Morphing the Challenge: A New Outlook

And so, a new adventure begins...

Over the last few days, I've had some really engaging conversations with some folks about the scope of the FF challenge I will be undertaking over the next year and given second thought to the idea of playing the FF games in a random order versus playing the games in the sequential order in which they were released.

Originally, the goal of the challenge was to play through 12 Final Fantasy games over the next 12 months without regard to the sequence of how I strung the games together. I figured that by keeping the game order random, it would stagger the various play styles, game mechanics, music arrangements, and graphics, which come with the games being developed on different game systems over the past 25 years. Additionally, if readers were particularly interested in FFXIII, for example, they may not necessarily have to wait until next August/September to actually see how the game played out or to play alongside me. That said, simply reading along with someone as they play a game could be somewhat....unenlightening? Further, maybe rushing through one game every thirty days wouldn't allow me (and readers) to fully explore the intricacies of what makes each title so special.

And so I have decided to morph the scope of this project. As others have stated, and I now agree, I am probably missing a wonderful opportunity here to fully explore not only what makes each individual title great, but also to explore the evolution of the series from a simple 8-bit Nintendo "last-ditch effort" to one of the greatest and most highly regarded roleplaying game series of all time. I am therefore changing the scope of this project to play each numbered Final Fantasy game in sequential order.

By playing the games in sequential order, it will give myself (and the readers) the ability to discuss changes to gameplay mechanics, character development, music arrangements, combat systems, graphics, etc and how those influenced (or were influenced by) current events and/or technology at the time. Removing the one year time constraint takes away some of the "challenge", but it also provides the opportunity for us (readers included here!) to really roll up our sleeves and dig into the nitty-gritty of these games and why they are important, not only to the video game industry, but to each of us on a personal level.

I'm looking forward to hearing (and playing along with) you all! Can't wait to get started.

Game #1: Final Fantasy VIII

Game #1: Final Fantasy VIII

Release Date: September 1999

Director: Yoshinori Kitase

Original System: Playstation, PC

Favorite Song: "Eyes on Me"

After a lot of debating back and forth, I have decided for my first game in the challenge to be Final Fantasy VIII. I chose FFVIII to be my first game because it is one of the few FF games that I have never beaten. I figured this challenge would give me good motivation to press on through the entirety of the game and also give me a good chance to blog/interact with the community on strategies, tips and tricks, storyline interpretation, favorite scenes, etc. Also, since the FF Playstation games are available through Playstation Network, I can transfer my save files back and forth between my PS3 and PSP, allowing me to play the game on the go (awesome functionality there!)

Goal for my challenge: Beat the storyline through to the credits and obtain all GFs.

Stretch goal: Defeat optional bosses Ultima Weapon and Omega Weapon

I absolutely welcome anyone out there to play along with me over the next month! I would love to hear your thoughts, strategies, and comments/complaints as we work our way through this game.

Now I'd like to hear a bit from you guys! How many of you out there have beaten FFVIII? How does it rank among your top favorite FF games?

The Mission: Quest Accepted!

Hi again! I'm going to take the time now to detail the challenge I will be undertaking over the next year. The mission (and I have chosen to accept it) is to play through all of the main (numbered) Final Fantasy games in 365 days.

This does not include FFXI and FFXIV, which are online installments in the series. Thank goodness too because MMOs really have no "end". I could easily spend all 365 days on just one of those games and perhaps never even beat the main storyline.....I'm looking at you FFXI! *cough*ChainsOfPromathia*cough*

So! What it boils down to is working my way through FF I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII, VIII, IX, X, XII, XIII. That's a lot of roman numerals. 12 in fact. And wow isn't that convenient? 12 games in 12 months. Doable? Absolutely.

Since my curiosity was piqued, I dug into the details a little bit further (this could also be because I'm a scientist by day and statistics are another of my callings....). Breaking it down a bit more, this is how things shake out:

Assuming 100 hours per game x 12 games = 1200 hours 
1200 hours / 365 days = 3.29 hours per day

Again, this seems totally reasonable? The assumption that all 12 games will take 100 hours is probably giving me plenty of wiggle room. The early games in the series should take half of that time, allowing me some more time to play around in the later installments. :)

One more thing to note is what I actually consider "playing through the game". I'm going to consider the challenge complete for a given game once I reach the credits and thank you screen. This does not necessarily include obtaining ultimate weapons/gear/summons etc. It's also probably (okay, definitely) impractical to do any sort of stat maxing or perfect games. I'll try to mention at the outset some "stretch goals" for the games that may or may not include obtaining ultimate weapons, gear, etc.

I figured I would outline some of this stuff in the event that some readers down the line decide to play along with one of the games (or the entire 365 day challenge!). What do you guys think? Can I do it? ;)

And so the journey begins...

Hello out there!

I'm not sure how you came to stumble upon this blog, but I'm glad you did. Welcome!

If you have come to read this blog, you are probably a fan of the Final Fantasy series, like I am. I have been playing Final Fantasy since 1997, beginning with my first foray into the series - Final Fantasy VII. I became so enamored with every nuance of the game that I started branching out to play all the other games in the series, and to this day I struggle to pick a favorite. Every game in the series holds a special place in my heart, and no matter how many times I stray away playing non-FF games, I always wind up coming back to the series like a homesick child longing to be back in the comfort of family. 

Looking around online, there are literally hundreds (if not thousands) of Final Fantasy-related blogs and websites out there. Unfortunately, I never really took advantage of the wonderful FF fanbase and community that is out there, full of people just waiting to express their passion of FF with others. 

As I approach my 28th birthday at the end of this month, I have decided that I would like to become involved and engaged in the FF online community and share my passion for FF games with others. So I have decided that my gift to myself for my birthday will be to spend the next year playing (and replaying) through the main series of FF games! I believe it will be a fun challenge and will give me a way to immerse myself with the larger FF community.

As I sit here typing this post and thinking about the challenge ahead of me, I cannot help but be reminded of the famous opening scene from Final Fantasy I as you cross the bridge north of Cornelia...

And so, it is here that I finish my first post. Over the next few posts, I plan to detail out some specifics of my final fantasy journey for the next year. I hope that some of you will join me in this endeavor, whether for the entirety of the year, or for just one of the games in the series! It's going to be a fun ride, and I cannot wait to get started!