quote: Original post by Anonymous Poster
Correct me if I''m wrong, but at the time FF6 came out there was no RPG with a better story.

Ultima 7. Perhaps no console RPG, but that''s not saying much. I specifically played FF6 because people were telling me it had the best story of any RPG.

quote: I had always thought it was the best one but I''m biased due to the fact it reminds me of chilhood, (I''m sure it''s the case for many FF6 fans) so I''ll have to stand by FF7. I just have to think about shallow characters like Kefka, Strago, Relm ...

Some characters were shallow, some were deeper. But all that is made irrelevant due to the fact that 99% of characterisation is utterly forgotten in the second half of the story. Apart from 2 or 3 minor scenes, all of which seem to serve no purpose and come to no satisfactory conclusion, all the tension and interest between various characters in the first half of the story is forgotten in the second. Even the 20-minute ending sequence fails to address most of these points. Both in the game and in the story, all the characters merge into one amorphous mass of magic users with barely any recollection of their past interactions. A sad waste of a good opportunity.

Ultima VII by comparison doesn''t make much attempt at characterisation, but the story as a whole draws you in as you come to sympathise with the needs of the various people you encounter. The backstory is also an order of magnitude richer, presumably by the fact that the Ultima series is tied more closely than the various Final Fantasies are.

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This game maybe not have the BEST story.. But was incredibly fun to play; Day of the Tentacle! So was all the Monkey Island game, they all were well made and story didnt get boring while playing the game as well as the game you were playing made a fundation for the story for the next game. Lucas Arts Rules =)

Kenneth Wilhelmsen
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He who joyfully marches to music in rank and file has already earned my contempt. He has
been given a large brain by mistake, since for him the spinal cord would fully suffice. This
disgrace to civilization should be done away with at once. Heroism at command, senseless
brutality, deplorable love-of-country stance, how violently I hate all this, how despicable and ignoble war is; I would rather be torn to shreds than be a part of so base an action! It is my conviction that killing under the cloak of war is nothing but an act of murder

Games with decent stories:

Day of the tentacle, Sam and Max, Discworld 1, The Dig, Titanic-adventure out of time, shadow of the comet, prisoner of ice, toonstruck

Games with EXCELLENT stories:

Discworld 2, The Longest Journey, Beneath a steel sky, Zork grand inquisitor, Zork nemesis, Myst and Riven, Grim Fandango, Monkey Island (all of ''em), Broken Sword 1

Final Fantasy VII had an excellent story, I agree. I also like the story in Diablo II.

Phantasy Star I and FF II. most of the Ultima games were really good.

To the vast majority of mankind, nothing is more agreeable than to escape the need for mental exertion... To most people, nothing is more troublesome than the effort of thinking.

Definitely Planescape: Torment, then the Baldur''s Gate Series. (Durlag''s tower had me play in it close to one sitting).

Scott


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I''ve got to agree with lunarss on this one. FFX is a work of art. FFX is the first game I have played of the Final Fantasy series and after I started playing it I found it very hard to stop. There were parts of the story that could have been better or more clear, but overall the best story I''ve seen. Can''t wait for FFXI!

It saddens me to see such respect for the literary quality of FFX. Most people didn''t realize that squaresoft played off stereotypes and teenie ideals to make a visuals only game. Take away the stunning(yet somehow boring) graphics and voice acting of FFX and you are left with a mediocre, bottom of the toy chest RPG that you''ll play once and wonder why you dished out the $50 to get it. Stupid Americans. Their love for FFX is one of many symbols of what''s wrong with this world.

Each to their own. : ) I''m not afraid to admit that I liked FFX a lot, and I felt that the story was very well done and original. I''m not sure what you mean about the visuals being boring either... Square was pushing real-time movie quality graphics in that game. What more could you ask for as a gamer and especially as a game developer?

I would say Panzer Dragoon Saga, if it weren''t for the fact I doubt many people know it''s plot. That, and that a lot what made it so great was tied in with the environment as well, so I''m not sure if you could call it just the plot. Anyway, seeing as I can''t choose PDS by my own veto, I''d have to say... Maybe Chrono Trigger, Lunar, or something like that. Chrono had a great general scope to it, and the characters ruled. As for Lunar, it just did a real good job keeping a strong keeping focus and keeping the motivation up. I can''t point to the PC much, ''cause the games I play on the PC all have minimal plot. Civilization III, anyone?

-Arek the Absolute