As much as you could argue that this one is overrated that still doesn't mean it isn't an incredible game. The 3 I've played are all amazing, but this one is the most realized and well-executed upon in my opinion. I think it's popularity does a bit of a disservice to how actually smart and impactful it is beyond just being iconic.

VII and IX are on very similar levels of quality to me, but even though I admit VII beats it overall, IX is a strong personal favorite. It's themes of existentialism and cycles of pain really resonated with me, and even though the whole cast isn't gold like in VII, the few I do love I ADORE! Especially one in particular...

X is last not at all because I dislike it, but it's the most held back of the 3. I adore how it uses its themes of religion, faith, and dreams, and it has one of the strongest atmospheres of the ones I played, owed to charming voice acting and strong Y2K flare. Unfortunately some of it's writing and world-building just feels a little underdeveloped, which is tragedy because I truly love its world.

Kuja from FFIX is my favorite character ever written in any piece of media. I've never unironically considered "kinning" a character until I was introduced to him, and it's a little embarrassing because on the surface he is just an annoying anime sexyman. But GODDAMNIT IS HE NOT ONE OF THEE MOST COMPLEX CHARACTERS IN THE SERIES IF YOU GET HIM!!!

Cloud is a character who touched my heart very dearly. The twist of his origins is one of the best narrative twists I've seen, comparable to that of the best character ever, Kuja. It's a shame a lot of his appearances in other material portrays him as a rather dry character, when really even in his mock coolness he's rather silly. Blonde boys doing what blone boys do.

Zidane is the very opposite of Cloud as a protagonist and at first I took that a bit for granted, but upon replays I started feeling more interesting layers to him. In his brightness I found his more brooding and moody moments so weird, and truly I'm still putting together my organized theory on him, but something about that dissonance deeply resonates with and intrigues me. He is silly girl-liker monkey too.

In my little powerpoint on Evil Angel characters, I made a quick jokes that Sephiroth was actually my favorite character of that archetype even though Kuja was my favorite character overall. That is still very true, Sephiroth is also an unbelievably incredible villain with a presence like no other. And there so much to dissect in him with themes of duality I could talk about him for days.

Like his other peppy blonde bestie, Zidane, Tidus is a character that took a bit of time to simmer in my mind as a great protagonist. He is a great candidate for being thrust into the world of Spira, literally just Some Sports Star Kid With Daddy Issues, and he takes things like a champ truly. The untouchable atmosphere of the game wouldn't be the same without him.

It really does not get better than One-Winged Angel; a theme whose first notes sent people into screaming fits during a character reveal, the one that got me into Final Fantasy in the first place. The song and character associated live up to the hype, and on top of being just an epic theme it is thematically brilliant. Something I've always believed is that while the proceeding boss fight and theme (Birth of a God) represent how the party sees Sephiroth - as this disgusting mutant to be overcome - the Safer-Sephiroth boss fight and One-Winged Angel represent how Sephiroth sees himself. For him, he is a biblically angelic being descending from the high-heavens to smite the planet as latin choirs chant of the sins and strife he suffered to fuel his wrath. It is just on point and never gets old.

Overall, FFIX doesn't have as many songs I love as the other two games, but what it excels at for me are it's slow melancholic songs. Some of my favorites being Stirring the Forest, The Wall of Sacred Beasts, Esto Gaza, and the themes of Terra. But the mother of all of these is the theme of Memoria . . . the landscape itself is breathtaking but this majestic theme sends chills up and down my spine whenever I think of it and the sequence. The entire set-piece is a harrowing exploration of the games themes of grief and collective memory that encapsulates the overwhelming beauty of life, and thus perfectly draws your attention towards the final boss fight's stakes.

FFX has a wealth of bangers that are credited to the newer composer on the FF staff at the time, Junya Nakano. He brought in a lot of the more airy and atmospheric tracks that really give the game it's own dreamy vibe. Though Wandering Flame is standout because it's one of those very special songs where you can sense exactly what it's trying to portray even out of context. This happened to me with the Shinra Company theme in FFVII, but this one put a very specific image from the ending of the game into my head from first listen, before I even knew how it related to the plot AT ALL. It's intensely moody and melancholic in a way only a few songs make me feel, and I think that weird flash-forward it gave me to one of my favorite shots from the game is special as well.

The iconography of the black mage already has me sold, but some of my favorite supporting characters design-wise like Vivi and Lulu are black mages. And ever since they've entered my lives it's become my favorite class, funny guy who blows stuff up. Sometimes with a lil stuffed animal while wearing a big, black, furred dress -- MAN I WISH I WAS LULU!

There's just something very attractive about dragoons from their name to their signature ability. It's a very fun and creative class in my opinion, and between Freya, Kimahri, and Kain, I like this brooding spear guy motif they've got going on.

So iconic that even in FFVII, a game completely lacking the traditional class/jobs system, we still have a very clear white mage in Aerith. On the other end of funny guy who blows stuff up we have, silly lass who heals things (and sometimes blows stuff up). In the 3 I've played white mages have been major supporting female characters, and each one of them despite my low expectations have blown me away. I love this class and its girlies dearly.