Xenogears hat GREAT story, and possibly the best soundtrack for RPGs in the Playstation One era, bar perhaps Star Ocean. And thats about it. Exploration was painful, the sprites in combat looked ugly, and combat was pressing the button sequence of your most advanced combo, over and over, with every character in your party. FF7 had much deeper gameplay... for a JRPG, that is.
I am joining the crowd who says that FF7 was a fantastic game, without being able to point exactly to where the reasons lie. That in itself is an achievment. It has not been done often ever since, and I believe not even the Devs know how they have pulled it off.
Dragon Age and Mass Effect, both masterpieces imho, have something in common that sets them apart from the typical JRPG: Adult heroes.
That means, unlike in FF-series, where you spend most of the time and plot finding the place of your hero in the world (and saving it in the process), botch Bioware games give that to you right at the start: You become a grey warden/spectre very early in the game. There is no mysterious emo-past to your character that gets unfolded over the course of the story. You are there to make a difference, not to cover the weakness of the overall plot with piano music supported flashbacks that show how the puppy of your nemesis is run over by a car, turning him from your best friend into your foe. Also, beware of older siblings and fathers and mentors. They are deadly in most cases. Only underage heroes and heroines can save the day. Yay for realism. I love 9 year old space ship commanders (I am poking at you, Xenosaga!).
BTW: Emo-hairstyle and ridicilous clothing/oversized swords in an age of guns just try to make the hero character less bland. They are bland, until you work through the numerous flashbacks. You know the character you play at the end of the game instead from the beginning... Thank god for western RPGs!
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