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[SolVanderlyn]

Let me be clear; I love FF7. It was my first Final Fantasy, and it has a certain allure to its character design and story that makes it an incredibly enjoyable experience.

My question, though, is why VII? Why did FFIV and FFVI, both also amazing games for their time, not reach the height of popularity that VII did? Why aren't VIII and IX as "mainstream" as VII became? What makes VII so special? Even people who are not big into RPGs know about it. Cloud and Sephiroth are both iconic characters, while your average Joe won't know who Terra, Cecil, Seifer, Kekfa, or Kuja is. When I worked a shitty retail job, even my manager knew about and played FFVII when he was younger, and he wasn't exactly the gamer type. Why is VII, in particular, so popular and well known, both domestically in Japan and internationally everywhere else? It isn't the first Final Fantasy to be received outside of Japan. Is it the striking character design? The fact that it's hero with giant sword vs. villain with different kind of giant sword? Is it because it was the first intricately crafted Japanese-style storyline to reach out to a mainstream international audience, thus giving it a sense of uniqueness at the time?

What do you think?

 

[jblank83]

Unprecedented 100 million dollar advertising budget, a joint enterprise by Sony and Square, partially to highlight the fact Nintendo had lost a major 3rd party developer and Sony was serious about taking a chunk of the market.

 

[Mellahan]

It was, by and large, many people's first RPG. The marketing campaign was huge. FFVII was everywhere. So while a great game on its own, I think the nostalgia factor, anchored by these points, cemented its place in history.

 

[- J - D -]

It was the FF that made the jump to 3D graphics.

 

[Hugstable]

Wasn't it one of the first 3D console RPG's? It also had a really well done story, with a twist that not many people expected. Hell it stands the test of time pretty well to since I can easily go back and play the game, and it still plays great even if the graphics don't hold up at all. Plus the game had a huge world and tons of content that filled up 3 discs. My personal favorite in the series is still FFV, but it's easy to see why FFVII became such the big hit that it became.

 

[Victrix]

Lightning in a bottle, perfect storm, etc

A confluence of events conspired to propel it into mainstream exposure

The jrpg version of the Wii, if you will

 

[Shadow_FFVI]

It's an amazing game with very impressive graphics for the time. I know I was blown away. Of course the marketing budget had a huge roll to play.

It also is my favorite game of all time, so I think the recognition is well deserved.

 

[Camp Lo]

Unprecedented 100 million dollar advertising budget, a joint enterprise by Sony and Square, partially to highlight the fact Nintendo had lost a major 3rd party developer and Sony was serious about taking a chunk of the market.

All this plus 3D.

 

[stargateheaven]

The hit Final Fantasy series, becoming 3D was a major point imo.

 

[Rats Off To Ya]

One reason.

 

[legacyzero]

It was A LOT of peoples first Final Fantasy.

 

[kswiston]

We just saw the same thing happen with Skyrim for pretty much the same reasons. Huge marketing push, hype, great reviews and WOM, and a bit of "right place right time".

 

[jholmes]

The only thing people haven't addressed in this thread is the role of the Internet. FFVII was the first game in the series where a gamer could go online before its release and read about it, and the gaming press got a lot more information out through magazines thanks to the Internet, too. It was because of that pre-release fervour that the game was called FFVII and not FFIV over in North America in the first place, since the fans were so wound up about it to begin with.

On that note, you can't discount the importance of FFVI to FFVII. People wouldn't have been so hyped, Sony wouldn't have spent so much on marketing and it wouldn't have had the word of mouth to punch through into the mainstream if the game didn't carry the massive goodwill of FFVI.

 

[Phediuk]

Gigantic ad budget. Unprecedented levels of marketing for a video game; Sony's massive financial backing was fully behind Square for FF7 every step of the way.

 

[Falk]

One reason.

 

[Shadow_FFVI]

The only thing people haven't addressed in this thread is the role of the Internet. FFVII was the first game in the series where a gamer could go online before its release and read about it, and the gaming press got a lot more information out through magazines thanks to the Internet, too. It was because of that pre-release fervour that the game was called FFVII and not FFIV over in North America in the first place, since the fans were so wound up about it to begin with.

On that note, you can't discount the importance of FFVI to FFVII. People wouldn't have been so hyped, Sony wouldn't have spent so much on marketing and it wouldn't have had the word of mouth to punch through into the mainstream if the game didn't carry the massive goodwill of FFVI.

Is that why FF VIII had amazing early sales, and why FF IX didn't do so well?

 

[ProtomanNeo]

Dat first post strikes again. FF VII's success can really only be summed up to Sony's marketing budget. Here's a little known fact FF7 also had a high return rate as many people who saw commercials which only featured CG cinematics, and had no previous RPG experience didn't understand what they were getting into.

 

[Mesoian]

Massive marketing budget as well as being a major technical achievement for the day.

In 1996, FF7 was fucking incredible.

 

[h1nch]

Funny I was just thinking about how fun it would be to go back and replay FF7, since I haven't done so in years.

I think for me, it had everything to do with the era that FF7 arrived. Up to that point I had a very specific view in my head of what a Final Fantasy game would look and feel like, having grown up playing FF on the NES and later FFIV and FFXI on the SNES. When I first saw a demo of FF7 with it's quasi-modern setting, beautiful CG cutscenes crossed with a 3D visual representation of the classic FF battle screen, I was absolutely blown away. During my first playthrough I was completely mesmerized by the game world and story, and at first I thought the entire game would take place inside Midgar. Imagine my delight when the full world map was finally revealed. I played the game so much and explored every nook and cranny that the game world had to offer.

I just think that the generational leap in video game tech allowed them to push the series in entirely new directions while still maintaining most of what made Final Fantasy great, and for whatever reason it just resonated with me more than any other FF game.

I had mostly been a Nintendo fanboy up until that point, and FF7 is what pushed me to get a PS1. That game will always hold a very special place in my heart.

 

[manzoman96]

It was, by and large, many people's first RPG. The marketing campaign was huge. FFVII was everywhere. So while a great game on its own, I think the nostalgia factor, anchored by these points, cemented its place in history.

Exactly my thoughts. Huge marketing campaign and people's first exposure to the series and JRPGs in general.

Edit:

One reason.

Cid is the man

 

[StrongBlackVine]

It was my first Final Fantasy and first RPG. It introduced me to cinematic storytelling with characters you actually cared about(Aeris). It's a sentimental favorite.

 

[NogibTC]

It is simple proof of how marketing can take a turd and sell millions to easily swayed customers.

 

[Kuro]

It is simple proof of how marketing can take a turd and sell millions to easily swayed customers.

oh boy

 

[dorkkaos]

My personal experience:

I was in awe when I first saw the CGI (it's lol worthy now) and I have a feeling that many others did as well. It was also heavily marketed and was a lot of people's first final fantasy. It also had a very grand story.

I think those might be good reasons why it was so big. It was ambitious and it looked great.

 

[potam]

The production quality was insane, and the CG at the time was top notch. Plus, as many have said, it was a lot of people's first RPG.

 

[Shadow_FFVI]

It is simple proof of how marketing can take a turd and sell millions to easily swayed customers.

Here we go...

I was like 10 when the game came out. Can anyone clearly remember the hype around it's release? I wish I was more aware of that kind of stuff at the moment

 

[Nirolak]

It was a majorly popular series that was out early on a brand new console, made a centerpiece of the system, had a huge advertising campaign, really epitomized the cinematic shift gaming was undergoing, had very well received mechanics and production values to drive word of mouth, pushed boundaries in terms of what games were expected to be, and compared favorably to other games at the time.

While the timing was good, I never like to put these things down to luck. Rather, it was what they were able to achieve in every aspect relative to the standards and interests of the time period they were in.

If you look at the first gigantic hits in series, they almost all do things that truly impress their audience beyond their expectations and the products themselves become drivers of their own success.

When we look at long time successful studios, their products also notably change over time. DOTA 2 is vastly different than Half-Life, but both represent a forward looking view on gaming that over delivers on the expectations and tastes of the time.

 

[Phediuk]

FFVII was also released at the right time. It was 1997, just as consumer interest in CD-ROMs, CGI, anime/Japan chic, and cyberpunk were booming. And it also arrived when the PS1 was gathering a massive amount of sales momentum (holiday '97 being when the PS1 exploded at retail) and so was perfectly positioned to be the flagship game for the console.

 

[Slayer-33]

FF7 embodies what all video games should be, there was a mystifying aspect about it that you couldn't pinpoint. It was my first real jrpg (hell rpg), I freaking loved the game and the characters AND the music, shit was memorable and special to me. My friend let me borrow it and I was so hooked man. I ended up buying 2 copies of it after I was done with my friends. Black label and green. I loved FF8 because I loved 7.. I was 14 back then... Oh how times have changed..

 

[Rats Off To Ya]

It's more than just the budget. Pump 100 million dollars into TV ads for Final Fantasy VI and you won't see those kinds of sales figures. FF7 itself was an incredibly marketable product. The FMVs were unlike anything we'd seen before. It was advertised more like a movie than a video game. These days that's what we expect for AAA titles, but that trend started with FF7.

While the timing was good, I never like to put these things down to luck. Rather, it was what they were able to achieve in every aspect relative to the standards and interests of the time period they were in.

Great point. FF7 was no accident. Square moved over to PlayStation for a reason. They had ambitions that the N64 just couldn't realize.

 

[CountBlack]

One reason.

 

[jblank83]

Among other marketing tactics, FF VII benefited from one of the first major trade-in deals at chains like Electronics Boutique. Trade in, IIRC, 3 Nintendo 64 games and get Final Fantasy VII free. It also received an early "greatest hits" and was in bargain bins for $10 for years.

It was plastered across magazines, from Next-Gen running a story on the numbering system change (VI was III in NA, skip to VII), Rolling Stone, and Playboy magazine, television commercials, movie theater commercials, Pepsi commercials, ads during high profile spots such as Saturday Night Live and Late Night with Conan, ESPN, Comedy Central, and more. To put it in perspective, the budget was more than twice as much as the game's development budget.

I'm not arguing about whether it's a good game or not (personally finished the game twice). I'm just saying the weight behind its advertising is undeniable.

CITATION:
http://www.thefreelibrary.com/PlayS...ting+Blitz+Continues;+Consumers...-a019701566

BONUS: read the article for a blurb from Andrew House, featured in recent Sony presentations (E3, etc), complete with trademark Sony business buzz.

Pump 100 million dollars into TV ads for Final Fantasy VI and you won't see those kinds of sales figures.

In part because the market expanded significantly from the SNES days. There were far more consoles sold and more people got into gaming that generation, partially because it was more affordable thanks to CD media.

And, as another poster stated, the importance of FF VI and previous Final Fantasies in popularizing the series among "core" gamers should not be discounted. While FF VI did not sell millions, it did sell many copies outside Japan.

 

[jholmes]

Is that why FF VIII had amazing early sales, and why FF IX didn't do so well?

While I loathe FFVIII and like the point you're trying to make, FFIX came out after the launch of the PS2 and the announcement of FFX for it, which was probably the biggest factor there.

 

[Cormano]

It was A LOT of peoples first Final Fantasy.

This.

And it was kind of a bad hit to the older titles. FF6 is the best title in the franchise by far, and most of the people couldnt "stand" the graphics of the SNES after dealing with the PSone.

 

[oSoLucky]

It is simple proof of how marketing can take a turd and sell millions to easily swayed customers.

One of the cool kids showed up I see.

Another big point is how the game blew everyone away technically. The pre-rendered backgrounds and FMVs blew everyone away. I remember the demo booth in FuncoLand selling copies to people after playing just a few minutes. Man, that cartridge decision =(.

 

[Theanine3D]

I honestly don't think this game would be so widely praised if it hadn't been so many people's first RPG, as well the first "CGI" FF.

IMO, the mechanics are mediocre and not ground-breaking at all compared to its predecessors. It just has "newer" looking visuals going for it, which to me are really ugly anyway (not that they didn't look mindblowing in their time, of course, but boy have they aged horribly.)

The game still plays like a 2D Final Fantasy most of the time. You're still looking through an overhead camera in most areas/scenes, and your movement is still primarily only on a 2D plane. It's not like Ocarina of Time where you could actually fully rotate the camera and move in all directions. So while it gives the illusion of being a 3D game, it was practically still just another 2D Final Fantasy. It looks shiny and new on the surface, but it's actually nothing new or groundbreaking.

The one thing I do like about FF7 is the story. There's a really clear break-away from the previous games in that more mature subjects and topics are presented in FF7. Characters also regularly swear. Etc. It was like Square was making it a point "This isn't a Nintendo console anymore." And that's pretty refreshing.

But I still honestly believe if it had been a 2D game, FF7 would have been treated more honestly, as one of the worst in the series.

 

[ZeroX03]

Why did FFIV and FFVI, both also amazing games for their time, not reach the height of popularity that VII did?

 

[Altered Juice]

because they advertised the crap out of ff7. also lol at the ffv skip in the op.

 

[Lothar]

This is the sole reason why FF7 became popular. This commercial.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ru9zzFEdGWk

It's all people could talk about at school all week. They didn't know what a RPG was but they had to get that game.

 

[Marceles]

Here we go...

I was like 10 when the game came out. Can anyone clearly remember the hype around it's release? I wish I was more aware of that kind of stuff at the moment

I remember it like it came out yesterday. The best thing about the hype was there was really only magazine screenshots, a Tobal No. 1 demo, and a Square demo of Einhander, Bushido Blade, and video trailers of FF Tactics and FF7 to go by how good the game will end up being. I rarely saw TV commercials of it until maybe a month or two later. It exceeded the hype at least from a technical standpoint. Everyone knew it would be big, but the 3 discs, the story, graphics, materia system, and music was awesome at the time. Everyone hates on FF7 now, yet many RPGs tried to follow its lead and be just as epic soon after it came out. Imagine going from Wild Arms to FF7. FF7 was untouchable at the time, simple as that.

 

[Smooth Operator]

Unprecedented 100 million dollar advertising budget, a joint enterprise by Sony and Square, partially to highlight the fact Nintendo had lost a major 3rd party developer and Sony was serious about taking a chunk of the market.

First post nailed it. FF7 is not better than FF6 for example, it just came at the right moment.

 

[Shadow_FFVI]

The trailers were awesome and funny.

http://youtu.be/Ru9zzFEdGWk

http://youtu.be/t9pF9BJQBLo

http://youtu.be/KXHVb1wn8vo

 

[nib95]

My favourite game of all time, and no, nothing to do with the marketing. I played the FF games before and after it, sometimes multiple times. I've also completed FVII multiple times. I usually have a stab at it every few years, and it's stood the test of time effortlessly.

It's just a perfect mix of JRPG gameplay with an amazingly rich world, fantastic locations, characters, story, turn based combat system with the tactical materia system and diversity of weapon types and builds, solid length, great pacing, great mix of content and side missions, sound track, graphics and so on and so on. Everything about it is just sublime.

 

[SenjutsuSage]

Massive advertising played a tremendous role, plus I had elementary school friends with impeccable taste in games. Those were some true gamers right there!

Also, it was just a really damn good game for its time, and I still think it holds up even today.

 

[entremet]

Anyone work at Gamestop/EB/Babbages at the time? I remember people totally ignorant about this game being an RPG lol.

 

[BomberMouse]

This.

And it was kind of a bad hit to the older titles. FF6 is the best title in the franchise by far, and most of the people couldnt "stand" the graphics of the SNES after dealing with the PSone.

Opinions, how to they work.

FF7 was a great game, a technical marvel, the perfect PR stunt and dagger on nintendo's wound. It was incredible cool for the time, hitting all the right trends for the target demo.

Spoiler

FF7 > FF6. 6 is not even that good of a game.

 

[funkystudent]

While I loathe FFVIII and like the point you're trying to make, FFIX came out after the launch of the PS2 and the announcement of FFX for it, which was probably the biggest factor there.

Yup. PS2 cut 9's sales tale short.

Also it was expensive as hell when it was first released. Did multi disc games cost more then single disc games back then? I forget. 7 and 8 got platinum re releases when the PS1 was still in its prime. They had time to grow.

 

[Abstruse Moose]

I've been playing videogames all my life. Started on the NES and am still gaming today. I was 13 when I first played FFVII. No game up to that point has had as great an affect on me, and no game since has replicated that affect, let alone surpassed it.

I think the thing that put it over the top for me was the soundtrack. Going from the music created by the NES/SNES to the work of Umatsu was just amazing. I'd never heard a better game soundtrack before that, and am hard pressed to think of a better one.

Also hitting New Game for the first time and being greeted with that epic opening FMV just set the wheels in motion.

 

[jholmes]

You know, I hate to be this guy, but all you guys who keep saying "marketing," I have to wonder if you were really there when it happened. Sony threw a lot of marketing money at a lot of games and people were talking about FFVII even before the commercials came along. Perhaps rather than ask why FFVII blew up instead of FFVI, the more direct parallel in North America would be why FFVII blew up and Legend of Dragoon didn't.

FF7 was a great game, a technical marvel, the perfect PR stunt and dagger on nintendo's wound. It was incredible cool for the time, hitting all the right trends for the target demo.

FF7 > FF6. 6 is not even that good of a game.

This is what I'm talking about. People thought FFVII was a killer app for the PlayStation and many of them either didn't know or didn't care about the history of the series on Nintendo hardware. It was in no way a PR stunt and only someone looking back from 20 years in the future would call it a "dagger on Nintendo's wound."

 

[Trojan]

1. Aeris and the her "shocking" death at the time
2. Sephiroth

It was the first RPG that could utilize the power if CG cutscenes in conjunction with interesting characters. Now it's fueled by nostalgia.