Games
Final Fantasy is a Japanese fantasy and science fiction-based media franchise originally created by Hironobu Sakaguchi. The franchise is owned, developed, and produced by Square Enix and is centered on a series of role-playing video games, but a number of derivative games and other related media have also been released. The first game for the series was released in 1987 on the Nintendo Entertainment System (Famicom in Japan) and, since then, fourteen other mainline titles have come out on an array of different platforms. The next mainline title the Final Fantasy VII Remake is currently scheduled for a release on April 10th, 2020. The franchise has been widely successful and occupies an important part of video game history that continues to thrive to this day. Several fans and critics regard the Final Fantasy series as some of the best video games ever made. Some of the most iconic characters and creatures from Final Fantasy include the Moogles and Chocobos, which are often considered to be mascots of the franchise. The name “Final Fantasy” was selected as the title for the first entry of the series because Hironobu Sakaguchi’s first games released by Square Enix were considered failures. As such, Sakaguchi decided that he would make one “final” effort in the video game industry.
Related Media
Although the series mainline titles are role-playing games, various spin-off titles have been released as well. These spin-off titles can vary wildly and include racing games, tactical and action RPGs, MMORPGs, rhythm games, shooters, and fighting games. Apart from video games, the franchise has incorporated manga, several movies and TV series, Books and an unbelievable amount of merchandise. Such merchandise includes trading card playing games, jewelry, figures, nendoroid, Funko Pop, and much more. The soundtracks of Final Fantasy games, many of which can be attributed to the famous composer and musician Nobuo Uematsu, can be purchased in various soundtrack album releases. These albums can contain the original music of a game or pieces that are rearranged using a specific genre or style of music. Final Fantasy music contains a wide range of musical styles and composers that have evolved over the thirty years of the series’ existence.
Final Fantasy Community
Final Fantasy has generated a strong community that engage in various events like the Final Fantasy XIV Festival, concerts like Final Fantasy Distant Worlds, and much more. More creatively inclined fans of the series have created a massive amount of fan art and cosplay as well.
Gameplay
The flagship Final Fantasy games are essentially role-playing games that are often character and story-driven. Many of the plots center around magical crystals in some way, but almost always have a group led by the protagonist that is pitted against an evil antagonist or force of doom. Like most role-playing games, characters can gain experience by fighting in battles that will eventually result in that character leveling up. As each character levels up, they gain more stats and access to better weapons that make them even stronger. A number of different mechanics and gameplay systems have been introduced and evolved over the years, beginning with the turn-based combat of Final Fantasy 1. More recent entries in the series use real-time battle systems like the Active Cross Battle system from Final Fantasy XV.
History and Development
Final Fantasy 1 was originally produced by Square, which first opened in the year 1983 as a computer game and software division of Den-Yu-Sha, a power line construction company owned by the father of Masafumi Miyamoto. Miyamoto would eventually create his own independent company, Square Co., Ltd., in 1986. Final Fantasy 1 was influenced by other popular games such as Enix's Dragon Quest, Nintendo's The Legend of Zelda, and Origin Systems' Ultima Series. The company quickly grew and, after around a decade, talks of Enix and Square partnering together were considered. In the very beginning of the 2000s, a merger was proposed, but financial issues from both parties caused hesitation, especially on Enix’s side. However, in 2002, Square released Final Fantasy 10 and Kingdom Hearts, resulting in an incredible amount of profit. This success led to a merger between the companies that went into effect on April 1st, 2003.
Key Final Fantasy Staff
Hironobu Sakaguchi: the original creator of the Final Fantasy series. After writing the scenario for Final Fantasy IX, Sakaguchi became much less involved with the series and eventually left Square to create his own development studio in 2004.
Yoshinori Kitase: a major producer of the Final Fantasy series. Kitase began work at Square by timing cutscenes and other events, but eventually went on to direct several Final Fantasy games, the most popular entry being Final Fantasy VII. He was later promoted to a producer by Sakaguchi and remains in that position to this day.
Kazushige Nojima: a major scenario and story writer for some of the later entries of the series. Nojima made his debut as a Final Fantasy writer with Final Fantasy VII by collaborating with Yoshinori Kitase.
Tetsuya Nomura: one of the main character designers of the series. Nomura began as a debugger for Final Fantasy IV, but often contributed ideas that were accompanied by drawings. He quickly became involved with designing art for later games and earned the position of character designer.
Yoshitaka Amano: another major character designer and artist of Final Fantasy. Amano was in charge of character design for the earlier entries of the series, but went on to create promotional artwork, logos, and illustrations as time went on.
Nobuo Uematsu: the sole composer of Final Fantasy games up until Final Fantasy IX. In 2004, Uematsu would leave Square Enix and create his own company, though he would return to Square to work as a freelancer from time to time.