7 Bad Guys Who You Ended Up Feeling Sorry For

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Final Fantasy been blessed to have been exposed to some fantastic villains. They have become known for their diabolical schemes, cataclysmic power and a fashion sense worth killing for. And their motivations have varied, but sometimes we find ourselves understanding why they are compelled to act the way they do. And it's those kinds of villains we'll be talking about in this video!
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Credits
Writers: Darryl, Joe
Editors: Joe

[@anglo-saxonconnor817]

Somnus and Bahamut are the villians in final fantasy xv not Ardyn. Both Ardyn and Noctis are victims of the god and the lucis founder king.

[@r.e.holding]

Agreed! it's a very gray story

[@DivineNaruto]

Ardyn is still the villain. He's a victim of the gods but his actions in the game make him a villain. He chose to do those things.

[@SirMoFoDans4]

No, Ardyn is very much an evil bastard villain. He turned himself into a monster and committed numerous heinous and iredeemable acts; it just so happens that he has a sympathetic backstory. And in regards to Bahumut, I don't really see him as a villain. What he did was in hopes of completely eradicating the Starscourge from Eos which required the sacrifice of a single bloodline. In the grand scheme of things, saving the world was a lot more important than an interfamilial blood feud. That being said, I have not read DOTF because the FF books fucking suck mad ass. Somnus is a villain though, fuck him.

[@dikastederook6380]

In all honesty, even Somnus is kind of a victim (still a jerk though). Bahamut is the real villain.

[@RyuNoZero]

Ehh No the True Villain of FFXV is Luminous Studios. Instead of working on highly anticipated FFXV DLC, they scrapped it, worked on Forspoken instead and got eaten by Square Enix when Forspoken failed.. great move...

[@guycd1]

I'm 100% certain that Sephiroth wouldn't have ended up how he was if he had access to a therapist.

[@therollingthunder1]

Sadly, no Shinra department could provide that. Maybe Reeve could've, but it's not in his job description. Besides, Hojo won't allow it. XD

[@groudonvert7286]

Well if he had true friends like Prompto (who has a very similar backstory).

[@guycd1]

@@therollingthunder1 Shinras health insurance sucks ass. 🤣

[@Silverjerk]

I think that’s exactly the point. That a man can be broken and become irredeemable. Sephorith is so terrifying and tragic, not because of his power, but because he so could have easily become the hero of the story had he not been abandoned, manipulated, and left to his own devices. He is a classic case of the fork in the road; one leads to heroism, and the other to villainy.

[@baebypandabear7802]

In a military sense, seeking a therapist or psychologist for the level of trauma Sephiroth will result in an automatic military separation with the reason being “unfit to fight”. I’m only saying this because us-military members avoid seeking mental health like a plague while in service. It’s a career ender for those, who really need it but they are in desperate need to have source of income due to personal reasons. Instead of receiving the treatment needed, we are instead pushed aside or booted out and replaced by another naive individual enlisting. Combining this notion with Sephiroth’s dilemma, if he is deemed “unfit”, not only he will be replaced, but he will be killed by Shinra to eradicate their unethical practices and Sephiroth’s existence is the very proof of their malpractices.

[@ANexus21]

I feel like Hojo was the true villain of FF7 not sephiroth, hojo set all those incidents in motion all for scientific curiosity; shot vincent, encouraged and applauded lucretia's experiment on chaos and using the protomateria on vincent, he also had a child with lucretia- sephiroth- whom straight from conception experimented on, and then as he was raised after lucretia's death on a lie, and such incidents continued like experimenting on cloud and zack at the end of crisis core, tried to breed aerith and nanaki/ red XIII, etc. until deepground forces broke out from under midgard. it can be said that from these incidents were numerous victims

[@hazuk6829]

Hojo and Jenova

[@kamron_thurmond]

Hojo is basically the Heinrich Himmler to me. Sure Sephiroth and Rufus get all the press for being the bad guys of FF7, but Hojo really is worse than them.

[@slashx668]

I love Sephiroth, but man, why everyone is defending him? he's mad as fuck. He just realize that he isn't special the way he tought then start burning a village and later on cast a fucking meteor on the planet, I mean... c'mon no terapist in the whole life stream could help Sephiroth

[@ANexus21]

@@slashx668 can you blame him? he literally was gaslit, lied to, and treated like a lab rat by his father hojo straight from birth all to satiate scientifical curiosity; it stung sephiroth worse than angeal, and genesis had taken it. not only that but seconds after the revelation genesis asked for some dna because genesis and angeal were degrading and falling apart. think back to what angeal said to zack- "what do monsters and angels dream of?" to be human. that revelation that angeal, genesis, and sephiroth found- the experiments-robbed the trio of that. on top of that sephiroth's smug behavior came from being groomed to be the poster child of soldier.

[@Elora445]

@@slashx668 I feel that this reply isn't really appropriate to this particular comment. The person isn't defending Sephiroth - only pointing out that his so called father is even worse. Because the question is, would Sephiroth even be insane if not for Hojo?

[@RetroGamer20109]

Kuja from FF9 had an interesting sad story. He went insane when he realized he was no longer needed.

[@ugoeze7360]

You’re right, going insane when b/c you’re no longer needed is just sad…. Not in the “sad you had a tough life, I can empathize”. Sad in the “Smdh, are you serious with this ish bro?! If you don’t fookin gtfo with this…”

[@bakacdaz]

Personally I think Kuja has 2 level of insane. First level is what he has since the beginning by his relationship with Garland. He how power but still has no freedom. So he obsessed with the power. He thought if he can overthrew Garland he will be free he will be the one who in controlled instead of get controlled. But Garland just revealed that he going to die soon even without Garland he can’t being in controlled for long time that why he became more crazy and try to destroy everything.

[@patrik3482]

Ardyn was among the last roles of Keiji Fujiwara. Together with Reno from VII. May he rest in peace.

[@Azure-Star]

Ardyn deserved better.

[@forcelightningcable9639]

lol I felt nothing for him. “I was mistreated so I’m gonna take sadistic revenge on my descendant” yeah no sympathy for you haha

[@williammelin1671]

​@forcelightningcable9639 I don't think he wanted revenge, he wanted noctic to finally kill him and free him from the scourge. The dudes life really was a sad one if you played his dlc, you see why he was the way he was

[@akuokami1677]

True

[@notomelette247]

He definitely deserved better. At least with his episode, it seemed like he made peace with his fate. The fact that he had to be the big bad so that the world he was originally trying to save could be saved by someone else.

[@forcelightningcable9639]

@@williammelin1671 I’m one trophy away from platinum on his dlc, and I stand by my opinion. Yeah he was dealt a very shitty hand, but he chose to respond to it in the worst manner possible. And, I would challenge the idea that Ardyn wanted to die, at least in any conscious manner. He’s consumed by his hate right up until the last royal arm is in his chest, and it’s only after he falls to the ground that he verbalizes any wish for release from his affliction, and even after he disappears and Noct meets him in the astral plane, Ardyn still readies himself to fight. That doesn’t sound like a man wishing for release, but I’m a grumpy old bastard who knows fuck about shit.

[@Forever_Zero]

Ardyn is undoubtedly the most tragic villain, so tragic that even the DLC that would give him his redemption was cancelled

[@LivingGuy484]

Damn 😂

What? Explain it to me.

[@tommasodelrio]

Nope. He Is only a bad written character.

[@GodleyX]

Literally the reason I didn't buy ff16. I'm still salty over the canceled content for ff15.

[@Forever_Zero]

@ basically the season 2 of DLC for the game was cancelled because of development hell the game suffered and the mixed reception by fans, Episode Aranea, Episode Luna and Episode Noctis never were released but the script was compiled in a book called "FFXV Dawn of the Future" (you can find it online for free and I recommend you that you read it if you're interested, is not bad) the book gives Ardyn his redemption arc and an alternate happy ending for the game

[@Jmerithew87]

Ardyn was such a fantastic character. XV had its fair share of flaws, but even back at launch he stood out as an exceptional villain.

[@traytyler9951]

He was a good villain if you brought the dlc, his character was not flushed out at all in the base game

[@TheMilhouseExperience]

@@traytyler9951He’s only explored in “His” dlc. The one Royal edition didn’t include because S2 was planned and then cancelled. Without that dlc he’s just some guy who does bad stuff just “because.” 15 was awful with good moments.

[@GooseGumlizzard]

it had no flaws

[@tommasodelrio]

Absolutely not. Total bad writing. You should reconsider yourself

[@Jmerithew87]

@@tommasodelrio I’m not saying the writing was good. Especially at launch and prior to the DLCs you had to read between the lines a lot, but Darin De Paul’s acting and the broad stroke aspects of the character were great.

[@canisblack]

Emet-Selch was a very interesting and sympathetic villain. I know some people don't believe it, but when he claimed he'd tried to move on, tried to build a life in the new world...I believed him. That he couldn't is a failing of his yes, but it made my sympathize with him.

[@KazaarTV]

hard to imagine a position like that, but i kinda get why he wanted the unsundered back.

[@sionan7937]

Emet-Selchs story was heartbreaking imo, even moreso if you read the Tales from the Dawn story. He lost countless friends in the final days, then he lost his two best friends: Hyth to the summoning of Zodiark and then he lost Azem when they parted ways because they disagreed with the summoning. Then he proceeded to spend 12,000 years essentially alone (yes Lahabrea and Elidibus were there too but he admits he was never particularly fond of either). So yeah he did bad things but he did it in the name of trying to salvage the world and people he loved. It was such a good villain story I think.

[@MelaniWanda]

Caius was the first antagonist in a videogame that I found myself not only liking but understanding and feeling sympathy for. His motivations make sense with everything he went through. He has been one of my favorite villains ever since.

[@CD-Gaming]

He was my second, after Haytham Kenway, although, that is mostly cuz I grew to like him, despite being from London (eh, nobody's perfect), duriing the Prologue and barely caring for Connor once the game started proper! Going from being unable not to chuckle at Haytham's dry deliveries to being bored nearly to tears by his son... Little wonder I stopped playing for three months...

[@Vayne_Solidor]

​@@CD-GamingCaius is one of my top 3 favorite villains....oh and Haytham was the goat in AC3.

[@dikastederook6380]

In all honesty, Caius's goal wasn't even that bad. He wasn't sadistic or needlessly cruel. He's still a villain and should be stopped but I'm sure if there was a way to save Yeul without destroying the world, he would have done it. Compare him to Dysley, Orphan and (above all) Bhunivelze.

[@sebastiancintron29]

Emet Selch and the Ascians in general are some of the most tragic villains in the entire series. I absolute gave no craps about them until Shadowbringers brought all of them into perspective. Ive never done such a 180 on characters before or since.

[@notmousse]

I felt bad, but then I cast Glare.

[@WingedAsarath]

​@@notmousseBLOOD FOR THE BLOOD LILY

[@FF-tp7qs]

Well, when Nabriales, Igeyormh, Elidibus (pre 5.3) and Lahabrea are all you have to judge them by

[@dracotias]

and them there's Lalabread who is canonically such an insane asshole (made to sound like it's because his habit of changing hosts every 5 minutes damaged the Aether of his soul) that even the other Ascians hate being around him.

[@sionan7937]

​​​@@dracotiasLahabrea had another canonical reason for being the way he was and it's explained in the Pandemonium quests. *Spoilers for Pandemonium raid* * * * * * Lahabrea's wife, Athena, desired to become a god and was experimenting on their son. When he caught her, they merged souls as an attempt for him to understand why she did what she did, and then he was forced to kill her. But his soul became corrupted by her ambition and cruelty. So he cut that part of his soul out and hid it away. At the end of the panda quests though, he reabsorbed that part of his soul, which also included Athenas corruption and cruelty. It's why during the panda quests, the WoL is surprised to hear stories of Lahabrea and his personality, because it doesn't match with the cruel a-hole that they know. It's not until after panda that he becomes the jerk that the WoL will eventually kill in the future.

[@Serinigalini]

I loved Caius's portrayal in DFFOO, too. The way the first things he thought of when coming to that world, was to tell Lightning that he wants to atone for her and make amends. Granted, his way was still a little twisted, to merge with the Type-0 world and forget the dead to get rid of the pain. But later he realizes it's wrong and assists the hero team, and even helps some of the characters on the chaos side to make the right decision morally. I adore his character, especially his dynamic with Lightning, and I wish he had more appearances throughout FF spin-offs

[@ugoeze7360]

Ardyn is the only one from this list I felt any modicum of pity for. He used his power for the betterment of his people, and how was he repaid? A literal backstab by his brother and his god.

[@dawgyv72]

Have you played through Shadowbringers? Ardyn can't be the only one.

[@sashaanne703]

I can’t imagine anyone not tearing up at “Remember that we once lived.”

[@georgehouliaras7239]

Strangers of Paradise made me feel sad for Chaos. Unacceptable. How am I supposed to meme now?

[@Garland846]

chaos was the fiends we made along the way

[@buggytheprophet1017]

The way Ardyn’s backstory connected with Shiva and Ifrit’s was amazingly done

[@VallumSilex]

It makes his quips in Dissidia NT extra meaningful. To Ifrit in particular: "You'll be back in my employ soon enough."

[@amharbinger]

Caius is very underappreciated. Seeing what is basically daughter die over and over again, who could blame him for walking the path of destruction. Plus his weapon was so cool.

[@6Kubik]

She is not his surrogate daughter or something. Noel said she loves him, they are lovers.

[@infernas]

One of the reasons I loved the now cancelled Opera Omnia mobile game is that it gave us glimpses of what-if's and what-could-have-been's, including redemption stories. IIRC Ardyn and Noctis/Lunafreya came to a mutual respect and understanding, and though it's far from an actual friendship, they've been fighting on the same side for quite some time. Shame Square Enix shut the game down. 😢

[@Dzzy123]

A console port of Opera Omnia would be great.

[@keeganlafferty1395]

​@@Dzzy123preferably without all the gacha bullcrap

[@jaehaalexander1172]

Ardyn was amazing. He's one of my favorites. I hated him at the start but slowly began to feel for him. I just wanted to hug him and tell him its okay

[@VallumSilex]

Because you're a compassionate human with empathy. I almost wanted to cry during the final duel with Noctis when they were both broken, staggering, and unyielding, and he croaked with such unrestricted anger, "You think 10 years is a long time?"

[@Angelus3003]

I did actually cry the entire fight and in the cutscene after. Ardyn deserved better. :(

[@Clad_in_Darkness_Gaming]

Golbez is my favorite!! Glad he’s on the list. I definitely feel bad for him.

[@supremeoverlorde2109]

Ardyn was despicable and did a lot of horrible things, but I did ultimately feel sorry for him after learning his full story. He was a human being trying to do the right thing, and he got screwed over big time for it. I think of all the tragic backstories I've heard from any Final Fantasy villain, his is the most disturbing and makes me the most sympathetic. Mainly because it's not like he ONLY became an outcast or watched his fiancé die. He was locked away in darkness for TWO THOUSAND YEARS, with no interaction with another living being. I can't think of a more convincing reason to go insane, honestly. The guy was practically despondent for the first several months he spent as a test subject, and it's clear from his early conversations with Verstael that he was a mere breath away from snapping. He felt nothing at all at that point until his hatred and anger at Somnus and the Astrals returned to the surface, and then it was all he could see. I can only imagine how horrific it must have been to be in Ardyn's mind, even before he started daemonifying people. No person is meant to live that long --- certainly not in isolation. He obviously had to be stopped, but I can't deny what happened to him was something truly unfathomable.

[@Radio_Piers]

I think that Kuja from FF9 and especially the Shadow Lord and Lady Lilith from FF11, deserve a spot on the list. Very tragic characters.

[@Aethelia]

What about Xande? Noah is basically the unseen true villain of the story, being like "Doga gets power of all Magic, Unei gets the world of dreams, and Xande... your gift is that you get to die, lol" causing all of the events the followed. Worse, Noah is revered as a wise sage, while Xande is hated for... wanting to live??

[@celestial4762]

I feel for Ardyn quite a lot. He did many bad things, but in the end it was Sommnus and Bahamut that indeed were the worst of it. He was just a product of their motions.

[@SageofStars]

I don't tend to feel sorry for the mind controlled in the same way I would for a villain. That's sympathy less for the devil, and for the prisoner. So most of these feel less like villains and more like victims. That said, Ardyn is the one I feel most for. He was controlled, he MADE a choice to do what he did, but the literally GODS of the setting forced him into that choice, as it was either that, or let the world die, and he wasn't going to let it go under his watch. It was still the Gods fault though.

[@25xxfrostxx]

Thank God. At the start I thought "If you don't mention Emet-Selch and/or Elidibus, you're fired!"

[@CaptainSherbertTheQuestionable]

Who are they?

[@blazzmatazz9051]

​@@CaptainSherbertTheQuestionable shame

[@blazzmatazz9051]

Elidibus final line put a tear in my eye. He wasn't even a main villain. But damn, just tragic

[@25xxfrostxx]

@@CaptainSherbertTheQuestionableTwo of the antagonists (I can't even call them villains) in FF14 that stayed around for the majority of the first 5 expansions. Emet-Selch being the last person mentioned in the video. By the end of it, even tough they are a problem tat has to be handled, it doesn't feel great to do so since while their methods are unacceptable, the motivation was understandable. You find yourself asking the question of if I was in their place, would I do exactly what they did?

[@therollingthunder1]

It has become impossible to talk about redeemable antagonists of FF without mentioning Emet-Selch.

[@groudonvert7286]

Small error about Caius : he's not from the Ballad clan. Ballad is not even his name. It was his predecessor's name he took in memory of the one who died protecting the seeress (Caius didn't kill him either).

[@BlakeAustin2011]

Well he did kill the immediate predecessor, but you are correct that he was part of the Farseer tribe. Also, the person who died “in place” of Caius (in Caius’ mind) was another Farseer warrior after Caius was made an l’Cie. He was already the new guardian at this point. But I’m not surprised by the errors. I enjoy the topics carried on this channel, but I feel I have to do my own research all the time because there are too many errors of fact…and it’s a trend that continues without improvement.

[@groudonvert7286]

@@BlakeAustin2011 According to the fragments about Caius's backstory, he didn't kill his predecessor.

[@WarriorVirtue]

I'm surprised Vayne didn't make the list. As much damage as he caused, he had a noble goal. He had come to see the gods of his world as the ultimate tyrants and wanted to see mortals free of their rule. And as you learn more about those same gods throughout the story, you realize that he kind of had a point.

[@abdieljove2011]

Does he though? Once humanity have full freedom, look how Ivalice ends up by the time of Tactics. Every single species except humans are extinct (Viera, Bangaa, Moogle etc.) and an apocalypse so bad happened that all technology like airships have been long lost. Oh, and there’s a powerful church controlling nations that’s literally run by Ultima and her demons. I dunno man, I think maybe the Occuria were on to something.

[@aerisgainsborough2141]

yeah you don't learn about Venat until about Dr Cid I think?

[@WarriorVirtue]

@@aerisgainsborough2141 I think so. I haven't played twelve in a long time. Need to go back one of these days.

[@TheWorstPartyMember]

He had a point but it was more to justify his own ambition. "The reigns of history back in the hands of man" ...but he wanted to be the man holding the reigns. Now Gabranth on the other hand...

[@gorimbaud]

vayne didn't have a point, he only had an excuse. cid and venat may have truly believed in the cause, but he just used it as an opportunity to consolidate power in his own hands. moreover, the occuria didn't have any real influence on ivalice by that point, and hadn't since the fall of the dynast-king, but they used the opportunity created by vayne's lust for power to attempt to manipulate ashe into reestablishing their hold on ivalice. when she rejected them and the party destroyed the sun-cryst, they did a lot more to close the door on the occuria's influence than anything vayne was up to.

[@PhoenixStarrwind]

Final Fantasy XIV's Elidibus.. i'll just leave his name here since it is tied wit-.. oops.. almost spilled the beans

[@dl01619]

Great video, however quite a bit Ardyns backstory was told in the base game, although mostly through legend. We knew about his interactions with the starscouge, his betryal by the Lucis kingdom and we knew that there was something with Bahamut. We just didn't know a lot of the details around it until the Episode Ardyn stuff

[@VallumSilex]

Was that told in the base game at-release? I genuinely don't remember. I know it was there in Royal Edition and after several patches, but the only thing I can recall from playing the original game was his short monologue when Noctis touches the crystal.

[@aether_eyes]

When I saw the title, I immediately thought before even clicking, "If Emet isn't #1, I'm gonna throw a fit."

[@topfranluis1]

Ardyn is more righteous than the protagonists. I mean let’s go over this again: His brother Somnus was crowned king, but later Ardyns girlfriend found out that the Crystal actually chose Ardyn to be king, which made him go mad and kill her, right before sealing Ardyn for two millennia… like a villain. Then, after Ardyn is woken up again, he has no intentions do do evil… like a good guy. But after being forced to dawmonify Ifrit, he starts going insane from visions of Somnus killing his girlfriend again, after which he decides to destroy everything his brother built up. So he invades Insomnia and forces the current king (at least I think it was the current king) to summon Somnus‘ spirit to kill him. As Somnus is summoned, he has the AUDACITY to actually whine to Ardyn how he always had it better than him and that he had nothing, and that what he did was for the better of the kingdom… like a villain. Then after Ardyn lands the killing blow, Somnus asks him to at least understand him… MF WHY?! Right after, Bahamut summons Ardyn into the crystal and tells him about the rule that he invented literally just now, that fate can’t be altered (just like his fate to become king, eh?) and that it’s his fate to die and drag his bloodline with him. When Ardyn doesn’t comply, like a good person, Bahamut summons the spirit of his dead girlfriend to torture him until he does Look me in the eyes and tell me you would have acted any differently than him. That’s right, you can’t. Ignis and Noctis, I’m sorry, I love you, but he really IS the true king

[@Dontdoit_]

When seen it written out it’s clear his story is based on if you agree with taking revenge on those that did nothing just cause of blood.

[@Psydrre]

Well said, topfranluis1!

[@topfranluis1]

@@Dontdoit_Ardyn was literally corrupted by the daemonification, so it’s not like he „decided“ to take revenge

[@thegawdvegito4260]

The real villain was bahumat and if they got the chance to finish the dlc if would have revealed it

[@topfranluis1]

@@thegawdvegito4260 Wait, what? Damn, is that why he assisted in killing Ifrit to destroy the evidence?

[@janedoe885]

Lahabrea from FFXIV is stealthing in with a tragic situation that most players genuinely haven't noticed. It's been getting set up as far back as ARR and a lot of the story gets told through fight details, setting details, character designs, symbols, worldbuilding, and narrative paralleling. Been collecting the evidence for years and everything has largely been proving accurate. Like I caught links between Sephirot/The Fiend and Lahabrea with the Tree of Life as creation in Kabbalah during Shadowbringers, then saw those links reiterated with the Tree of Knowledge/Agdistis and Hegemone/the Serpent + forbidden knowledge motifs in Pandaemonium. Sephirot design vs Zodiark design too, plus Lahabrea as the creator of Zodiark indicated in Akademia Anyder. There is so much happening but it hasn't been presented directly yet. If SE tells that story openly it’s going to be devastating.

[@gadrielvanorion9872]

rly wish we had gotten those last 2 dlcs for 15 to complete it

[@groudonvert7286]

*3

[@gadrielvanorion9872]

@@groudonvert7286 luna and noct? idk how much that one womans dlc would have changed the story

[@groudonvert7286]

@@gadrielvanorion9872 If I remember correctly Aranea's dlc is also linked to the alternative future.

[@TheBlackSeraph]

Just another reason to hate FF15 - when you need DLC to explain the goddamned story (and the base story was about 60 hours of crap I forgot about the second I stopped playing), it's a bad game. Some of the DLCs are included with the Royal Edition (can't remember which), but considering European/Australian releases of the Royal Edition just include DLC vouchers with THE EXACT SAME disc as the base edition (same part numbers, label, everything), SQEX were just taking the piss with that game.

[@groudonvert7286]

​@@TheBlackSeraphThe Royal Edition has a completely different endgame. Chapter 14 has a real final version dungeon, also every DLC except Ardyn were included in the Steam Version.

[@reaperx7164]

both Emet Selch and Elidibis were tough once you finally learned their stories

[@mrskye08]

One miserable detail that was missed about ardyn, if he denies his role to spread the starscourge he would suffer over and over. He really had no choice but to play the villain.

[@VallumSilex]

As I recall, choosing to refuse in his DLC does get him stabbed a bunch, however I still don't think he actually ultimately agrees. (Obviously the events of the game proceed such that he does.) As many have noted, though, the book "Dawn Of The Future"- which was a sad, desperate attempt to get the final story out after the last 3 DLCs got cancelled- had him refuse, through all the torture, and doing so actually sets into motion a far better, more believable ending than the game provided. If you haven't had a chance yet, read it. It's... er... it's really not very good, but it does flesh out the whole story that was started by Episode Ardyn.

[@jameshays947]

I named my pup Caius’ Midnight Ballad.

[@Svallforce]

Emet-Selch made me feel like I was the bad guy. I definitely felt bad for him

[@DragonmasterCire]

I am glad that Endwalker gave him a proper redemption arc

[@lesbianmareep]

Yesss, Emet is absolutely a big one for me here. Happy to see him pop up at the end :)

[@immasword]

Garland sort of due to SOP but thats an alternate universe version of him with a Radically different continuity so doesn't really count

[@TalesZuliani]

Ardyn is the text book case of "no good deed goes unpunished"

[@sleepyprinny]

Caius was the villain who resonated the most with me. Everything he did was motivated by love. A love so deep and complicated that he was driven mad by it and, even when he was cursed again, he just couldn't even be mad at Yeul... or anyone, really.

[@wildphoenix1984]

On top of these folks, Kuja, created then cast aside for Zidane the newer model. And even poor old Kefka, experimented on and driven to madness by the magic imbued on him.

[@deatho0ne587]

Jecht should be on the list. As a kid I would have said no to him, but as an adult his motivation makes sense.

[@DodderingOldMan]

I don't think he could even really count as a villain.

[@garystewart2355]

I still don’t understand Jecht unless he knew it was a dream the whole time so it didn’t really matter he wasn’t a good father

[@deatho0ne587]

Jecht might not have been a bad father in all honesty. He might just been very busy with work & had a bad work/life balance. He might have done other things than the sport and family was well off, even though in game their appt/home does not look like it. Just because Jecht later had regrets about how he acted as a father does not mean at the time he did not think he was doing a bad thing by his family. Tidus could have been scewwed a bit also since he would rather have had Jecht around all the time. PS: I am not saying he was not a bad father, just what we get from the story might not indicate bad, good, indifferent.

[@VallumSilex]

Jecht's only villainy was being an abusive parent- which admittedly DOES make him rather villainous, because it's so petty and vile, and so easily overcome compared to the tribulations most other FF villains faced. And that puts him in a really wierd place among FF villains- the thing that made him a villain to Tidus was legitimate, but what made him an FF Final Boss Villain was literally 100% out of his control. It was the equivalent of being possessed. None of the actions he took leading up to becoming Sin were any sort of secret-test-of-character that he failed, and once he became Sin there was literally no option to undo it, he basically was just the convenient body that was available.

[@RogueSeraph]

Jecht was never a bad guy, a bad father? Yes. A bad guy? Hell naw. Let's not forget that all the killing that he did as Sin was never of his own free will and him, Auron and Tidus were the ones who broke the cycle of Death in Spira.

[@fernandozavaletabustos205]

Great video as always!!

[@Thepotatowaifu]

Emet was one of those characters I didn't like at first, but going into shadowbringers and into endwalker made me love his character SO MUCH.

[@JustAnotherGamerUS]

these kinds of videos you make about villians who you end up feeling sorry for are a GOLDMINE, the 10/10 videos on your channel. i pray to the gods that you make more of these!!

[@onewingedakuma6835]

Ardyn definitely deserved better

[@Beeyo176]

I just remembered that, despite Seifer never really posing a major threat, he did kill Odin without even trying. He was kind of a beast

[@thiagoyuki6816]

Yup kuja and Seph deserved better

[@MrSentinel07]

Somewhat surprised Kuja didn't make the cut.

[@joshshrum2764]

Yeah, but he basically got off on destruction, and he just mindlessly destroyed.

[@DellikkilleD]

no one ever talks about the fact that to draw that blade from that back sheath would require 6 foot long arms.

[@joshshrum2764]

Yeah but it’s Septhiroth.

[@jdhilde8871]

One thing that always annoyed me about the Seifer seed test thing is Seifer has good instincts and follows them, like five minutes later (or however long in game time) Squall and the others do the same thing Seifer did. They get praised, he gets chastised. They pass, he fails. It's never made sense to me

[@JustAnotherGamerUS]

SUUCH A GREAT ANALYSIS thanks ffu

[@OmarO_721]

Bahamut is the real villain of XV

[@rebeccamabury4140]

I want Nomrua-san to direct the final DLC for Final Fantasy XV for it's true ending. Dawn to the Future.

[@tommasodelrio]

No story= no villain

[@astonishingmelanie]

To whoever writes the scripts-I love your style of writing: the rich, precise language, varied sentence structure, and smooth transitions make these videos so much more enjoyable!

[@drinkmorecareless]

I kinda felt bad for Kuja, but FF makes it hard to redeem a lot of its villains because they always devolve into “genocide good.”

[@kingslayer2999]

Kuja is awesome he is the only villain I had sympathy for in the end.

[@dansmith16]

@@kingslayer2999Kuja's existence is basically Ramsus, as he also had a replacement which led to his being disposed of.

[@rashidstrife5207]

This was great! Thank you for the video. Is it possible you can do the opposite as well. 7 villains you hate or even 7 protagonist you hate. Thanks!

[@TheBlackSeraph]

I wouldn't say I hated him, but I could not relate to Tidus at all. They made him the "fish out of water" in order to act as an audience surrogate, but he's so f**king stupid that it breaks immersion. The worst moment was during the dramatic reveal that the final summoning kills the summoner and as such Yuna would not survive her pilgrimage. By the time the player had cottoned on to what the other characters were alluding to and its enormity had sunken in, Tidus was still pulling derp faces. There were a lot of things I did like (or come to like) about FFX, but Tidus wasn't one of them.

[@AugustStarlight3]

I know there’s nigh-universal respect for Emet-Selch in the FFXIV community, but I felt a much greater connection with Hermes and Meteion. Given that the latter was so misled by the former, I find her to be the most sympathetic major antagonist in the entire series. (P.S. Depression is a bitch, folks.)

[@mac.a.r0nny]

Ardyn deserved better... From Square Eniix.

[@michaelconnell1010]

It’s a tie between Emet and Elidibus for me. On a side note, it’s interesting to compare Fandaniel/Hermes and Seymour given how similar their goals and outlooks are.

[@n7games823]

one group of characters i think should be on this list is Garland and the four fiends of FF-1, because they only became the bad guys, not because they were evil, but to set up the circumstances for the warriors of light to appear so the time loop the lufenians created would break and so the warriors could protect the world from the lufenians. however after the warriors defeated them there was no one who knew the truth of why they became chaos and the four fiends or that the real bad guys were the lufenians.

[@SF99404]

Seymour guado, the one guy i respected alot the first time i played FFX for PS2, now the man i understood when i saw his past and i still respect him as a worthy opponent to this day, even though he was corrupted from the get go

[@clumsy_sage]

The most important feature for a final fantasy villain. FASHION SENSE.

[@Tmack034]

I'll never feel sorry for Seymour

[@CyanLater]

I'm surprised that while you mentioned Garland in number 2, he wasn't featured on the list which is surprising as while at first he was painted as a vile knight and later bringer of chaos from FF1 and the Dissidia games, he was given a lot of motivation and backstory thanks to Strangers of Paradise more or less being the prequel to FF1 in how not only was he being lied to about the purpose of being there by the lufenians being super manipulative in various aspects, forced to off his team members and finally take control of the time loop effect until when the warriors of light would be strong enough to defeat him and completely finish freeing the world.

[@TheBlackSeraph]

Pretty sure SOP isn't canon

[@AzureGreatheart]

SoP is in a weird situation with regards to whether it’s considered canon. It could very well work as a prequel to the original game, and casting the original in a new light seems to have been the intent, but I think it also ignores Dissidia, which also ties in to the original Final Fantasy. I’m not entirely sure on the specifics, but it seems pretty unclear whether SoP is considered canon or not. The fact that Final Fantasy has a multiverse setting, which is brought up in both Dissidia and SoP, _really_ doesn’t make this any more clear, leaving Jack Garland in a weird Shrödinger’s Box situation, where he both is and is not canon to the original game.

[@Maibak3175]

1. Sephiroth - Irredeemable because we've seen in 7 remake, he's aware of multiverse and still chooses to be a villain. 2. Seymour - Perhaps just me, but no, irredeemable as well. 3. Seifer - One I know little of besides he is a bully who never grows out of it 4. Ardyn - Definitely felt bad for him, he deserved much better than he got 5. Caius - Pass, I refuse to play those games, so I don't have an opinion 6. Golbez - Literally mind-controlled, didn't do anything wrong by his own will, gets sacrificial because of actions he wasn't even in control of 7. Emet-selch - Frankly did nothing wrong, he just wanted utopia back after an utter moron messed it up by asking the wrong question and did experiments without peer review. Frankly Kuja, Chaos(Garland), and even Kefka are more redeemable than 1-3. At least Kefka was forced into his insanity by getting magic shoved into him, unlike Seifer who was just obsessed with a story.

[@Malacite]

Emmet did nothing wrong, and Ardyn got screwed for doing the right thing... F Bahamut. I actually would have picked Ultimecia over Seifert though, because her backstory is actually pretty sad - cast out by society and basically lived her entire life alone. Opera Omnia (RIP) did an incredible job of expanding on this and really making her much more sympathetic. My personal favorite is Lady Lilith from FFXI Wings of the Goddess (though Raogrimm and Luzaf also make strong cases). You wanna talk about getting screwed over yikes...

[@TazDevil50]

I am happy you covered FF 3

[@DrStunJosh]

Honorable mentions to Chaos/Garland (Dissidia), Wiegraf, and Genesis

[@simplicit570]

Emet-Selch is the greatest FF villain and I will die on this hill 😤

[@Force-Multiplier]

Ardyn and Caius are better imo Emet isn't even a true villain

[@MsRT76]

Cid from FF XII. He started out as a scientist who wanted to learn more about nethicite. He ended up becoming obsessed and then started to work with Venat who he met at Giruvegan. From the way that Balthier talks about him, he didn't start out evil, but became that way because of Venat's influence.

[@PointOfLightProds]

Remake Sephiroth is unredeemable now. He can apparently see the multiverse and yet has chosen to destroy it all, he’s just stalker psycho now.

[@federicamacchia1656]

Pay attention in Rebirth,MUCH attention...usually,the Sephiroth you see Is the One under Jenova's control,the Vessel of her Will...nut there Is AN other Sephiroth (the One you see saving Cloud from drowning under water while fighting with the Midgardsorm,the one Who freed the Weapon from the black whispers attacking It,and making It emerge to release Tifa)...This One Is DIFFERENT,more human,more weak,but free from the domination of Jenova at last...Keep an Eye on him, Because the devs are cooking some interesting thing fir thus Sephiroth who comes from a future beyond Advent Children......

[@Force-Multiplier]

@@federicamacchia1656 the books have confirmed that Sephy controls Jenova bro it could be different now tho and i always found it suspicious that "he controls her" but then he's doing exactly what she intended to do? that just doesn't sit well with me he can hate people all he wants him doing exactly what his mother wanted to do is eerie AF

[@federicamacchia1656]

@@Force-Multiplier Dear,i'm Just telling you what the devs Say,their thought about the matter...Just go to check in Advent Children Réunion Files and you'll see with your own eyes...textually you can ready that,when they have to find a motivation for Sephiroth's return,they all agree that was not his Will,but Jenova's Will since She's the entity Who controls his personality and his choices .....It's not me,this in the thoughts of the devs,bro

[@Force-Multiplier]

@@federicamacchia1656 oh this is news to me i haven't seen the new version of Advent Children yet but I'll try to look it up (don't feel like buying it again since i already have the "Complete Edition" turns out it wasn't all that Complete LOL)

[@federicamacchia1656]

@@Force-Multiplier Just go to check near the end,in the section of the making of the movie,the interview to Nomura and Nojima

[@johnkim7890]

I always thought that Delita Heiral was one of those sympathetic bad guys.

[@VallumSilex]

Ooooo great rogue candidate choice. He absolutely belongs on the list.

[@madambutterfly1997]

It really does suck that Bahamut was the real antagonist of 15

[@MelaniAlarcon]

Emet Selch is the best antagonist ever seen on the franchise

[@jezixhylus3370]

I think Gaius from XIV had a really interesting story, as well. Starting off as the main antagonist of A Realm Reborn, then showing back up in an attempt at redemption in the latter end of Stormblood, and being covered further in the Werlyt side story in Shadowbringers.

[@PetarBladeStrok]

So glad for FFXIV representation. Easily the best sympathetic villains. I also think Kuja from FFIX deserved to be here.

[@Acradius]

I was gonna say, if Emet-Selch isn't on this list, something is wrong.

[@theyinyang1103]

Ardyn, Emet-Selch and Sephiroth, my top 3, love this list.

[@heathrileyy]

Clicked in just to make sure Caius was included!! :D

[@PuppyPawsGamingYT]

I could never feel bad for seymor.

[@The_Razielim]

That's how I felt/still feel about Seifer. Like, I've never seen him as a "tragic figure", he was always just a self-absorbed fuck with an overinflated ego because he was strong. And like every anime villain with an overinflated ego, he had the victim complex to match. "Oh poor me, I'm so misunderstood and unloved by everyone. Guess I need to really become the bad guy you all seem to think I am." Gets his ass beat, "It wasn't because you were stronger!" Fuck him.

[@jordanpostle8641]

Sephiroth is a great villain, but when you actually think about it, Sephiroths' motivations for his turn to evil are pretty weak!

[@f.prince6642]

These are all great picks. But I named my son Caius for a reason 😂

[@angelaelainel.jacinto8342]

Ardyn is a tragic but well - explained. Sad story due to his younger brother and the unexpected fate by the gods. He deserves better.

[@dikastederook6380]

I honestly don't feel that much empathy for Sephiroth. I mean, his past is tragic and his story sad but after Nibelheim he just goes full omnicidal maniac and there are tons of evidences he's acting on his own and not forced or mind controlled (a lot of people think Jenova is the one who makes him act like that but Jenova only has one line during the OG game and it's been confirmed that Sephiroth was himself and acting on his own by 7, in fact he was the one controlling Jenova). Dude doesn't even have a moral goal or is lashing out in anger like Ardyn, he wants to become a god and torments a guy he destroyed the life of just for the sake of it. I love him as a villain, easily one of my favorites of all times but I don't have sympathy for him.

[@chriskoloski32]

The uncompleted ending where ardyn and noctis work together to kill bahamut and free the world is my preferred ending

[@venabre]

I love Emet-Selch. He is my favorite villain of all time. But I do not think he qualifies as a villain I felt sorry for. In the case of XIV that role would go to Elidibus. All the time Emet-Selch spent trying to bring about the rejoining he was aware. He knew what he was doing and why. Elidibus on the other hand gave everything he had and it still wasn't enough, and through his selflessness lost himself in the process. He keeps going because he has to. There is no longer any room for him to have any personal desires, all that matters is the duty. As he put it in Tales from the Shadows - Ere Our Curtain Falls "I am Elidibus. So long as I remember my duty, that is enough. Aught else I would only lose again in the course of this timeless struggle...and if these memories are truly so precious, pray do not ask that I forget them twice."

[@VeshSneaks]

Emet is the quintessential “hero of his own story, villain of another’s”. Spoilers below for Shadowbringers and Endwalker Getting to know him throughout the course of Shadowbringers, right down to his last words after defeating him… he was a broken man trying to restore his broken world. It was only when he was bested by the fragmented souls he’d so readily scorned that he realised his folly. His farewell near the end of Endwalker, wherein he entrusts the Warrior of Light with Azem’s legacy, was perfect. I’m eager to see what new antagonists emerge, now that we’re done with the story of Hydaelyn and Zodiark. Can’t help but wonder if any will measure up to Emet-Selch.

[@scotty110]

FFXIV's version of Golbez is very similar but with a twist of identity appropriation. Durante takes up the mantle of Golbez after the latter succumbs to the darkness plagueing their world, the both of them having fought hard together to save, and then Durante/Golbez comes up with a plan that basically would see the Thirteenth rejoined with the Source which would end the suffering that the people have had to endure as voidsent, but it would also cause death and destruction on the Source as well so he had to be stopped.

[@leol2926]

Ardyn was great. And he got what he wanted. That ending was a lot 😢😢

[@TheBlackSeraph]

I can't feel sorry for characters like Sephiroth, Kuja or Seymour regardless of their back stories (even if they are good) because it's hard to sympathise with a character who resorts to mass genocide. Seifer, yes, because you see him clutching to a dream that's going against his ideals, and only because he's Ultimecia's pawn. One character I think deserves at least an honourable mention would be Vayne Solidor from FF12. Upon discovering the secrets of nethecite from Venat and how the occuria can use it to control the mortal realm, he basically walks the devil's path, to secure deifacted nethecite for study in order to create manufacted nethecite and be able to keep the occuria from interfering in the mortal realm. This involves invading at least two nations behind the scenes to secure samples, assassinating his father to become Emperor and declaring Arcadia a dictatorship. This may not sound worthy of sympathy, but behind his callous wit are the actions of someone doing what *needs* to be done, and accepting that it will likely cost him. IIRC Vayne kills the Emperor because he tries to curtail Vayne's authority, and Vayne alternates between preparing to kill Larsa as a potential impediment and wanting him protected as a necessary successor after Vayne's plans conclude.

[@lunatic447]

Elidibus and Lahabrea actually hit hard as well

[@thembill8246]

I just wonder how much crazier except for off might have been if he had found out that he wasn't actually an ancient, and was in fact an alien, or the offspring of one..

[@TehBoaz]

That Ardyn thumbnail looks suspiciously like Paul Rudd lol

[@evolancer211]

I remember playing ff8 thinking, damn wish there was more Fujin in this game I always wished Noctis had the red warp strike like Ayden does lol

[@youngpacman1222]

I honestly felt bad for Golbez being used and brainwashed and later to find out he was Cecil's brother all along

[@OniFeez]

I always thought Ardyn's tale was so tragic that FF15 actually feels incomplete because of it and where it finishes as, like you said, Ardyn wasn't really the primary antagonist (or at least didn't feel like one). Putting aside Somnus for a second, it seemed like the true injustice was that the Gods continued to get their own way. Even the argument that your guards shared your fate or whatever I thought was complete nonsense (the reason why you see them at the end after what appears to be their last stand) because to me at the very least, they did not have enough information to ever form a true decision. I wonder how much of that is due to its troubled development and story changes, but honestly I would like to see a sequel to that world that addresses this.

[@onewingedakuma6835]

Sephiroth: tragic fall from circumstances out of their control Ardyn: A hero turned into a villain by gods and Somnus These characters deserved so much better

[@chrysm6842]

You could add Jecht, Yunalesca & Edea to this list, I guess.

[@kamron_thurmond]

Final Fantasy 4 makes so much more sense knowing that Golbez's real name is Theodore. If my name had been Theodore I'd try to destroy the world too.

[@MatthewBess]

Ardyn heavy on those "Magneto was right" vibes