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Self-explanitory title. Uh, I'll say...

Name: Final Fantasy VII
System: PSX
Reason: The music, visuals, and overall awesome? Look it up.

Post yours.

EDIT: This is for opening cutscenes OR playable portions (I.E. Outset Island, Hikari in KH, etc.)

This post has been edited by Chell172 on 24th November 2011 15:28

Gotta say FFVI. Just love the snowfield scene. The music, the lone figures trekking through the wasteland, the slowly rising lights in the background.... classic. The initial beginning is ok too.

When it comes to pre-menu cutscenes, Wild ARMs takes the cake just for the song. Into the Wilderness - great stuff. My other favorite is probably Monster Hunter Freedom 2 - Way too gorgeous to be a PSP game.

When it comes to the very beginning of a game, to provide exposition and maybe a first taste of gameplay in an opening stage, I'm a big fan of God of War 2, Final Fantasy VII, Chrono Cross, Earthbound, and others. Too long to list.

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END SPOILER

Intro cinematics and music wise my favorite is Suikoden III. As far as opening sequence of the playable portion of the game, I'd have to say Final Fantasy VII. Particularly the music. I felt it drove the task that you were trying to do.

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Chewbekah ^_^

Currently Playing: Final Fantasy XIV: ARR, Attack of the Firday Monsters, Animal Crossing: A New Leaf, Lego City Undercover, Kingdom Hearts 1.5 Remix

Recently Finished: Fire Emblem: Awakening

Favorite Game: Suikoden III

Shadow of the Colossus
Plok
Brutal Legend, though more the menu really.
Final Fantasy IX

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When it comes to pre-menu cutscenes, Wild ARMs takes the cake just for the song.  Into the Wilderness - great stuff.

Oh, thank you for reminding me of this! I totally remember loving that song. I would almost always have to watch that vid just because I loved the song, every time I loaded up the game!

As for my choice, FFVII just hit me as soon as I saw the topic title - I don't know why, but that game just sticks out as one of the most memorable openings I've ever witnessed. It just sets the game's tone so wonderfully.

A good runner up is definitely FFVI, for all the reasons finalalias stated.

And lastly, I really liked the opening exposition that came with getting Bioshock going. Really made you feel lost, hopeless, then diving down into Rapture filled you with such wonder, especially when you witness that whale drifting amongst the sea scrapers. So cool.

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Games on the Go
Final Fantasy VII
Final Fantasy: Four Warriors of Light
Baldur's Gate

Too much to play, so little time!

Greg

Like intro FMVs or beginning scenes of gameplay?

Opening cutscenes--Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, Final Fantasy VIII, any given Metal Gear game

Opening gameplay scenarios--hm...maybe the Metroid Prime games (fully powered Samus tends to play differently than pre-power-down Samus, but still...), Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask (introduction to the despair of the people of Termina, induced helplessness via the Deku transformation, being thrust into a world so alien and yet so familiar to Link's own), most Metroidvania games.

Personally, I didn't care for Midgar that much. Really, Shinra was not the one pulling the strings the whole time in FFVII--true, they started out there, but quickly lost control when the SOLDIER program got out of hand. Really, the first 5 hours of FFVII felt completely different from the rest of the game and, I think, didn't do much for preparing the player for the rest of the game.

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HSUP B TCELES

I'm going to look solely at the opening non-gameplay scenes and divide them into a few categories based on how they work in order to show the strengths of different approaches and why I like them.

Vagrant Story has a nice opening scene setup as well that falls under the category of "background." Instead of one, it actually has three separate scenes. The background and atmosphere are very well portrayed in these scens and they set the stage well. FFVI's opening falls under this category as well, whether you're looking just at the original SNES opening or the FMV opening from the PSX port as well; in both cases the opening sections serve to set the plot in place before the player begins to execute his/her role.

I think a sub-category here could be called the "action" opening, and I think FFX is a good example of it. The opening scene provides some background but in a much more limited sense; the primary focus is on a specific action taking place that is significant to the plot in itself without providing additional information or any interpritation.

Parasite Eve has a good opening scene as well, though it falls under the category of "forecast." You get an idea of everything that's going to happen, but nothing that gives away too much. A great opening song in this one too. It seems that more RPGs follow this strategy with their opening scenes. Grandia does this as well, showing clips from scenes to come throughout the game.

Valkyrie Profile I think falls into a sub-category of "forecast" openings called an "introductory" opening, as it is more concerned with giving us a look at the characters. It's distinct from the "action" sub-category in that it's more of a montage and not based around a central event (excluding that beautiful lingering scene at the very end).

A couple games seem to skip over the concept of an opening scene entirely and focus on a strict "environmental " opening approach. These, in my eyes, include FFVII and FFIX. You have incredibly brief scenes on each that don't do anything for forecasting, introductions, background or even much action (though you could argue that this is the case for FFVII). Their main focus is on providing a quick stage- not a background or anything, but just an environment.
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My favorite, however, is FFVIII. This stems very much from the fact that it cuts quite expertly between events happening at the start of the game (the duel between Seifer and Squall), clips of those to follow and the conversation between Squall and Rinoa that is so central to the game's conclusion. Liberi Fatali is a great piece to accompany as well. You get the backdrop, you get the atmosphere, you get opening action, you get character introduction and you get a glance ahead. FFVIII is what I consider to be the perfect intro because it covers all of these basis so ably.

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Favorite Game : Final Fantasy X

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I really like the opening to FFVII as well. Actually I can't think of a better opening. It's just about perfect.

I have a few other notable mentions. Metal Gear Solid on the PSX is memorable because of the choir music and the image of Snake swimming through the ocean. Half-Life 2's opening is absolutely incredible for setting the mood. I liked Vice City as well for getting that feeling of being on the run in a new city. GTA games are usually good for that but Vice City is the best. I can think of others like Amnesia and Condemned but I don't want to flood this with second bests. FFVII is the best for me.

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Scepticism, that dry rot of the intellect, had not left one entire idea in his mind.

Me on the Starcraft.

Both of the Mass Effect games had excellent introductions, where the game drops you into the setting just before all hell breaks loose. Commander Shepard's arrival on the bridge in the first game simply felt like a majestic moment, and the sudden action throws you immediately into the emergency...

Possible spoilers: highlight to view

...especially Shepard saving Joker at the last minute, only to be blasted away from the escape pod by an explosion which punctuates his/her suit. Even knowing what would happen in the beginning of ME2, watching Shepard floating in space, trying in vain to cover the holes in his/her suit and ultimately becoming still as the sad music kicks in was simply... epic.

One introductory scene that I found was done really well was the intro to Deus Ex, where Bob Page and Walton Simons are discussing how they've positioned their influence in the government and reveals a great deal of backstory and many important characters that the player character, JC Denton, only comes to know later... and it was rather neat when you come to the very place where Page and Simons were discussing their schemes during gameplay.

Possible spoilers: highlight to view

It also works extremely well with the Illuminati ending, where JC Denton and the Illuminati leader Morgan Everett are discussing how they will restore order into the world now that absolute control is in their hands in the exact same place where Bob Page and Walton Simons were plotting to seize power.

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Innnn your dreeeeeeeeams
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allllll things are reeeeeal
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In terms of intro videos, Lunar 1 for sure, heheh. I also came to post Suikoden 3, but Chewbekah beat me there!

As far as like an intro playable part, rather than the cinematic, FFT definitely stands out. It thrusts you right in the midst of a battle, which I always appreciate. FF7 is also just fantastic, as has been mentioned several times in the thread.

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Hey, put the cellphone down for a while
In the night there is something wild
Can you hear it breathing?
And hey, put the laptop down for a while
In the night there is something wild
I feel it, it's leaving me

While I would like to give a thorough analysis like Death Penalty's to the openings I've seen, I don't remember enough of them to do so at the moment.

That said, a few do stand out to me:

* The beginning of Final Fantasy VII, with its eerie, then triumphant, then ominous music, merging seamlessly into the Bombing Mission theme and the train station.
* FFVI: The intro narration, the lightning and gradual appearance of the title, and the snowfield scenes.
* Castlevania: Symphony of the Night: Alucard's intro, speeding through the forest, is pretty cool.

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Really, the first 5 hours of FFVII felt completely different from the rest of the game and, I think, didn't do much for preparing the player for the rest of the game.

Yeah, I felt a bit disoriented (gameplay-wise) after that first part of the game, frankly.

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Check the "What games are you playing at the moment?" thread for updates on what I've been playing.

You can find me on the Fediverse! I use Mastodon, where I am @[email protected] ( https://sakurajima.moe/@glennmagusharvey )

Chrono Cross, Zelda MM, Zelda ALTTP, Zelda TP, FF7, Donkey Kong Country, SOTC, probably many many more.

To me hands down is FFVI considering this is an SNES era game. The first time I popped the cartridge into my SNES, it just had me hooked. As much as I have love for FFIV, FFVI was the one that really sucked me into the opening story.

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"Arthur Dent?"
"Yes."
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"Yes."
"You're a total knee biter."

Chrono Cross's was one of the stronger ones for me. That, and FFVI. Pretty memorable stuff.

Actually, FFIX's was pretty awesome. I loved the entire first two hours. You swordfight on stage, you dance, you kidnap a princess after crashing her birthday party... Pretty eventful time!

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I'm telling you you're wrong.

Quote (dekupride @ 24th November 2011 08:22)

Like intro FMVs or beginning scenes of gameplay?

Opening cutscenes--Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, Final Fantasy VIII, any given Metal Gear game

Opening gameplay scenarios--hm...maybe the Metroid Prime games (fully powered Samus tends to play differently than pre-power-down Samus, but still...), Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask (introduction to the despair of the people of Termina, induced helplessness via the Deku transformation, being thrust into a world so alien and yet so familiar to Link's own), most Metroidvania games.

Personally, I didn't care for Midgar that much.  Really, Shinra was not the one pulling the strings the whole time in FFVII--true, they started out there, but quickly lost control when the SOLDIER program got out of hand.  Really, the first 5 hours of FFVII felt completely different from the rest of the game and, I think, didn't do much for preparing the player for the rest of the game.

Oh I loved the opening to Zelda: A Link to the Past. I'm glad you mentioned that one. I forgot about it. One of my favorite openings and actually my favorite Zelda game.

Edit

I also liked the opening to FF:CC. I really like the song and the look of the game.

This post has been edited by Chewbekah on 2nd December 2011 04:04

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Chewbekah ^_^

Currently Playing: Final Fantasy XIV: ARR, Attack of the Firday Monsters, Animal Crossing: A New Leaf, Lego City Undercover, Kingdom Hearts 1.5 Remix

Recently Finished: Fire Emblem: Awakening

Favorite Game: Suikoden III

Metal Gear Solid 4... stupid awesome

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PS3 tag: TipoDLuffy

"...quite possibly the greatest game ever made"

This depends on how much of a stretch you guys willing to look at opening scenes. If the running between tidus's house to colosseum doesn't stop the FMV introducing Sin to be part of the opening then X's opening is my favorite hands down. if not
then my favorite would have been VIII's although VII's was good VIII's was just a little better to me.
I really liked VI's opening (not the FMV) and Secrets of Mana's. (Did anyone ever notice these 2 have very similar openings? )
I also liked IX's
Chrono triggers (PSX version FMV) was awesome
Chrono cross's was alright.
XII's was too long and actually seemed a bit boring to me.
XIII's also seemed alright.
Super Mario RPG's always got my blood going seeing it (

For none Square games:
COD: MW2 had an awesome opening. MW's wasn't as good and MW3's was overboard to me.
DBZ Burst Limit had the best DBZ game opening in my opinion and was REALLY good.
Bioshock's was cool but not so much on the second Bioshock.
GTA Vice Cities was awesome and so was GTA IV's. (TLatD and TBoGT were good but not as good)
MegaMan Legends was Really REALLY awesome (never played the second one)
LoZ: Wind Waker and Body Harvests were pretty good.
Paper Mario's was comical to me.

I'm not listing opening parts I liked or I'm going to take up a whole page

This post has been edited by TrueBOSS on 2nd December 2011 05:29

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Chrono Trigger's ticking clock title intro works very, very well, come to think of it.

The preview intro is freaking epic.

The game intro is bland compared to the epicness, but that's partly because the story has you going in blind and reveals bits and pieces of the setting as you progress.

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Check the "What games are you playing at the moment?" thread for updates on what I've been playing.

You can find me on the Fediverse! I use Mastodon, where I am @[email protected] ( https://sakurajima.moe/@glennmagusharvey )

I love FFVII's opening also. It may be my favorite opening for a Final Fantasy. But my favorite openings are Super Metroid and Shadow of the Colossus. Both are epic. I love descending into the empty base and fighting Ridley in Super Metroid, and Shadow's opening up to the first colossus is nearly perfect. But for both of their endings are better than their openings.

Super Castlevania IV's opening is awesome.



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Praise Be To Helix!

Do non-cinematic openings count? If so then I love the opening part/intro to Half Life.
it feels so very like you're thrust into Gordon Freeman's shoes and you get to explore Black Mesa a bit until... well... the whole lawnmower thing happens. (If you've played Half Life, It looks so much like a lawn mower doesn't it!)

Other than that, FF7 since I was just blown away. Yeah, I didn't usually play video games and my mom told me to play it since she played it while I was a baby, so the opening FMV was awesome to me.

This post has been edited by Archer_in_Mideel on 29th January 2012 17:06

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Strong proponent of inter-fandom peace!

FFVIII has my favourite game opening, for the reasons Death Penalty articulated above.
I love the atmosphere, music, and mix of current events and future ones.

Chrono Cross's opening also ranks very highly for me, Scar's of Time is a great theme and you catch glimpses of important characters and events.


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FF games completed: I (psp), II (psp), III (DS), IV (psp), V (GBA), VI (GBA), VII, VIII, IX, X, XI: Nations-Rhapsodies of Vana'diel, XII, XIII, XIV, XV.
Spin-offs: FFIV: Interlude & The After Years, Crisis Core: FFVII, X-2, XIII-2, Lightning Returns, Type-0 HD, Dissidia, Dissidia 012, and Tactics (original & WotL).
Enjoyed them all.

Quote (dekupride @ 24th November 2011 10:22)

Like intro FMVs or beginning scenes of gameplay?

Opening cutscenes--Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, Final Fantasy VIII, any given Metal Gear game

Opening gameplay scenarios--hm...maybe the Metroid Prime games (fully powered Samus tends to play differently than pre-power-down Samus, but still...), Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask (introduction to the despair of the people of Termina, induced helplessness via the Deku transformation, being thrust into a world so alien and yet so familiar to Link's own), most Metroidvania games.

Personally, I didn't care for Midgar that much.  Really, Shinra was not the one pulling the strings the whole time in FFVII--true, they started out there, but quickly lost control when the SOLDIER program got out of hand.  Really, the first 5 hours of FFVII felt completely different from the rest of the game and, I think, didn't do much for preparing the player for the rest of the game.

Sure, but a lot of games do that, especially FF's. The most notorious being FF8! Ultimecia, by what, the 3rd disk? While I love the game, a lot more than most around here, it really seemed like they were retconning as they went along. All the canon they established in the first 5-10 hours just kept going out the window. But I digress!


My favorite opening by far is FF7. The train, the confusion of it all, feeling lost as Cloud with Barrett rampaging around. You REALLY started to feel for the Avalanche plight (Biggs and Wedge included), before being shown that it wasn't quite the right way to go about standing up to Shinra.

Second favorite would be Assassin's Creed II. This game drew me in like crazy, breaking out of Abstergo (a little Shinra-esque in their own right) and when the great "betrayal" happened in Ezio's time, I was hooked into the plot. Knowing that it was a story-within-a-story only added to my enjoyment of those first few hours.

This post has been edited by Tidu-who on 10th February 2012 02:37

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The clouds ran away, opened up the sky
And one by one I watched every constellation die
And there I was frozen, standing in my backyard
Face to face, eye to eye, staring at the last star
I should've known, walked all the way home
To find that she wasn't here, I'm still all alone

-Atmosphere "Always Coming Back Home to You"

I was always a big fan of the opening for Ogre Battle 64: Person of Lordly Caliber. I've never played any other Tactics Ogre game in the series, and there was supposed to be a huge storyline being developed for a series of the games (but it would appear developers still haven't gotten around to it), and you could tell by just viewing the pre-game scenes. It shows all sorts of history, brings very lifelike plots and issues, and while you're not sure where you fit into it all just yet, you know you're in for something big.

And it delivers. Even when you actually start the game, it's a good 20-30 minutes before the first mission even starts, and by that time you've already made some crucial gameplay decisions, gotten a heartfelt but mysterious backstory for your protagonist with only one scene, and know that things in Palatinus are far from straightforward.

And I agree with you Tidu, I've only recently begun playing Assassin's Creed 2 and the opening was highly entertaining (especially Ezio's introduction), already off to a better start than how I felt about the first game. Too bad I've shelved it for now to enjoy FF13-2.

This post has been edited by TheEvilEye on 10th February 2012 05:36

FF4:I just adore that airship theme.And when we get cecil and kain going out and hear:Lets go,we get this backdrop and a nice story narrated with the epic prologue.

The music alone is utterly amazing,and it adds so much to the game,that it could literally be an anthem.I personally think it is more influential than ff6-s opening.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_yYxsda1v2M

I am even getting emotional as i am listening to it now.

The ff8 opening was also very good actually.The fight between squall and seifer,and the music get you all hyped up on a very epic fight going on.

The ds version of the ff3 nes prologue was also really good

This post has been edited by Magitek_slayer on 16th February 2012 13:51

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We are stardust.Our bodies are made from the guts of exploding stars.

Neil Degrasse Tyson.

Having just finished it, I can say it now: Mass Effect 1 and 2's openings are fantastic. I don't know if they're among the best, but they do set up the Mass Effect universe so well. Especially since:

In ME1,

Possible spoilers: highlight to view

you've just chosen your background, so they're either referencing how you lived on the streets, your parents were soldiers, and whether you were a sole survivor or war hero.

And in ME2,

Possible spoilers: highlight to view

the game begins with your love interest (mine was Liara) trying to save you, but you staying a waiting for Joker as you slowly space walk to his position, and then get him in the pod just before you're blown away.

the way they personalize the story makes it feel realistic from the very first moments.

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Praise Be To Helix!

Quote (Narratorway @ 24th November 2011 09:51)

Shadow of the Colossus
Plok
Brutal Legend, though more the menu really.
Final Fantasy IX

Plok... That was one great game.

I really liked the beginning of Super robot wars D, but it's hard to explain unless you're into mecha.

RAW from PS3 . . i like it a lot