Rank the main series games. Give your reasons.

[etony33]

I will be writing up my little essay about this a little later, I am still debating on the order. I have probably flip flopped half a dozen times already.

[BenoitRen]

They're all so different from each mechanically and thematically that I can't rank them. Even PSIII has its charm and innovations.

[etony33]

It's like asking to pick your favorite child. I'll give it a shot, though...

4. Phantasy Star III

The gap between this and the others is not wide. Its detachment from the rest of the series helps it in some ways, yet hurts it in others. The connection to the rest of the series is, of course, not revealed until going to New Mota - and even then, it's weak at best. This, however, gave the developers the opportunity to do some different things, mainly have castles and kingdoms and what not - something that didn't exist for the most part on Algo.

The difficulty level for this game is far below that of the rest of the series. You CAN spend time grinding, and it can be rewarding to do so (buying Planar equipment/Star Mist/Moon Dew in Cille comes to mind), but it's far from necessary to finish the game. Also, the dungeons aren't hard at all. The thing that always kind of irked me is the fact that you spend time getting characters up to speed, then the generation ends and all your hard work goes to waste (both with their levels and their equipment, unless you give it all to Wren and/or Mieu, in which case they won't have it for the final battle of the generation).

The graphics were pretty good for their time. The soundtrack might actually be my favorite of any PS game, and the story, while only explored at the surface level in-game, is actually really good and has spawned some excellent fan fiction over the years.

In short, it's a good game. It may be the worst in the series, but that's only because it's up against stiff competition. It also has the best replay value of any PS game simply because choosing different brides brings about almost an entirely different game.

[etony33]

3. Phantasy Star II

I can feel the hate from ranking this game this low already. But hear me out.

This game is insanely difficult compared to most RPGs. It can be a bit of a chore getting the requisite amount of meseta to make the necessary purchases, level ups seem to take forever, and enemies are usually really tough no matter what level you are. Dungeons are really difficult to traverse if you don't know where you are going. Your characters die a lot if you aren't overleveled, and only Amy (who otherwise sucks) knows Rever, meaning you have to spend lots of time stocking up on Moon Dews (or duplicating them illegitimately) if you plan to go on a long journey. This can be frustrating.

With all that out of the way...this game is awesome. The story is great. It's nearly impossible not to become emotionally involved in the game and to really come to hate Mother Brain. The characters all have their quirks and they are all likable (even Shir, although when she decides to go on a little stroll from Ryuon back to Paseo, you might disagree with the whole 'likable' thing). The difficulty level I mentioned is also a positive - it really feels like an accomplishment when you finally beat this game. It went into basically uncharted waters with the fate of Nei, and it did it perfectly. It wasn't overdone like some other games did in the future. The soundtrack is definitely fitting for the mood, and the graphics, while not as good as other 16-bit games, were quite good at the time. There's really not much of a learning curve - it's fairly easy to figure out the controls and what to do, it's just tough to actually execute it.

It's a classic and a wonderful game.

[etony33]

2. Phantasy Star IV

A perfect way to end the series. Not easy like PSIII or difficult like the first two installments, the difficulty level is just right. Twists and turns abound as the series is tied together. The characters are great - Chaz is a different type of protagonist. Not selfless like Alis and Rolf, Chaz is at times brooding and selfish. Rika is naive yet lovable, Wren is...the way you would expect an android to be, and Rune is quite arrogant. This game is full of nostalgia, as it borrows quite a bit from the first installment - which can be looked at as either good or bad, depending on what you thought of the first installment (and whether you expected fresh, new ideas).

The fact that the game is easier did make it so there wasn't as much of a sense of accomplishment after finishing it, though. With the exception of the Hunter's Guild, the game is quite linear. There isn't much room for customization. Even the final dungeon is not difficult to traverse (the only real difficult dungeon in the entire game is the Air Castle. The rest of them, it's pretty clear where you have to go).

When it's all said and done, the game is really fun and ended the series on a really high note.

[etony33]

1. Phantasy Star

The original. This game, like Phantasy Star II, was also very difficult - but in a somewhat different way. It doesn't require the same insane amount of grinding. It does, however, require a lot of thinking, almost from the very start. It's far from obvious what you have to do, and you can find yourself having to backtrack quite a bit if you aren't careful (what does this guy mean, an eye from a dragon? What dragon?...okay, I'm on top of Baya Malay, now what? Wait...maybe that guy wasn't lying when he said I need the Nut of Laerma? But where do I find that?...time to fight Lassic...hmm, how do I not die in one hit?...okay, I beat Lassic, that means I beat the game...wait, another dungeon? [three hours later] I'm just going in circles...)

The 3D dungeons are different, the graphics are amazing for 8-bit, the story is enthralling, the game is just awesome on all levels. It's really a challenge - one for your brain rather than simply something that requires a lot of leveling up. Even at max level, if you don't know where to go, you are screwed. This game is just really fun to play. It's a personal favorite of mine...I could see why others would rank it differently, but these are my rankings, so here it is. It's the best.

[etony33]

BenoitRen, I'm sure you enjoyed one game more than the next overall.

[BenoitRen]

That's really hard for me to say.

only Amy (who otherwise sucks) knows Rever

Rolf learns Rever as well. In fact, he learns it only three levels later than Amy.

[etony33]

^^^You're right. Don't know how I forgot that.

[etony33]

It doesn't change my ranking, though.

[DarkMyau]

Firstly they are all great games. There is no bad game in the series in my opinion.

Buuuuuut

4th: PS2: The grind and terrible random stat increases kill it. I have looked at it a few times and have never gotten very far as the grind is too long and unrewarding. I would still give PS2 8/10 though. Almost great.
3rd: PS3: That killed me lol. But its unfinished combat system and way too liner story hurt it I feel. I would love to see a remake of it as I think it has massive potential. 8/10
2nd:PS4: It has everything, but difficulty and again, way way too liner. 8.5/10 (better than every Final fanrtasy game ever made)
1st PS1: A masterpiece, for its time. Great combat, 3 whole planets to explore and loads to see. 10/10

[Tryphon]

The rankings and marks are not necessarily related. Marks take into account the hardware and state-of-the-art of JRPGs at the time, whereas I rank the games accordingly to how much I loved them when I played them.

4th: PS4 9/10. Admittedly the most advanced. Huge, beautiful, everything. But I find it lacks personnality. Characters are so-so, scenario wants too much to recall of events from previous games, game's story suffers from Final Fantasy syndrom (so much side stories than you lose the focus, coupled with childness).

3th: PS1 10/10. With no doubts the best 8 bits RPG ever made. Released one day after Final Fantasy 1, and so much above that it looks like another generation of console. A much more developped plot too. That said, it has aged, and while it's still impressive graphically, the bad sounding musics (I played the SMS version with no FM) prevent me to really dive into its world

2nd : PS3 6/10. One of the strangest game I played. The game is full of good intentions, but every of them is flawed in a way or another, be it technique (great and sharp gfx, but always the same, great monster design, but no animations, great musics, but scratchy) or scenario-wise (generation system, ending in similar half-stories ; closed shrines and caves, etc.). What saves the game for me is that it has personnality, and an atmosphere. Yes, the world is bland, but that makes you feel why these are generations of doom.

1st : PS2 10/10. There are 3 JRPGs that I remember having really felt something about : PS2, FF6 and Xenogears (and for this last, it took a lot of time). The plot is incredible, and while its realisation was slightly above average at this time (except for the musics, which are great), the game has this 70-80 japanese SciFi vibe that I was so fond about. Its difficulty is for me a strong point, some standard battles become as tough as boss battles in other games and force you to think strategiccally, rather than hit C repeatedly (FF6...). I doubt another game will ever give me such feelings like this game did.


Also, this ranking is also the order in which I played those games.

[BenoitRen]

Released one day after Final Fantasy 1

I thought it was a week. *checks* Two days, actually.

the bad sounding musics (I played the SMS version with no FM)

I don't think the PSG (Programmable Sound Generator, not Phantasy Star Gaiden) music is bad. I enjoy it more than the FM music, actually.

[Tryphon]

I didn't say the music was bad, I said it sounded bad. I can't compare with the japanese music, I didn't hear them.

[BenoitRen]

...What's the difference?