Whenever I've got downtime it's... ¡Listo!
Whenever I want to blog, but don't feel like being wordy (fucking awful writer habits...) it's... ¡Listo!
10 Favorite Final Fantasy Characters
10. Mog
The greatest Moogle of all, Mog! Before the whole Ivalice Alliance thing made the Moogle race into something closer to bunnies, this odd white puffball was a crazy party member in FF VI. His main attacks were, oddly enough, dances. The guy was cute and had a memorable theme. Not very useful in battle, but a huge change from the rest of the game.
9. Penelo
The peppy thief girl from Rabanastre finds her way onto the list. Featuring in FFXII, FFTA2:GotR, and FF:RW. In FFXII she's Vaan's sidekick and voice of reason. Her infectious pep and excellent character design are what get her on this list.
8. Laguna Loire
The second protagonist from FFVIII, and if you notice the ONLY character from the eighth entry in the series. Why, you may ask? Because the rest of the characters were horribly developed whiny teens. As cool as the designers tried to make the rest of the cast, they came off horribly immature and boring. Now Laguna, he's a character with some depth. His side stories were the best part of the game. How he ended up with a pre-emo son like Squall (sigh, weakest main of the series) I'll never know.
7. Wakka
Blitzball player/mystical guardian from the island of Besaid. Voiced by the amazing John DiMaggio, Wakka was the sidekick character from FFX. Developed a fast friendship and believable friendship with fellow blitzer Tidus. His weapon was one of the most unique in the series, a tricked out game ball that he threw at enemies. His character grows the most of the course of the trip. He begins as a xenophobic follower of the Yevon religion, and ends up completely open to the lies of Yevon and the al-Bhed. His Overdrive was how I killed Yu Yevon on two different playthroughs.
6. Turks
The hyper cool secret police of the Shin-Ra organization. These guys were essentially the MIB of the FFVII world. The group suffers beatdown after beatdown at the hands of the main characters, but always pull through to hassle Cloud's gang down the road. Tseng, Elena, Reno and Rude are the greatest repeat bosses in the whole series. That finger snapping theme of theirs is so hip it's painful.
5. Rydia
The young summoner from FFIV comes in at number five. First encountered as an orphan child in the village of the summoners, she becomes an anchor of Cecil's party in the first third of the game. Her magic ability supplements both Tellah and Rosa very competently. The shipwreck at the close of the early part of the game sends her out of the party and presumably out of the game. However she appears later on as a full grown adult. This is where she becomes one of the strongest members of the group. The primary black magic user for the endgame makes her perhaps the most valuable character. Rydia's probably the best magic user in the series. Summons. Meteo. Awesome green character design. These are all reasons she deserves her spot.
4. Yuna
Forget Tifa, Yuna is the sex symbol of the Final Fantasy series. Her role in FFX was somewhat muted and she was a very pensive character. In FFX-2 Yuna simply came alive. She was a good character in her first role as the summoner destined to save the world. By the end of the story you felt that the connection between Tidus and Yuna was something real. That was Tidus' story (yeah I know :P) and Yuna broke out in FFX-2. She went from covered up magician to scantily clad heroine. She didn't even have to use the overused Japanese RPG cliche of gigantor boobs to be sexy, she just was. Her transformation between games is believable and it's why she is so high up the list.
3. Agrias Oakes
Final Fantasy Tactics had a giant cast of characters, but Agrias stood out as one of the most interesting. While Orlandu, Ramza, Delita, Mustadio, and Vormav all compete for best FFT character it is Agrias that wins. The princess' guardian is powerful and stern. Yet Agrias also has an aura of coolness surrounding her. She doesn't have much of a role after becoming a permanent party member. She's strong, but she just doesn't matter in terms of the story later on. It's sad that she disappears since her role early on is just so damn strong. She doesn't fuck around, she just beats ass.
2. Locke Cole
The second party member acquired is the skilled thief... treasure hunter, Locke Cole. Now here's a character with some personality. He's a confidant thief that refuses that title on moral grounds. He's friends with a king, for gods sake! He's just so friggen COOL. There are few characters in the series that are as suave and cool as Locke. I'd even argue that Zidanes is partially based on this guy. Even though most people argue that Terra is the main character of Final Fantasy VI, I've always sorta viewed Locke as the lead. When you throw in his stories with Celes and Rachael you realize how he's quite deep. There's so much beneath the surface of this amazingly great character that he earns the number two spot on my list.
1. Tidus
While I'm sure not many would agree with this choice, Tidus is my absolute favorite character in the Final Fantasy series. With an incredibly unique design he is also one of the slickest characters in the series. He's bright, like his personality. He's cocky, not giving up the spotlight to anybody else. He's a pro athlete, utilizing his athleticism to become a guardian and a champion. For once the lead isn't some pseudo-deep, brooding, wannabe-emo crybaby. Tidus is lively, interesting, and completely off the wall. Nothing is held back and he foolishly jumps into every situation. He's not an intellectual and he doesn't want to be one. He makes poor choices at times as a result of his bravery and stubborn attitude. He's great! He's a character who I actually want to see what he'll do next. It's not a wonder that so many people are drawn to him since he's so friendly and social. Is that why gamers generally dislike him? I don't know. All I know is Tidus is a great character at the helm of a great game.
And y'know what, the endings of FFX and FFX-2 made me tear up. Yeah, I have emotions. That may be the only time you see them, but I've got them. If a game/character can affect me that much they must be doing something right.
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