Every player, at least once in their career, has surely heard about Final Fantasy, perhaps seeing its name next to a Roman numeral, or accompanied by an intriguing subtitle. The series, often surrounded by an aura of pseudo-sacredness that makes it perceived as unapproachable, is actually within everyone’s reach, and in this article I will explain why.
Over its more than thirty-five years of life, the series of video games that come together under the FF brand has grown exponentially, including today a great variety of titles, for all tastes and budgets, from the most demanding episodes to mobile games with much fewer pretensions.
If you love video games and – needless to say – the fantasy genre, even a single title – carefully chosen – will be enough to catapult you into a universe full of lore and immerse yourself in an adventure destined to engage you for dozens and dozens of hours. Let’s find out why.
Introduction: what is Final Fantasy?
Let’s start with the basics. One of the questions that those unfamiliar with the series ask most frequently is: what is Final Fantasy? Are the different chapters of Final Fantasy connected?
In a nutshell, Final Fantasy is a famous video game series that includes a wide range of Japanese role-playing games in which some recurring elements appear but which, except in rare cases, are completely independent of each other.
Over time, the number of titles belonging to this saga has diversified to the point of including various other games of various other genres (fighting games, rhythm games, etc.), although it is the RPG blood that mainly flows in its veins.
It is not necessary to know the events of the first Final Fantasy to know those of FF IX, because each title has its own story, characters and gameplay. The consecutiveness of the numbers in the title does not indicate a connection between the games, each plot is separate from the previous one.
However, fans of the series will not fail to find references to a universe that will be increasingly familiar to them. This is the case of mounts such as chocobos, mascots such as moogles, or characters such as Cid, who will cyclically appear in almost all titles.
The Summons have also gone down in history, appearing several times with different names, such as Espers, Aeons, or Eikons: they manifest themselves in the form of magical entities with divine powers, capable of unleashing the fury of the elements or of pulverizing the opponents.
Unforgettable stories
The Final Fantasy series succeeds perfectly in the intent of narrating complex stories. Starting from the most varied fabrics, it manages to weave the most complex themes with memorable characters, giving life to stories that leave their mark.
Final Fantasy has long been famous for its ability to tell adventures full of soul and personality: the characters return relatable emotions and the settings are much more than a frame to the events narrated in the game.
The great leap in quality in the narrative of FF can be traced above all starting from Final Fantasy 6, which launches against the standards of the time and offers a deep and surprising plot within a steampunk scenario.
From that moment on, the script has always played a central role throughout the franchise, together with the construction of relatable protagonists and antagonists, to the point of influencing many other progenitors of its genre to focus on the narrative aspect.
Just think of Final Fantasy VII (PS1), whose antagonist inspired for years to come a rewriting of the role of the “villain”, who is no longer limited to a simple silhouette with desires to conquer the world, but begins to have motivations that arise from the heart, from the desire for personal justice, from the difficulty of adapting to the laws of a world in which one does not feel welcomed.
FF VII, however, is perhaps the most famous of the whole series, appreciated to the point of having generated many other titles that extend the universe in what takes the name of FF7 Compilation, not least Final Fantasy VII Remake.
This is the first element of a trilogy that aims to recreate in HD – and with several new licenses – the entire game, with an emphasis on the narrative side. If you haven’t played the original and prefer HD graphics, I suggest you try it.
Or think of Final Fantasy X, remembered as one of the most exciting stories of the PS2 generation. By the by, FF X is perfect if you are looking for your first Final Fantasy ever. This title contains some of the founding pillars of the entire franchise, such as an exemplary narrative, epic battles, believable characters, a chilling soundtrack, and, last but not least, the much-loved turn-based combat system.
The combination of these elements means that even those who are new to the series can have fun and become familiar with the game mechanics in a short time. The title, however, has also been remastered with HD graphics.
Cutting-edge graphics
One of the challenges of the Final Fantasy saga has always been to achieve excellent technical quality. For example, the same Hironobu Sakaguchi, father of the series, attributed the success of FF VII on PS1 to its extraordinary computer graphics, stunning for the canons of the time.
In the case of Final Fantasy X, the team revealed in an interview that they had pushed the performance of the PlayStation 2 to the maximum, achieving results of extraordinary impact. Watching the in-game cinematics, the developers’ effort will be immediately visible.
It is no coincidence that, years later, the same intention is renewed by Creative Business Unit 3, the development team behind Final Fantasy XVI, which has included Graphics among the four founding pillars of the project. The partnership between Square-Enix and Sony aims, among other things, to maximize technical performance.
FF16 is scheduled to release on June 22, 2023 (pre-orders are open). If you are of the faction “even the eye wants its part”, you will always be impressed by the effects and computer graphics of the saga, at least as regards the main titles.
Incidentally, a graphical update is also planned for Final Fantasy XIV: Online, the famous MMO of the family, one of the most acclaimed in recent years. The multiplayer title is preparing to receive an update shortly that will modernize the technical area, son of its time (FF 14 was launched way back in 2013).
Top notch soundtracks
The Final Fantasy soundtrack explores the most varied beats. Composed by the most talented artists, including the beloved Nobuo Uematsu, the songs related to the series know how to narrate the characters, make the settings resonate, and contextualize the battles, mixing epicness, romance, and drama right where it is needed.
There are many tracks that I, like many other fans, carry in my heart for their ability to describe in music the feelings of all the actors in the story, their past, or their fears. Let me mention “Freya’s Theme” or “Rose of May” from Final Fantasy IX, whose soundtrack was indeed composed by Uematsu.
The first perfectly encapsulates the melancholic determination of the dragoon, Freya, who despite having been forgotten by the love of her life, is more than ever willing to find him and fight for her land.
The second immerses us in the conflict of Beatrix, the shogun with unintelligible thoughts, whose sword is placed at the service of the kingdom of Alexandria, stained by the blood of opponents who risk transforming the warrior from executioner into a victim.
Generally speaking, Final Fantasy’s music is inspired by the sounds of classical music, garnished with choruses and pathos, but there are also chapters with interesting experiments. In this sense, I find that Final Fantasy XIII-2 is one of those with the most alternative music.
Composed by Masashi Hamauzu, Naoshi Mizuta and Mitsuto Suzuki, the soundtrack of FF XIII-2 explores an eclectic variety of styles, with some arrangements in an electronic key, winking from time to time to the musical tradition of the series.
The tracks “Full Speed Ahead“, “The Last Hunter” and “Noel’s Theme – Final Journey” can give you an idea of what to expect if you are a fan of this genre. You can retrieve the entire soundtrack from Amazon Music.
Combat systems for all tastes
One of the things I like most about Final Fantasy is its ability to renew itself over the years. The combat system is perhaps one of the major fracture points within the community, which is divided between lovers of the turn-based system and lovers of the action system.
This division arises mainly from the fact that, in its more than thirty years of life, the titles of the series have hosted different combat systems. Final Fantasy I, II III and X offer a classic turn-based system, much loved by a slice of the public.
The turn-based system has been reworked starting from Final Fantasy IV, up to Final Fantasy IX, in a variant that is defined as ATB (Active Turn Based), which maintains the more traditional heart of the series while adding a slight dynamism to the whole combat system.
With Final Fantasy X-2, one of the rare sequels of the canonical chapters, more action variants are beginning to be experimented with, such as the BRT (battle in real-time). Final Fantasy XII boldly introduces an active and automatable system through the so-called Gambit, which allows you to give orders to the characters of the team to recreate a precise pattern of attack or defense.
The action breakthrough continues through the trilogy of Final Fantasy XIII, Final Fantasy XIII-2, and Lightning Returns, developing further in Final Fantasy XV and culminating in Final Fantasy XVI, which for the first time has a full real-time action combat system, developed by the same author of the Devil May Cry battle system.
For lovers of the multiplayer experience, however, there are Final Fantasy XI and Final Fantasy XIV, with their complex and at the same time accessible battle systems and their communities willing to help newbies and not. Side note: A membership is required to play.
Extra: magic of all colors…even blue!
Regardless of the mechanics, which vary from chapter to chapter, the saga revolves around the role system. Characters can take on specific classes in combat, mainly warrior or mage in their many variations, and operate with a repertoire of techniques commensurate with their job.
In RPGs, I’ve always had a soft spot for mages, and backline fighters in general, like archers. In Final Fantasy, there are several types of magic, divided according to specific colors that indicate their value.
The most recurring categories are white magic and black magic: in a nutshell, the first includes healing and support spells, and the second includes offensive and elemental spells. Final Fantasy, however, goes further, adding more colors: we have green magic, red magic, and blue magic!
Blue Magic, which as far as I know is a specific gem of the series, appeared for the first time in FF 5 and allows you to learn techniques from your opponents and then replicate them in combat against them! Seeking out these secret spells and showing off boss abilities on enemies, as Kimahri does in FF X or Quistis in Final Fantasy VIII, has always been a blast! Seeing is believing!
There is no order to start with
There are a few myths to dispel when it comes to the Final Fantasy series. The first tells of a legend according to which the Final Fantasy stories are consecutive to each other. This is not the case and those who have been playing for years can confirm it. With very rare exceptions, which however are made visible by the titles – such as Final Fantasy X-2, which is effectively a sequel to Final Fantasy X – each FF title is a world in itself.
Someone else will tell you that Final Fantasy only encompasses niche games and that only fans of the (J)RPG genre will have the necessary skills to adapt to the game mechanics, which vary from chapter to chapter. If this could have been true until a few years ago, now the FF audience is more diverse than ever.
Although with considerable friction from the more traditionalists, it is no coincidence that the most recent titles in the series have revisited their mechanics to broaden the player audience: this is the case with games such as Final Fantasy VII Remake or also Final Fantasy XVI, whose intent is to bring not only veterans but also new followers closer together.
And then there’s the mythiest myth of all: Final Fantasy is just a video game. If you decide to try one – and in that case, I recommend at least Final Fantasy X – they will show you that they are much more. The FFs with canonical numbering, especially from VI onwards, are works of art and, as such, can communicate with anyone through the languages that are closest to us: ours.
