Final Fantasy

:This article is about the Final Fantasy series as a whole. For the video game Final Fantasy, see Final Fantasy (video game)

Overview

Square Co., Ltd. first entered the Japanese video game industry in the mid 1980s, developing a variety of simple RPGs for Nintendo's Famicom Disk System (FDS), a disk-based peripheral for the Family Computer (also known as the "Famicom," and known internationally as the Nintendo Entertainment System). By 1987, declining interest in the FDS had placed Square on the verge of declaring bankruptcy. At approximately the same time, Square designer Hironobu Sakaguchi began work on an ambitious new fantasy role playing game for the cartridge-based Famicom, inspired in part by Enix's popular Dragon Quest (known in the United States as Dragon Warrior). Hironobu Sakaguchi had plans to retire after the completion of the project so he named it Final Fantasy because it was his final game. Final Fantasy was also going to be SquareSofts final game and as a result, a half truth has been created over the origin of the word Final in the title. It's commonly believed it was named Final Fantasy because of Square and not Sakaguchi. Sakaguchi himself has confirmed it was named because he was retiring from the Game Industry. Far from being Square's or Sakaguchi's last game. Final Fantasy reversed Square's lagging fortunes, and became their flagship franchise.

Related Topics:
Video game industry - 1980s - Nintendo - Famicom Disk System - Peripheral - 1987 - Bankruptcy - Hironobu Sakaguchi - Enix - Dragon Quest - United States - Final Fantasy

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Following the success of the first game, Square quickly began work on a sequel. Unlike a typical sequel, Final Fantasy II featured entirely different characters, with a setting and story bearing only thematic similarities to its predecessor. This unusual approach to sequels has continued throughout the series, with each major Final Fantasy game introducing a new world, and a new system of gameplay. Many elements and themes would recur throughout the series, but there would be no direct sequels until the release of Final Fantasy X-2, in 2003. (After the merger with Enix however, real game sequels have become increasingly prevalent.) In a way, the Final Fantasy franchise has been a creative showcase for Square's developers, and many elements originally introduced in the series have made their way into Square's other titles, most notably two of its other major franchises, SaGa and Seiken Densetsu.

Related Topics:
Sequel - Final Fantasy II - Gameplay - Final Fantasy X-2 - 2003 - Merger - Enix - SaGa - Seiken Densetsu

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