“Which FINAL FANTASY game should I start with?” It’s one of the most common questions we see from people yet to dive into the series, and a hotly debated topic online – ask five fans and you’re likely to get five different answers. The actual ‘correct’ answer, of course, is… any of them. After all, almost every game in the series acts as a standalone adventure with its own distinct …
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Any of the Final Fantasy games released in the late ’90s and early ’00s, arguably the franchise’s Golden Age, can make great first entries to play. While some players may opt to start with FF7 Remake over its 1997 original, both games offer compelling characters and
Final Fantasy I – V?Final Fantasy Vi?Final Fantasy VII?Final Fantasy VIII?Final Fantasy IX?Final Fantasy X and X-2?Final Fantasy Xi Online and XIV Online?Final Fantasy XII?Final Fantasy Xiii, XIII-2, and XIII-3?Final Fantasy XV?If you’re looking to enter the franchise with an old-school 2D JRPG from the good ol’ Nintendo console era, you’re covered with the first five games. About which one to start with? It honestly doesn’t matter. You could start withFinal Fantasy Ito see the series’ roots, or II for the unique levelling system, III for its back-to-basics approach, IV for its story, or V for its battle system; it re…
10 Final Fantasy VI. The question of which game in the franchise is the best will likely get several different answers from fans. For many, Final Fantasy VI is one of the games with the best story. After spending a lot of time crafting high-fantasy worlds, VI goes toward sci-fi steampunk settings.
I wouldn’t recommend starting with FFIX. It’s my favorite game in the series, but it has so many references to the older FFs that you may not fully appreciate it until you’ve played some of the older titles. That being said, VI and VII would be good FFs to start, as they belong to the Top 3 stories in the series (along with IX), IMHO.
If you want to check out the Final Fantasy series for yourself, we’d generally recommend starting with the newest core game available for whichever platform you own. As of 2021, Final Fantasy 7 Remake is the newest release, and it’s available across PlayStation 5, PS4, Xbox One, and PC.
My recommendation is to start with the more modern games and work your way backwards. None of the main titles in the series take place in the same world or with the same characters – there are a couple of ‘sequel games’ which are clearly named, such as “Final Fantasy X-2”, for example – so you can dip in anywhere.
It’s an engaging fun game with a great story and its direct sequel, Final Fantasy X-2, is way better than it gets credit for. Both games are typically bundled together in modern HD re-releases, so there’s no risk in giving X-2 a chance for those that buy X anyway. 3 Final Fantasy VII Brought The Series To New Heights
Other Final Fantasy games get lost in some pretty heady topics, but FFX is relatively grounded. It stars a wide-eyed athlete named Tidus who gets transported across time to a …
Final Fantasy X (10) (Image credit: Square Enix) A star athlete is transported a thousand years into the future and joins a team of adventurers, including a summoner named Yuna, to defeat Sin, a …
You could start with Final Fantasy I to see the series’ roots, or II for the unique levelling system, III for its back-to-basics approach, IV for its story, or V for its battle system; it really doesn’t matter. Unless you’re particular about seeing the origins of the series, you wouldn’t be missing out on anything critical by giving these a pass.Related Questions
What is the best Final Fantasy game to start with?
Due to accessibility and quality-of-life improvements, many of the more recent FF games can make good games to start with – even if they don’t really represent the franchise’s earlier years. However, Final Fantasy 9 arguably makes the best game to start with, simply because it’s the best depiction of the series as a whole.
Do you need to play the other Final Fantasy Games first?
Luckily for you, each main titled Final Fantasy game is a self-contained narrative without the need of playing previous entries in the series to understand. There are a few games, like Final Fantasy X or XIII that have spin-offs or sequels, but otherwise, they’re all standalone experiences.
What order do you play Final Fantasy Games in?
As such, they begin with the original Final Fantasy release and play through the rest of the core games chronologically. They’ll also typically skip FFXI and FFXIV, since those two are massively-multiplayer online games that break from the traditional single-player JRPG formula.
Should I buy Final Fantasy X-2?
On top of that, the game’s story and characters are some of the best in the series. It’s an engaging fun game with a great story and its direct sequel, Final Fantasy X-2, is way better than it gets credit for. Both games are typically bundled together in modern HD re-releases, so there’s no risk in giving X-2 a chance for those that buy X anyway.