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Final Fantasy (video game)
Encyclopedia
is a fantasy
role-playing video game
created by Hironobu Sakaguchi
, developed and first published in Japan by Square
(now Square Enix
) in 1987. It is the first game in Square's Final Fantasy
series. Originally released for the Nintendo Entertainment System
, Final Fantasy was remade for several video game console
s and is frequently packaged with Final Fantasy II
in video game collections. The story follows four youths called the Light Warriors, who each carry one of their world's four elemental
orbs which have been darkened by the four Elemental Fiends. Together, they quest to defeat these evil forces, restore light to the orbs, and save their world.
The game received generally positive reviews, and it is regarded as one of the most influential and successful role-playing games on the Nintendo Entertainment System, playing a major role in popularizing the genre. Praise focused on the game's graphics, while criticism targeted the time spent wandering in search of random battle encounters
to raise the player's experience level. All versions of Final Fantasy sold a combined total of two million copies worldwide by March 2003. This game has also two direct cross-over prequels: Dissidia: Final Fantasy and Dissidia 012: Final Fantasy, both released on PSP.
, town and dungeon maps, a battle screen, and a menu screen. The overworld map is a scaled-down version of the game's fictional world, which the player uses to direct characters to various locations. The primary means of travel across the overworld is by foot, but a canoe, a ship, and an airship become available as the player progresses. With the exception of some battles in preset locations or with bosses
, enemies are randomly encountered
on field maps and on the overworld map when traveling by foot, canoe, or ship, and must either be fought or fled from. The player begins the game by choosing four characters to form a party, which lasts for the duration of the game.
The game's plot develops as the player progresses through towns and dungeons. Some town citizens offer helpful information, while others own shops that sell items or equipment. Dungeons appear in areas that include forests, caves, mountains, swamps, underwater caverns and buildings. Dungeons often have treasure chests containing rare items that are not available in most stores. The game's menu screen allows the player to keep track of their experience point
s and levels, to choose which equipment their characters wield, and to use items and magic. A character's most basic attribute is their level, which can range from one to fifty, and is determined by the character's amount of experience. Gaining a level increases the character's attributes, such as their maximum hit points
(HP), which represents a character's remaining health; a character dies when they reach zero HP. Characters gain experience points by winning battles.
Combat in Final Fantasy is menu-based: the player selects an action from a list of options such as Fight, Magic, and Item. Battles are turn-based and continue until either side flees or is defeated. If the player's party wins, each character gains experience and gold; if it flees, it is returned to the map screen; and if every character in the party dies, the game is over. Final Fantasy was the first game to show the player's characters on the right side of the screen and the enemies on the left side of the screen, as opposed to a first-person view
.
Each character has an "occupation", or character class
, with different attributes and abilities that are either innate or can be acquired. There are six classes: Fighter, Thief, Black Belt, Red Mage, White Mage, and Black Mage. Later in the game, each character undergoes a "class change"; their sprite
portraits mature, and some classes even gain the ability to use weapons and magic that they previously could not use. Final Fantasy contains a variety of weapons, armor, and items that can be bought or found to make the characters more powerful in combat. Each character has eight inventory slots, with four to hold weapons and four to hold armor. Each character class has restrictions on what weapons and armor it may use. Some weapons and armor are magical; if used during combat, some of these items will cast spells. Other magical artifacts provide protection, such as from certain spells. At shops, the characters can buy items to help themselves recover while they are traveling. Items available include Potions, which heal the characters or removes an ailment like poison or petrification; Tents and Cabins, which can be used on the world map to heal the player and optionally save the game; and Houses, which also recovers the party's magic after saving. Special items may be gained by doing quests
.
Magic is a common ability in the game, and several character classes use it. Spells are divided into two groups: White, which is defensive and healing, and Black, which is debilitating and destructive. Magic can be bought from White and Black magic shops and assigned to characters whose occupation allows them to use it. Spells are classified by a level between one and eight, with four White and four Black spells per level. Each character may learn only three spells per level. White and Black Mages can potentially learn any of their respective spells, while Red Mages, the Ninja and the Knight cannot use most high-level magic.
s: earth, fire, water, and wind. The world of Final Fantasy is inhabited by numerous races, including Humans, Elves, Dwarves, Mermaids, Dragons, and Robots. Most non-Human races have only one "town" in the game, although individuals are sometimes found in Human towns or other areas as well. Four hundred years prior to the start of the game, the Lefeinish people, who used the Power of Wind to craft airships and a giant space station
(called the Floating Castle in the game), watched their country decline as the Wind Orb went dark. Two hundred years later, violent storms sank a massive shrine that served as the center of an ocean-based civilization, and the Water Orb went dark. The Earth Orb and the Fire Orb followed, plaguing the earth with raging wildfires, and devastating the agricultural town of Melmond as the plains and vegetation decayed. Some time later, the sage Lukahn tells of a prophecy that four Light Warriors will come to save the world in a time of darkness.
The game begins with the appearance of the four youthful Light Warriors, the heroes of the story, who each carry one of the darkened Orbs. Initially, the Light Warriors have access to the Kingdom of Coneria and the ruined Temple of Fiends. After the Warriors rescue Princess Sara from the evil knight Garland, the King of Coneria builds a bridge that enables the Light Warriors' passage east to the town of Pravoka. There the Light Warriors liberate the town from Bikke and his band of pirates, and acquire the pirates' ship for their own use. The Warriors now embark on a chain of delivery quests
on the shores of the Aldi Sea. First they retrieve a stolen crown from the Marsh Cave for a king in a ruined castle, who turns out to be the dark elf Astos. Defeating him gains them the Crystal, which they return to the blind witch Matoya in exchange for a herb needed to awaken the Elf Prince cursed by Astos. The Elf Prince gives the Light Warriors the Mystic Key, which is capable of unlocking any door. The key unlocks a storage room in Coneria Castle which holds TNT. Nerrick, one of the Dwarves of the Cave of Dwarf/Dwarf Village, destroys a small isthmus
using the TNT, connecting the Aldi Sea to the outside world.
After visiting the near-ruined town of Melmond, the Light Warriors go to the Earth Cave to defeat a vampire and retrieve the Star Ruby, which gains passage to Sage Sarda's cave. With Sarda's Rod, the Warriors venture deeper into the Earth Cave and destroy the Earth Fiend, Lich
. The Light Warriors then obtain a canoe and enter Gurgu Volcano and defeat the Fire Fiend, Kary. The Floater from the nearby Ice Cave allows them to raise an airship to reach the northern continents. After they prove their courage by retrieving the Rat's Tail from the Castle of Ordeal, the King of the Dragons, Bahamut
, promotes each Light Warrior. Using an air-producing fairy artifact known as Oxyale, the Warriors defeat the Water Fiend, Kraken
, in the Sunken Shrine. They also recover a Slab, which allows a linguist named Dr. Unne to teach the Lefeinish language. The Lefeinish give the Light Warriors access to the Floating Castle that Tiamat
, the Wind Fiend, has taken over. With the four Fiends defeated and the Orbs restored, a portal to 2000 years in the past opens in the Temple of Fiends. There the Warriors discover that the four Fiends sent Garland (now the archdemon Chaos) back in time and he sent the Fiends to the future to do so, creating a time loop
by which he could live forever. The Light Warriors defeat Chaos, thus ending the paradox, and return home. By ending the paradox, however, the Light Warriors have changed the future to one where their heroic deeds from their own time remain unknown outside of legend.
Final Fantasy was developed by a team of seven staff members within Square
referred to as the "A-Team". Though often attributed to the company allegedly having been threatened with bankruptcy in 1987, main planner
Hironobu Sakaguchi
explained that the title of the game stemmed from his personal situation; had the game not sold well, he would have quit the games industry and gone back to university. His concept for Final Fantasy involved a large world map to explore and an engaging story. Sakaguchi took an in-development ROM of the game to Japanese magazine Family Computer, but it would not review it. Video game magazine Famitsu
, however, gave the game extensive coverage. Only 200,000 copies were to be shipped, but Sakaguchi pleaded with the company to make 400,000 to help spawn a sequel, and the management agreed.
The game's characters and title logo were designed by Yoshitaka Amano
, and the scenario was written by freelance writer Kenji Terada
, based on the story by Sakaguchi. Iranian-American freelance programmer Nasir Gebelli
, who was living in Japan at the time, worked as the programmer for the game. Among the other developers were designers Hiromichi Tanaka
, Akitoshi Kawazu
and Koichi Ishii
, as well as graphic
designer Kazuko Shibuya and programmers Kiyoshi Yoshii and Ken Narita. Following the successful North American localization
of Dragon Quest
, Nintendo of America
translated Final Fantasy into English and published it in North America in 1990. The North American version of Final Fantasy was met with modest success, partly due to Nintendo's then-aggressive marketing tactics. No version of the game was marketed in the PAL region
until Final Fantasy Origins in 2003.
The music for Final Fantasy was composed by Nobuo Uematsu
, and was his 16th video game music composition. The soundtrack album was released together with the score of Final Fantasy II
in 1989. Some of the game's tracks became mainstays to the Final Fantasy series: the "Prelude", the arpeggio
played on the title screen; the "Opening Theme", which is played when the party crosses the bridge early in the game and later referred to as the Final Fantasy theme; and the "Victory Fanfare", which is played after every victorious battle. The opening motif
of the battle theme has also been reused a number of times in the series.
in various collections. While all of these remakes retain the same basic story and battle mechanics, various tweaks have been made in different areas, including graphics, sound, and specific game elements. The game was first re-released for the MSX2
system and was published by Micro Cabin
in Japan in June 1989. It had access to almost three times as much storage space as the Famicom version, but suffered from problems not present in Nintendo's cartridge media, including noticeable loading times. There were also minor graphical upgrades, improved music tracks and sound effects. In 1994, Final Fantasy I•II, a compilation of Final Fantasy and Final Fantasy II, was launched for the Famicom. This version was only released in Japan and had very few graphical updates. The WonderSwan Color remake was released in Japan on December 9, 2000, and featured many new graphical changes. The 8-bit graphics of the original Famicom game were updated, battle scenes incorporated full background images, and character and enemy sprites
were re-drawn to look more like the ones from the Super Famicom
Final Fantasy games.
In Japan, Final Fantasy and Final Fantasy II were re-released both separately and as a combined game for the PlayStation. The collection was released in Japan in 2002 as Final Fantasy I & II Premium Package and in PAL and North America in 2003 as Final Fantasy Origins. This version was similar to the WonderSwan Color remake, and featured several changes, such as more detailed graphics, a remixed soundtrack, added full motion video
sequences, and art galleries of Yoshitaka Amano
's illustrations. Final Fantasy I & II: Dawn of Souls is, like Final Fantasy Origins, a port of the first two games in the series for the Game Boy Advance
in 2004. The Dawn of Souls version incorporates various new elements, including four additional dungeons, an updated bestiary, and a few tweaks.
Square Enix released a version of Final Fantasy for two Japanese mobile phone
networks in 2004; a version for NTT docomo
FOMA
900i series was launched in March under the title Final Fantasy i, and a subsequent release for CDMA 1X WIN
-compatible phones was launched in August. Another titular version was released for SoftBank
Yahoo! Keitai
phones on July 3, 2006. Graphically, the games are superior to the original 8-bit game, but not as advanced as many of the more recent console and handheld ports. Square Enix planned to release this version of the game for North American mobile phones sometime in 2006, but this did not happen until 2010, with help from Namco. For the 20th anniversary of Final Fantasy, Square Enix remade Final Fantasy and Final Fantasy II for the PlayStation Portable
. The games were released in Japan and North America in 2007, and in PAL territories in 2008. The PSP version features higher-resolution 2D graphics, full motion video sequences, a remixed soundtrack, and a new dungeon as well as the bonus dungeons from Dawn of Souls. The script is the same as in the Dawn of Souls version, aside from the new dungeon.
Square Enix released the original NES version of the game on the Wii
's Virtual Console
service in Japan on May 26, 2009, in North America on October 5, 2009 and in the PAL region as an import on May 7, 2010. On February 25, 2010, Square Enix released the iOS version of Final Fantasy, based on the PSP port with touch controls, worldwide.
Square Enix
collaborated with Namco
to release a mobile version of Final Fantasy that is made available globally. The mobile version retains the same game difficulty and MP System from the original Famicom version but the rest of the game elements is borrowed from the Game Boy Advance
/ Wonderswan Color version such as updated graphics, spell names, monster names, bosses, items and areas (but this version does not feature additional areas and monsters present in the GBA version). Saving a game data is done like in the original Famicom version (by using Tent, Sleeping Bag and Cottage or by going into an inn) but there are now 3 save game slots and a "Temporary Save" option available in the game.
s Top 100 games list, where readers voted it the 63rd best game of all time. GameFAQs
users made a similar list in 2005, which ranked Final Fantasy at 76th. It was rated the 49th best game made on a Nintendo system in Nintendo Power
s Top 200 Games list. In August 2008, Nintendo Power ranked it the 19th best Nintendo Entertainment System
video game, praising it for setting up the basics of console role-playing games along with Dragon Warrior
, and citing examples such as epic stories, leveling up, random battles, and character classes. Editors at IGN
ranked Final Fantasy the 11th-best game on the console, calling the game's class system diverse, and praising its convenient use of vehicles as a means of traveling across the world map.
Final Fantasy was one of the most influential early console role-playing games, and played a major role in legitimizing and popularizing the genre. According to IGN's Matt Casamassina
, Final Fantasys storyline had a deeper and more engaging story than the original Dragon Quest
(known as Dragon Warrior in North America). Many modern critics have pointed out that the game is poorly paced by contemporary standards, and involves much more time wandering in search of random battle encounters
to raise their experience levels and money than it does exploring and solving puzzles. Other reviewers find the level-building and exploration portions of the game as the most amusing ones. The game is also considered by many as the weakest and most difficult installment of the series. In 1987, Famitsu initially described the original Final Fantasy as "one of many" that imitated the Dragon Quest formula.
The subsequent versions of Final Fantasy have garnered mostly favorable reviews from the media. Peer Schneider of IGN enjoyed the WonderSwan Color version, praising its graphical improvements, especially the environments, characters, and monsters. Final Fantasy Origins was generally well-received; GamePro
said the music was "fantastic", and that the graphics had a "suitably retro cuteness to them". Reviews for Final Fantasy I & II: Dawn of Souls were generally positive, with Jeremy Dunham of IGN giving particular praise to the improved English translation, saying it was better than any previous version of the game. The PlayStation Portable version was not as critically successful as the previous releases; GameSpot
's Kevin VanOrd cited the visuals as its strongest enhancement, but stated that the additional random enemy encounters and updated graphics did not add much value. The Dawn of Souls package was rated 76th in Nintendo Powers Top 200 Games list.
entitled "The Fractured Fantasy of Captain N". 8-Bit Theater
, a sprite
-based webcomic
created by Brian Clevinger
parodying the game, has become very popular in the gaming community since it started in March 2001.
Warrior of Light, based on Yoshitaka Amano
's design of the lead character, and Garland are the respective hero and villain representing Final Fantasy in Dissidia: Final Fantasy
. Warrior of Light is voiced by Toshihiko Seki
in the Japanese version and Grant George in the English version, while Garland is voiced by Kenji Utsumi
in the Japanese version and Christopher Sabat
in the English version. In Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy
, the world where Final Fantasy takes place is named World A and is revealed to be where Cid, Chaos, and Cosmos all originated from. This possibly means that a both games are prequels to first game and other (independent) games in this series.
Fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...
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...
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...
, developed and first published in Japan by 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...
(now 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...
) in 1987. It is the first game in Square's Final Fantasy
Final Fantasy
is a media franchise created by Hironobu Sakaguchi, and is developed and owned by Square Enix . The franchise centers on a series of fantasy and science-fantasy role-playing video games , but includes motion pictures, anime, printed media, and other merchandise...
series. Originally released for the Nintendo Entertainment System
Nintendo Entertainment System
The Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987...
, Final Fantasy was remade for several video game console
Video game console
A video game console is an interactive entertainment computer or customized computer system that produces a video display signal which can be used with a display device to display a video game...
s and is frequently packaged with Final Fantasy II
Final Fantasy II
is a fantasy role-playing video game developed and published by Square in 1988 for the Family Computer as the second installment of the Final Fantasy series. The game has received numerous enhanced remakes for the WonderSwan Color, the Sony PlayStation, Japanese mobile phones, the Game Boy...
in video game collections. The story follows four youths called the Light Warriors, who each carry one of their world's four elemental
Classical element
Many philosophies and worldviews have a set of classical elements believed to reflect the simplest essential parts and principles of which anything consists or upon which the constitution and fundamental powers of anything are based. Most frequently, classical elements refer to ancient beliefs...
orbs which have been darkened by the four Elemental Fiends. Together, they quest to defeat these evil forces, restore light to the orbs, and save their world.
The game received generally positive reviews, and it is regarded as one of the most influential and successful role-playing games on the Nintendo Entertainment System, playing a major role in popularizing the genre. Praise focused on the game's graphics, while criticism targeted the time spent wandering in search of random battle encounters
Random encounter
A random encounter is a feature commonly used in various role-playing games whereby encounters with non-player character enemies or other dangers occur sporadically and at random...
to raise the player's experience level. All versions of Final Fantasy sold a combined total of two million copies worldwide by March 2003. This game has also two direct cross-over prequels: Dissidia: Final Fantasy and Dissidia 012: Final Fantasy, both released on PSP.
Gameplay
Final Fantasy has four basic game modes: an overworld mapOverworld
An overworld is, in a broad sense, an area within a video game that interconnects all its levels or locations. They are mostly common in role-playing games, though this does not exclude other video game genres....
, town and dungeon maps, a battle screen, and a menu screen. The overworld map is a scaled-down version of the game's fictional world, which the player uses to direct characters to various locations. The primary means of travel across the overworld is by foot, but a canoe, a ship, and an airship become available as the player progresses. With the exception of some battles in preset locations or with bosses
Boss (video games)
A boss is an enemy-based challenge which is found in video games. A fight with a boss character is commonly referred to as a boss battle or boss fight...
, enemies are randomly encountered
Random encounter
A random encounter is a feature commonly used in various role-playing games whereby encounters with non-player character enemies or other dangers occur sporadically and at random...
on field maps and on the overworld map when traveling by foot, canoe, or ship, and must either be fought or fled from. The player begins the game by choosing four characters to form a party, which lasts for the duration of the game.
The game's plot develops as the player progresses through towns and dungeons. Some town citizens offer helpful information, while others own shops that sell items or equipment. Dungeons appear in areas that include forests, caves, mountains, swamps, underwater caverns and buildings. Dungeons often have treasure chests containing rare items that are not available in most stores. The game's menu screen allows the player to keep track of their experience point
Experience point
An experience point is a unit of measurement used in many role-playing games and role-playing video games to quantify a player character's progression through the game...
s and levels, to choose which equipment their characters wield, and to use items and magic. A character's most basic attribute is their level, which can range from one to fifty, and is determined by the character's amount of experience. Gaining a level increases the character's attributes, such as their maximum hit points
Health (game mechanic)
Health is a game mechanic used in role-playing, computer and video games to give value to characters, enemies, NPCs, and related objects. This value can either be numerical, semi-numerical as in hit/health points, or arbitrary as in a life bar....
(HP), which represents a character's remaining health; a character dies when they reach zero HP. Characters gain experience points by winning battles.
First person (video games)
In video games, first person refers to a graphical perspective rendered from the viewpoint of the player character. In many cases, this may be the viewpoint from the cockpit of a vehicle. Many different genres have made use of first-person perspectives, ranging from adventure games to flight...
.
Each character has an "occupation", or character class
Character class
In role-playing games, a common method of arbitrating the capabilities of different game characters is to assign each one to a character class. A character class aggregates several abilities and aptitudes, and may also sometimes detail aspects of background and social standing or impose behaviour...
, with different attributes and abilities that are either innate or can be acquired. There are six classes: Fighter, Thief, Black Belt, Red Mage, White Mage, and Black Mage. Later in the game, each character undergoes a "class change"; their sprite
Sprite (computer graphics)
In computer graphics, a sprite is a two-dimensional image or animation that is integrated into a larger scene...
portraits mature, and some classes even gain the ability to use weapons and magic that they previously could not use. Final Fantasy contains a variety of weapons, armor, and items that can be bought or found to make the characters more powerful in combat. Each character has eight inventory slots, with four to hold weapons and four to hold armor. Each character class has restrictions on what weapons and armor it may use. Some weapons and armor are magical; if used during combat, some of these items will cast spells. Other magical artifacts provide protection, such as from certain spells. At shops, the characters can buy items to help themselves recover while they are traveling. Items available include Potions, which heal the characters or removes an ailment like poison or petrification; Tents and Cabins, which can be used on the world map to heal the player and optionally save the game; and Houses, which also recovers the party's magic after saving. Special items may be gained by doing quests
Quest (gaming)
A quest in role-playing video games — including massively multiplayer online role-playing games and their predecessors, MUDs — is a task that a player-controlled character or group of characters may complete in order to gain a reward...
.
Magic is a common ability in the game, and several character classes use it. Spells are divided into two groups: White, which is defensive and healing, and Black, which is debilitating and destructive. Magic can be bought from White and Black magic shops and assigned to characters whose occupation allows them to use it. Spells are classified by a level between one and eight, with four White and four Black spells per level. Each character may learn only three spells per level. White and Black Mages can potentially learn any of their respective spells, while Red Mages, the Ninja and the Knight cannot use most high-level magic.
Plot
Final Fantasy takes place in a fantasy world with three large continents. The elemental powers on this world are determined by the state of four orbs, each governing one of the four classical elementClassical element
Many philosophies and worldviews have a set of classical elements believed to reflect the simplest essential parts and principles of which anything consists or upon which the constitution and fundamental powers of anything are based. Most frequently, classical elements refer to ancient beliefs...
s: earth, fire, water, and wind. The world of Final Fantasy is inhabited by numerous races, including Humans, Elves, Dwarves, Mermaids, Dragons, and Robots. Most non-Human races have only one "town" in the game, although individuals are sometimes found in Human towns or other areas as well. Four hundred years prior to the start of the game, the Lefeinish people, who used the Power of Wind to craft airships and a giant space station
Space station
A space station is a spacecraft capable of supporting a crew which is designed to remain in space for an extended period of time, and to which other spacecraft can dock. A space station is distinguished from other spacecraft used for human spaceflight by its lack of major propulsion or landing...
(called the Floating Castle in the game), watched their country decline as the Wind Orb went dark. Two hundred years later, violent storms sank a massive shrine that served as the center of an ocean-based civilization, and the Water Orb went dark. The Earth Orb and the Fire Orb followed, plaguing the earth with raging wildfires, and devastating the agricultural town of Melmond as the plains and vegetation decayed. Some time later, the sage Lukahn tells of a prophecy that four Light Warriors will come to save the world in a time of darkness.
Quest (gaming)
A quest in role-playing video games — including massively multiplayer online role-playing games and their predecessors, MUDs — is a task that a player-controlled character or group of characters may complete in order to gain a reward...
on the shores of the Aldi Sea. First they retrieve a stolen crown from the Marsh Cave for a king in a ruined castle, who turns out to be the dark elf Astos. Defeating him gains them the Crystal, which they return to the blind witch Matoya in exchange for a herb needed to awaken the Elf Prince cursed by Astos. The Elf Prince gives the Light Warriors the Mystic Key, which is capable of unlocking any door. The key unlocks a storage room in Coneria Castle which holds TNT. Nerrick, one of the Dwarves of the Cave of Dwarf/Dwarf Village, destroys a small isthmus
Isthmus
An isthmus is a narrow strip of land connecting two larger land areas usually with waterforms on either side.Canals are often built through isthmuses where they may be particularly advantageous to create a shortcut for marine transportation...
using the TNT, connecting the Aldi Sea to the outside world.
After visiting the near-ruined town of Melmond, the Light Warriors go to the Earth Cave to defeat a vampire and retrieve the Star Ruby, which gains passage to Sage Sarda's cave. With Sarda's Rod, the Warriors venture deeper into the Earth Cave and destroy the Earth Fiend, Lich
Lich
In modern fantasy fiction, a lich is a type of undead creature. Often such a creature is the result of a transformation, as a powerful magician or king striving for eternal life uses spells or rituals to bind his intellect to his animated corpse and thereby achieve a form of immortality...
. The Light Warriors then obtain a canoe and enter Gurgu Volcano and defeat the Fire Fiend, Kary. The Floater from the nearby Ice Cave allows them to raise an airship to reach the northern continents. After they prove their courage by retrieving the Rat's Tail from the Castle of Ordeal, the King of the Dragons, Bahamut
Bahamut
Bahamut is a vast fish that supports the earth in Arabian mythology. In some sources, Bahamut is described as having a head resembling a hippopotamus or elephant.-Overview:...
, promotes each Light Warrior. Using an air-producing fairy artifact known as Oxyale, the Warriors defeat the Water Fiend, Kraken
Kraken
Kraken are legendary sea monsters of giant proportions said to have dwelt off the coasts of Norway and Iceland.In modern German, Krake means octopus but can also refer to the legendary Kraken...
, in the Sunken Shrine. They also recover a Slab, which allows a linguist named Dr. Unne to teach the Lefeinish language. The Lefeinish give the Light Warriors access to the Floating Castle that Tiamat
Tiamat
In Babylonian mythology, Tiamat is a chaos monster, a primordial goddess of the ocean, mating with Abzû to produce younger gods. It is suggested that there are two parts to the Tiamat mythos, the first in which Tiamat is 'creatrix', through a "Sacred marriage" between salt and fresh water,...
, the Wind Fiend, has taken over. With the four Fiends defeated and the Orbs restored, a portal to 2000 years in the past opens in the Temple of Fiends. There the Warriors discover that the four Fiends sent Garland (now the archdemon Chaos) back in time and he sent the Fiends to the future to do so, creating a time loop
Predestination paradox
A predestination paradox is a paradox of time travel that is often used as a convention in science fiction. It exists when a time traveller is caught in a loop of events that "predestines" or "predates" them to travel back in time...
by which he could live forever. The Light Warriors defeat Chaos, thus ending the paradox, and return home. By ending the paradox, however, the Light Warriors have changed the future to one where their heroic deeds from their own time remain unknown outside of legend.
Development
Square (company)
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...
referred to as the "A-Team". Though often attributed to the company allegedly having been threatened with bankruptcy in 1987, main planner
Game design
Game design, a subset of game development, is the process of designing the content and rules of a game in the pre-production stage and design of gameplay, environment, storyline, and characters during production stage. The term is also used to describe both the game design embodied in a game as...
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...
explained that the title of the game stemmed from his personal situation; had the game not sold well, he would have quit the games industry and gone back to university. His concept for Final Fantasy involved a large world map to explore and an engaging story. Sakaguchi took an in-development ROM of the game to Japanese magazine Family Computer, but it would not review it. Video game magazine Famitsu
Famitsu
is a line of Japanese video game magazines published by Enterbrain, Inc. and Tokuma. Currently, there are five Famitsū magazines: Shūkan Famitsū, Famitsū PS3 + PSP, Famitsū Xbox 360, Famitsū Wii+DS, and Famitsū Wave DVD...
, however, gave the game extensive coverage. Only 200,000 copies were to be shipped, but Sakaguchi pleaded with the company to make 400,000 to help spawn a sequel, and the management agreed.
The game's characters and title logo were designed by Yoshitaka Amano
Yoshitaka Amano
is a Japanese artist. He began his career as an animator and has become known for his illustrations for the anime Vampire Hunter D and for his character designs, image illustrations and title logo designs for the Final Fantasy video game series developed by Square Enix . His influences include...
, and the scenario was written by freelance writer Kenji Terada
Kenji Terada
is a Japanese scenario writer, anime director, series organizer and novelist. He is probably best known for writing the first three games of the Final Fantasy series, his work on Batman: Dark Tomorrow, and as the series organizer and main script writer for the Kimagure Orange Road series...
, based on the story by Sakaguchi. Iranian-American freelance programmer Nasir Gebelli
Nasir Gebelli
Nasir Gebelli is an Iranian-American programmer and video game developer. Gebelli co-founded Sirius Software, created his own company Gebelli Software, and worked for Square .-Sirius Software:...
, who was living in Japan at the time, worked as the programmer for the game. Among the other developers were designers Hiromichi Tanaka
Hiromichi Tanaka
is a Japanese video game developer, game producer, game director and game designer. He is currently Senior Vice President of Software Development at Square Enix and the head of Square Enix's Product Development Division-3. He is best known as the former lead developer of Final Fantasy XI, Square's...
, Akitoshi Kawazu
Akitoshi Kawazu
is a Japanese game producer who was born in Kumamoto Prefecture. He studied ceramics at the Tokyo Institute of Technology. Kawazu joined Square in 1985...
and Koichi Ishii
Koichi Ishii
, sometimes credited as Kouichi Ishii, is a video game designer perhaps best known for creating the Mana series . He joined Square in 1987, where he has directed or produced every game released in the Mana series...
, as well as graphic
Pixel art
Pixel art is a form of digital art, created through the use of raster graphics software, where images are edited on the pixel level. Graphics in most old computer and video games, graphing calculator games, and many mobile phone games are mostly pixel art.- History :The term pixel art was first...
designer Kazuko Shibuya and programmers Kiyoshi Yoshii and Ken Narita. Following the successful North American localization
Internationalization and localization
In computing, internationalization and localization are means of adapting computer software to different languages, regional differences and technical requirements of a target market...
of Dragon Quest
Dragon Warrior
Dragon Warrior, known as in Japan, is the first role-playing video game in the Dragon Quest media franchise. It was developed by Chunsoft for the Nintendo Entertainment System and published by Enix in Japan in 1986...
, Nintendo of America
Nintendo
is a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel....
translated Final Fantasy into English and published it in North America in 1990. The North American version of Final Fantasy was met with modest success, partly due to Nintendo's then-aggressive marketing tactics. No version of the game was marketed in the PAL region
PAL region
The PAL region is a television publication territory which covers most of Asia, Africa, Australia, New Zealand, and most of Western Europe...
until Final Fantasy Origins in 2003.
The music for Final Fantasy was composed by Nobuo Uematsu
Nobuo Uematsu
is a Japanese video game composer, best known for scoring the majority of titles in the Final Fantasy series. He is considered as one of the most famous and respected composers in the video game community...
, and was his 16th video game music composition. The soundtrack album was released together with the score of Final Fantasy II
Final Fantasy II
is a fantasy role-playing video game developed and published by Square in 1988 for the Family Computer as the second installment of the Final Fantasy series. The game has received numerous enhanced remakes for the WonderSwan Color, the Sony PlayStation, Japanese mobile phones, the Game Boy...
in 1989. Some of the game's tracks became mainstays to the Final Fantasy series: the "Prelude", the arpeggio
Arpeggio
An arpeggio is a musical technique where notes in a chord are played or sung in sequence, one after the other, rather than ringing out simultaneously...
played on the title screen; the "Opening Theme", which is played when the party crosses the bridge early in the game and later referred to as the Final Fantasy theme; and the "Victory Fanfare", which is played after every victorious battle. The opening motif
Motif (music)
In music, a motif or motive is a short musical idea, a salient recurring figure, musical fragment or succession of notes that has some special importance in or is characteristic of a composition....
of the battle theme has also been reused a number of times in the series.
Versions and re-releases
Final Fantasy has been remade several times for different platforms, and has frequently been packaged with Final Fantasy IIFinal Fantasy II
is a fantasy role-playing video game developed and published by Square in 1988 for the Family Computer as the second installment of the Final Fantasy series. The game has received numerous enhanced remakes for the WonderSwan Color, the Sony PlayStation, Japanese mobile phones, the Game Boy...
in various collections. While all of these remakes retain the same basic story and battle mechanics, various tweaks have been made in different areas, including graphics, sound, and specific game elements. The game was first re-released for the MSX2
MSX
MSX was the name of a standardized home computer architecture in the 1980s conceived by Kazuhiko Nishi, then Vice-president at Microsoft Japan and Director at ASCII Corporation...
system and was published by Micro Cabin
Micro Cabin
Micro Cabin Corporation was a Japan-based video game developer and publisher incorporated in 1982, who grew from the Ōyachi Electrics Microcomputer Club. Micro Cabin has developed/released games for the: 3D0, Dreamcast, Game Boy Color, MSX2, PC, PlayStation, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Saturn,...
in Japan in June 1989. It had access to almost three times as much storage space as the Famicom version, but suffered from problems not present in Nintendo's cartridge media, including noticeable loading times. There were also minor graphical upgrades, improved music tracks and sound effects. In 1994, Final Fantasy I•II, a compilation of Final Fantasy and Final Fantasy II, was launched for the Famicom. This version was only released in Japan and had very few graphical updates. The WonderSwan Color remake was released in Japan on December 9, 2000, and featured many new graphical changes. The 8-bit graphics of the original Famicom game were updated, battle scenes incorporated full background images, and character and enemy sprites
Sprite (computer graphics)
In computer graphics, a sprite is a two-dimensional image or animation that is integrated into a larger scene...
were re-drawn to look more like the ones from the Super Famicom
Super Nintendo Entertainment System
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System is a 16-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America, Europe, Australasia , and South America between 1990 and 1993. In Japan and Southeast Asia, the system is called the , or SFC for short...
Final Fantasy games.
In Japan, Final Fantasy and Final Fantasy II were re-released both separately and as a combined game for the PlayStation. The collection was released in Japan in 2002 as Final Fantasy I & II Premium Package and in PAL and North America in 2003 as Final Fantasy Origins. This version was similar to the WonderSwan Color remake, and featured several changes, such as more detailed graphics, a remixed soundtrack, added full motion video
Full motion video
Full motion video based games are video games that rely upon pre-recorded TV-quality movie or animation rather than sprites, vectors, or 3D models to display action in the game. In the early 1990s a diverse set of games utilized this format...
sequences, and art galleries of Yoshitaka Amano
Yoshitaka Amano
is a Japanese artist. He began his career as an animator and has become known for his illustrations for the anime Vampire Hunter D and for his character designs, image illustrations and title logo designs for the Final Fantasy video game series developed by Square Enix . His influences include...
's illustrations. Final Fantasy I & II: Dawn of Souls is, like Final Fantasy Origins, a port of the first two games in the series for the Game Boy Advance
Game Boy Advance
The is a 32-bit handheld video game console developed, manufactured, and marketed by Nintendo. It is the successor to the Game Boy Color. It was released in Japan on March 21, 2001; in North America on June 11, 2001; in Australia and Europe on June 22, 2001; and in the People's Republic of China...
in 2004. The Dawn of Souls version incorporates various new elements, including four additional dungeons, an updated bestiary, and a few tweaks.
Square Enix released a version of Final Fantasy for two Japanese mobile phone
Mobile phone
A mobile phone is a device which can make and receive telephone calls over a radio link whilst moving around a wide geographic area. It does so by connecting to a cellular network provided by a mobile network operator...
networks in 2004; a version for NTT docomo
NTT DoCoMo
is the predominant mobile phone operator in Japan. The name is officially an abbreviation of the phrase, "do communications over the mobile network", and is also from a compound word dokomo, meaning "everywhere" in Japanese. Docomo provides phone, video phone , i-mode , and mail services...
FOMA
Freedom of Mobile Multimedia Access
Freedom of Mobile Multimedia Access is the brand name of the W-CDMA-based 3G telecommunications services being offered by the Japanese telecommunications service provider NTT DoCoMo...
900i series was launched in March under the title Final Fantasy i, and a subsequent release for CDMA 1X WIN
CDMA2000
CDMA2000 is a family of 3G mobile technology standards, which use CDMA channel access, to send voice, data, and signaling data between mobile phones and cell sites. The set of standards includes: CDMA2000 1X, CDMA2000 EV-DO Rev. 0, CDMA2000 EV-DO Rev. A, and CDMA2000 EV-DO Rev. B...
-compatible phones was launched in August. Another titular version was released for SoftBank
SoftBank
is a Japanese telecommunications and internet corporation, with operations in broadband, fixed-line telecommunications, e-Commerce, Internet, broadmedia, technology services, finance, media and marketing, and other businesses....
Yahoo! Keitai
Yahoo!
Yahoo! Inc. is an American multinational internet corporation headquartered in Sunnyvale, California, United States. The company is perhaps best known for its web portal, search engine , Yahoo! Directory, Yahoo! Mail, Yahoo! News, Yahoo! Groups, Yahoo! Answers, advertising, online mapping ,...
phones on July 3, 2006. Graphically, the games are superior to the original 8-bit game, but not as advanced as many of the more recent console and handheld ports. Square Enix planned to release this version of the game for North American mobile phones sometime in 2006, but this did not happen until 2010, with help from Namco. For the 20th anniversary of Final Fantasy, Square Enix remade Final Fantasy and Final Fantasy II for the PlayStation Portable
PlayStation Portable
The is a handheld game console manufactured and marketed by Sony Corporation Development of the console was announced during E3 2003, and it was unveiled on , 2004, at a Sony press conference before E3 2004...
. The games were released in Japan and North America in 2007, and in PAL territories in 2008. The PSP version features higher-resolution 2D graphics, full motion video sequences, a remixed soundtrack, and a new dungeon as well as the bonus dungeons from Dawn of Souls. The script is the same as in the Dawn of Souls version, aside from the new dungeon.
Square Enix released the original NES version of the game on the Wii
Wii
The Wii is a home video game console released by Nintendo on November 19, 2006. As a seventh-generation console, the Wii primarily competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3. Nintendo states that its console targets a broader demographic than that of the two others...
's Virtual Console
Virtual console
A virtual console – also known as a virtual terminal – is a conceptual combination of the keyboard and display for a computer user interface. It is a feature of some operating systems such as UnixWare, Linux, and BSD, in which the system console of the computer can be used to switch between...
service in Japan on May 26, 2009, in North America on October 5, 2009 and in the PAL region as an import on May 7, 2010. On February 25, 2010, Square Enix released the iOS version of Final Fantasy, based on the PSP port with touch controls, worldwide.
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...
collaborated with Namco
Namco
is a Japanese corporation best known as a former video game developer and publisher. Following a merger with Bandai in September 2005, the two companies' game production assets were spun off into Namco Bandai Games on March 31, 2006. Namco Ltd. was re-established to continue domestic operation of...
to release a mobile version of Final Fantasy that is made available globally. The mobile version retains the same game difficulty and MP System from the original Famicom version but the rest of the game elements is borrowed from the Game Boy Advance
Game Boy Advance
The is a 32-bit handheld video game console developed, manufactured, and marketed by Nintendo. It is the successor to the Game Boy Color. It was released in Japan on March 21, 2001; in North America on June 11, 2001; in Australia and Europe on June 22, 2001; and in the People's Republic of China...
/ Wonderswan Color version such as updated graphics, spell names, monster names, bosses, items and areas (but this version does not feature additional areas and monsters present in the GBA version). Saving a game data is done like in the original Famicom version (by using Tent, Sleeping Bag and Cottage or by going into an inn) but there are now 3 save game slots and a "Temporary Save" option available in the game.
Reception
Final Fantasy has been well-received by critics and commercially successful; the original release sold 400,000 copies. As of March 31, 2003, the game, including all re-releases at the time, had shipped 1.99 million copies worldwide, with 1.21 million of those copies being shipped in Japan and 780,000 abroad. As of November 19, 2007, the PlayStation Portable version has shipped 140,000 copies. In March 2006, Final Fantasy appeared in the Japanese magazine FamitsuFamitsu
is a line of Japanese video game magazines published by Enterbrain, Inc. and Tokuma. Currently, there are five Famitsū magazines: Shūkan Famitsū, Famitsū PS3 + PSP, Famitsū Xbox 360, Famitsū Wii+DS, and Famitsū Wave DVD...
s Top 100 games list, where readers voted it the 63rd best game of all time. GameFAQs
GameFAQs
GameFAQs is a website that hosts FAQs and walkthroughs for video games. It was created in November 1995 by Jeff "CJayC" Veasey and was bought by CNET Networks in May 2003. It is currently owned by CBS Interactive. The site has a database of video game information, cheat codes, reviews, game saves,...
users made a similar list in 2005, which ranked Final Fantasy at 76th. It was rated the 49th best game made on a Nintendo system in Nintendo Power
Nintendo Power
Nintendo Power magazine is a monthly news and strategy magazine formerly published in-house by Nintendo of America, but now run independently. As of issue #222 , Nintendo contracted publishing duties to Future US, the U.S. subsidiary of British publisher Future.The first issue published was...
s Top 200 Games list. In August 2008, Nintendo Power ranked it the 19th best Nintendo Entertainment System
Nintendo Entertainment System
The Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987...
video game, praising it for setting up the basics of console role-playing games along with Dragon Warrior
Dragon Warrior
Dragon Warrior, known as in Japan, is the first role-playing video game in the Dragon Quest media franchise. It was developed by Chunsoft for the Nintendo Entertainment System and published by Enix in Japan in 1986...
, and citing examples such as epic stories, leveling up, random battles, and character classes. Editors at IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
ranked Final Fantasy the 11th-best game on the console, calling the game's class system diverse, and praising its convenient use of vehicles as a means of traveling across the world map.
Final Fantasy was one of the most influential early console role-playing games, and played a major role in legitimizing and popularizing the genre. According to IGN's Matt Casamassina
Matt Casamassina
Matt Casamassina is a video game journalist who worked for IGN until April 23, 2010. In his time at the site, he was the author of many reviews and previews of Nintendo games. He resides in Los Angeles, California, is married and has two daughters, Zoe and Fiona Jade, and a son named Rocco Archer...
, Final Fantasys storyline had a deeper and more engaging story than the original Dragon Quest
Dragon Warrior
Dragon Warrior, known as in Japan, is the first role-playing video game in the Dragon Quest media franchise. It was developed by Chunsoft for the Nintendo Entertainment System and published by Enix in Japan in 1986...
(known as Dragon Warrior in North America). Many modern critics have pointed out that the game is poorly paced by contemporary standards, and involves much more time wandering in search of random battle encounters
Random encounter
A random encounter is a feature commonly used in various role-playing games whereby encounters with non-player character enemies or other dangers occur sporadically and at random...
to raise their experience levels and money than it does exploring and solving puzzles. Other reviewers find the level-building and exploration portions of the game as the most amusing ones. The game is also considered by many as the weakest and most difficult installment of the series. In 1987, Famitsu initially described the original Final Fantasy as "one of many" that imitated the Dragon Quest formula.
The subsequent versions of Final Fantasy have garnered mostly favorable reviews from the media. Peer Schneider of IGN enjoyed the WonderSwan Color version, praising its graphical improvements, especially the environments, characters, and monsters. Final Fantasy Origins was generally well-received; GamePro
GamePro
GamePro Media was a United States gaming media company publishing online and print content on the video game industry, video game hardware, and video game software developed for a video game console , a computer, and/or a mobile device . GamePro Media properties include GamePro magazine and...
said the music was "fantastic", and that the graphics had a "suitably retro cuteness to them". Reviews for Final Fantasy I & II: Dawn of Souls were generally positive, with Jeremy Dunham of IGN giving particular praise to the improved English translation, saying it was better than any previous version of the game. The PlayStation Portable version was not as critically successful as the previous releases; GameSpot
GameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
's Kevin VanOrd cited the visuals as its strongest enhancement, but stated that the additional random enemy encounters and updated graphics did not add much value. The Dawn of Souls package was rated 76th in Nintendo Powers Top 200 Games list.
Legacy
The theme song that plays when the player characters first cross the bridge from Coneria has become the recurring theme music of the series, and has been featured in most numbered Final Fantasy titles except Final Fantasy II, Final Fantasy X, and Final Fantasy XIII. Final Fantasy was also the basis for the series finale of a video game-themed cartoon series Captain N: The Game MasterCaptain N: The Game Master
Captain N: The Game Master was an American animated television series that aired on television from 1989 to 1991 as part of the Saturday morning cartoon lineup on NBC. The show incorporated elements from many of the most popular Nintendo games of the time...
entitled "The Fractured Fantasy of Captain N". 8-Bit Theater
8-Bit Theater
8-Bit Theater is a completed sprite comic created by Brian Clevinger, and published in 1,225 episodes from March 2, 2001 to June 1, 2010. One of the most popular web comics, it won the Web Cartoonists' Choice Awards for best fantasy comic in 2002...
, a sprite
Sprite (computer graphics)
In computer graphics, a sprite is a two-dimensional image or animation that is integrated into a larger scene...
-based webcomic
Webcomic
Webcomics, online comics, or Internet comics are comics published on a website. While many are published exclusively on the web, others are also published in magazines, newspapers or often in self-published books....
created by Brian Clevinger
Brian Clevinger
Brian Clevinger is an American writer best known as the author of the webcomic 8-Bit Theater and the Eisner-nominated print comic Atomic Robo...
parodying the game, has become very popular in the gaming community since it started in March 2001.
Warrior of Light, based on Yoshitaka Amano
Yoshitaka Amano
is a Japanese artist. He began his career as an animator and has become known for his illustrations for the anime Vampire Hunter D and for his character designs, image illustrations and title logo designs for the Final Fantasy video game series developed by Square Enix . His influences include...
's design of the lead character, and Garland are the respective hero and villain representing Final Fantasy in Dissidia: Final Fantasy
Dissidia: Final Fantasy
is an action RPG/fighting game developed and published by Square Enix for the PlayStation Portable as part of the campaign of the Final Fantasy series 20th anniversary. Information on the game was first released during the "Square Enix Party" event of May 2008...
. Warrior of Light is voiced by Toshihiko Seki
Toshihiko Seki
is a Japanese voice actor and member of 81 Produce. Apart from voice actor work, Seki sometimes does live action drama stage work. He is sometimes mistaken for another voice actor, Tomokazu Seki, sharing the same last name but are unrelated.-Person/Career:...
in the Japanese version and Grant George in the English version, while Garland is voiced by Kenji Utsumi
Kenji Utsumi
is a Japanese voice actor and actor from Kitakyūshū, affiliated with the self-founded Ken Production. He is married to fellow voice actress Michiko Nomura....
in the Japanese version and Christopher Sabat
Christopher Sabat
Christopher Robin Sabat is an American voice actor, ADR Director, and Line Producer. He has provided voices for a number of English language versions of Japanese anime films and television series, as well as video games...
in the English version. In Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy
Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy
is a 2011 fighting game published by Square Enix for the PlayStation Portable as part of the Final Fantasy series. It was developed by the company's 1st Production Department...
, the world where Final Fantasy takes place is named World A and is revealed to be where Cid, Chaos, and Cosmos all originated from. This possibly means that a both games are prequels to first game and other (independent) games in this series.