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Final Fantasyas a serial publication has formally betray over 200 million written matter of its game . This is a monumental achievement for any franchise , and I admit that I ’ve emphatically contributed to that turn as a dedicatedFinal Fantasyplayer . The job is that the series as a whole is in an interesting locating at this clip . It used to be a leader and was experience for subverting expectation by trying raw things , but now that ’s no longer the case , since trying newfangled feature and other elements is increasingly vernacular , mean it no longer setsFinal Fantasyapart from other series .
The firstFinal Fantasywas issue in 1987 , and since then , we ’ve had a straggle inclination of games added to the serial , let in spinoffs and even two MMOs . While the games are numbered in sequence , they by and large are n’t connect to each other in terms of taradiddle , by from reappearing summons and characters , but some games have get under one’s skin subsequence or expansion forFFXIVas an MMO . Now , it feels likeFinal Fantasyis playing catch - up with other games as it endeavor to borrow feature we ’re used to instead of being the series that defines features to start with .
Final Fantasy’s Massive Success Was Driven By Originality
A Powerhouse In Gaming’s History
last Fantasyhassome of the most iconic game in the industry , particularlyFinal Fantasy 7and its remake trilogy , which swan the status of the serial as a innovator equal to of redefining what games can be . One feature that set the series aside — and did so especially in its early years — is the focus on the case and stories in each plot . Of course , it ’s more rough-cut for stories to take in a greater focus in modern game , butFinal Fantasyplayed a use in showing how video game can be a storytelling medium .
After get around to play the best game in the Final Fantasy series , I ’m have a knockout time revisit the FF game that first concern me .
EarlyFinal Fantasytitles were also oft ahead of other game in terms of graphics . It’samazing how good these games look on early scheme , and it often felt like the graphics in video games would never be better than what we take care inFF , only for that theme to be prove wrong with the next biz in the series . The developers in truth advertise the hardware of each system to its point of accumulation . NewFinal Fantasygames still look incredible , but the serial drop off its edge when it get to art because of how ripe technology has become across the industry .
We also saw avariety of fight systems used throughout the serial publication , showing thatFinal Fantasywasn’t afraid of trying young features and changing them up instead of bank on the original turn - based combat that was heavily used in the early game . I ca n’t say that every armed combat system the series try on was as fun as the others , but it ’s great when a series is n’t afraid of making changes , even if those change end up not sticking . It helped make each game feel like a fresh experience , because you did n’t always know what to await .
Recent Final Fantasy Games Have Borrowed More Than Invented
The Series Is Lagging Behind
Now , we ’re at a point where you see mechanics and features used in game outside theFinal Fantasyseries , and then see a variation of it set for anFFgame and included . The serial embraced a modernopen - world map inFinal Fantasy 15after open - earthly concern games soared in popularity . After franchises likeDevil May Cryrefined a special brand of conventionalize action scrap , FF16eventually embraced something similar . Themost unique plot in a while was likelyFF7 Remake , which swear heavily on a past labor .
I see an showing by Final Fantasy artist Yoshitaka Amano and I ’m not more confident than ever that the FF franchise would n’t live without him .
This is n’t an inherently bad strategy for a serial to take . It could be beneficial to see what go in other games , then try it in a way that fits with what the developers ' current projection needs to feel like a whole , smooth experience . However , it ’s not heavy for a serial that was known for being original andunafraid to try new approaches to game designto now become a follower of young gaming vogue instead . The problem is that the paradigm of the dealership is that of a trailblazer , so when it ’s not trailblazing , it ’s rather disappointing .
The Future Of Final Fantasy Depends On Trailblazing
Final Fantasy Needs To Return To Its Roots
Like many franchises have been doing , it might be prison term forFinal Fantasytoreturn to its roots so as to move forwardas a Jagannath of the play industry . In some way , contentedness is becoming moth-eaten , and that ’s going to touch the serial as a whole . TheFF7remake trilogy is likely doing a lot of work for the society , consider how much anticipation surrounded the task , but another great source of income for the series is in trouble , as players express that they just are n’t thrilled with the province of the biz . This is , of course , FFXIV .
standardized to much of the series overall , FFXIVupdates have fallen into a patternthat content follows in a direction that does n’t always fit the history . Since it ’s commercialize as a narration - first MMO , the pattern becoming stale even with new update is n’t a right sign . However , hold a plot with a monthly subscription and a real - money item shop is agreat way to keep a steadfast income for the serial , which could be reinvested into new projects , and that might be a way to advance team to try unexampled matter again and return to being a series that ’s a pioneer .
It ’s difficult in the current market to take the peril need to be a pioneer in the secret plan manufacture .
The trouble is that newFFgames and the ongoing MMOFFXIVaren’t in a place to fund projects that are n’t play it at least a little act safe when it comes to secret plan design to try and make a project . It ’s difficult to tell what the good path forward is for the serial publication away from more remakes of rooter - favorite games from the serial ' past times . That approachoffers some cadence of creativitywhen it comes to newfangled mechanics and lineament , but play it safe by using beloved world and characters .
The FInal Fantasy series is one of my deary . Something about them will always bring me back to my puerility . last Fantasy 6 is one that I have played over and over , up until the Final Fantasy 7 remaking add up out . Yoshinori Kitase has say that if Square Enix were to remake Final Fantasy 6 with the same amount of love and detail , it could take twenty days , which is not surprising to me at all give the story . I would absolutely play it twenty years from now . I can only conceive of how beautiful it would look and how much justice it would do the taradiddle . That say , I do love revisit FF6 in its original shape now and then , even if my kids make fun of me for the way the graphics look .
sell 200 million copies across the franchise is a milepost worth celebrating , but it also raises the question of where Final Fantasy goes from here . We do n’t see as much innovation in the series , even though that was once a hallmark of these plot , but it ’s difficult in the current market to take the endangerment needed to be a innovator in the biz industry . At the least , I hope that the developers and directors heed to players as they look toward the next milestone forFinal Fantasy , whatever that milestone might be .
Custom Image by Ben Brosofsky
