Final Fantasy was released in Japan for the Famicom before making its way to the NES in North America in 1990. Initially planned as a one-and-done situation, the series quickly rose to become Square's flagship title. It is now sixteen Final Fantasy mainstays, including spinoffs and sequels in all kinds of media, and things aren't slowing down anytime soon.
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It's also probably the most played Japanese RPG series in the entire world, or at least one of the biggest. As things approach its 40th anniversary, let's take a look at the gaming innovations that helped shape Final Fantasy series and find out where it goes next.
Rearrange the cases in the correct US release order.
Start
Rearrange the cases in the correct US release order.
Light (5)Medium (7)Hard (10)
Mini games (with wide capacity)
From Sliders to Blitzball
Believe it or not, minigames were part of the original game. IN Final Fantasyplayers could patch in a code while on their ship to play a slider. Although maybe it wasn't exactly a minigame Final Fantasy the fans would come to know and love, the DNA was there from the start.
All fans have their favorites from Blitzball in Final Fantasy 10 to Chocobo Racing in Final Fantasy 7 that they would love to enjoy in a spinoff game. More than side missions, mini-games allow players to take a break from the usual turn-based and action-based combat routines and give them a glimpse into the creativity of the development team.
Chocobo Riding
Whoah!
Chocobos were introduced in Final Fantasy 2one of the black sheep of the family, which didn't affect the franchise as a whole and instead inspired another series to blossom within Square: Fairy tale. Players could ride the Chocobo safely across the world map as a mode of transportation, which has remained a staple in most of the main games.
Their implementation changes between games, some more than others, as in Final Fantasy 9where players only get one Chocobo that they evolve through a mini-game called Chocobo Hot and Cold. IN Final Fantasy 7players could capture and breed them to create special Chocobos that could access secret areas on the world map. Chocobos even became somewhat of a mascot for the series, appearing in several spin-offs from Chocobo Racing on PS1 to Chocobo's Mystery Dungeonalso on PS1.
The job system
An interchangeable class system
Technically, there was a class system, called Jobs, in the first one Final Fantasy. That said, once players made their party of four, their characters were stuck in those roles and only evolved once. The true Job system, as fans know it today, was introduced in Final Fantasy 3allowing players to switch between jobs once they've acquired them.
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Surprisingly, Jobs is rarely featured in the mainline games and is instead a major part of spinoffs, e.g. Final Fantasy Tactics and Strangers of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin. Jobs has also made his way into other Square Enix games, such as Octopath Traveler and Bravely Defaultso they are not even exclusive to Final Fantasybut more like an identity within Square Enix.
Calling
Relying on the gods
The jobs differ depending on which version of Final Fantasy 3 players enjoy, but in the original NES version, players can be an Evoker, Summoner, or Sage to summon powerful creatures called Summons. Summons and the Summoner Job became a huge part of the series, not only in terms of gameplay, but in story implementation. IN Final Fantasy 10they were called Aeons, and when Yuna summoned an Aeon in battle, they acted as a temporary party member until they either died or were dismissed.
In the last main post, Final Fantasy 16they were called Eikons, and certain individuals, known as Dominants, could call upon their power and transform into their avatars. There are many recurring summons such as Ramuh, Shiva and Ifrit, but some entries also get quite creative with creatures that rarely appear, such as Doomtrain and Brothers from Final Fantasy 8.
Limit Breaks
One last shot
The idea of Limit Breaks was first introduced in Final Fantasy 6which was called a Desperation Attack. Players had a rare chance to summon them based on HP levels, and even then they probably never saw or used them. This combat mechanic would continue to make an impact Final Fantasy 7which is where the term “Limit Break” was first used.
By taking damage in battle, players could build up a meter that, when full, allowed players to unleash powerful attacks that evolved with each character over time. Most Final Fantasy games have Limit Breaks of some kind after this Final Fantasy 9s Trances, or Final Fantasy 10's Overdrives. And with Final Fantasy 7 remakes, many of the Limit Break attacks from the original were converted into weapon skills such as Cloud's Braver and Blade Burst.
Weapon Upgrade/Tinkering
Get more out of your equipment
For the first six Final Fantasy game, gear was just gear, but it evolved into Final Fantasy 7. Armor and weapons had slots that players could put Materia into, that game's form of magic, which could affect stats and how spells worked as well. In it Final Fantasy 7 remakes, there were still Materia slots, but players could also level up weapons to upgrade stats and even learn abilities, like Cloud's aforementioned Limit Break move.
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IN Final Fantasy 9armor and weapons carried abilities with them that allow certain characters to learn active and passive skills and spells. Any RPG that treats gear as more than just an item to collect can largely thank you Final Fantasy to always try to develop the concept.
Card game
A very specific type of minigame
If there's one minigame that has endured and evolved, it's the card games. The first big idea was introduced Final Fantasy 8which was called the Triple Triad. Players could collect cards in various ways to challenge other characters to matches. Final Fantasy 9 got Tetra Master, and both Tetra Master and Triple Triad have been in MMOs Final Fantasy 11 and Final Fantasy 14respective.
It wouldn't be until Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth that a new card game would enrich players' lives via Queen's Blood. All three card minigames play differently, but they are all beloved by certain factions of the fanbase, even going so far as to create standalone fan versions that Triple Triad: Tournament of the Elements.
Non-turn-based systems (for the main games)
Ease into action
Although the game mechanics were changed from Final Fantasy to Final Fantasy 10each mainline post used turn-based combat systems. Final Fantasy 11 is the first game to change all that, using the traditional autobattle attacks found in other MMOs. Players could target enemies and then use skills and spells that ran on a cooldown meter, which was also used in Final Fantasy 12 and Final Fantasy 14 to varying degrees.
This change in pace could largely be noted as the gateway mechanic that led to the action systems for Final Fantasy 15, Final Fantasy 16and the ongoing Final Fantasy 7 remakes. Technically, there were real-time combat systems before this, like in Final Fantasy Adventurebut that spinoff was actually part of Mana series retroactively. It's hard to say about a main line Final Fantasy will ever be turn-based again, as real-time combat is also indicative of changing tastes in the RPG genre as a whole.
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