Final Fantasy XIII is one of the most divisive of the numbered Final Fantasy games. It came out at a point in time when open-world games were all the rage. The problem with that was that XIII was a very linear game. You went from point a to b and so on, it didn't help that a lot of the game's terminology was confusing.

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That sense of divisiveness was also present in its cast of characters. A few of the main characters, in particular, were the kind of characters that people either loved or hated. This stood out because of how important character growth was to the story. Even all these years later, that love or hate relationship with XIII's characters is still present. With that said, here are the 5 best Final Fantasy XIII characters (& the 5 worst).

10 Best: Sazh Katzroy

Sazh is perhaps the most grounded of the six main characters. He's just a single dad who wants to look out for his son. While that might make him sound pretty boring, he definitely is not. Sazh stands out because he's a kind of normal guy in a world with very final fantasy-esque characters. He also does his best to relieve the tension, which is sorely needed considering the other characters' personalities.

Sazh is also no slouch when it comes to combat. His primary combat roles are the commando, ravager, and synergist. This means he is great at dealing out damage and helping others do more damage. All in all, Sazh helps keep things real, which is especially important in what can be a confusing story.

9 Worst: Jihl Nabaat

Jihl is not one of the main characters, instead, she is one of the game's main antagonists. It seems fitting for her to be one of the worst after talking about Sazh. She is directly involved with Sazh as she desires to use his son's l'Cie brand, which can sense l'Cie from Gran Pulse. Right away, as a person, Jihl is pretty despicable but she also falters as a character.

Jihl sees herself as superior to those around her despite herself being just a pawn. She never goes through any real character development and instead only wants things to go her way. Even Jihl's subordinate, who is flawed, redeems himself at a certain part of the story.

8 Best: Oerba Yun Fang

Fang is one of the last playable characters added to the main party and she is also one of the more popular. For good reason too, as she's both a great asset for combat and adds another dimension to the party's dynamic. She has access to the roles of commando, sentinel, and saboteur. This selection lets Oerba do damage, protect the rest of the party, and debilitate her enemies.

Oerba desires nothing more than to protect Vanille, sometimes to a reckless extent. She's the laid-back and cool character of Final Fantasy XIII. It's hard to dislike Oerba thanks to all of this and her willingness to sacrifice herself for her friends. She also has access to the fan-favorite Eidolon, Bahamut.

7 Worst: Oerba Dia Vanille

There are typically three characters of the main cast that really divide audiences: Hope, Snow, and Vanille. Vanille can irk people because of the way she acts. Too happy-go-lucky, she acts as if everything will work out no matter what. Her character arc involves her overcoming her impulse to run away from her problems.

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Because of this, Vanille's first impression is that she's something of a coward. She obviously overcomes this later on but first impressions tend to last. Her combat roles are ravager, saboteur, and medic. Vanille does manage to be very useful in combat but she's definitely a love/hate character.

6 Best: Snow Villiers

The second of the very divisive characters, Snow acts like he's the hero of the story. He's also recklessly confident, which can rub some people the wrong way. Snow has access to the roles of commando, ravager, and sentinel, and also gets to use Shiva, which is another fan-favorite Eidolon.

One of the most impressive things about Snow is that he realizes what his recklessness can do and doesn't flinch away from taking responsibility. Hope desperately hates him and yet Snow never reacts in anger or anything, he just keeps on trying to save people. He's a good person who is also imperfect, which makes him a much more likable character than he otherwise could be.

5 Worst: Nora Estheim

It might seem cruel to call Nora one of the worst characters, considering her heroic death. However, the reason for this is because, ultimately, she acts as little more than a reason for Hope to hate Snow. Nora herself seems to be a great mother at first, and in many ways she is, but there is one major mistake she makes.

Nora is not a fighter, she has not been trained in the same way that someone like Lightning has. Despite all of this, she leaves Hope behind to fight with a resistance group that shares her name, NORA. She saves Snow and then loses her life, leaving Hope alone. Nora ends up being the character that everyone remembers for one corny line, "Moms are tough."

4 Best: Lightning

The main character among the main characters, Lightning is rude and kind of a jerk, at least at the beginning of the game. Thankfully, she grows as the story progresses until she becomes a downright awesome character. Her combat roles are commando, ravager, and medic. This means she is apt at dealing damage and healing it.

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Lightning's roles kind of mimic her own character growth. She is mostly used as a damage dealer at first but she will eventually be needed to cover for healing at times. This fits in with how she softens as the story goes on. Lightning's visual design is also great and she has the fan-favorite Eidolon, Odin to assist her. Odin even transforms into a horse for added awesomeness.

3 Worst: Hope Estheim

Speaking of first impressions, everyone seems to hate Hope the first time they play the game. It's no wonder as well because he's a whiny little kid that just seems to hold the rest of the party back. If you think of his situation logically, it's completely understandable that he's acting the way he is. He's a 14-year-old kid who has just lost his mother and now has to survive in a terrible world.

Hope's combat roles – ravager, synergist, and medic – don't really help his likability either. The medic/priest class is often the least popular one in multi-player games. Thankfully, Hope does improve as the story goes by, but it might be a little too late for most players. Hopefully, his true worth shines through during a second play-through of the game.

2 Best: Cid Raines

Every Cid character throughout the Final Fantasy games has had something to do with airships or the like, and this one is no different. Except that Cid Raines is also the commander of the ship he's on, Lindblum. He's so interesting because he's one of the only characters who know what's going on and is trying to improve things for regular humans. He does everything in his power to help improve the lives of those around him.

However, as so often happens in these situations, Cid attempts to free people from the fal'Cie Barthandelus' control and fails. Tragically, he is made into a l'Cie and later into a mindless pawn. Cid is also the one who sought help from Fang and other pulse l'Cie in order to free people from Barthandelus' tyranny. He's also seen to be very competent in a fight.

1 Worst: Serah Farron

Despite being such an important plot point for the story, Serah herself suffers from a lack of character development. She's the first person in Cocoon to be made into a pule l'Cie by Anima and she serves as the story and characters' catalyst. Sadly, very little is learned about Serah beyond the introduction of the game.

Serah ends up being less of a character and more of a plot point, one that doesn't even show her face all that often. Along with Sazh's son, after being taken hostage, Serah is also used to threaten the main party. None of this is really Serah's fault but it doesn't make her any better of a character either.

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