The games actually started out on the Nintendo Entertainment System, then moved to the PlayStation, and most recently the PS2.
The first was a fairly good game, had a nice story and kicked everything off.
I never played the second.
The third is widely regarded as the best of the series, it had a terrific storyline, a nice skills system, and that really cool opera scene where the music matched the text.
The fourth through sixth were released only in Japan, but were put onto a single PlayStation disc but I didn't play them.
The seventh was the first on the PlayStation, it again had a compelling story that was backed up by great FMV video sequences that were fairly cutting edge when it was released. The materia system was enjoyable and I spent forever beating all the weapons and trying to chain materia together. This is the Final Fantasy I started playing first.
The eigth was terrible, the storyline was not compelling and I only finished it to say that I finished it. The graphics were more uniform and refined, the FMV sequences were better, but the game wasn't as good. Who wants to draw all the spells out of the stinkin' things you fight? The gunblade was fun, that was the best thing about the game. I didn't really like triple triad.
The ninth was again excellent, with a nice storyline and a graphical style reminiscent of the first final fantasies. I didn't play this as much as seven, but I did find all the chocobo treasures.
Final Fantasy Tactics was a decent game, with a mildly interesting story and the tactics they included were different from other games and quite interesting. I couldn't take the half hour fights every ten minutes of game, so I never finished it.
Now that I've answered the question you asked (but not the one you meant) I'll discuss the question (or implied statement) you really asked: "Certain aspects of the Final Fantasy Games make me feel uncomfortable and I don't want my children seeing them."
They're your children and your responsibility, I do not debate your authority over your children or your right to ask their uncle not to play Final Fantasy games around your children. You are the final authority over what they see and hear. I do, however, disagree that these games are necessarily evil.
First you must understand where I'm coming from. We are in the world, but not of the world. We can have one of two responses to this: we can bury our heads in the sand and avoid our culture (turn into ourselves and become a "holy huddle" or what have you) or keep in touch with the culture (read the same books, watch the same movies, listen to the same music as our non-christian neighbors). Which one of these is the best is subject to debate, but I lean towards the latter, mostly due to Pauls actions on Mars Hill. In the last part of Acts 17, Paul is in Athens and speaks to the Athenians, appealing to their culture and winning many for Christ. 1 Corinthians 9:20-22 also discusses this, saying that Paul reaches groups of people in their own way so as to win some to Christ. I use the books, movies, and games I view in order to reach out to my non-chrisian friends. I've met a lot of people and gotten involved in many theological discussions in this way. Any topic that relates to metaphysical aspects is a great deep conversation starter and there are other aspects in movies that can also be used to point to Christ in today's culture. I believe that this (further) justifies the ideas in Romans 1:20 that men are without excuse, God is so engrained in our culture that it is difficult to escape all Christian ideas.
I applaud the approach BK_30 takes with her children and plan on doing the same thing with my own kids when I have them. Your children will face issues like this in school and definitely when they hit college. You can either work to have them actively analyze the ideas presented to them or zealously declare a wide variety of stuff evil. The issues WILL come up, college is a crossroads of multiculturalism and if someone isn't firmly rooted in good theology and able to defend their views in an argument they'll either fall away or be no use to advancing the cause of the gospel on their campus. One of the things I face when evangelising is that people are used to Christians who zealously cling to their (in their opinion) quaint beliefs with no justification. We are not merely mindless robots, but rather have been given the gift of a mind and the ability to defend what we can believe. How can we be "good and faithful servants" if we do not witness? We can't. We are called to bear witness and make disciples of all nations, how can we do this if we cannot interact on a real level with non-christians? We can't. When witnessing, how much more effective would we be if we could provide them with examples of biblical principals using the songs, books, movies, and games they're familiar with? Witness by lifestyle is great, but not highly effective, it's much more effective to establish a friendship with someone, have them see your life and share Christ with them. I do this with the geek population at Georgia Tech (which I currently attend) through books and video games. I know a several guys that I'm witnessing to who will talk to me about metaphysical issues but avoid some other christains like the plauge because they can't stand mindless devotion. Now that you understand where I'm coming from, I'll address each of your points in turn:
I don't. They're merely game elements, but many do have a relation to other religions. Shiva, Ifrit, and Bahamut are gods in other religions, many people who play do not know this and it makes an interesting conversation starter. There are also creatures with a christian influence (leviathan, crusader, diablos) and those of greek influence (the brothers [minotaurs], cyclops, atomos). Some are good, some are evil in their respective religions, but again, many do not know the background so it really shouldn't have an affect on the gamer.
I disagree here as well, killing animals for money is not evil at all. Animals are a resource and here to provide humans with a better lifestyle. I make this argument from Genesis 1:26. Since mankind is ruler over the animals, they are here by and for our pleasure. Just as God is ruler over us and we are here by and for his pleasure. If you don't take that argument, maybe you'll agree with this one: by using any animal products you cause somebody to kill an animal for money. This includes all meats, animal fibers (wool, leather, fur), and fats (in makeups, cooking grease, and a million other things). This is also a game device and does not weigh against my conscience, I have no problem with this.
In the bible I only see practicing magic and/or sorcery forbidden (Lev. 19:26; Deut 18:10,14;2 Kings21:6;Acts 19:19;Rev 22:15) but given that I do not practice sorcery, I see no problem having it in a game or book or movie. Indeed, magic is nothing compared to the power of God (as seen with Moses in Exodus and Ezek 13:20), so have no desire to practice them and the knowledge of practicing them brings about the temptation to practice, so I have no desire to learn such things. I do not, however, cry evil immediately upon hearing the word, but instead debate the topic in a logical manner and bring the conversation around to Christianity if possible, otherwise I ignore it and let it slide.
Evil and good both exist, that is the way of this world. What is the problem? The cards themselves are pieces of paper with ink on them, neither good nor evil, but the ideas are. Being able to distinguish good from evil is a part of the sanctification process. Ignoring evil doesn't make it go away, much more profitable is being able to distinguish evil from good, being able to tell why it is evil and be able to use that to witness to others. In this way, evil is confronted and defeated.
I heartily agree about the beliefs part but deny the morals, the two are NOT one and the same. Pantheism (what the designer of the game believes) is intellectually bankrupt, and I'm happy to explain this to any of my non-christian friends when they ask me, another good conversation.
The morals, however are not bad. The characters practice sacrifice, perseverance, integrity, and a host of other virtues. The evil characters practice killing, dishonesty, and a host of other faults. The distinction between the two types is easy to see and stereotypical. Participants actively want to be like the heros and not like the villains, the heros have good morals, the villains have bad. What else can you ask for?
That is my opinion with some scriptural backing, if you disagree, please give verses of scripture that I may confirm the truth of your opinion. I hope this gives you some idea of how I and many of my friends that are currently in college witnessing to others feel, the things of this world are nothing, but saving souls is vital. Aspects of culture provide a great meeting ground for friendship and examples. God bless you and your children and I pray that they become powerful soldiers in our struggle. Grace and peace.
grayrest
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Don't let your kids get near this. I wish I had not. And to all of you who're desperately denfending the games, I ask you, do you really believe in your hearts that these games are not in any way against the God? 
