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'' Final Fantasy'' is a media franchise created by Hironobu Sakaguchi, and developed and owned by
Square Enix is a Japanese multinational holding company, production enterprise and entertainment conglomerate, best known for its ''Final Fantasy'', ''Dragon Quest'', ''Star Ocean'' and '' Kingdom Hearts'' role-playing video game franchises, among numerou ...
(formerly Square). The franchise centers on a series of fantasy and
science fantasy Science fantasy is a hybrid genre within speculative fiction that simultaneously draws upon or combines tropes and elements from both science fiction and fantasy. In a conventional science fiction story, the world is presented as being scientif ...
role-playing video game A role-playing video game (commonly referred to as simply a role-playing game or RPG, as well as a computer role-playing game or CRPG) is a video game genre where the player controls the actions of a character (or several party members) immers ...
s (RPGs). The eponymous first game in the series, published in 1987, was conceived by Sakaguchi as his last-ditch effort in the game industry; the title was a success and spawned sequels. While most entries in the series are separate from each other, they have recurring elements carrying over between entries: these include plot themes and motifs, gameplay mechanics, and visual elements. The ''Final Fantasy'' series features recurring thematic elements, including magical crystals, and creatures such as the
Chocobo The is a fictional species created for the ''Final Fantasy'' franchise by Square Enix (originally Square). A galliform bird commonly having yellow feathers, they were first introduced in ''Final Fantasy II'' (1988), and have since featured in ...
and
Moogle are a fictional species of diminutive, sentient creatures and a recurring element of the ''Final Fantasy'' video game franchise, starting with their initial appearance in ''Final Fantasy III''. They also appear in the ''Mana'' and ''Kingdom He ...
which have appeared in multiple roles. Numerous writers have worked on the series, including Sakaguchi himself, early writer
Kenji Terada is a Japanese scenario writer, anime director, series organizer and novelist. His more notable works include writing the first three games of the ''Final Fantasy'' series. He also worked on '' Batman: Dark Tomorrow'', created the concept for the ...
, Kazushige Nojima and Yasumi Matsuno. Some settings and specific themes have been used in multiple titles and subseries, including the fictional world of
Ivalice is a fictional universe setting primarily appearing in the ''Final Fantasy'' video game series. The world was created by Yasumi Matsuno and has since been expanded upon by several games as the ''Ivalice Alliance'' series. Ivalice is described as ...
, '' Compilation of Final Fantasy VII'', and the ''
Fabula Nova Crystallis ''Fabula Nova Crystallis Final Fantasy'' is a series of games within the ''Final Fantasy'' video game franchise. It was primarily developed by series creator and developer Square Enix, which also acted as publisher for all titles. While featurin ...
'' mythos. The art design for the series has been associated with multiple artists: the three most prominent being Yoshitaka Amano, Tetsuya Nomura and Akihiko Yoshida: Amano designed characters up to '' Final Fantasy VI'' and continues to design each game's logo, Nomura has designed characters for multiple games since '' Final Fantasy VII'', and Yoshida has been involved in ''Final Fantasy XII'', ''XIV'' and titles associated with Ivalice. The original gameplay created by
Akitoshi Kawazu is a Japanese game designer, director, producer and writer. After joining Square (later Square Enix) in 1985, he went on to become a central developer for the first two ''Final Fantasy'' titles, then acted as creator and lead developer for the ...
was based around '' Dungeons & Dragons'' and '' Wizardry''. Starting with ''
Final Fantasy IV known as ''Final Fantasy II'' for its initial North American release, is a role-playing video game developed and published by Square (now Square Enix) for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. Released in 1991, it is the fourth main instal ...
'', the Hiroyuki Ito-designed ATB system took prevalence: variations of the ATB system have been used in multiple entries since then. These various elements have been positively received by critics over the series' lifetime, contributing to its overall worldwide success, with the gameplay and narratives frequently cited as setting a standard for RPGs. The series also produced spin-off titles including '' SaGa'' and ''
Mana According to Melanesian and Polynesian mythology, ''mana'' is a supernatural force that permeates the universe. Anyone or anything can have ''mana''. They believed it to be a cultivation or possession of energy and power, rather than being ...
'', and in turn influenced later game developers and studios.


Overview

'' Final Fantasy'' began with the development of the titular first game in the series. It was developed at Square, later dubbed
Square Enix is a Japanese multinational holding company, production enterprise and entertainment conglomerate, best known for its ''Final Fantasy'', ''Dragon Quest'', ''Star Ocean'' and '' Kingdom Hearts'' role-playing video game franchises, among numerou ...
after its 2003 merger with Enix. ''Final Fantasy'' was creator Hironobu Sakaguchi's last ditch attempt at success within the video game market: Sakaguchi had long wished to create a role-playing title, but the company had denied him the opportunity until then. The first ''Final Fantasy'' was released in 1987, and was a commercial and critical success that fueled the development of further titles. The series garnered international popularity with the release of '' Final Fantasy VII'' (1997) for the PlayStation, which became the highest-selling ''Final Fantasy'' title to date. ''Final Fantasy'' has become one of Square Enix's major gaming franchises; as of 2016, the series has sold 110 million copies worldwide across 48 video game releases.


Scenarios

The ''Final Fantasy'' series consists of multiple games that, while generally having separate settings and narratives, share common themes and motifs in their worlds and plots. Multiple writers have worked on the ''Final Fantasy'' series over its existence, the most prominent having worked on the mainline titles. The first ''Final Fantasy'' writer was
Kenji Terada is a Japanese scenario writer, anime director, series organizer and novelist. His more notable works include writing the first three games of the ''Final Fantasy'' series. He also worked on '' Batman: Dark Tomorrow'', created the concept for the ...
, who was asked on board the project by staff who were fans of his work in anime. He was asked to create a scenario that would make players cry. Terada would provide the scenarios for '' Final Fantasy II'' (1988) and '' Final Fantasy III'' (1990). He later had mixed feelings about the impact of ''Final Fantasy'' on his career, as many only knew him from his video game writing. When ''
Final Fantasy IV known as ''Final Fantasy II'' for its initial North American release, is a role-playing video game developed and published by Square (now Square Enix) for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. Released in 1991, it is the fourth main instal ...
'' (1991) was pushed forward onto the next generation of game hardware, Terada's planned scenario was scrapped by the management and he parted with Square on poor terms. After Terada's departure, scenario work was delegated to Takashi Tokita. Tokita wrote the scenario for ''Final Fantasy IV'' (1991), along with being the game's designer. For '' Final Fantasy V'' (1992), the scenario was a collaboration between Sakaguchi and Yoshinori Kitase. '' Final Fantasy VI'' (1994) was worked on by a group of four or five different writers, including Kitase. Sakaguchi was responsible for providing the basic story from the original game until ''Final Fantasy VI''. Sakaguchi would also write the scenario draft for '' Final Fantasy IX'' (2000), with further contributions Kazuhiko Aoki and Nobuaki Komoto. One of the notable recurring writers is Kazushige Nojima: he first joined the development team for ''Final Fantasy VII'', and would later write the scenario for ''
Final Fantasy VIII is a role-playing video game developed and published by Square for the PlayStation console. Released in 1999, it is the eighth main installment in the ''Final Fantasy'' series. Set on an unnamed fantasy world with science fiction elements, the ...
'' (1999). He was also a major contributor to ''
Final Fantasy X is a role-playing video game developed and published by Square as the tenth main entry in the ''Final Fantasy'' series. Originally released in 2001 for PlayStation 2, the game was re-released as '' Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD Remaster'' for PlaySta ...
'' (2001) alongside other writers. He returned to write the scenario for '' Final Fantasy X-2'' (2003), despite initial reluctance due to its upbeat feel when compared to its predecessor. His later supplementary material would return to a darker theme. Nojima also created the original scenario of ''
Final Fantasy XV is an action role-playing game developed and published by Square Enix. The fifteenth main installment of the ''Final Fantasy'' series, it was released for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in 2016, Microsoft Windows in 2018, and as a launch title ...
'' (2016), then called ''Final Fantasy Versus XIII''. His original scenario was reworked for ''Final Fantasy XV'' by Saori Itamuro. Another recurring writer is
Daisuke Watanabe is a Japanese video game writer employed by Square Enix. He is mostly known for his work on the role-playing video game series ''Final Fantasy'' and the action RPG series ''Kingdom Hearts''. Career Watanabe first became interested in writing ...
. His first job on the series was with ''Final Fantasy X''. He worked on '' Final Fantasy XII'' (2005) as a scenario writer after original writer Yasumi Matsuno left due to illness. The initial script was written by Miwa Shoda, whose work was fleshed out by Watanabe. Watanabe would later work on the scenarios of '' Final Fantasy XIII'' (2009) and its sequels, which would become one of his major projects. The scenario for '' Final Fantasy XI'' (2002) was created by Masato Kato, who returned for the expansion ''Rise of the Zilart''. For ''
Final Fantasy XIV ''Final Fantasy XIV'' is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) developed and published by Square Enix. Directed and produced by Naoki Yoshida, it was released worldwide for Windows and PlayStation 3 in August 2013, as a r ...
'' (2010) the writer was Yaeko Sato, who also worked on ''Final Fantasy XI'' and ''Final Fantasy XII''; Sato stayed on as lead writer for '' Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn'' (2013), alongside new writer Kazutoyo Maehiro. The lead writer for expansions beginning with '' Heavensward'' is Banri Oda. The scenario of ''
Final Fantasy XVI is an upcoming action role-playing game developed and published by Square Enix. The sixteenth main installment in the ''Final Fantasy'' series, it is scheduled for release on June 22, 2023 for the PlayStation 5 as a timed exclusive. The game wi ...
'' is written by Maehiro. The first title to receive a direct sequel was ''Final Fantasy X'': ''Final Fantasy X-2'' is set in the same fictional world of Spira, while using a lighter tone than its predecessor. No sequel to ''Final Fantasy X'' was planned initially. ''Final Fantasy XIII'' was also intended to be a standalone title, and was later expanded into the series' first official trilogy with the development of ''
Final Fantasy XIII-2 is a role-playing video game developed and published by Square Enix for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. It was released in 2011 in Japan and 2012 in North America and PAL regions, and was ported to Microsoft Windows in 2014 and iOS and And ...
'' (2011) and '' Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII'' (2013). ''Final Fantasy XV'' was expanded into a multimedia series to avoid creating a video game series; titled the ''Final Fantasy XV'' Universe, it is split between pre-release media including a feature film and original net animation, and post-release content including other spin-off games and downloadable content. ''Final Fantasy VII'' was later expanded into a multimedia series titled '' Compilation of Final Fantasy VII'', which included video games ('' Before Crisis'', '' Dirge of Cerberus'', '' Crisis Core'') and film projects ('' Advent Children'', '' Last Order''). A different subseries linked by common elements, and indirectly inspired by the ''Compilation'', is '' Fabula Nova Crystallis Final Fantasy'': while the subseries' games have unique settings and stories, they all share a common mythos surrounding crystals and their associated deities. ''Fabula Nova Crystallis'' was originally planned as a platform for the development of multiple games planned out in advance, compared to ''Final Fantasy'' producer
Shinji Hashimoto is a Japanese former game producer at Square Enix and currently Senior Advisor at Sony Music Entertainment Japan and a board member at Forwardworks. He served as the ''Final Fantasy'' series Brand Manager for over a decade, was an Executive Offic ...
to the '' Star Wars'' and '' The Lord of the Rings'' film franchises. Eventually mixed reactions to the subseries prompted Square Enix to move away from the esoteric and complex storylines it incorporated. A world later incorporated into the ''Final Fantasy'' series is
Ivalice is a fictional universe setting primarily appearing in the ''Final Fantasy'' video game series. The world was created by Yasumi Matsuno and has since been expanded upon by several games as the ''Ivalice Alliance'' series. Ivalice is described as ...
, the setting for titles within the game collection known as the ''Ivalice Alliance''. Taking place within a single world across a large time period, Ivalice is the setting for '' Final Fantasy Tactics'' (1997), ''Final Fantasy XII'' and ''
Vagrant Story is an action role-playing game developed and published by Square (video game company), Square (now Square Enix) for the PlayStation (console), PlayStation video game console. The game was released in 2000, and has been re-released through the P ...
'' (2000). ''Vagrant Story'' did not originally take place in Ivalice, being incorporated into the subseries by Square Enix long after its release. The game's references to other ''Final Fantasy'' titles were originally intended as fan service. Ivalice itself was the creation of Yasumi Matsuno, the main creative force behind ''Tactics'' and ''Vagrant Story''. It first appeared in ''Tactics''. Matsuno's work with Ivalice later inspired the scenarios for ''A Realm Reborn''.


Common elements

Stories in the series frequently emphasize the internal struggles, passions, and tragedies of the characters, and the main plot often recedes into the background as the focus shifts to their personal lives. Other aspects explored are the relationships between characters, which range from love to rivalry. Other recurring situations that drive the plot include
amnesia Amnesia is a deficit in memory caused by brain damage or disease,Gazzaniga, M., Ivry, R., & Mangun, G. (2009) Cognitive Neuroscience: The biology of the mind. New York: W.W. Norton & Company. but it can also be caused temporarily by the use o ...
, a hero corrupted by an evil force, mistaken identity, and
self-sacrifice Self-sacrifice is the giving up of something that a person wants for themselves so that others can be helped or protected or so that other external value can be advanced or protected. See also * Altruism (unselfishness) * Altruistic suicide * Sacr ...
. Esoteric and mystical elements also took a central role in several titles, though later titles such as ''Final Fantasy XV'' focused on simple narratives and understandable knowledge for its lore. The central conflict in many ''Final Fantasy'' games focuses on a group of characters battling an evil, and sometimes ancient, antagonist that dominates the game's world. Stories frequently involve a sovereign state in rebellion, with the protagonists taking part in the rebellion. The heroes are often destined to defeat the evil, and occasionally gather as a direct result of the antagonist's malicious actions. Twin antagonists, with the second main antagonist being hidden for the majority of the game, is also a recurring element. Other common plot and setting themes include the Gaia hypothesis, an
apocalypse Apocalypse () is a literary genre in which a supernatural being reveals cosmic mysteries or the future to a human intermediary. The means of mediation include dreams, visions and heavenly journeys, and they typically feature symbolic imagery ...
, and conflicts between advanced technology and
nature Nature, in the broadest sense, is the physical world or universe. "Nature" can refer to the phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general. The study of nature is a large, if not the only, part of science. Although humans are p ...
. Most titles feature names inspired from various cultures' history, languages and mythology, including Asian,
European European, or Europeans, or Europeneans, may refer to: In general * ''European'', an adjective referring to something of, from, or related to Europe ** Ethnic groups in Europe ** Demographics of Europe ** European cuisine, the cuisines of Europe ...
, and
Middle-Eastern The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Province), East Thrace (European ...
. In-game items such as weapons follow this tradition: the two most notable are Excalibur and Masamune, derived respectively from the Arthurian sword and legendary Japanese swordsmith. A recurring concept within ''Final Fantasy'' settings is the use of important magical crystals: in early games, they represented the Japanese classical elements, and would be instrumental in keeping the world in balance. Due to this, control over the crystals forms part of a chosen games' core narrative. The concept of crystals was introduced into the original game by game designer Koichi Ishii. Based on positive fan feedback, Terada suggested carrying them into future entries. Since then, crystals have taken prominent roles in ''Final Fantasy III'', ''Final Fantasy IV'', ''Final Fantasy V'', ''Final Fantasy VI'', ''Final Fantasy VII'' and ''Final Fantasy IX''. They took minimal roles in ''Final Fantasy II'', ''Final Fantasy VIII'', ''Final Fantasy X'' and ''Final Fantasy XII''. Crystals also took a central role in ''Final Fantasy XIII'' and ''Final Fantasy XV'', which both used the crystal-based ''Fabula Nova Crystallis'' lore: overt references such as terminology and branding were removed from ''Final Fantasy XV'' to help with marketing. Crystals were included in ''A Realm Reborn'' as a central plot due to being given "short shrift in recent titles". For ''Final Fantasy XVI'' crystals were included as the equivalent to limited fuel sources, with their fading power triggering the plot's events. Characters and monsters have made appearances in multiple ''Final Fantasy'' titles, although they remain unconnected in a narrative sense. A recurring animal in ''Final Fantasy'' is the
Chocobo The is a fictional species created for the ''Final Fantasy'' franchise by Square Enix (originally Square). A galliform bird commonly having yellow feathers, they were first introduced in ''Final Fantasy II'' (1988), and have since featured in ...
, a galliform bird that regularly acts as a means of transport for characters. The Chocobo was created by Ishii for ''Final Fantasy II'', and have appeared in every mainline ''Final Fantasy'' title since then. A second recurring race are the
Moogle are a fictional species of diminutive, sentient creatures and a recurring element of the ''Final Fantasy'' video game franchise, starting with their initial appearance in ''Final Fantasy III''. They also appear in the ''Mana'' and ''Kingdom He ...
s, whose Japanese name is ''Mōguri'', a portmanteau of the words ''mogura'' (mole) and ''kōmori'' (bat); while frequently seen minding stores or assuming some other background role, they have also appeared as party allies or playable characters. The Moogles were also created by Ishii, originally designed in his school days by combining a
koala The koala or, inaccurately, koala bear (''Phascolarctos cinereus''), is an arboreal herbivorous marsupial native to Australia. It is the only extant representative of the family Phascolarctidae and its closest living relatives are the womba ...
with a
bat Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera.''cheir'', "hand" and πτερόν''pteron'', "wing". With their forelimbs adapted as wings, they are the only mammals capable of true and sustained flight. Bats are more agile in flight than most bi ...
. Other recurring races include common monsters such as the cactus-like Cactuar, the Tonbery, the Malboro; the Behemoth; and the Iron Giant. A human character that has frequently appeared is . Making his debut in ''Final Fantasy II'', he has appeared in multiple forms as everything from a player character to an antagonist. His most frequent occupation is an engineer, and he is commonly associated with the party's airship. Cid was originally created as a character that would appear in multiple forms: his one common attribute was that he was an intelligent and wise figure "like Yoda from the ''Star Wars'' series". Two other recurring human characters are Biggs and Wedge, a duo named after characters from the ''Star Wars'' franchise who are often used for comic relief. Making their debut in ''Final Fantasy VI'' as footsoldiers, they have since appeared in multiple ''Final Fantasy'' titles. A different character is Gilgamesh: first appearing in ''Final Fantasy V'', he has made cameo appearances in multiple ''Final Fantasy'' titles since then. Gilgamesh, named after a mythical character of the same name, was created by Sakaguchi, and designed by Tetsuya Nomura and Yoshitaka Amano.


Gameplay

Since the series' inception, gameplay in the majority of mainline ''Final Fantasy'' titles has followed certain conventions of the role-playing genre. Players take control of a party of characters, commanding anywhere between three and eight during battles. Players must face a variety of enemies who continually try to damage the player: in battle, the characters can select a variety of commands from a menu, such as "Fight", "Magic", "Item", as well as other special skills such as "Steal", "Throw" or "Summon". The battle is won when all enemies are defeated. Up until ''Final Fantasy XI'', battles were triggered through random encounters: starting with ''Final Fantasy XI'' and continuing in following games, enemies were visible in the field and could be avoided. A recurring means of travel are airships, which are often unlocked for players fairly late in the game. In common with other role-playing games, ''Final Fantasy'' most commonly uses an experience point-based leveling system, where each battle awards experience points, and gaining levels increases character statistics such as health and magic. Magic is another common role-playing element in the series. The method by which characters gain magic varies between installments, but is generally divided into classes organized by color: "White magic", which focuses on spells that assist teammates; "Black magic", which focuses on harming enemies; "Red magic", which is a combination of white and black magic, "Blue magic", which mimics enemy attacks; and "Green magic" which focuses on applying
status effect In role-playing games, a status effect is a temporary modification to a game character’s original set of stats that usually comes into play when special powers and abilities (such as spells) are used, often during combat. It appears in num ...
s to either allies or enemies. Different means of transportation have appeared through the series. The most common is the airship for long range travel, accompanied by chocobos for traveling short distances, but others include sea and land vessels. Following ''Final Fantasy VII'', more modern and futuristic vehicle designs have been included. For ''Final Fantasy XV'', a car dubbed "Regalia" was introduced as both a ground-based transport and later as a vehicle that could be converted to function as an airship.


Battle systems

The battle system of the original ''Final Fantasy'' was designed by
Akitoshi Kawazu is a Japanese game designer, director, producer and writer. After joining Square (later Square Enix) in 1985, he went on to become a central developer for the first two ''Final Fantasy'' titles, then acted as creator and lead developer for the ...
. When creating it, he closely followed the mechanics created in the Western tabletop game '' Dungeons & Dragons'', particularly the incorporation of enemy-specific weaknesses that were otherwise missing from Japanese games at the time. He also added elements such as weapon and item abilities based on their successful implementation in '' Wizardry''. This first version of the battle system was a traditional
turn-based In video and other games, the passage of time must be handled in a way that players find fair and easy to understand. This is usually done in one of the two ways: real-time and turn-based. Real-time Real-time games have game time progress cont ...
system with characters appearing on the left-hand side of the screen, a feature later adopted by multiple other role-playing games (RPGs). For ''Final Fantasy II'', Kawazu designed a battle system based around a more focused approach to story, along with accommodating for character classes being locked to specific characters. In ''Final Fantasy II'', character abilities improved based on the number of times they were used and the number of hit points accumulated during battles: if a character used magic, they would become strong in magic while other attributes would suffer. For ''Final Fantasy III'', the system changed back to a traditional class-based model: Kawazu stated that the reason for this was because no-one could fully understand the system he had created for ''Final Fantasy II''. The battle system most closely associated with ''Final Fantasy'' is the " Active Time Battle" (ATB) system: while utilizing a turn-based combat system, action meters are assigned to all characters that empty when they act in battle. Each player character being issued a command when their action meter is filled: enemies could attack at any time despite player actions being in progress, adding an element of urgency to battles. The ATB system was designed by Hiroyuki Ito. According to Kawazu, Ito was inspired while watching a Formula One race and seeing racers pass each other at different speeds. This gave him the idea of different speed values for the individual characters. Ito himself described the inspiration as his wish to balance pure turn-based mechanics with real-time battle mechanics, which played into a movement in Formula One where cars were shifting towards using semi-automatic gearboxes. For ''Final Fantasy V'', Ito evolved the system further as he felt the version in ''Final Fantasy IV'' was incomplete. A mechanic introduced in ''Final Fantasy VII'' was Limit Breaks, special cinematic moves that have become a staple of the series. The ATB system was in use until ''Final Fantasy X'', which switched to a system called the "Conditional Turn-based Battle" system: while reverting to a purely turn-based model, it included additional elements such as in-battle party member switching. ''Final Fantasy XI'', ''Final Fantasy XIV'' and its sequel ''A Realm Reborn'' used real-time command-based combat systems and removed random encounters, playing in a similar fashion to other contemporary MMORPGs. ''Final Fantasy XII'' used a similar real-time command-based system to ''Final Fantasy XI'': dubbed the "Active Dimension Battle" system, characters fought enemies in environments without random encounters, with players acting on commands set by the player. The battle system for ''Final Fantasy XIII'' was designed to retain the strategic elements of earlier titles while emulating the cinematic action of ''Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children''. While retaining the ATB system, elements such as magic points were removed, and a strategic role-change system dubbed the Paradigm System was implemented, with the roles being based on ''Final Fantasy'' jobs. ''Final Fantasy XIII-2'' continued using the Paradigm system with added gameplay functions based on criticism of the first game, while ''Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII'' changed to a more action-based, single-character version that incorporated design elements cut from ''Final Fantasy XIII''. ''Final Fantasy XV'' used an action-based system that was described as a "realistic" version of those used in the ''
Kingdom Hearts is a series of action role-playing games developed and published by Square Enix (originally by Square). It is a collaboration between Square Enix and The Walt Disney Company and is under the leadership of Tetsuya Nomura, a longtime Square Eni ...
'' series and spin-off title ''
Final Fantasy Type-0 is an action role-playing game developed and published by Square Enix for the PlayStation Portable (PSP). Released in Japan on October 27, 2011, ''Type-0'' is part of the '' Fabula Nova Crystallis'' subseries, a set of games sharing a common m ...
''. Unlike mainline ''Final Fantasy'' titles up to this point, the players could only control one character out of the four-strong party. While the team experimented with multiple character control, it was decided that it presented too many development difficulties. The battle system of ''Final Fantasy XVI'', designed by
Capcom is a Japanese video game developer and publisher. It has created a number of multi-million-selling game franchises, with its most commercially successful being ''Resident Evil'', ''Monster Hunter'', ''Street Fighter'', ''Mega Man'', ''Devil ...
veteran Ryota Suzuki, again focused on action with a single protagonist with a focus on switching elemental abilities gained from the world's summons. Battles were also split between standard combat with smaller enemies, and large cinematic battles with their own mechanics.


Classes

Character classes In tabletop games and video games, a character class is a job or profession commonly used to differentiate the abilities of different game characters. In role-playing games (RPGs), character classes aggregate several abilities and aptitudes, ...
in ''Final Fantasy'' are often referred to as "jobs", and have been present in the series since the first title, where players chose each character's job from the outset. Kawazu created this system to give players freedom to customize the party. For ''Final Fantasy IV'', jobs were attached to specific characters. Each job in a ''Final Fantasy'' game has unique abilities which develop as the player's level increases. In some titles, the player can assign a character a specific job at the start of the game, while others allow characters to combine and learn abilities from a number of jobs. In addition to other abilities, a character's job usually determines the types of weapons and armor that they can use. ''Final Fantasy III'' saw the introduction of the Job Change System: through special crystals, the four player characters were granted a variety of jobs that could be switched at any point by the player. The Job Change system was initially proposed by Sakaguchi as he wanted to give players freedom to customize the party members. The Job System has continued to have a strong role in the series, being most prominent in ''Final Fantasy V'' with twenty-two available jobs. Jobs have recurring functions throughout the series. Some of the more traditional classes include the Warrior/Fighter, the Dragoon, the Thief and variations on magical classes such as White and Black Mages. More original classes have appeared throughout the series, such as Bards, Scholars, and Summoners. Due to the series' popularity, they have become staples of RPGs since their debut. The complexity and scope of the job system, as well as whether or not characters are capable of changing jobs, varies from game to game. The original ''Final Fantasy XIV'' did away with the Job System in favour of a character class-driven system where equipment determined skills and growth. For the later stages of ''Final Fantasy XIV'' and later ''A Realm Reborn'', the Job System was reintroduced as a second level to the class system. Many Jobs, such as the Dragoon, the Summoner, the White Mage, the Black Mage, and the Red Mage have become closely identified with the series.


Summoning

A different system is "Summoning", a mechanic where characters can
evoke Evoke may refer to: * Evocation, the act of calling upon or summoning a spirit, demon, deity or other supernatural agent * E'voke, a British female vocal duo * ''Evoke'' (album), a 2005 electro-industrial album by Wumpscut * Evoke Motorcycles, ...
summoned monsters ( in Japanese) to aid the party through cinematic actions. The concept of summoning was proposed for the first ''Final Fantasy'', but it was not implemented until ''Final Fantasy III''. Summons can be either optional acquisitions unnecessary for progression of the narrative, or tied to story events and particular characters. The names of summons derived from multiple cultures, including Egyptian, Middle-Eastern, Asian and Classical mythology. As groups within the games, they have been referred to by several names (Espers, Guardian Forces, Aeons, Eidolons, Astrals, Primals, Eikons), and have taken either core roles in the story or less prominent roles as tools for the player characters.


Art design

The artwork and character designs of the first ''Final Fantasy'' were created by Yoshitaka Amano, a noted artist who had worked with Tatsunoko Production on multiple anime series including '' Science Ninja Team Gatchaman'', and also did illustrations for ''
Vampire Hunter D is a series of novels written by Japanese author Hideyuki Kikuchi and illustrated by Yoshitaka Amano since 1983. As of April 2022, 40 novels have been published in the main series, with some novels comprising as many as four volumes. They ha ...
''. Amano was brought on board the first ''Final Fantasy'' as general artwork designer, filling that role for ''Final Fantasy II'' and ''Final Fantasy III''. For ''Final Fantasy IV'', Amano was given more freedom to create elaborate character designs. Amano returned as character designer and general artwork for ''Final Fantasy V''. ''Final Fantasy VI'', in addition to featuring work by Amano, also had contributions from other designers including Kaori Tanaka. From the first ''Final Fantasy'' to ''Final Fantasy IV'', Amano created his artwork based on specific descriptions from game staff, while for ''Final Fantasy V'' and ''Final Fantasy VI'' it was the game staff that took and adjusted his artwork to suit the games. He returned as a character designer for ''Final Fantasy IX'', working from specifications provided by the game's staff. For ''Final Fantasy XI'', Amano created the game's world map. One of the designs he recalled was for the summon Bahamut: while the original Bahamut was an aquatic monster, he did not know this at the time, so he designed Bahamut as a "mecha dragon". As of ''Final Fantasy XV'', Amano's artwork has been created fairly early in a game's development based on the basic themes. Amano's most enduring contribution to the series is his logo designs: receiving design documents as primarily text-based requests and descriptions, he treats each logo as a piece of full artwork rather than a simple logo. Since ''Final Fantasy IV'', the current font style was adopted, along with a specially-designed logo by Amano. The emblem relates to a title's respective plot and typically portrays a character or object in the story. Subsequent remakes of the first three games have replaced the previous logos with ones similar to the rest of the series. His work on ''Final Fantasy'' brought him international fame. From ''Final Fantasy VII'' onward, the main character designer for the series was Tetsuya Nomura, whose first major contribution had been character and monster designs for ''Final Fantasy VI''. He was chosen by Sakaguchi as the character designer for ''Final Fantasy VII'' after being amused by his storyboards for ''Final Fantasy VI''. His greater involvement was also due to scheduling conflicts with Amano's overseas trips to open exhibitions in Europe and North America. Nomura would end up having a substantial input into the character stories. While ''Final Fantasy VII'' would become Nomura's favorite project, its graphical limitations meant that his art style was limited in turn. For ''Final Fantasy VIII'', he worked with other artists to make the characters more realistic. Nomura returned for ''Final Fantasy X'', designing the main cast and creating a setting influenced by the
South Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...
, Thailand and Japan. For ''Final Fantasy XV'', Nomura created the main characters alongside being one of the main creative forces behind its development. A trend with Nomura's characters is their names being related to the weather or the sky ( Cloud, Squall, Tidus, Lightning). He wanted to break this tradition when designing
Noctis Lucis Caelum , for short, is a fictional character from Square Enix's ''Final Fantasy'' video game series. Noctis is a playable character and the main protagonist of ''Final Fantasy XV''. Noctis has also appeared in the game's expanded media, including ''Fi ...
, but after ''Final Fantasy XIII''s Lightning was given a weather-based name, Nomura gave Noctis his current name: Noctis' name translates from Latin to "Night of Light Sky". Other notable artists include Akihiko Yoshida, Isamu Kamikokuryo and
Yusuke Naora (born January 9, 1971) is a Japanese video game art director and character designer who worked for Square Enix (formerly Square). A former member of Toaplan,Translationby Gamengai. by Gaijin Punch. ). Naora served as the art director for several ' ...
. Yoshida's first major games were ''Final Fantasy Tactics'' and ''Vagrant Story'', which he worked on together with
Hiroshi Minagawa , also known by the nickname ''Nigoro'', is a Japanese video game artist, designer and director. Career Minagawa had worked at Quest Corporation alongside his colleagues Yasumi Matsuno and Akihiko Yoshida before they all decided to switch to Squ ...
. He also did design work for ''
Final Fantasy Tactics Advance is a 2003 tactical role-playing game developed and published by Square (now Square Enix) for the Nintendo Game Boy Advance. A spin-off of the ''Final Fantasy'' series, the game shares several traits with 1997's ''Final Fantasy Tactics'', althoug ...
'', creating the Bangaa race that would later appear in ''Final Fantasy XII''. For ''Final Fantasy XII'', he designed the main characters. As inspiration for their physical appearances, Yoshida used a variety of influences from multiple cultures. He returned to work on ''Final Fantasy XIV'', where he needed to adjust from working on a static project to designing for the more fluid environment of an MMORPG. He would also contribute designs to ''A Realm Reborn'', and its first expansion ''Heavensward''. Kamikokuryo first did work on ''Final Fantasy VIII'' and ''Final Fantasy X'', then became art director for ''Final Fantasy XII''. He would return to this role for '' Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings'', and the ''Final Fantasy XIII'' games: he had a major role in the design of Lightning's new appearance in ''Final Fantasy XIII-2''. He was also involved in the world design of ''Final Fantasy XV''. Naora has had a presence within the series since ''Final Fantasy VII'', for which he designed the kanji logo for the antagonistic Shinra Corporation. His involvement in the series has primarily been as an art director for titles such as ''Final Fantasy X'' and ''Final Fantasy XV'', in addition to creating character designs for ''Final Fantasy XIII-2'' and ''Final Fantasy Type-0''. Other artists have also contributed to the series. Hideo Minaba contributed character designs to ''Final Fantasy IX'', worked as an art director for ''Final Fantasy XII'', and would later design characters for ''Final Fantasy XIII-2''. Italian-born artist Roberto Ferrari worked as a secondary character designer for ''Final Fantasy Type-0'', ''Final Fantasy XV'' and '' Final Fantasy VII Remake''. Yusaku Nakaaki worked with Naora and Nomura to create characters for ''Final Fantasy Type-0'', and along with Ferrari created secondary characters for ''Final Fantasy XV''. Akira Oguro created the character artwork for the mobile titles '' Final Fantasy IV: The After Years'' and ''
Final Fantasy Dimensions ''Final Fantasy Dimensions'' is a role-playing video game developed by Matrix Software and published by Square Enix for mobile devices. Similar to '' Final Fantasy IV: The After Years'', it was initially released as an episodic game, with the f ...
''. Toshitaka Matsuda's first major work was on ''Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings'', and he would later serve as a costume and character designer for ''Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII''. Toshiyuki Itahana first worked on character designs for ''Final Fantasy IX'', then later served as a main artist for the '' Crystal Chronicles'' spin-off series, ''Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII'', and the mobile game '' Mobius Final Fantasy''. A key designer for much of the series' life was Kazuko Shibuya, who did sprite designs from ''Final Fantasy'' to ''Final Fantasy VI''. She also did work on ''Final Fantasy Dimensions''. A notable outside collaborator was Hiromu Takahara, lead designer for Japanese fashion house Roen, who created the clothing for the main cast of ''Final Fantasy XV''.


Reception and influence

The ''Final Fantasy'' series and several specific games within it have been credited for introducing and popularizing many concepts that are today widely used in console RPGs. The side view perspective with groups of monsters against a group of characters used by the early ''Final Fantasy'' games has been frequently imitated, supplanting the prior RPG standard of one-on-one battles against monsters from a
first-person perspective A first-person narrative is a mode of storytelling in which a storyteller recounts events from their own point of view using the first person It may be narrated by a first-person protagonist (or other focal character), first-person re-teller, ...
. The class changing systems and multiple types of magic available were also influential on the genre, as were the use of a variety of vehicles. By contrast, ''
IGN ''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa dist ...
'' has commented that the menu system used by the games is a major detractor for many and is a "significant reason why they haven't touched the series." '' Destructoid''s Chris Hovermale cited the battle systems of the ''Final Fantasy'' series as an example of video games have evolved their combat systems over time. '' Edge'' cited the visuals of the series as a reason for its long-standing critical praise. In 1996, '' Next Generation'' included the series on a ranking of the best games and series of all time, with one of its points of praise being the narratives. That magazine later cited the "melodramatic storylines" used in the series as a factor in its longevity. In a review of ''Final Fantasy VI'' from 2005,
GameSpot ''GameSpot'' is an American video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information on video games. The site was launched on May 1, 1996, created by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. In addition ...
cited that game as a genre-defining title with its storyline and emphasis on character development; while ''Final Fantasy VII'' has frequently been classed as a title that helped solidify the structure and style of RPGs for many years to follow. ''
Digital Spy Digital Spy (DS) is a British-based entertainment, television and film website and brand and is the largest digital property at Hearst UK. Since its launch in 1999, Digital Spy has focused on entertainment news related to television programmes ...
'' said in 2012 that ''Final Fantasy'' had "shaped and defined role-playing games across generations of consoles", though felt the series had lost some of its appeal as its more recent installments differed too much from their predecessors, with some fans referring to ''Final Fantasy X'' as "the last traditional game in the series". Kawazu would develop the concepts he created for ''Final Fantasy II'' into its own series, titled '' SaGa'', and other franchises including '' The Elder Scrolls'' would adopt its usage-based skill systems. Ishii's experience working on ''Final Fantasy'' was reflected in his design philosophies for the ''
Mana According to Melanesian and Polynesian mythology, ''mana'' is a supernatural force that permeates the universe. Anyone or anything can have ''mana''. They believed it to be a cultivation or possession of energy and power, rather than being ...
'' series, which began life as a ''Final Fantasy'' spin-off. Numerous industry developers and studios—including Ubisoft's Maxime Beland, multiple
BioWare BioWare is a Canadian video game developer based in Edmonton, Alberta. It was founded in 1995 by newly graduated medical doctors Ray Muzyka, Greg Zeschuk and Augustine Yip, alongside Trent Oster, Brent Oster, and Marcel Zeschuk. Since 2007, th ...
staff,
Peter Molyneux Peter Douglas Molyneux (; born 5 May 1959) is an English video game designer and programmer. He created the god games '' Populous'', ''Dungeon Keeper'', and '' Black & White'', as well as ''Theme Park'', the ''Fable'' series, '' Curiosity: W ...
—have cited ''Final Fantasy'' as an influence on either their general game design or specific titles. Several independent developers have drawn on both classic and contemporary ''Final Fantasy'' titles when developing games, citing examples within their narratives, game design and visuals.


References

{{Final Fantasy series Recurring elements