Multi Final Fantasy... Where should I start?

[MenaceInc]

Aye... I specially like the effect it gives FF7... Makes the game much more playable.

FFVII:

[qimg]http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3037/2292845156_b284138c51.jpg[/qimg]

FFIX:

[qimg]http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3155/2292845176_d520d0c858_o.jpg[/qimg]

Of course this is all done using custom shaders

That first pic looks awesome. Link?

 

[KezraPlanes]

Enhance PS1 Graphics With The Best ePSXe Plugin Settings - RetroGaming with Racketboy

there ya go

Good luck figuring out which shader it is though

 

[Spiros]

When i play FF7, it'll be with epsxe so it's cool to know that you can make it look a little nicer, i also once tried it on my psp, and with the opening intro, it looked really good, but then that first level with cloud next to the train really turned me off. I would like to give it a try seeing as it is one of the most famous games.

I might even bring my ps3 controller with me, seeing as my lappy has built in bluetooth, i think theres a custom driver that works with the ps3 controller.

 

[Bill]

The first pic is using the cartoon shader. Second is using a bump mapping shader. If you want a large selection of shaders, download Guest's Shader Pack from Pete's domain.

 

[MenaceInc]

You can only have one shader active at one time though unfortunately

---------- Post added 04-02-2010 at 01:58 AM ---------- Previous post was 04-01-2010 at 11:58 PM ----------

Just did a comparasion of loads of shaders using ePSXe and my copy of FF7.
Folder containing all the screenshots,
FF7-shaders pictures by MenaceInc - Photobucket

Here's a few handpicked screenshots that I've chosen.

Regular, no shaders

AdvCartoon Shader II

Colour Shader

 

[Bran]

9 and 12 are my favorites.
Then 7 and 2.
3, 4, 5, 6, 8, and 13 are all good.
1 is boring and 10 is terrible.
11 looks interesting but I have an aversion to MMO's.

 

[Muratcan]

I am in much the same boat as you Spiros. I've always heard of FF through gaming magazines and the web, and I've associated it with anime, yet I never thought of trying it out until 2 months ago. After watching a trailer of
XIII and seeing the hype it was recieving on Kotaku I thought I might as well give FFVII a shot, seeing as, as you say, that is the fans favourite. Plus since last Summer I'm becoming more of a Japanophile/Otaku, so it made since to get into this series, the biggest game (next to Dragon Quest) in Japan.

Anyway I'm 25 hours in and I've just got the airship, so I'm guessing I'm about halfway through the game. It has an open world, I like the blocky graphics as that was my favourite era of gaming and the music warrants listening to even when your not playing the game. I would've clocked it by now, had I not been distracted by XIII, which I'm close to finishing as I approach 50 hours of play. Lack of open world is annoying, but it is visually stunning, has an amazing battle system, so fast it doesn't even feel like menu based combat and the music has orchestral quality. Both games have immersive worlds and storylines.

My plan of attack is like this, of course first I have to finish XIII (PS3) and VII (PSP):
FFIV DS
FFVI GBA (on PSP )
FFVIII PSP
FFIX PSP
FFX PS2
FFX-2 PS2 (Yes I'm going to play this one lol)
FFXII PS2

From what I've read VI is as much a contender for best FF as VII. I'm looking forward to VIII though, since that apparantly is the one with most sci-fi elements, that being the hook that drew me into XIII and therefore FF in the first place.

I am skipping FFI-III and V because of lack of compelling storylines. I may still try them though, they would be cool to play in short bursts on my iPhone or Sony Erricson.

At some stage I also want to play VII: Crisis Core which is on PSP, effectively it is VII-2 and I also want to watch the CGI movie Advent Children, a prequel to VII. I'm surprised no one else reccomended VII-2, since that is the latest and best looking FF you can play on a portable system, perfect really. Although I guess it is easily forgotten since it isn't a main numbered title, although that means little now with the MMORPGs XII and XIV getting numbers and single player Versus XIII for the PS3 looking pretty much like it should have it's own number.

As somebody else mentioned I also reccomend Chrono Trigger (I'm going to play the DS version). I have read it is very good, some rating it higher than FFVI and FFVII. It was a collaboration between the FF makers Squaresoft and the Dragon Quest makers Enix (Dragon Quest is what inspired the creation of Final Fantasy). This was before their merger though, so it was a big thing that these rivals were going to collaborate on a project. The funny thing is that despite Chrono being the ultimate game as the makers of the two biggest games in Japan combined to make a new one, the irony is that today most people believe Square-Enix aren't as good as they were before their merger.

Thanks to this new found love of FF I have also discovered I love the JRPG genre. Beforehand it was only Pokemon, but now after playing FF I am looking forward to indulging in other JRPGs. Persona series, Xenogears, Mother series, Dragon Quest series and of course Chrono Trigger and it's sequel Chrono Cross are on my list.

 

[Scorned]

At some stage I also want to play VII: Crisis Core which is on PSP, effectively it is VII-2 and I also want to watch the CGI movie Advent Children, a prequel to VII.

Nothing huge, but you switched them. Crisis Core is the prequel, Advent Children is essentially VII-2.

 

[MenaceInc]

I am skipping FFI-III and V because of lack of compelling storylines. I may still try them though, they would be cool to play in short bursts on my iPhone or Sony Erricson.

Wait, but FF1 had an awesome story. It was confusing to play, especially if you lost your way (best think of it as a chance to level up) but I loved the story in it...simplistic as it may have been. The twist at the end though was awesome.