This is the order in which I've played them:

Final Fantasy VII (PS1)
- What can I say that hasn't already been said. It's an incredible game. Nobuo Uematsu, dense world and characters, and emotional storytelling are the most memorable aspects, but every time I come back to this game, I find myself really enjoying the gameplay. It's all is such a perfect package of Grade A RPG to come out of the 90's. My introduction to this game, and series for that matter, was made by an awkward goth kid in the 6th grade (2000) named Matt. He was picked on a lot and I hope he's doing ok today. He let me borrow this game, which I'd never heard of, as well as a raggedy Prima Strategy guide. I really went into this one knowing nothing, Aeris and all. I have Matt to thank for this wonderful journey.

Final Fantasy X (PS2)
- I mowed lawns and did yard work when I was in middle school (2000-20002) to buy a PS2. The visual spectacle that was the trailer for FFX had been repeatedly playing on television and to say that I was excited for it would be a severe understatement. MGS2, GTA3, Spider-Man: The Movie, and this are my first PS2 purchases. I know the game is somewhat divisive amongst fans now, but I absolutely love it. Gameplay, story, music (this will get mentioned a lot on this list), characters, and world all provided such an escape for me at an emotionally turbulent time of my life. My parents were going through a divorce and I was bullied a lot at school. I found sanctuary in my room with this game. I 100� this game; got everything.

Final Fantasy VIII (PS1)
- Another divisive title for fans. Again, I adore it. The Balamb Garden song still gets stuck in my head. I know it's often argued that the magic system basically breaks the game, but I didn't feel that the experience was ruined for me. Sure, I farmed the magic to build stats, but I still found plenty of challenge in the card collecting etc. I know Squall can come off as a 80's goth dickhead, but I actually don't mind him. I feel like his insecurities are on display and help to explain his standoffishness. Zell is great too. I really don't remember how I came across this one. I assume I just purchased it used at a Rhino or EB Games.

Final Fantasy X-2 (PS2)
- Along with many other people, I was desperate to find out what had happened to Tidus (stupid laugh aside). The negatives: cheesy, pop singing, over-saturated, bland story with a world and characters that just felt like asset-flips from FFX. The positives: fantastic combat and class-system that feels like a spiritual successor to FFV and FFIII (wouldn't find this out until later). I grinded so many hours into this game before I lost all of my progress due to the infamous Playstation Underground Holiday 2004 Demo Disc bug (I still own that asshole). I started over and finished with less of a perfectionist approach.

Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles (Gamecube)
- I do not like this game. I'm sorry, but I just feel like it strays so far from what a great Final Fantasy experience is. I vaguely remember little to no story, flaccid gameplay, and an overall unmemorable experience. I'm open to discussion on this. If any of you feel that I should give it another chance, I'd love to hear your defense.

Final Fantasy Tactics Advance (GBA)
- This is the kind of derailing from the Final Fantasy experience that I can get behind. Gameplay, class system, environments, music, and characters all score well here. The game can even get surprisingly dark. Man, I wish I still owned my GBA SD. I know some people don't like the addition of card system, but I played this version before the original so it didn't bother me.

Final Fantasy Tactics (PS1)
- See previous entry. Great game. I was surprised to find that the stories were different, as I thought that the GBA version was simply a port with a few mechanical changes.

Final Fantasy XII (PS2)
- I got the collector's edition, which seems to be what everyone else did (like Halo 2). Rabanastre is quite possibly one of the most memorable cities in the series for me. The music and sprawling environments were truly immersive for the time. The characters, aside from Vaan, were unique and engaging. Story-wise, I'm not a fan of this one. Remember the horribly boring consulate scenes in the Star Wars prequels? This entire story reminded me of that. The game is comprised of bloated political intrigue that believes itself to be compelling. It wasn't. Back to the positives, however, I LOVED the monster hunting aspect. I defeated all of the rare monsters, completed the bestiary, and 100� this game in a nearly 300hr save. Additionally, I want to mention how absolutely difficult this game can be. I feel like that isn't mentioned often (maybe I'm living in cave). I still get the shakes when I think about those encounters when the map gets scrambled and enemies that are well beyond my characters' strengths appear to obliterate everyone. Ugh.

Final Fantasy V (PS1)
- My first venture into earlier FF games. Charming as fuck. The class system builds upon what FFIII started in such a fulfilling way. It's a fun innovation and I wouldn't blame gameplay oriented people for favoring this installment over others in the series because of it. Obligatory mention of incredible music. There are few early 16-bit touching moments and cool secrets that left me with an overall positive memory of the experience.

Final Fantasy IV (PS1)
- This feels like the first Final Fantasy game to me (I would learn this later)! It's the first game in the series to really take the story-telling bull by the horns and run with it. I loved the whole narrative aspect of the main character transitioning from darkness to light. While FFIII is sprinkled with a small amount of personality here and there, this game is the first to have a healthy helping of humor.

Final Fantasy (NES)
- Aside from the respect it deserves for what it did at the time of release, the simplicity of this game still works in its favor (which is why speedruns and bizarre limitation runs are done so often). I was worried that I wouldn't have fun, but I did!

Final Fantasy II (NES)
- I knew nothing about this game's negative reputation before playing it. With that in mind, I still didn't like it. The leveling system is way too obtuse, something felt off about the world map and locations to me, and the dungeons were a slog. I'm glad I experienced this, but I doubt I'll do it again.

Final Fantasy III (NES)
- Am I using the word "charming" too much? Because this game is that. Where FFIV really started the deep narrative approach for the series, I feel that this game is the first to give us glimmers of personality and humor. Most everything I didn't like about FFII is gone here and the over experience is just pure bliss. I can't go without mentioning the birth of the class-changing system in the series here.

Final Fantasy VI (SNES)
- What a fantastic game. How did it take me so many years to complete this? Music, characters, story, gameplay, you name it. I might be wrong, but I feel like this is the game that started the mini-games/alternate game mechanic segments in the series? What FFIV and FFV did with story is nothing compared to this one. Loss, regret, identity, catharsis, and self-loathing are just some of the very relatable human experiences that this 16-bit operatic joyride gives us (see what I did there?). I adore this game. Now I'm going to piss some of you off. For those of you that say you love this more than FFVII, you are absolutely entitled to feel that way. Personally, I feel you might be either looking through nostalgia goggles or purposefully trying to be contrarian. While this game is excellent, I don't feel that it competes with FFVII. I replayed both back to back just to see for myself and my opinion is the same. Either way, we can agree that this game is incredible. Locke and Celes are so memorable and heartbreaking as characters.

This is where I currently stand.

Next on the list is FFIX, which I'm so excited for, as I hear that it is saturated with throwbacks and homages to previous games and characters. After that I'm going to do Dirge of Cerberus on PS2, Crisis Core on PSP, FFVII Remake on PS4, FFXV on PS4 and finally... uggggghhh... the three FFXIII games on PS3. I really don't want to play the FFXIII games. I trust my intuition, and I remember when they came out I felt that they looked horrible. I do, however, feel obligated to form an opinion based on experience.

If you read all of this, I'd love to be your friend. Whatever your opinion is on each game, it would be nice to see what your own legacy with Final Fantasy is. Stay safe.