes, the 2nd half of the game has a higher difficulty rating
FF5 - like FF3 but much easier

Whatever you do with the first six Final Fantasy games, the Pixel remasters are the way to go - makes grinding easier, the map system shows you were the treasures are along with the paths to take, and the new special effects/remixed music is simply amazing. Just make sure you get them on either Playstation or Switch because the PC versions lack the QoL features, I'm hoping they add those in the future but when it comes to making patches for the PC versions, SE tends to take their time.

FF8 - leave this one as one of the last games to play alongside 2 due to its gameplay system - on top of the unique junction system which can either break the game in a good or bad way, the enemy scaling, the money and equipment system, etc
FF10-2 - avoid it if you want
FF12 - play the rest of the good ones, good to pick up but can be overwhelming at times like FFXV's open world

Bravely Default - all Final Fantasy except for the name, unfortunately the only one you can play is Bravely Default 2 unless you emulate the first one and Bravely Second.
Final Fantasy Tactics - if you enjoy SRPG games
Final Fantasy Explorers - if you want a Monster Hunter based Final Fantasy - only able to emulate at this point
Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles Remastered - a dungeon crawler with action RPG elements, simple story and focused more on Co-op style play
Final Fantasy Mystic Quest - plays more like Dragon Quest but not as good as other FF games, only playable through emulation on SNES emulator
Final Fantasy Type-0 - avoid it, not really worth playing, the gameplay is a mess along with the story
Final Fantasy Dissidia series - the PSP games are the best in terms of gameplay and story but the latest game Dissidia NT is a mess , online is dead and the SP is barebones compared to the PSP games


As for FF13 - its worth playing it again imo, yes the story and characters are a mixed bag, but the gameplay and music is great. The sequel (FFXIII-2) is a better game in all aspects. Cant say much about LR - its like Roguelite type style of RPG like Breath of Fire Dragon Quarter (where you have a limited amount of time).

FF15 too should also be revisited, the patches and changes they did with the Royal Edition makes it superior to the original release (Party member change, new quests, items, DLC, etc). If you dont want to play the original FFXV, then play the Pocket Edition (PS4, Xbox, NS) which is more simple than the original version.

Yes, you should play Final Fantasy VII Original version before playing the remake because

The order of FFVII media you should play/watch is...

Final Fantasy VII (PS4, Xbox, NS, PC)
Final Fantasy VII Crisis Core (PS4, Xbox, NS, PC)
Final Fantasy VII The Last Order (anime that goes hand in hand with Crisis Core)
Final Fantasy VII Advent Children (the movie)
Final Fantasy VII Dirge of Cerberus (not really needed but some of the characters appear in VII Remake Intergrade)
Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade (PS5, PC)
Final Fantasy VII Rebirth (PS5)

Note - FFVII Before Crisis has some good storyline points (mainly about The Turks group - but I'm sure you can just search in youtube for scenes since it was a Japanese only Mobile game).

Id start with the pixel remasters (4 and 6 most notably), jumo then to the HD versions of the OG FF7 and FF9 that are currently available in consoles, and the jump to FF10, FF12, FF13-FF16 if you did enjoy the franchise.

The chronological order is not necesary, but the diference in visuals and tech is very noticeable, which is why I think its better to start with the classics, cause leaving them for last might make you appreciate them less.

Start with the pixel remasters but I'd start with 4,5,6. Then 7 original then IX. Skip the rest unless you want to get into spinoffs like Tactics or Stranger in Paradise. Both are amazing. Not touched the MMOs so can't say.

IMO start with the original FF7 and if you like that jump to 9. Those are the best entries anyways and you don't really need a lot of context or anything to enjoy them.

I guess it depends how much time you want to spend with the franchise. Otherwise, I would just suggest playing the Final Fantasy VII remake. I personally enjoyed that game the most of all recent entries, and that way you can jump into the sequel next year.

You can start pretty much anywhere, the most popular ones seem to be VI, VII, IX, and X. My personal favorites are VII and X so I'll recommend those, but yeah there's no correct place to start. You can go in order starting at the first game or pick up at any of the aforementioned games without issue. You also don't HAVE to play OG 7 to play 7 Remake but I do recommend it just because it's fun seeing how fleshed out the world of 7R is compared to the OG game.

FFIV is the correct answer.

I think 10 is the ideal place to start for FF, if you enjoy it then you can easily pivot to go back in time to play the classics or play the modern games like 16 or 7 remake.

Hi Basil, some more questions for the first six FF games:

I already played FF1 + FF2 on PSP in the 2008 version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jqhAhjvSupQ

Is the Pixel Remastered much better? Worth another run?

For FF3 + FF4 I enjoyed the 3D remakes for the Nintendo DS.

Is FF5 still worth the time investment?

So the Pixel Remaster of FF6 is the way to go, right?