Flight of Fantasy - Part 2

Final Fantasy VII

• Original System: Sony PlayStation
• Original release: January 31st, 1997
• Other versions: Microsoft Windows

Writing about Final Fantasy VII is a bit like pissing in a river. No matter how lengthy, colourful, perspicacious or novel your contribution, it will never make much difference to such a free-flowing stream.

The reason for the flood of appraisal and interminable revisiting the game enjoys (unprecedented for a videogame not yet 10-years-old) is easily quantifiable by its record-breaking statistics: 10 million sales to date across all continents (this was the first true Final Fantasy game to be released in Europe) make this the best selling game in the series. It was delivered on three CDs stuffed with 330 CG maps and 40 minutes of Full Motion Video representing over two years work by over 100 full-time team members at a cost of over $45 million. This was a game on an unimagined scale for the toddling PlayStation generation.

From the opening movie's zoom out from a flower-selling girl's melancholy eyes up to a phoenix-eye view of the puffing cityscape of Midgar unfurling below, through to the first playable scenes in which the player becomes complicit in a terrorist attack to bring down the corporation Shinra, its ambition is still apparent today. The CGI backgrounds, polygonal characters and FMV cut-scenes seemed at the time to be as evolutionarily advanced from sprites and parallax scrolling as men are to eels.

Of course, today, with the benefit of hindsight we were too perhaps swift in our hyperbole. The awkward shifts from in-game graphics to FMV - many of which were disastrously inconsistent in their representation of the characters - were jarring and the game lacks some of the coherency and expression of the earlier games' more refined but simpler graphics.

But the strength of the narrative maintained the series' advancing curve of maturity and revolved around various juicy ethical and ecological dilemmas. Crucially for the success of the game, this plot topography was filled by what were undoubtedly some of the most iconic videogame characters yet seen. From Cloud to Aeris to Barret to Sephiroth each protagonist fitted perfectly with its adjacent antagonist in what was, looking back on it today, a triumph of ensemble jigsaw cast creation. That many of these characters went on to feature in other Squaresoft games says much.

Final Fantasy VII.

But the game's true legacy is arguably even more important than its creative detail. Late in the 16-bit generation Squaresoft showcased an interactive SGI tech demo of their new polygonal Final Fantasy game to fans. It was assumed that the series would continue happily on Nintendo hardware but from the work that followed this demo it quickly transpired that Squaresoft's CGI ambition outstripped traditional cartridge-based media. Nintendo's refusal to move away from carts (they argued at the time that disc loading times ruined the flow of a gamer's experience - an line of reasoning still fighting fit in today's handheld wars) forced Squaresoft into Sony's open arms. Final Fantasy VII's ensuing high-profile success (and that of all the Squaresoft games that followed) had huge significance in the 32-bit console wars and it's certainly not beyond the realms of reason that the game was pivotal in shaping the industry we see today.

Fans have long cried for a re-release on more able hardware and at the 2005 E3 show a tech demo showing the opening FMV rendered fully in a PS3 engine made fan's jaws hang loose. However, a swift press statement from Squaresoft that no remake was in development dampened hopes while not exactly extinguishing them.

Final Fantasy VIII

• Original System: Sony PlayStation
• Original release: February 11th, 1999
• Other versions: Microsoft Windows

It's something most genres of videogames have tried at some point when the technology eventually allowed for it. Final Fantasy VIII was the series' first attempt at realism in the form of traditionally proportioned characters, a real-world setting of a high-school and an obvious and calculating targeting of the Japanese teen demographic with an emo teenage lead, Squall Leonhart, his frat-esque companion Zell Dincht and a raft of flanking simpering girls. Perhaps as a result of this canny character design, setting and development, the game was an enormous financial success, especially in America where it earned Squaresoft over $50 million in just 13 weeks.

Final Fantasy VIII.

Underneath the cosmetic surgery the game stuck to the series' traditional themes with the team of protagonists (some of whom are orphans) on a course to rid their world of the threat from the evil and politically dominant sorceress Edea. A controversial new levelling system was implemented which had the player link characters to summon monsters (here called Guardian Forces) in order to open up moves. Revisiting the game today the system quickly reveals itself to be horribly over-complicated and inaccessible, a fact testified by the swift removal of all its inventions from subsequent titles in the series.

Producer Hironobu Sakaguchi took a back seat for this game as he began to focus his attention on Hollywood and the creation of Squaresoft's ill-fated feature film Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within. Meanwhile, the game's team chased their sky-high ambitions, trying to outdo the prior game in scope by, at one point, literally taking the characters into space.

Despite this the game received mixed reviews from fans and critics alike ranging from those displeased with the over-complex battle system to those transfixed by what they saw as the second coming of the JRPG saviour. One element that did enjoy universal appraisal was the FMV sections, which ironed out many of the quirks of inconsistency present in Final Fantasy VII's equivalent sections. Indeed, these sequences were a real showcase for Squaresoft's CG talent and were regarded as some of the most impressive examples of this kind of work in any medium coming out of Japan at the time.

Nevertheless, the test of time - that one test under which hyperbole and infatuation crumble ­- has shown the eighth game in the series to be far less iconic and enduring than its predecessor. While casual fans would be able to list most of the former game's characters, most would struggle to name check Quitsis, Selhpie and Irvine so fast; a testament to how difficult creating enduring characters can be. The game's legacy of more realistic character design and J-pop teenage dramatics would reappear in Final Fantasy X, but it's telling that there has been no mass petition for a remake of this game.

Eurogamer review (PC version)

Final Fantasy IX

• Original System: Sony PlayStation
• Original release: July 7th, 2000
• Other versions: N/A

Three diversions - two into steam punk and one into high-school soap opera - was enough to see some sections of Final fandom clamouring for the series to return to simpler days of castles, knights, wide eyes and tights. Final Fantasy IX delivered: one wink and a nudge short of parody, the game skilfully walked a tightrope of pastiche to uncover what was clearly the spiritual successor to the very first Final Fantasy Famicom games.

Those disillusioned by the series' recent courting of mainstream and overly serious sensibilities were delighted by a game that featured more light-hearted scenarios and super-deformed characters. Initially Squaresoft had been concerned that such a visual and conceptual break from the previous games might alienate the millions of new fans and planned to have the game released as a separate title to the main lineage. In the end the decision was made to make the game the official 9th title in the series, but nevertheless the game didn't sell as well as either of the preceding games in any territory.

One of the most loved aspects of Final Fantasy IX is its score, the last Final Fantasy soundtrack to be composed exclusively by Nobuo Uematsu. It was to be his most prolific title featuring 110 separate pieces of music and, when Uematsu was last in the UK, he admitted to Eurogamer that this is his favourite soundtrack in the series.

Final Fantasy IX.

Conversely, the game's card-based mini-game, a variation on Final Fantasy VIII's largely successful Triple Triad, was less well received. Barely explained, the complex battling game hid most of its rules and granted hardly any reward to the diligent player who unlocked its tightly clutched secrets.

Many of the more gameplay friendly innovations of the game, such as the "field icon" exclamation mark (which appeared over the lead character's head signalling a nearby item or sign) have been carried over into the new Final Fantasy XII game along with some plot echoes (such as the breach of a castle in the opening sections of both games). The game also deviates from the openly customisable character options of the previous two titles and returns to a job system strictly allocating characters to certain job tasks. Today Final Fantasy IX retains a lot of its charm and, thanks to its shunning of realism, has arguably aesthetically aged the best of the PSone titles. The likeable and enduring characters, especially the diminutive Black mage Vivi, make this an enjoyable revisit for the contemporary player.

Final Fantasy X

• Original System: Sony PlayStation 2
• Original release: July 19th, 2001
• Other versions: N/A

While not nearly as noticeable as the transition from Super Nintendo to PlayStation, Final Fantasy's debut on the PlayStation 2 saw the series' environments shift from pre-rendered backdrops to fully 3D vistas and heard previously silent characters employ voice acting. Also for the first time in the history of the series, mainstream critics started to turn on the franchise. Reviewers, even if they didn't explicitly score the game harshly, reported growing tired of the game's continued use of convention and some cited the game's return to bubblegum teen drama as a primary turn-off. The fans, on the other hand, were mostly suitably enamoured ensuring that this game became the first PS2 title to reach sales totals of 2 million and 4 million copies. Even more recently, in Famitsu's infamous poll, readers voted this Final Fantasy as not only the best of the series, but also as the best videogame ever.

Final Fantasy X.

In game, the PS2's processing power allowed some workaround shortcuts from earlier games to be ditched. Most notably the world map (a miniature representation of the expansive areas between locations) disappeared with the areas between town and dungeon integrated stylistically. Also, the levelling system was given a massive overhaul removing the traditional pre-determined statistic bonuses through battle experience in favour of an open and customisable boardgame style development grid. This was a big shift for players used to orthodox JRPG levelling but its reappearance (albeit redesigned and redeveloped) in the newest Final Fantasy XII game testifies to its effectiveness. Also, the ATB system, now firmly established as the series' core battle mechanic, was dropped in favour of a CTB (Conditional Turn-based Battle) system. Essentially just a fancy way of redefining 'turn-based', the CTB system saw the order in which characters could take moves predetermined by their speed ability.

Final Fantasy X divides opinion even today. As one of the first and best-dressed epic adventure games on the PS2, it was certainly responsible for bringing a new generation of fans to the JRPG. The impressive visual innovations that allowed cut-scenes to be represented in game (with rendering of facial expressions on characters achieved through motion capture) helped ensure Final Fantasy and Squaresoft were at the forefront of pioneering RPG visuals. But, nonetheless, the obvious and unsubtle voice acting, moody, pouting teenage protagonist Tidus, linear storyline and slightly embarrassing future sports theme (one of your team is a 'Blitzball' player) alienated as many fans as the technical posing won.

Eurogamer review.

Final Fantasy XI

• Original System: Sony PlayStation 2
• Original release: May 16th, 2002
• Other versions: Microsoft Windows, Xbox 360

The decision to turn the next mainstream Final Fantasy release into an MMORPG (Massively Multi-Player Online RPG) was by far the bravest move Square made with the series. It was a bold choice that could have horribly backfired, as evidenced by the announcement's frosty reception from fans (especially in Japan where the MMORPG was far less popular than in the west at the time). However, as the trickle of game details turned into a tide, public opinion seemed to shift and gamers warmed to the idea of a sprawling fully functioning Final Fantasy theme park in which to sink a second life.

Final Fantasy XI.

In reality, the game predictably follows the template of MMORPGs far closer than it does that of Final Fantasys past. A kind of redressed Everquest featuring Chocobos, Moogles and FF character classes for decoration, the game took a violent but necessary diversion from the JRPG format.

Set in the world of Vana'Diel new players were assigned to one of 32 server worlds (each identical in form and function but enjoying its own user base of players) and charged with creating a character that could be viewed in either first or third perspective. From there players picked a character class (which could be changed at any time) and one of the four nations of Vana'Diel to be birthed in, before setting about carving out an existence within the expansive framework.

By January 2004 over a million characters were being played in the game and, prior to the release of World of Warcraft, Final Fantasy XI was the most popular and well-subscribed of all monthly paying MMORPGs.

The game was originally released for PS2 but required the expensive HDD add-on for it to work. As a result it was ported to the PC platform before, earlier this year finding its way onto the 360 making it the first ever cross platform MMORPG. The decision to bring the game to 360 was actually a canny one, despite its tardiness. Microsoft gained a quintessentially Japanese IP, something the company has traditionally struggled to attract while also presenting a genre long promised for the original Xbox but never delivered. For Square-Enix it helped reinvigorate a world which had recently lost many inhabitants to newer, brighter, younger universes, helping continue to provide revenue where other streams of income from similarly aged games have long since dried up.

In the face of new competition Final Fantasy XI is showing its age. It was never going to be the most accessible title in the series: players had to have that rarest combination of luxuries all MMORPGs require: an abundance of free time and the patience to wrestle with settling into a world of complicated terminology, in-knowledge and often disparaging or unhelpful higher-level players. However, the lessons learnt (especially those in the battle system) have clearly gone on to inform Final Fantasy XII and made it all the better a game for it. While perhaps it's a little too late to recommend launching a career in a world in the midst of its winter years, the series would have been all the poorer without it.

Eurogamer review.