1) Final Fantasy VII – PlayStation One
Final Fantasy VII ushered in a new era of gaming when it debuted in 1997. A near global phenomenon, it’s credited not only with popularizing Japanese role-playing games in the west, but also introducing a generation of gamers to the RPG genre as a whole. Before the release of Final Fantasy VII, we simply hadn’t seen a RPG attract interest on that sort of scale. After all, JRPGs of the time were typically turn-based, menu-heavy video games that were a stark contrast to the arcade-like platform games that dominated the industry in the west.
It was perhaps Final Fantasy VII’s combination of relatable characters and its mature, emotional narrative that resonated well with its audience. There was a universal appreciation of the game’s more tonally dark themes that marked a departure from the cliché “rescue the princess” storyline so common among role-playing games of the era. Of course, Final Fantasy VII was also punctuated some delightfully whimsical scenes, and the game’s comic relief is fondly remembered as a key element to its success.
Ultimately, Final Fantasy VII’s exclusivity as a PlayStation One title was a tremendous boon for Sony. The game attracted millions of new people to the system and helped to solidify the consoles superiority over its rival hardware. Ironically, the Final Fantasy series had long been associated with Nintendo hardware during the 8 and 16 bit era, but when we think of PSOne, Final Fantasy VII is easily the system’s defining exclusive title.
