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[Wazzy]

Thread title says it all. List your favourites and your reasons why.

My top 3 are:

1.
Squall Leonhart

I love his design and character growth throughout the game. He's got the coolest weapon in the series and his symbol(Griever) which is his necklace and ring are really nice designs. His romance with Rinoa really made me love him since the development between the two are adorable. I've never felt so good after seeing an ending for a main character like VIII's. Just pure satisfaction and happiness.

2. Yuna

I love Yuna and her journey. Her design is great but I actually prefer her X-2 one. Her personality is just so much more open in X-2 and I love the interactions with Rikku and Paine. She's got two awesome job's which is Summoner in X and Gunner in X-2.

3.Cloud Strife -

His VII design is one of my favourites. The SOLDIER outfit looks great and is pretty iconic now. His anime design is probably the biggest reason I adore his appearance. His back story is tragic and interesting and leaves you sympathizing heavily with him. He's also very smug and cocky.

 

[ZeroMaverick]

Lightning

I love strong female roles

 

[Gaz_RB]

I really like Lightning's character design.

Pretty functional yet really nice to look at. She's not my favorite, character wise. That would be Zidane.

 

[kittens]

I really like Lightning's character design.

I came in to say the same thing! Her character is meh and FF13 in general doesn't appeal to me, but her design is top notch.

 

[BlueBadger]

I definitely have to give my first choice to Squall as well, mainly because I think he's a really good leader for his age.. and I really like his development throughout the game :]. Yuna (specifically from X-2) and Zidane as close contenders. Zidane is on my list mostly because I find him to be really entertaining LOL.

 

[watershed]

I like Balthier from FF XII. He was the suave sky pirate and not some emo, silent (but still manages to have tons of text or dialogue), brooding protagonist.

 

[SnakeLinkSonic]

Well I'm allowed a different sort of perspective on the matter, Kefka.

If not, Zidane and to a lesser extent Balthier (but only with Fran along as well). Give me the womanzing tricksters over the otherwise bland, generic, and brooding weirdos.

Zack was okay too I guess.

 

[Makoto Yuki]

Cloud and Terra, because they have amnesia.

 

[Hours Left]

My top 3 are...

Cecil
Yuna
Firion

Cecil because he's the quintessential old school RPG hero, with the classic dark to light arc. Yuna because she probably shows the most character growth of any FF protagonist. Firion because I think he's really underrated and has a cool design.

 

[Gaz_RB]

I like Balthier from FF XII. He was the suave sky pirate and not some emo, silent (but still manages to have tons of text or dialogue), brooding protagonist.

Damn, Balthier too, he was so good. Amazing character design too. He made FF12 for me.

 

[PshycoNinja]

I know a lot of people make fun of the archetype but I like his design. From what we know he seems like one of the more grounded FF characters so he already has high marks in my book for design. And watching the Noctis/Stella party scene I feel I have a pretty good grasp on his character. Yes he is brooding but I don't particularly have a problem with that. He will probably end up being one of the more iconic FF protagonists (considering the last few protagonists in this series that shouldn't be too hard).

Edit: Also Balthier because he WAS the main protagonist of FFXII even if the game keeps insisting it was Vaan. Balthier was awesome.

 

[Uncle Rupee]

Cecil Harvey for me. I like his story arc out of all the protagonists the best.

 

[Magnus]

Cloud, Terra, Yuna

 

[KojiKnight]

Probably just Terra and Celes. Both strong and interesting female leads with interesting flaws that aren't masculinized to give them the leading roles.

 

[Rojo]

Id rank Cloud growth in FF7 from cocky powerhouse to showing his humility and how weak he was to overcoming it all by the end and being a team player.

Other good ones are Bartz, Locke, Squall, Zidane, Tidus, Baltheir, and Noel.

 

[Fey]

Terra and Celes. Strong, interesting female leads, which is nice to see. They have great designs, and I really enjoyed their parallel arcs. Terra is the amnesiac girl with powers who has no idea who or what she is or where she came from and feels isolated and rejected by everyone, and Celes is the traitorous knight from the Empire who no one is sure can be trusted, and so feels isolated and rejected by everyone.

 

[semiconscious]

zidane. he's a confident, good-hearted scoundrel. & i've always liked confident, good-hearted scoundrels ...

 

[Fattony12000]

 

[SoraanTribal]

Zidane (FFIX) is easily my favorite. I kind of consider both Zidane and Vivi dual-protagonists for that game since the story focuses on them the most out of the other characters. Zidane is charming, funny, and a nice guy (but at the same time, very mischievous). Vivi is adorable, innocent, and has to deal finding out the truth about himself in ways other protagonists wish they could.

Vivi = best character in the FF series. Zidane is way up there, too.

 

[tiggerkiddo]

Tidus: A lot of people hate him for being whiny but considering his circumstances, I'd probably be just as annoyed. I enjoyed his sunny deposition and his carefree attitude. I also think he looks kinda cool.

Yuna: I enjoyed her growth as a character in X and her personality isn't too bad either. I'm not sure how her character is in X-2 since I never got very far in it. Plus she also has a very nice look to her. I hate her X-2 look though

Zidane: This guy's personality is hilarious but I also like his general outlook on things. Things get rough for him towards the end but he's able to bounce back with the help of his friends.

Oh and rounding out the top 5 might be Zell and Selphie. Both because they're hilarious and bring some spice to the group and they both have the best looks in VIII.

 

[DJIzana]

Ramza Beoulve - character design, his voice actor was amazing in the remake on PSP and his beliefs.

Machina Kunagiri - weapon choices, design, beliefs... since Izana was not considered a protagonist, his brother is the next best thing.

and lastly... because Square Enix thinks Vaan is the main character of FFXII (even though it should rightfully be Balthier) then my choice is Tidus from FFX.

I choose him despite how horrible that laughing scene is, despite his horrible outfit, he has an awesome weapon and his reason for helping save Spira.

 

[Spring-Loaded]

does this have to be the lead protagonist?

EDIT: because I want an excuse to post Sabin Rene Figaro images

 

[Sanctuary]

Probably just Terra and Celes. Both strong and interesting female leads with interesting flaws that aren't masculinized to give them the leading roles.

This.

 

[EYEL1NER]

Easily Squall. I just love his character design.

 

[Wazzy]

does this have to be the lead protagonist?

It's supposed to be but feel free to also post who you wanted to.

 

[cj_iwakura]

Zidane and Terra. One goes against the grain of the previous FF stereotypes, and Terra is multi-faceted. She changes and evolves during the course of the game, and still keeps it together.

 

[Astral]

Terra and Celes. Strong, interesting female leads, which is nice to see. They have great designs, and I really enjoyed their parallel arcs. Terra is the amnesiac girl with powers who has no idea who or what she is or where she came from and feels isolated and rejected by everyone, and Celes is the traitorous knight from the Empire who no one is sure can be trusted, and so feels isolated and rejected by everyone.

My favorites too. I love Celes especially. She just felt so real. I don't know how else to describe it.

Also Noel. He just seems so normal compared to the mostly obnoxious cast in the XIII series. Really great design too.

 

[Spring-Loaded]

It's supposed to be but feel free to also post who you wanted to.

Sabin Rene "Rules of Nature" Figaro

because

I've never played a FF game proper outside of a demo for VIII and X-2, but I still love this character the most out of any for the above

 

[Death Penalty]

Vayne Solidor.

(Yeah seriously does it have to be a main protagonist, or can it be any playable character?)

 

[Acquiescence]

Cloud. Aside from his iconic appearance, he was likeable almost from the beginning of the game, but at the same time was not a guy that you can easily peg with a single defining characteristic Squall was a moody eejit much of the time, Tidus a squealing pansy, but Cloud's personality was broader, and he certainly wasn't the self-wallowing emo that later spin-offs make him out to be.

I like Zidane as well. Fucking hate Vaan and Lightning. And totally forget who the protagonist in VI was.

 

[kazebyaka]

 

[SpecDotSign]

I like Balthier from FF XII. He was the suave sky pirate and not some emo, silent (but still manages to have tons of text or dialogue), brooding protagonist.

Yes. This.
I'd also add Ramza Beoulve.
Man, Yasumi Matsuno sure knows how to write em.

 

[Servbot24]

and

 

[MaximoffZero]

zidane. he's a confident, good-hearted scoundrel. & i've always liked confident, good-hearted scoundrels ...

This. He was a breath of fresh after Cloud and Squall.

 

[Auron_Kale]

I'm mostly partial to Auron (big surprise) and Kain (another big surprise).

Auron because like Tidus and Rikku, he didn't want his best friend to die and wanted to find another way to beat Sin, which cost him greatly. So he did everything he could to see his best friends' kids (Tidus and Yuna) succeed where he failed.

Kain because he was so very human in his rivalry with Cecil and his search for redemption felt much more real as well. He's not perfect and I liked that about him.

 

[CountBlack]

Always been a big fan of Cloud. Really like Auron as well.

 

[Hours Left]

So now we're just posting anyone?

 

[dakkumauji]

Bartz cause he looks fabulous as a dancer.

 

[Matt Attack]

Terra. I love her design, her theme is great, and her journey was quite touching. She's fun in Dissidia too. FFVI in general had a fantastic cast.

 

[Auron_Kale]

So now we're just posting anyone?

I actually thought of Kain as a co-protagonist in FFIV solely because the moment he and Cecil split up, there were two stories going on at the same time. Cecil's story just happened to be the one we all followed.

Auron is similar in that FFX was just as much his story being completed as it was for Tidus and Yuna.

 

[Gintoki313]

zidane. he's a confident, good-hearted scoundrel. & i've always liked confident, good-hearted scoundrels ...

Zidane, Tidus, and Bartz are my top 3. I really like how they acted throughout there stories. They had fun, and tried to keep high spirited. It was great from the usual unemotional, or trying to be cool protagonist.

In design, my favorites are Cloud, Squall, and Tidus.

 

[Hours Left]

I actually thought of Kain as a co-protagonist in FFIV solely because the moment he and Cecil split up, there were two stories going on at the same time. Cecil's story just happened to be the one we all followed.

Auron is similar in that FFX was just as much his story being completed as it was for Tidus and Yuna.

I see your reasoning, but you could say that about dozens of characters.

If this turns into a favorite playable FF thread, that's cool, but it seems like the intent was to be main protagonists only.

 

[MogCakes]

Balthier, Noel,

Spoiler

Warrior of Light (XIV ARR)

Spoiler

- yes, that means us, the players

Balthier is by far the most competent member of the party in XII and it's his wit that saves them time and again, not his strength or willpower. Noel has the world riding entirely on his shoulders more so than any other protagonist in the series and considering what he had to deal with he put up a better facade than even Zidane to try and save it.

In

Spoiler

XIV the player is the key element in keeping Eorzea safe from all enemy machinations, despite their plans almost coming to fruition and laying waste to the city states. Beyond that and more importantly, the player develops bonds with nearly every faction in the realm and becomes known as a friend to everyone who's willing to help wherever they're needed. This not only makes the player a hero figure, but a very influential political ambassador which in XIV's world means a hell of a lot considering the political climate and socioeconomic situations for each nation and the problems they face, in addition to the threat of the Garleans. Unlike other FF games where the protagonists disappear into obscurity or go off to do their own thing, the player in XIV stays as its protector as part of the Scions. Lastly, despite the difficulty of developing a character off a blank, voice-less slate, XIV pulls it off.

 

[Moxx19]

Celes - I really enjoyed her character development.

EDIT: If it is main characters only I'd have to go with Zidane. Love his scoundrel character.

 

[FireVoa]

Besides the awesome Gunblade (practicality be damned) Squall is the most interesting because of who he is. He shows the most dramatic change of the protagonists in the various FF games. His moody disposition and inability to trust/rely on others at the games onset is annoying and cliche until you see where he comes from, why he feels the way he does. The best part is you actually can see this over the course of the game, Squall does grow as a character. He can still be annoying at times, but his personality and feelings make him more believable as a main hero in FF.

Runner up: Kain Highwind, Laguna Loire, and Tidus.

 

[Ashkeloth]

1. Bartz Klauser (Final Fantasy V) - Not much of a character in some ways, I'll admit. The protagonist of my favorite final fantasy deserves some recognition though. I really like the fact that before the game he's just some guy wandering the world with his pet bird and by the end of the game he's made a rival out of goddamn Gilgamesh, ended up with a party full of women, none of who he ever bothers to hook up with, then defeats a monster (Shinryu) that was later brought back in Dissidia as an extremely powerful creature. His mimicry of voices in Dissidia 012 is funny as well.

2. Zack Fair - Crisis Core made him into a really great character who underwent some interesting growth. A good balance between a serious and light-hearted character based on the scenario. Too bad he was surrounded by all that Genesis stuff and the strange post-Final Fantasy X writing style that SE has fallen into.

3. Cecil Harvey - Good character with a good arc to his story. I really dislike how absolutely fabulous they made him look in Dissidia, but to be fair, a lot of characters got that treatment.

Runner-Ups/Non-Protagonists:
Terra
Balthier
Zidane
Auron
Kain
Noel
Basch

 

[Auron_Kale]

I see your reasoning, but you could say that about dozens of characters.

If this turns into a favorite playable FF thread, that's cool, but it seems like the intent was to be main protagonists only.

True true.

For pure protagonists, I'd have to go with Cloud (for becoming a hero on his own after being in the shadows of his friend's legacy), Bartz (for finally being a fairly happy-go-lucky protagonist) and Squall (for not only sticking by Rinoa, but also being a true friend).

I love Zidane for similar reasons as Bartz so I guess he'd be my fourth favorite.

 

[Darkmakaimura]

I love the whole 'goth' aspect of the character from the way he dresses all the way to his abilities.

 

[Ceallach]

Lightning, strong female lead, and the rare one whose story has fuck and all to do with a man or any kind of romance.

 

[pooptest]

Spoiler

Sephiroth.

Cloud