Something went wrong. Try again later

ATD88

All Octopath, all the time.

19 0 10 2
Forum Posts Wiki Points Following Followers

Final Fantasy: When The Series Went Off The Beaten Path

Yes, I love Final Fantasy. So do millions of gamers around the world. While it was a classic example of the "JRPG" genre/subgenre in it's first ten numbered entries, it's never been a series to shy away from taking chances. From tiny mechanics thrown in to make every game "feel" different from the previous, to major shake ups in how everything worked, we're take a look at where Squaresoft/Square/Square-Enix decided to branch out and and explore with the Final Fantasy Brand.

List items

  • Change: Strategy RPG

    While previous entries in the series were a strictly turn based RPG affair, Square came out and took their chance in the strategy RPG genre. Gone were the strictly 3-4 person parties with a pool of predetermined party members. Gone was the practice of just hitting enemies with a fighter's sword/exploiting an elemental weakness with your black mage/healing with your white mage.

    Tactics took everything from the SRPG landscape and melded it with the Final Fantasy recipe. Job class? Check. Chocobos? Check. Classic Final Fantasy summons? Check. It was very likely that Tactics could have crashed and burned, only to be known as a blemish on the Final Fantasy name. Instead, it's lauded as one of the finest strategy RPGS and games in the Final Fantasy series. It was even loved enough to spawn two sequels, that while unrelated story-wise, continue with the blueprint laid out in the first game in the subseries.

  • Change: Direct Sequel, Action Focus

    Across ten numbered entries spanning fourteen years, every Final Fantasy game was largely independent from each other story wise. You had the typical mythos, character numbers, and mechanics that made every game feel exactly like a Final Fantasy game. However, when the credits rolled, the story was over with the next entry bringing about a new cast, setting, and tale to tell.

    Everything changed when Final Fantasy X-2 was announced. It was the first direct sequel in the entire series and it was huge news. For the first time, characters returned and a story was followed up on. Most people may not have been fond in the way the story unfolded (taking a turn to Charlie's Angels territory), but it was strange to be in familiar territory in a new game.

    It was also here where I feel like a lot of the action orientated focus of the series began that we're seeing in games like Final Fantasy XIII, Type-0, and XV/Episode Duscae. X-2 still had the traditional turn based, ATB system that the series was known for, it introduced a lot of instances that could be described as action-like. From the Gunner's "Trigger Happy" move requiring you to pull the trigger on your gun with R1, to being able to jump and climb the scenery. Also, the focus on "missions" in the areas you explored, it all started here. Looking back, it's hard not to see what direction Square ultimately decided to go in with the series in retrospect. Honestly, it makes X-2 a lot more important in the scope of the franchise outside of being the first direct sequel.

  • Change: Massively Multiplayer Online RPG

    Everytime you fired up a Final Fantasy game, whether VI on the Super Nintendo, VII on the Playstation, or X on the Playstation 2, it was always a single player experience. Needless to say, it was met with a lot of skepticism when it was announced that the follow up to the fantastic Final Fantasy X would be.... a massively multiple online RPG. Not only was this a complete change of pace from everything every previous game had been, it was also a huge undertaking for a company without much prior experience handling a game of such scope. There's no denying that Square hit it out of the park, though. XI has enjoyed success and longevity in a genre that many games struggle to keep subscribers and stay afloat. As a matter of fact, XI has been going strong for thirteen, going on fourteen, years. While it has been announced that the final content update is coming, Square will still maintain and keep their servers up for the people still playing. The success was so great that Final Fantasy XIV followed in XI's footsteps as a dedicated, MMORPG.

  • Change: Job Class System

    The first game in the series allowed you to create your party from a pool of, well, jobs, but you were largely locked into these choices for the duration of the game. Sure, later on in the game you had the chance to "upgrade" your party, but your fighter was essentially still a fighter, your black mage still pretty much a black mage. III introduced us to the job class that has followed suite in many following games in the series (V, Tactics and it's sequels, XI, XIV to name a few) and has been loved by the players. No longer were you locked into your class choices. Tired of having a fighter? No problem, change him into a black mage and nuke away. It at times completely changed how you approached enemies and the game itself. No two players Luneth's would always be alike, nor would their game itself.

  • Change: Overarching Shared Universe

    Ask most Final Fantasy fans what was the first game in the series they played, and you'll get ALOT of answers of "Final Fantasy VII". To be fair, it was the first entry to truly go mainstream, as well as the first to enter the realm of 3D graphics. It's the reason why most talks of sequels and remakes all circle back to VII. In response to the love for the world, character, and lore of VII, Square decided to elaborate upon what the game established when they announced the Compilation of Final Fantasy VII.

    While never having a direct sequel to Cloud's tale in playable form, we were treated to side stories (Vincent with Dirge of Cerberus), prequels (Before Crisis and Crisis Core), and a CGI movie sequel to VII's story (Advent Children). While never scratching the itch fans had for a true sequel or remake of the game that started it all, it allowed fans to see so much more of the mythos of the world Cloud and company lived in. We actually saw the influence the Compilation of Final Fantasy VII had further down the line in the series with similar shared universes in the "Invalice Alliance" as well as the ongoing "Fabula Nova Crystallis" subseries.

  • Change: Open World

    Even though Final Fantasy XV is not out yet, we were recently treated to a taste of it with the Episode Duscae demo. It cannot be ignored how long XV has been in development and how many changes the game has gone through. One thing that is evident in the demo is the feeling of having a much larger, open world to explore. It's not to say XV is a sandbox or "go anywhere, do anything" type of open world, like an Elder Scrolls game. Not at all. But it's apparent within the first five minutes that the wold at your fingertips is in fact very open to exploration and the ability to tackle quests however you want, in whatever order you want. If Final Fantasy XIII was too linear, then XV seems to be the answer for that.
Load Comments