Review: An Unforgettable Dream - The New Vision PlayStation Brought to “FINAL FANTASY” [2/2]

The new capabilities offered by the PlayStation (PS) game console opened up a new world for the FINAL FANTASY (FF) series. Also, thanks to the large amount of data capable of being stored on two-three CD-ROM discs, the characters in the games were given more vibrant personal traits and detailed settings, demonstrating the idea that the story is in the details. What did the characters, given life within the games by the developers, and the players who control them uncover in these FF worlds?

The Damaged Heroes

FFVII’s Cloud has his memories confused due to the effects of the Jenova cells 1 and Mako 2 poisoning. However, in the later half of the game, he remembers that he was a common enlisted member of the army, and returning to his true self, he faces Sephiroth. FFVIII’s Squall is a solitary young man of 17. He is sullen a reticent, holding on to his past of living in an orphanage. FFIX’s Zidane is also an orphan. FFX’s Tidus bears the burden of an oppressive destiny. In this way, each hero is damaged emotionally or by his fate.

The stories of the FF series have several common elements. They include a protagonist and his or her allies who fight evil or a certain enemy. There is an ideological worldview that goes beyond good versus evil. Within the stories, Cloud, Tidus, and the others have heroic qualities, such as being ethical or moral people, being strong, and also having a cool look, but these qualities are mixed in with an emotional weakness similar to Shinji Ikari from the anime Neon Genesis Evangelion. However, they are not anti-heroes the way Shinji Ikari is. Through their journeys and the bonds they have with their friends, the protagonists try to redeem themselves and grow into stronger people. Within this process, while they demonstrate a physical strength, they also sometimes reveal an inner weakness to their friends. It’s because of these weaknesses that the players are able to sympathize and aspire to be like them. There are certainly more than a few people who were very moved by Aeris’ way of life, by Zidane’s friends coming to his aid, and by the relationship between Tidus and Yuna.

To the Unforgettable Dream

FFVII, FFVIII and FFX, as welll as FFVI for the Super Nintendo, do not include the emblematic Crystals that support the worlds in the series, though there are allusions to the existence of Crystals in other forms with Materia and Spheres. This is a characteristic of the PS era FF worlds.

The reasons for this are thought to be the fact that the PS era FF games are not set in a typical fantasy world in which the Crystals would appear, as well as the fact that the games turned their focus more to emphasizing characters. These FF games without Crystals seem to have moved away from a Crystal-focused plot and shifted to stories that involve solving the protagonists’ issues, or, in other words, stories with a more human-based focus. It’s believed that this shift occurred from a desire of the producers to realize their ideals, that it was to make a “final fantasy” dream story players would enjoy.

In FFX, the words “dream” and “illusion” are associated with Tidus and the dream Zanarkand. It has purpose and romance, and also it’s a surreal world seen in one’s sleeping moments that combines reality and illusion. FF may be games that present players with dreams in various forms, and the final boss players must defeat is the conclusion of one dream.

What were the FF games of the PS with its 3D display capabilities aiming for? I believe the answer to that is the creation of dreams that couldn’t be forgotten even if one tried. In the ending of FFX, Yuna says, “The people and the friends that we have lost, or the dreams that have faded... Never forget them.” For the player who journeyed with Tidus and his friends, it’s very hard to forget them all suddenly. The illusion feels like a memory made with friends and lovers that is filled with emotion. It was the FF games of the PS era that showed us this type of unforgettable dream.

To anyone who now has the desire to play each game, I encourage you to play them through. If you play to the end, you’ll get to experience a pleasant feeling of dreaming, and you may find yourself having grown a little with Cloud, Squall and Zidane, and with Tidus’ smile and Yuna’s struggles...

^1^ The cells of Jenova, an Ancient who was discovered 2000 years after being put in suspended animation and who was part of the Jenova Project, which aimed to bring back the Cetra (Ancients), a race of people with special powers believed to be extinct.

^2^ An energy source within the world of FFVII that builds when any living being dies and returns to the planet.

Square Enix’s Official Site:
http: //www.jp.square-enix.com/ (Japanese)

FINAL FNATASY IX(PS)PV:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kBXCLQu1Blk (YouTube)

FINAL FNATASY X（PS2）PV:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tGVlSl6v_7c (YouTube)

FINAL FNATASY VII:
©1997 SQUARE ENIX CO., LTD. All Rights Reserved.　
CHARACTER DESIGN：TETSUYA NOMURA

FINAL FNATASY VIII:
©1999 SQUARE ENIX CO., LTD. All Rights Reserved.　
CHARACTER DESIGN：TETSUYA NOMURA

FINAL FNATASY IX:
©2000 SQUARE ENIX CO., LTD. All Rights Reserved.　
Illustration:©2000 Yoshitaka Amano

FINAL FNATASY X:
©2001 SQUARE ENIX CO., LTD. All Rights Reserved.　
CHARACTER DESIGN：TETSUYA NOMURA

FINAL FNATASY X-2:
©2003 SQUARE ENIX CO., LTD. All Rights Reserved.　
MAIN CHARACTER DESIGN : TETSUYA NOMURA
ALTERNATE COSTUME DESIGN: TETSU TSUKAMOTO

This is a Tokyo Otaku Mode original article.