FFX went all out toward realism, and from what I've seen, VIII tried very hard as well. But IX went back to characters with exaggerated proportions. XII looks like it is going back toward the realistic side...

Which do you prefer? Do you think charcters in a game should look as real as possible, or game-ish?

Personally I am all for realism, as it helps me be more serious about the story.
What do you all think?

I'm not too bothered, to be honest. I liked Final Fantasy 8's futuristic feel, and I enjoyed the towns and the settings within the game. Similarly I loved the medieval feel of some of the locations in Final Fantasy IX, and enjoyed how all of the characters weren't human.

Basically, I'll accept whatever Square decide to code. :)

I think charcters in a game should look as real as possible.

I like the style in VII and IX cos it keeps you in more of a "fantasy" world so to speak

I'd not call IX's style "going back" to deformed character designs.
"going back" suggests that there is only one direction, from deformed graphics to realistic graphics. I think that's simplifying matters.

IX's graphics worked very well with the game, and X's worked very well with this game, same for VIII... And as long as it fits, the style itself isn't that overly important. I'd not scream "No!" at a less realistic design if it was in harmony with the game itself.

If i had my own way id have all final fantasy games back to the BRILLIANT graphics of final fantasy IV and V