While it might be a bit passe to say Final Fantasy VII is incredible, I'm still going to say it. Following in the footsteps of VI before it, VII continues the series' departure from traditional fantasy and into more overt science-fantasy territory, not to mention it continues to place an even greater emphasis on the writing of its story, characters, and world. We play as Cloud, a mercenary who joins the eco-terrorist group AVALANCHE in their fight against the machinations of tyrannical megacorp Shinra. I don't think it's an exaggeration to call VII's opening - indeed its entire first act in the sprawling, grimy metropolis of Midgar - one of the most iconic sequences in videogame history. Sure there are typos and odd gimmicks to proceedings, but you can still feel the weight of VII's narrative today and as the party escape from the city and set off on the trail of the murderous supersoldier Sephiroth it's easy to find yourself entirely absorbed.

Still, the move to the PS1 brought some changes to the way Final Fantasy was presented, and not all of them are entirely positive. This is the slowest Final Fantasy yet, especially given that Square went wild with the visuals as the game moved to polygonal models instead of sprites, and getting your head around materia can be a little daunting at first. It's also a game filled with distractions and side content which can pull the pace of the game down a bit, but I wouldn't say they're to the detriment of the game; instead it all adds to the sense of a living world, but one teetering on the edge of a breakdown. There's a tension to everywhere you go that only heightens as the game advances.

The short answer here is that while FFVII won't be for everyone - of course it won't, JRPGs can be a bit of a niche like - it remains a stupendously strong entry into the franchise.