Fourteen heroes, magic resurfacing, and a 16-bit fresco that has lost none of its scope.

On gut feeling, the community places this Final Fantasy just above the middle, ahead of 60% of games, on few votes. But it all plays out in the detail, and the tension is fierce. Attachment to its characters sits ahead of 92% of other titles, the wish to rediscover it fresh ahead of 90%, its soundtrack ahead of 70%. And then, abruptly, the fall. Feel in the hand drops right to the bottom, ahead of just 1%, and the art style edges past only 11% of games, on few duels here too. Here is a classic cherished in memory and judged harshly on criteria built for today: its period graphics and controller comfort pay the gap of the years.

Among the founding Japanese RPGs, it stays a reference for writing and music, less a showcase of modern smoothness.

So, who is it for? For you if you love characters that mark you for life, a soundtrack you still hum, the thrill of memory. Much less so if you judge first by graphical finesse and immediate controller pleasure.