Best and Worst versions on Summon monsters

[JuzamDjinn]

Your opinion on the best/worst looking/animated/portrayed version of the reoccuring summons.
I personally have not yet played 13, so I can't say anything about the summons in that one.

IfritBest:FF5, simple and make sence
Worst: FF8, this Ifrit himself looks cool, but this animation if ridicules

TitanBest: FF4, simple and effective
Worst:FF7, this wasn't the worst thing, but not very cool


Bahamut best: FF6 looks like what i think a videogame dragon should look like.
worst: FF10...seriously...look at this thing.

CarbuncleBest: FF6, overly simplistic not cute at all
Worst: FF9, cute and bushy like a little bunny

ShivaBest: FF7, beautifully rendered, simple and quick
Worst: FF3DS, kindof cliche looking to me.


AlexanderBest: FF9, I don't think I have to explain
Worst: FF8, this looks ridicules

OdinBest: FF8, "Trojan ma-a-a-annn"
Worst: FF3DS, this looks to dumb

RumahBest: FF1, simple and perfect
Wosrt: FF7, this animation is so stupid, and his mustache looks like some kind of sausage

Levaithan
Best: FF6, nice clean look projects well that it is a sea monster
Worst: FF8, this is the stupidest animation for a summon in FF history

for a quick reference of how they've changed:
The evolution of Final Fantasy summons | GamesRadar

[the_savior21]

Ifrit i think looks best in VII Crisis core (if that counts) in not i say FFX and he looks the worst in FFVII i think

i think shiva looks the best in FFX and definatly worst in VII

carbuncle looks best i think in XI i think he/she looks awesome as a fox lookin deal and worse in IX

Bahamut is hard to say which one looks the best is from FFVIII or bahamut zero from FFVII
worst is definatly no contest X

leviathen defenatly looks the best in VIII no matter how bad the animation is but i like IX's animation and looks the worst in VII

Alexander i agree completely with jizam

i dont think rumah ever looks that great but i think its FFXI

Titan looks awesome in FFXI and terrible in FFVII

Odin i like the best in FFIX idk though if i had to pick one that was the worst i would probably say VII but odin as awesome in every game pretty much

[Xanatos]

Final Fantasy X version of Ifrit would be the best, due to more animal-like approach, worst, Final Fantasy III DS, he can easily be mistaken as Titan.

In popular culture Titan's are large sized creatures rather than bodybuilders, one of the reason I prefer Titan from Final Fantasy IX, than those from Final Fantasy IV, V, and VI, who by the way look almost identical.

I do like modern approach of Bahamut featured in Final Fantasy X, though I can't say I dislike the earlier versions, maybe spin off's from Final Fantasy VII.

Final Fantasy IX version of Carbuncle for being the cutest one, worst, the one from Final Fantasy VI for being somewhat different than others, speaking of discrimination.

It's tough to decide when it comes to Shiva, both from Final Fantasy IX, and X look gorgeous, though I like her animation in Final Fantasy VIII the best, choosing the worst one on the other hand is an easy decision, definitely Shiva from Final Fantasy VII for looking like a hooker.

Well, he's not available as a summon during the game, but Alexander from Final Fantasy IX for being an actual castle, impressive CGI cutscene as well, worst, don't have one.

I prefer Final Fantasy IX versions of both Odin, and Ramuh. Odin looks amazing, powerful as well, Ramuh as any other old fart, but mostly for his tale (Final Fantasy II reference). Worst ones, Odin from Final Fantasy V, and Final Fantasy IV version of Ramuh.

Best version of Leviathan appears in Final Fantasy VI, worst one makes appearance in Final Fantasy IV, I mean just look at it.

[T.G. Oskar]

Oddly enough, I find myself liking the animations in FFVIII.

For example: generally, Ifrit changes between a humanoid being and a demihuman being, generally at equal percentage. However, I tend to prefer him when he looks more like a beast, and FFVIII/FFX have him as such. While the look of FFX Ifrit is better looking, the animation of FFVIII is what really makes it much better.

It's roughly the same case with Shiva, the second most popular FF summon. While the FFX version is better looking, the summon animation of FFVIII is clearly better.

Regarding the rest: Ramuh looks better on FFIX but his animation is pretty ridiculous. In the case of Carbuncle, it's between FFVIII and FFIX, but the IX wins by a hair because of the multiple options you get. Alexander may just be eye-candy in IX, but FFVIII still tops him down. Leviathan and his summon animation in FFVIII are also pretty nice.

Bahamut has a bit of a trouble, because FFVII has four different animations (Normal, Neo, ZERO and the Crisis Core version), and FFVIII also has a very nice animation, IX has four Impulses to go with it, and FFX leaves much to desire; in this case, what I seek is the following: is the animation better than the Gebel Ganeden from Super Robot Wars Alpha 3? In that case, the only one that steps in is the Crisis Core version.

And finally, Odin. In this, I ask myself, "which animation is better than the Tatsumaki Zankantou?" And I find that, in both design and animation, there is no better version than that of FFVIII (culminating the tendency), because nothing's better than having people cut in half in three different animations, then have a still with the kanji for "Zantetsuken" while the opposition is neatly and cleanly cut in half.

So yeah...you can figure I do like FFVIII, and that I'm not that surprised by summon animations because of what I have to compare it. Now, if Banpresto were to do the summon animations for Squeenix...

[GypsyElder]

I don't really feel like going through and evaluating each summon but I will say this:

As much as I love FFIX, the summon posse as a whole was the worst imo (appearance wise)...besides maybe Carbuncle ^_^

I'm a big fan of how FFX summons looked (all of them) though all the fiends in general of X are awesome looking.

Quetzalcoatl is my favorite in VIII, even though he's (it's?) faceless because he's just cool like that.

I can't even remember what the summons look like in FFIII-VI @_@ haven't finished I+II hahah.

[JuzamDjinn]

The modern summons (X-XIII) DO look very cool. They I just feel they lose some of their 'summon monster feeling' with all the arcane monsters and 'decorated' look.
Had they been some kind of machines I think I could appriciate them (in game) a little more.

Though, whoever created them has a great imagination.

[Kurt Zisa]

Im curious, whats wrong with X's Bahamut? In my opinion hes the best one, looks wise his large size and wings make him imposing and his animation, the way he crosses his arms looks pure bad-ass . i also find it ironic (if thats the word) that his Fayth is a small boy.

[T.G. Oskar]

Im curious, whats wrong with X's Bahamut? In my opinion hes the best one, looks wise his large size and wings make him imposing and his animation, the way he crosses his arms looks pure bad-ass . i also find it ironic (if thats the word) that his Fayth is a small boy.

When you get used to Bahamut as the god of all dragons, that portrayal simply doesn't make him justice, "badass" as he may look.

Example 1: Bahamut usually is colossal in size, his wingspan alone expanding far beyond the party itself. FFX's Bahamut isn't even gargantuan in size; he's larger than the party and larger than most monsters, but when Bahamut is roughly the same size as Ifrit, you know there's a slight problem.

Example 2: Bahamut's wheel on the back. It...doesn't seem to make sense, when you compare the designs of the others. Ifrit looks badass with his bangles and chains; Shiva looks more seductive than ever, but Bahamut just looks plain weird, not really imposing. Size and shape make a creature imposing; Ifrit IS imposing, Shiva is hot (hence not imposing), and Bahamut...well, he can be scary, but not really gives a vibe of a frightening presence.

Example 3: Bahamut...doesn't look that much like a dragon. It's tradition; Bahamut is based partly in the dragon god of Dungeons & Dragons, and in that portrayal he's quite badass (scales of platinum, his breath can pretty much disintegrate things, he can transform into an old man with 7 birds following him which are really 7 gold dragons transformed, is of colossal size, etc.) In here...he's...some sort of winged draconian, really. He looks a bit more human than ever, considering that in other portrayals you really can't deny he's a dragon. And don't tell that the portrayal of dragons in Spira is like that, because the "sea serpent" style of dragon is portrayed quite definitely within Shinryu, AND IIRC there are creatures resembling dragons. Heck, Valefor of all monsters resembles a dragon more than Bahamut.

Example 4: After seeing Bahamut's moves for so many times, the fact that his Mega Flare is apparently de-volving into a particle cannon of sorts is worrisome. You see FFIV and how the entire screen basically detonates, FFVI and how he unleashes a veritable breath of destruction, FFVII and how Bahamut ZERO launches a devastating wave from the frickin' emptiness of space, and you see that animation (and the animation at FFXIII) and...well, it's not very impressive. At all.

And the irony isn't that Bahamut's fayth is really a child; the irony is that this is the representation of Bahamut that has more screen time and actually helps the party, much like his FFI incarnation that helped the group a bit. After all, of all summons, Bahamut tends to be the most vocal (with Odin usually issuing a challenge, and Ifrit being one of the first summons you actually get).

[Kurt Zisa]

Thanks that clears things up i wasnt looking for an arguement or anything i just wanted to know why people didnt like him ^^. Now that i think of it Mega Flare is exactly the same as the Crawler's Mana Beam.

[Angel of Iniquity]

I just spent about 40 minutes posting the pics of my favorites and the worsts...
comesto find out... yuo can only post 5 pics per post...
Nope...
FF8's summon win all but Bahamuts fury...
Damn Im pissed

[markandrewkinzett]

In FF7, FF8, FFX I like all the summon monsters animations but in FF9 I did not like may of the summon animations they just seemed a bit lax for me compared to the other games.

[Oneesan]

I love Shiva especially in X, but honestly what was done to her in XIII really annoyed me.

[nickness89]

Ifrit: Best - FFX - Because it's a great cinematic sequence, and he kicks ass.
Worst - FFVIII - The animation is awful, even though the Ifrit is one of the coolest.

Titan: Best - Agreed on FFIV
Worst - Agreed on FFVII

Bahamut: Best - FFXIII - Fang's Bahamut kicks ass!!
Worst - FFX - It doesn't look like a traditional Bahamut.

Carbuncle: Best - FFIX - So cute, love the little Ruby in it's forehead x~D
Worst - FFVI - Just because.

Shiva: Best - FFXIII - She looked so sleek and awesome, and the fact that there were 2 of them meant a huge ass-kicking. The Gestalt sequence was awesome.
Worst - FFVIII - Just didn't like it at all.

Alexander: Best - FFIX - The wings around the castle were awesome, and he looked awesome.
Worst - FFVII - Mehh, was too bland and unexciting.

Odin: Best - FFXIII - Was kick-ass, and had many awesome moves.
Worst - FFIII DS - He looked ridiculous.

Ramuh: Best - FFIX - Just loved it, including the story-put-together to acquire him.
Worst - FFVII - Looked horrible.

Leviathan: Best - FFVI - As JuzamDjinn said, it portrays the sea monster best.
Worst - FFVIII - The animation looked horrible, and the creature looked horrible.

Summons are some of the best parts of the Final Fantasy series, however they seem to be less useful nowadays (FFXII and FFXIII).

[Cereal~Killer]

Ifrit

Best: My favorite was FFVIII. The attack design just looked cool, with him slamming that fiery chunk of land down at the enemy.

Worst: FFIV. Sorry FFIV. I love you, but Ifrit was the worst in this game. All he had was a boring attack where he ran across the screen with fire in the background.

Shiva

Best: FFVIII. I just loved her design in this game. Dare I say it...she looked hot.

Worst: FFXIII. There are two of them (which was unnecessary) and they turn into a motorcycle. Lame!

Ramuh

Best: FFIX. Pretty cool spell animation.

Worst: FFVI. His spell animation just looked quick and boring in that game.

Leviathan

Best: FFIX. I think in this game, they did good on making the creature and the actual attack look powerful.

Worst: I would originally have said FFIV, but they revamped his spell animation in the PSP remake, so it's all good. Now, I'm going with FFVII. The whole thing just looked ugly.

Odin

Best: FFVIII. I liked how he quiety steps into the scene with the dark clouds and the rain sprinkling down. It was cool.

Worst: FFXIII. I'm sorry, but any of these summons in the series that also appear in FFXIII are always going to get FFXIII as the worst choice. I just didn't like what they did with the summons in this game. It's Final Fantasy. Not freaking Transformers.

Bahamut

Best: This one's a bit hard. Appearance-wise, it's FFVII with all it's versions, but Bahamut Zero especially. But a part of me wants to say FFIV, because he actually had a high, important part in this game and he seemed like more than just that random summon dragon.

Worst: See Odin and Shiva.

Hmm...despite FFVIII being one of the least favorites, it does have some of the best summon animations of the series. I'll give it that.

[Firefly]

I don't have many dislikes,or many reasons..hehe....

Ifrit
Best:FF10,Just Cause Hellfire looked pretty cool
Worst: FF8,I liked the way HE looked just not his hellfire :/

Titan
Best: FF4
Worst:IDK


Bahamut
Best: FF10
Worst: FF9

Carbuncle
Best: FF8
Worst: Carbuncle is cute either way :3

Shiva
Best: FF10
Worst: FF4


Alexander
Best: FF9, cuz he looked pretty awesome lol
Worst: FF8, even though he didn't look that bad ^^"

Odin
Best: FF8
Worst: Idk

Rumah
Best: FF9
Worst: Again,idk xD

Leviathan
Best: FF4(wait he WAS in FF4,right??? :S )
Worst: FF8

[Illusion]

I didn't like what FF12 did by turning many of the summons to ships, especially major summons like Leviathan, Bahamut and Alexander. I also didn't like the summon system. My favorite summon systems would be that of FF10.

I didn't like how they made Shiva into a bike in FFXIII, either.

My favorite versions of summons would probably be the ones in FFX, but I like many of the summons of FFTA.