VII wasn't te first FF I played, nor was it my first 3d FF, but it's still my favorite story of the series. What you've posed here isn't an argument against VII at all, but rather an explanation of how it could attain popularity without being good. An explanation as a premise in an argument at best makes your conclusion (that VII isn't just that good) possible. It no more proves it's not the best than my initial statement explaining that VII was not my first but still my favorite proves that it is. Also, the fact that nobody has disproven that explanation does not confirm it. Suggesting that it does is a form of logical fallacy known as Argumentum ad Ignorantium. I could just as easily dismiss XII by saying that most people only like it because it was the first to completely mutilate the classic system, or the first of the main series set in the familiar world of Ivalice, or the first with high graphic representation of bunny chicks. None of these possible explanations devalue the game's actual quality in any way.
If you wish to argue that the fact that people liked it because it was new and different, it's almost impossible to logically support XII, because it too was one of the first big changes in the franchise, breaking away from the classic combat system. In fact I would be willing to say that that is exactly why alot of people liked XII, but again, that explanation lends little to no support to my conclusion.
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