15. Final Fantasy XIII (2009) 

Final Fantasy XIII is often held up as a poster child for contentious Final Fantasy games, and some of that criticism is valid. Accusations include it being a hallway game too linear for its own good, that its story is a nonsensical mess that boils down to proper nouns and buzzwords, and that the cast just doesn’t have much appeal. But if you’re willing to spend some time with it (both playing the game, and reading up on lore), there’s a pretty compelling Final Fantasy game to discover.

The Paradigm Shift battle system, which lets you switch your party’s role on the fly within set load-outs you make, is still one of the most engaging original features in any of these games, The soundtrack is a soaring, majestic suite of some of the most memorable themes in recent series memory, and even if it’s buried in jargon and a codex, interesting worldbuilding with Lightning and crew waits at the center.

If nothing else, I think Final Fantasy XIII is an awkwardly packaged Final Fantasy more than it is a bad one. Like Final Fantasy X, it is unapologetically linear and commits to its world, but lacks the same clarity in its writing to help players buy in. Its stellar battle system can carry all but the most dejected players through, but in the end, if its impact isn’t felt emotionally, no amount of sublime gameplay can make Final Fantasy XIII feel like a classic to people who aren’t invested. The sequels helped on this front, but for players who weren’t feeling it to begin with, that might not be enough. — Kenneth Shepard

Read More: In Defense Of Final Fantasy XIII