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Molyneux: Final Fantasy VII defined RPGs, PS3 lacks 'OMG' games photo

Outspoken games designer Peter Molyneux is never short of an opinion or two, and has recently been dishing the dirt on the PlayStation 3. While talking about the PS3's library, the Fable 2 creator revealed his love for Square-Enix's iconic PSX title Final Fantasy VII, naming it as something that defined RPGs.

"I always remember back to Final Fantasy VII, when I first played FFVII, that to me defined the genre," he stated. "Those were the 'oh my god' moments, I don't believe they exist. I haven't seen many of those on the PS3."

Molyneux pointed out that his statements are made from the perspective of a gamer and "not as an industry spokesman," just in case anyone accuses him of 360 bias. He happens to own all three major consoles.

We could talk for many boring hours about the PS3's game library, but I'm more interested in his belief that FFVII defined RPGs. It's indeed a very personal belief, and one that I actually share. Being a European and someone who grew up on the Sega side of the fence, it wasn't until VII that I really got to learn what an RPG was, and how powerful a storytelling device videogames could be. Some FF fans delight in sh*tting on VII, probably because it was so popular, but it was an important game for many people, especially those of us in our early twenties. It was not just genre defining, but gamer defining. 

What say you?


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71 comments | showing # 51 to 71

Waffleman's Avatar - Comment posted on 09/24/2008 00:06
Waffleman
He did say it's what defined the genre to >HIM<. I mean, if he hadn't play anything before or little that would have been a eye opener.
Zeno's Avatar - Comment posted on 09/24/2008 00:12
Zeno
Ugh, fuck Molyneux. I often begin to wonder if he actually knows what a good game is.
jackal27's Avatar - Comment posted on 09/24/2008 00:28
jackal27
VI trumps VII to the max.
RoMeRtHeGaMe's Avatar - Comment posted on 09/24/2008 00:40
RoMeRtHeGaMe
Well said Jim, this was a game that made me really love this genre.
brainderailment's Avatar - Comment posted on 09/24/2008 01:06
brainderailment
Interesting how a guy hasn't "really got to learn what an RPG was until" FF7, is now making rpgs. No wonder Fable sucked.
Static Jak's Avatar - Comment posted on 09/24/2008 02:42
Static Jak
VII is what opened up RPG gaming for me. Maybe even gaming as a whole.
God bless VII.
David Quinn Carder's Avatar - Comment posted on 09/24/2008 03:41
David Quinn Carder
FFVII was my gateway RPG too. It holds a lot of nostalgic appeal for me, but objectively speaking, FFIX is much better in my opinion. I have tried to get into other games in the series and the only one that's really hit me was FFT.

A lot of people say FFVI is better and if you don't think so, you just can't handle the graphics. This is not true. I think big pixels are sexy, and Chrono Trigger (which I didn't play until long after both FFVII and FFIX) is tied with FFVII and FFIX as my favorite RPGs. I didn't like FFVI because I just plain didn't like it. The non-gameplay elements of RPGs play a big role in their appeal to most people, so just like some people can rave about FF8 or FFX, which I hated, some people don't get FFVI either.

It's just a matter of taste and in some cases nostalgia.
Syn's Avatar - Comment posted on 09/24/2008 03:42
Syn
-insert generic FF7 hate comment-


on the other hand, FF7 is frickin' sweet
David Quinn Carder's Avatar - Comment posted on 09/24/2008 03:43
David Quinn Carder
I really wish their was an EDIT COMMENT button!
hjd uk's Avatar - Comment posted on 09/24/2008 04:41
hjd uk
"Being a European and someone who grew up on the Sega side of the fence, it wasn't until VII that I really got to learn what an RPG was,"

FFVII was the first Final Fanatasy game ever released in Europe.

So no 1 , 2 ,3 ,4 ,5 or 6. People didn't like 7 over any others, there were no others.
Demtor's Avatar - Comment posted on 09/24/2008 07:00
Demtor
Also riding the Final Fantasy 7 love train, Chocobo CHOOO CHOOOOO!!!

Ogre Battle!?! Who said the magic words?! A sudden rush of memories just assaulted me of endless hours of fine tuning my army and taking painstaking measures to assure I get the best ending. Liberation! *cheers*

Also... Fight It Out!
TorpedoTed's Avatar - Comment posted on 09/24/2008 07:31
TorpedoTed
Best game ever made for me!
Gen Eric Gui's Avatar - Comment posted on 09/24/2008 07:41
Gen Eric Gui
FF7 was a terrible game that is only accepted by the masses because it was their first game in the genre. As someone who was playing RPG's long before the game came out, I see it for the stale, boring, poorly-designed garbage that it was and still is.

Suikoden is the PS1 RPG we should all be looking at.
PixelJunky's Avatar - Comment posted on 09/24/2008 07:45
PixelJunky
The myth of no games on the PS3 only applies to JRPG's now, so when can we let this myth die? People realize taht every game on the top of the 360's charts are on the top of the PS3 charts too?

That said, FFVII was the first game I was absolutely addicted to. Sadly I haven't touched a FF game since that one. Recently, I played the crap out of the last Dragon Quest VIII on the PS2, that game rocked!!! Rigth now I can't wait for White Knight Story, if they Level 5 can match the fun I had on Dragon Quest I'll be all set.
Cryoplasma's Avatar - Comment posted on 09/24/2008 08:28
Cryoplasma
FFVII did define RPGs and gaming for me. I love the hell out of that game and cant freaking wait for them to remake it. DO IT ALREADY!

Anyone who discredits FFVII influence on the RPG world is pretty ignorant, IMO. Yea, Final Fantasy 3 is epic and all, but FFVII moved on from the traditional style and opened the eyes of all gamers and developers alike to show not only what RPGs can be, but all games. I think its one of the most important games in history.

But, like, OMG Cryo, the materia system was pretty similar to the Esper system.. and like, the battle system was turn based just like in FF3! It's like a total rip off of the previous FF game! The plot had like.. Evil dudes and stuff and an airship. What's no ground breaking about that!? Think outside your skewed perspective and give an amazing game some credit already.
Quiotu's Avatar - Comment posted on 09/24/2008 09:45
Quiotu
As a long-time Final Fantasy fan, I'm not going to hate all over VII for being mainstream. It was a gateway RPG for many, and it's still one of the better RPGs out there. It's held dear to a lot of gamers hearts for that; just not me. I played RPGs before that, and games like Chrono Trigger, FF4 and 6 are superior in my eyes.

It's funny how FF7 and FF12 get a lot of contrasting opinions. Both are love/hate games; you either adored them, or you can't stand them for most people. FF12 broke the mold for FF games, and it caused culture shock for many... not being the traditional FF style many were used to. It was different... us RPG players who love the Suikoden series understood that it was a political story, and focused around the heroes rather than at them. It was a big change in the series, much like what FF9 did; and like FF9, sales dropped by a few million. I'm one of the many that still thoroughly enjoyed it, though.
Misanthrope's Avatar - Comment posted on 09/24/2008 10:13
Misanthrope
Genre defining? No. Just no and thats the end of the discussion. Fuck all those claims of "personally" that only means that you are an ignorant person blinded by nostalgia.

FFVII did nothing significantly different that was not done years and years ago previously by Final Fantasy IV. THAT is the game that defined the genre. All the things that FFVII added were just technology advancement and cosmetic enhancements. The graphics were better, there were fmvs that were just prettier cutscenes that were done on IV anyway, etc.

You cannot just say "It defined a genre to me" cause that only shows that you clearly ignore the 16bit era where the genre was defined. Saying it was my gateway RPG, the one I enjoyed the most, etc. Those are personal opinions. Saying "defined the genre" is just a fact disguised as an opinion to avoid confrontation which is bullshit.
rpbowlinggod's Avatar - Comment posted on 09/24/2008 10:42
rpbowlinggod
VII was the first game, not RPG, game where I was sold on buying a console. Just watching the demo being played by my friend who grew up in the Philippines with access to all the FF and even he was saying that he's never experienced anything like this, I had to have this. It also coincides with the birth of my first daughter so even going back and playing it, I can remember parts of the story and remember what my daughter was accomplishing at the time. I have introduced her to the game recently (mostly cause she can read at a fast pace) so she can experience the game too.
vrplumber's Avatar - Comment posted on 09/24/2008 16:13
vrplumber
No one can argue that it wasn't one of the most influential games of all time. Love it or hate it, look at the amount of commentary it generates all these years after its release.

I personally love FF7. It was my first RPG and the story and scope of the game made me an instant fanboy:)
Zero_'s Avatar - Comment posted on 09/24/2008 22:42
Zero_
I too fall into the pool of VII lovers. It was probably one of the first games when I was a kid that made me just go '... wow' and got me so engrossed into a game than ever before. I also liked XII as well.
jonboris's Avatar - Comment posted on 09/25/2008 03:58
jonboris
I'm in a unique position in that I first played FF7 in 1999 and eventually completed it in 2007. The reason for the slowness was that in 1999 my 2nd disk was scratched and I was too poor to replace it... fast-forward 8 years and I suddenly had a burning itchy desire to complete the game - I did this on a psx emulator on my pc and I have to say it still blew my socks off. In my opinion craftsmanship and creativity are not platform-specific, nor are they limited by technology, but merely by our own ambitions as developers and expectations as gamers.
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