All the mainline games are not interconnected at all, they are pretty much very separate in terms of story / settings / characters. So you can jump into any one of the games. Also, their turn-based systems, aka Active Time Battle, aren’t anything interesting, compared to say Shin Megami Tensei’s Press Turn system. All FF games have very linear / streamlined experience compared to other games, i.e. choices don’t matter much, you don’t choose the stats, equipments are streamlined.

Here’s some overview:

• First 6 games were 2D games, the best of those bunches are Final Fantasy 6. Great story, great villain, great music
• original FF7 is the one popularized the JRPG genre, and probably broke the base between older 2D fans and newcomers. It has memorable characters, music, story about eco-terrorism. The gameplay revolves around materia system, it’s like logic system where say if you connect Fire magic with All-effect and 2x-effect, you can casts double Fire magic that hits every enemies, etc. FF7 Crisis Core is one of the best FF spinoffs out there, while FF7 Remake is a ‘remake’. It’s advised that you finished the original FF7 before playing those two.
• FF8 also broke the base. The game is more romance-centric in some way, but still sci-fi. The gameplay revolves around junction / draw system, where you draw magic from enemies to junction it to your stats.
• FF9 is kinda back to original game. It’s more high-fantasy setting, and was released during the end of PS1. It wasn’t as popular as FF7 or FF8, but there are definitely fans. I had hard time getting into it, because the animation is kinda slow, but maybe I should replay the HD version
• FFX is very well received, it’s a sci-fi romance story that takes place in south east Asian-like tropical islands. The first FF game on PS2. FFX has a sequel, FFX-2, which is also well received
• FF11 is MMO, I don’t play MMO, so I have no idea about it.
• FF12 is great, it’s more political than usual FF games, because it’s written by Matsuno, who made Tactics Ogre and FF Tactics. The gameplay is bit weird, bit MMO like.
• FF13 was not well received, the only mainline FF game on PS3. It spawned two other games FFX-2 and FFX Lightning Returns. The main complaint about FF13 was that the story was incomprehensible, the game is very linear, and the battle mechanics is very confusing. I think what happened is that
  • they used tons of opaque in-game terms (Fal’ Cie, La’ Cie), that’s barely explained until very late in the game.
  • the game also opens up very late, there’s a one large wide region for you to roam around and engage in enemy encounters, but they only give it to you very late in the game
  • the combat wasn’t explained clearly, the paradigm shift system is actually fun, and a step up from ATB
  • annoying characters, they focused too much on Hope and Snow. Hope is a whiny child, but he’s a child, so it’s ok. Snow on the other hand, is just an annoying character who likes to talk about himself.
• FF14 is another MMO, I don’t touch MMO
• FF15 is kind of a mess, it was in development hell. I like the roadtrip story, where you just drive around. The open world is bit sparse and serves mostly for enemy encounters. One of the main issue is that some of the stories are gated behind DLCs. The gameplay is bit more weirder than normal ATBs. I like this game, but not as much as others.
• FF16 is great. Devil May Cry combat, very streamlined and nicely paced story, those huge spectacle Asura’s Wrath-esque battles, etc. This game is my current GOTY.

There are other spinoff games, e.g. Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles, World of Final Fantasy, but they are mostly spinoffs, mostly for fans who want more after playing the mainline.

But there’s one that I want to recommend, and that’s Final Fantasy Tactics. It’s a strategy RPG and it’s amazing. There’s an updated version released on PSP, called Final Fantasy Tactics: The War of the Lions, which is probably the one you should play.

There are rumor swirling around about FF9 and FF Tactics remakes, but can’t say anything until we see it.

The remake of FF7 is pretty easy on newcomers, especially with understanding the story. I would caution about 16, though. It’s not hard; it’s just a different style of game play that’s not as forgiving.

Final Fantasy X is pretty good and linear too; it’s voice acted and modern but still turn based, so it’s not action heavy.

All of the games are pretty separate, though. There’s similar characters but they’re not really connecting nor is the story.

If you’re going to do the remake, I’d say try to keep away from the OG game or spoilers since it will make it so much better.

FF 8 and FF 9 are great too but a bit more complex, so it might be better off waiting on those until you get through another one first.

Final Fantasy games have some similar themes/monsters/abilities/sometimes gameplay mechanics, however, except for some outliers, they all take place in separate worlds and have separate stories and worldbuilding.

They’re all decently long games so if you’re looking to play a few:

FF16 is the most recent and has good reviews. It plays more like an action game.

FF4 is my favorite. It was on the Super Nintendo but has a 3D remake on Steam. It plays like an old school JRPG.

FF6 is one of the most popular. It was on Super Nintendo. I believe it has a remaster on Steam. It plays like an old school JRPG but has one of the most lauded stories in games.

FF10 is another favorite of mine. It was on PS2. It has a remaster on steam. It plays like a newer school JRPG.

Try checking them out on Steam and seeing which one catches your eye

FFI and FFII (Understanding the concept of FF) ---- FFIV, FFV, FFVI (Get deep in story telling) ---- FFVII, FFVIII, FFIX, FFX (Base of 3D FF, must play) ---- FFXV, FFXVI (Recent titles).

The only point in the numbered series where I’d say you should play a different one first is IX, which plays on nostalgia for the aesthetics and tropes of I, III, and V as a part of the cozy vibe it’s going for with its setting. And note that VII Remake is not actually a remake of VII and thus not a part of the numbered series, being best enjoyed by people already familiar with VII.

Beyond those stipulations, play whatever looks coolest.

deleted by creator