Final Fantasy
Overview
 
is a media franchise
Media franchise
A media franchise is an intellectual property involving the characters, setting and trademarks of an original work of media , such as a film, a work of literature, a television program or a video game. Generally, a whole series is made in a particular medium, along with merchandising and endorsements...

 created by Hironobu Sakaguchi
Hironobu Sakaguchi
is a Japanese game designer, game director and game producer. He is world famous as the creator of the Final Fantasy series, and has had a long career in gaming with over 100 million units of video games sold worldwide...

, and is developed and owned by Square Enix
Square Enix
is a Japanese video game and publishing company best known for its console role-playing game franchises, which include the Final Fantasy series, the Dragon Quest series, and the action-RPG Kingdom Hearts series...

 (formerly Square
Square Co.
was a Japanese video game company founded in September 1983 by Masafumi Miyamoto. It merged with Enix in 2003 and became part of Square Enix...

). The franchise centers on a series of fantasy and science-fantasy role-playing video game
Role-playing video game
Role-playing video games are a video game genre with origins in pen-and-paper role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons, using much of the same terminology, settings and game mechanics. The player in RPGs controls one character, or several adventuring party members, fulfilling one or many quests...

s (RPGs), but includes motion pictures, anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....

, printed media, and other merchandise. The series began in 1987 with the eponymous video game
Final Fantasy (video game)
is a fantasy role-playing video game created by Hironobu Sakaguchi, developed and first published in Japan by Square in 1987. It is the first game in Square's Final Fantasy series...

 conceived by Sakaguchi as his last-ditch effort in the game industry; the title was a success and spawned sequels. The video game series has since branched into other genres such as tactical role-playing
Tactical role-playing game
A tactical role-playing game is a type of video game which incorporates elements of traditional role-playing video games and strategy games. In Japan these games are known as , a designation which might seem peculiar to native English speakers...

, action role-playing
Action role-playing game
Action role-playing games form a loosely defined sub-genre of role-playing video games that incorporate elements of action or action-adventure games, emphasizing real-time action where the player has direct control over characters, instead of turn-based or menu-based combat...

, massively multiplayer online role-playing
Massively multiplayer online role-playing game
Massively multiplayer online role-playing game is a genre of role-playing video games in which a very large number of players interact with one another within a virtual game world....

, racing, third-person shooter
Third-person shooter
Third-person shooter is a genre of 3D action games in which the player character is visible on-screen, and the gameplay consists primarily of shooting.-Definition:...

, and fighting
Fighting game
Fighting game is a video game genre where the player controls an on-screen character and engages in close combat with an opponent. These characters tend to be of equal power and fight matches consisting of several rounds, which take place in an arena. Players must master techniques such as...

.

Although most Final Fantasy installments are supposedly independent stories with different settings and main characters, they feature identical elements that define the franchise.
Quotations

Old-school Chocobo: Wark!

New-school Chocobo: Kweh!

Any Moogle: Kupo!

Any Cactuar: Geka runs away

Any Tonberry: Doink!

Any Malboro: Bad Breath

The world is veiled in darkness. The wind stops, the sea is wild, and the earth begins to rot.The people wait, their only hope, a prophecy....'When the world is in darkness Four Warriors will come....'After a long journey, four young warriors arrive, each holding an ORB.

The introduction.

WARRIORS! Revive the power of the ORBS!

This is a well. You might think that there is something to it... But in fact it is just an ordinary well.

Here lies Erdrick.

On a headstone; reference to a character from Dragon Warrior. Quote appears in the original NES|NES release of the game

 
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