Is Final Fantasy Type-0 a sequel to another game?
Final Fantasy Type-0 HD
During the production of "Final Fantasy Type-0", the development team explored the possibility of a high-definition port of the game. The idea never went beyond experimentation as the team was focused on keeping the game as a portable experience. The team also experimented with a sequel on eighth generation consoles, but production was halted when the development team were transferred to "Final Fantasy XV". After some time working on "XV", original director Hajime Tabata decided to develop "Type-0 HD" for eighth-generation consoles. The game began development in mid-2012, around the same time "XV" was shifted onto PlayStation 4 (PS4) and Xbox One. Tabata came on board in July of that year as director and producer, though his involvement was fairly minor due to his directing duties for "XV". The main development was handled by HexaDrive, who had previously collaborated successfully with Square Enix on "The 3rd Birthday", and had developed the high-definition remasters of "Ōkami" and "". The remaster was intended as an incentive for "Final Fantasy" players in both Japan and the west to purchase eighth generation consoles before "XV"s release. The original plan was for a port to both the seventh generation PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 consoles, and eighth generation consoles. After the PS4 proved popular at the 2013 Tokyo Game Show, and as Tabata had no development experience with seventh generation console hardware, the team focused on the eighth generation versions. According to art director Yusuke Naora, moving from the PlayStation Portable to eighth-generation hardware proved hard for the team. Despite early claims, no version of "Type-0 HD" was developed for the PlayStation Vita. According to Tabata, this was due to difficulties in porting between console and Vita development environments, and his wish for a playing experience he could only envision on home consoles.
Final Fantasy Type-0
An unofficial fan translation patch was announced in mid-2012. Work on the fan translation took place over the following two years, during which time Square Enix was noncommittal concerning an official Western release. The patch was initially announced for an August 2014 release, but was instead was released on June 9, 2014. According to the translation team leader, the patch was downloaded 100,000 times in the first four days. It was taken down in July of the same year after Square Enix allegedly threatened unspecified legal action, originally thought to be a cease-and-desist order. Later statements revealed that the patch was released earlier than originally announced due to the lead translator on the project wanting fans to see their achievements, which ended up causing a rift between him and the rest of the team. Before the release, Square Enix and the translation team had been in friendly communication concerning the translation. The formal requests to take the patch down were made in the weeks following its release, shortly before the announcement of "Type-0 HD". Work on the patch was eventually resumed and a second version, which included unofficial compatibility with the PlayStation 3 system and further translation bugfixes, was eventually released in 2015.
Final Fantasy Adventure
The game has been perceived very positively in the years following its initial release. GameDaily named it alongside the other Game Boy "Final Fantasy" titles as definitive games for the system, describing it as providing "hours of role-playing excitement, whether you were waiting in a dentist's office or on the way to Grandma's house." The sentiment was shared by gaming magazine "Pocket Games", which ranked the titles together 8th out of the Top 50 games for the Game Boy, stating "every game in the series is a sprawling classic with well written scripts and solid characters." Kotaku praised the original release of the game as a "really great action-RPG". 1UP.com called the game ambitious for its time, writing that it represented an evolution of the overhead perspective action adventure genre. They also rated the game as "Worth It!" in terms of buying and enjoying the original game in 2007, and noted it as the origins of the Mana series' many unique gameplay features. GamesRadar named it the 13th best Game Boy game ever made, noting that its interesting leveling system and large number of collectible items made up for a poor English translation. Game Informer also praised the game's leveling system, though it did call it a "simplistic" title in comparison to its sequels.
Fate/hollow ataraxia
Fate/hollow ataraxia is a 2005 PC visual novel video game developed by Type-Moon, and the sequel to "Fate/stay night". The word ataraxia in the title is a Greek term for tranquility, giving the title the combined meaning of "empty (or false) tranquility".
Final Fantasy Tactics
"Final Fantasy Tactics" saw several re-releases. "Final Fantasy Tactics" was re-released as part of the Square's Millennium Collection. This series of games was only released in Japan, and each title is bought with a set of related merchandise. "Final Fantasy Tactics" was sold on June 29, 2000 along with titles such as "Saga Frontier, Saga Frontier 2, Brave Fencer Musashi, Front Mission 3, Ehrgeiz" and "Legend of Mana".
Characters of the Final Fantasy Type-0 universe
After "Type-0"s release, Tabata resurrected his initial concept for a mobile game as the prequel "Agito". Hoshino became the title's art director. As with "Type-0", one of the areas she focused on was the female characters' underwear. The characters' facial animations were done using Silicon Studio's Motion Portrait middleware. For "Type-0 HD", the characters' original gameplay models were replaced with updated versions of the original cutscene models due to the latter's higher detail. Due to this higher detail, the cutscene models looked older than the gameplay models, so they needed adjustments to look more like the original models. Their appearances were also adjusted to look more "charming". The game's graphical upgrade was only partially done for the game's characters due to time constraints: while the main cast were given the most attention, secondary characters such as Kurasame received less work.
Kingsglaive: Final Fantasy XV
"Kingsglaive: Final Fantasy XV" forms part of the ""Final Fantasy XV" Universe", a multimedia project based around the 2016 video game "Final Fantasy XV" that includes the original net animation series "": the story of "XV", originally a spin-off title called "Final Fantasy Versus XIII", was large enough to have covered several games, but as the team did not want to create any additional games, they decided to create additional media. While similar in style to the "Compilation of Final Fantasy VII" project, the media associated with "Final Fantasy XV" came before the game's release rather than after it, acting as insight into the world and characters. "XV" and its associated media likewise hold a thematic connection to "Fabula Nova Crystallis Final Fantasy", a compilation of games and associated media sharing a common mythos while boasting unconnected stories and settings. While distanced from the "Fabula Nova Crystallis" brand for marketing purposes, the world of "XV" still uses its mythos and design elements. "Kingsglaive" was designed so it would not be necessary for people to watch to understand the main game. Despite this, references to the events of "Kingsglaive" were included in the game. Following the release of the game, director Hajime Tabata described "Kingsglaive" and "Brotherhood" as granting a better view of the game's world, adding that those who only played the game might notice the missing context.
Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy
Ideas for a sequel to "Dissidia Final Fantasy" were already conceived shortly after its release in Japan with creative producer Tetsuya Nomura wishing to feature Kain Highwind on it. Development of the game started in August 2009 shortly before the release of "Dissidia Final Fantasy Universal Tuning", the international version from the prequel. Director Mitsunori Takahashi stated the team wanted the sequel to have more changes than just new characters. This resulted in changes to gameplay features and the inclusion of new ones. The Assist feature was made to add more entertainment to the fights, as well as to act as a counterbalance to the EX Mode that was the strongest area from the first game. This was done in response to feedback commenting that the EX Mode was too powerful in the original game. The world map was created in order to appeal more the RPG fans. Returning characters had their movesets modified to provide the player with new strategies when fighting. One of the most revised ones was Firion due to feedback from players. Since the original "Dissidia" had a concrete conclusion, the staff decided to make its story a prequel and encourage players to revisit "Dissidia" once concluding it.
Characters of the Final Fantasy IV series
The game's 2008 sequel, "" is set seventeen years after "Final Fantasy IV" and includes most of the characters from the original game as well as introducing several new characters. The story of "The After Years" primarily revolves around Ceodore Harvey, the son of Cecil and Rosa. In 2011, a third game in the series was released. Set one year after "Final Fantasy IV" and sixteen years prior to "The After Years", "Final Fantasy IV Interlude", was released for the PlayStation Portable, and featured several of the original "Final Fantasy IV" protagonists.
Barkley 2
The game is a sequel to the studio's 2008 freeware title "Barkley, Shut Up and Jam: Gaiden", which itself was created as a fan game sequel to the 1994 basketball game "Barkley Shut Up and Jam!" and the film "Space Jam". The first game included players from the National Basketball Association (NBA), including Charles Barkley and LeBron James, and made many parodic references to popular culture. The game is styled after 16-bit era Japanese titles like the early games in the Final Fantasy series. The original was also turn-based whereas the sequel is an action RPG. "Barkley 2" is being developed using , the same creation kit that was used to create the first "Barkley" game. The developers announced on the Kickstarter campaign page that they anticipated a release in late 2013 or early 2014. A Tales of Game's staff member confirmed in an update to the campaign in late 2016 that their Kickstarter funds have been depleted, possibly meaning the game has fallen into development hell.
Final Fantasy Type-0
The story focuses on Class Zero, a group of fourteen students from the Vermillion Peristylium, a magical academy in the Dominion of Rubrum. When the Militesi Empire launches an assault on the other Crystal States of Orience, seeking to control their respective crystals, Class Zero is mobilized for the defense of Rubrum. Eventually, the group becomes entangled in the secrets behind both the war and the reason for their existence. The setting and presentation were inspired by historical documentaries, and the story itself was written to be darker than other "Final Fantasy" titles.
Music of the Final Fantasy series
"Final Fantasy X-2" (2003), was the first direct video game sequel to any "Final Fantasy" game. Despite having composed the majority of the soundtrack for "Final Fantasy X", Nobuo Uematsu did not contribute any music to the project. No tracks from "X" or other games in the series were used in the game. In an attempt to make a different style of music for the game than previous franchise titles, Square brought Noriko Matsueda and Takahito Eguchi on board to compose the music for "X-2", as the developers felt they were the "perfect fit" to incorporate a "pop" style into the music. The game includes two songs with vocalized elements, one of which, the J-Pop song "real Emotion", was written by Ken Kato and composed by Kazuhiro Hara. The other, J-Pop ballad "1000 Words", was written by scenario writers Kazushige Nojima and Daisuke Watanabe. Matsueda and Eguchi composed and arranged the track. Both songs were sung by Jade Villalon from Sweetbox in the English version of the game, and are available as bonus tracks on the Japanese release of her album "Adagio". In the Japanese version of the game both the songs were sung by Kumi Koda and were released as a single entitled "real Emotion/1000 no Kotoba". Koda also released her own English versions of the songs on her CD single "Come with Me", with slightly different versions of the lyrics than Jade. In addition to "Come with Me", the collection of music for "Final Fantasy X-2" includes the two-disc soundtrack album, a piano album, a soundtrack album for the "Final Fantasy X-2 International + Last Mission" version of the game, a single for the song "Eternity ~ Memory of Lightwaves", and a set of three singles themed around the three main characters of the game.
Final Fantasy Type-0
The main characters of "Final Fantasy Type-0" are Class Zero, an elite group of 14 students from the Vermillion Peristylium. The first 12 are card wielder Ace, flute wielder Deuce, the archer Trey, magic-gun wielder Cater, the mace-wielding Cinque, scythe wielder Sice, whip wielder Seven, martial artist Eight, spearman Nine, katana wielding Jack, swordswoman Queen and dual pistol wielding King. The last two, Machina Kunagiri and Rem Tokimiya, double as narrators and the focus for the game's main subplot. Supporting Class Zero are their mentor Kurasame Susaya, and Arecia Al-Rashia, Class Zero's former mentor and the overseer for magical development at the Vermillion Peristylium. Other important characters from Rubrum are Khalia Chival VI, the current leader of Rubrum and headmaster of the Vermillion Peristyrium, and the l'Cie Caetuna. Multiple Militesi figures, led by Marshal Cid Aulstyne, act as the game's main antagonists. Other important characters include the Concordian queen Andoria, Gala, leader of the Rursus Army and the instigator of Tempus Finis, and Joker and Tiz, two mysterious figures who observe the events of the game.
Characters of the Final Fantasy Type-0 universe
and are minor characters related to the lore of Orience. Gala is a servant of the deity Lindzei, he is the leader of the Lulusath Army: whenever the balance between Orience's nations is disrupted, he summons his army to slaughter the population. After Arecia abandons the experiment, he falls into a coma. He remains unnamed in the game, being referred to as "the Masked Man", but is named in the "Ultimania" guide book. Diva is the main narrator of "Final Fantasy Type-0". Like Arecia and Gala, she is a being created by the world's deities: her duty is to watch over the world and record the events of each cycle. Diva is voiced by Fleur Saville in English and Maaya Sakamoto in Japanese.
Final Fantasy X
The Japanese version of "Final Fantasy X" included an additional disc entitled "The Other Side of Final Fantasy", which featured interviews, storyboards, and trailers for "Blue Wing Blitz", "Kingdom Hearts", and "", as well as the first footage of "Final Fantasy XI". An international version of the game was released in Japan as "Final Fantasy X International" in January 2002, and in PAL regions under its original title. It features content not available in the original NTSC releases, including battles with "Dark" versions of the game's aeons and an airship fight with the superboss "Penance". The Japanese release of "Final Fantasy X International" also includes "Eternal Calm", a 14-minute video clip bridging the story of "Final Fantasy X" with that of its sequel, "Final Fantasy X-2". The video clip was included in a bonus DVD for "Unlimited Saga Collector's Edition" under the name "Eternal Calm, Final Fantasy X-2: Prologue". It was first released in Europe on October 31, 2003, and featured English voice-overs.
Final Fantasy X-2
Development of "Final Fantasy X-2" began in late 2001 in response to the success of "Final Fantasy X", particularly fan reaction to the "Eternal Calm" video included in the Japanese version of "Final Fantasy X International". It was released in Japan shortly before the merger between Square and Enix. The game's eventual name, "X-2", was initially not liked by the production team, but it was eventually accepted since the story was a direct continuation of "X" and thus could not be the next numbered title in the series. Kazushige Nojima, the previous game's writer, was also skeptical about the creation of a sequel. Something he was particularly averse to originally was the happy ending, which he felt was wrong for the story. The production team was one third the size of the previous installment. This was because the team was already familiar with the material and it allowed them to give a hand-crafted feel to the game. In designing the game, a significant number of character models, enemies, and location designs from "Final Fantasy X" were reused. Character designer Tetsuya Nomura has explained that this allowed the game to be developed in one year and at half the normal scope "Final Fantasy" titles are normally produced. Maya and Softimage 3D were the two main programs used to create the graphics.
Development of Final Fantasy XV
Sequels to "Final Fantasy XV" were hinted at with the line "A World of the Versus Epic" in the E3 2013 trailer. Nomura explained that the game had a self-contained climax and that it was the first part of an intended continued epic. He said that Square Enix was considering using online elements and developing shorter stand-alone titles to keep players interested and to avoid long waiting times for them. This was interpreted as a move of the company towards a digitally distributed episodic format for possible sequels. Nomura later clarified at the Japan Expo 2013 that no plans for sequels had been finalized. Later, Tabata stated in interviews that "Final Fantasy XV" would be released as a single complete experience, and that no sequel was planned. In addition, there were no plans for multiple endings or a cliffhanger ending, with Tabata citing the "XIII" trilogy as a video game narrative style they were trying not to emulate. Despite this wish, the scale of "XV"s world and story would have needed multiple games to tell the entire story. To avoid turning "Final Fantasy XV" into a series of games, the team instead produced additional media surrounding "XV", turning it into a multimedia project: while the main game could be enjoyed on its own, the other media could be used as introductions to the setting for newcomers. This project is being referred by Square Enix as the ""Final Fantasy XV" Universe". According to Tabata, the Universe is split into two halves; media designed to reach a wider audience than the game might manage alone, and additional game-related content such as ports to other hardware and DLC.
Final Fantasy Type-0 HD
"Final Fantasy Type-0 HD" is an action role-playing video game that utilizes a real-time battle system similar to "". The player controls Class Zero, an elite fighting force of fourteen students from Rubrum's Akademeia. Outside mission environments and Akademeia (Class Zero's home base), Class Zero navigates Orience through a scaled-down world map. The world can be navigated on foot, using chocobos (recurring galliform birds in the "Final Fantasy" series) or via an airship. "Type-0 HD" is split into missions with free periods in between. During these free periods between missions, players can explore Akademeia, breed chocobos for personal use, and complete side quests for characters in Akademeia and liberated towns.
Final Fantasy Type-0
"Type-0"s scenario was conceived by Tabata and written by Hiroki Chiba and Sarah Okabe. While the game was still titled "Agito XIII", Tabata described it as "a major title [...] formed from a variety of concepts" which included the collision of four fantasies (the game's view of Orience), a battle between magic and weapons, and the two sides of reality. The early story concept drew heavily from popular manga and anime, but little survived after the platform change. Tabata instead chose a new style similar to historical films and documentaries. The new story's concept started with the idea of a war story told by young people caught up in the event, with its story themes revolving around death and its impact on others. A major inspiration was the Japanese documentary series "Centuries of Picture". The final story was darker than many other "Final Fantasy" games. Despite its title change, the game was kept within the "Fabula Nova Crystallis" mythos. The approach taken with the mythos was to portray the roles of its deities from a historical standpoint, while telling a story focused on the human side of events. The cyclic nature of the game's universe was created to help incorporate aspects of the mythos. The roles and backgrounds for each character in the game were conceived and put into place after the setting and main story had been finalized. After the game's release, Tabata commented that when he was writing the story he would have liked to have been more thorough, and to have made the story easier for players to understand.
Before Crisis: Final Fantasy VII
Outside its immediate reception, "Before Crisis" had an effect on other projects within the "Final Fantasy" series. After the positive reception of Madhouse's animated commercial, they were chosen by Square Enix to animate "Last Order". The high popularity of "Before Crisis" in Japan led indirectly to the creation of "Type-0", part of the "Fabula Nova Crystallis Final Fantasy" subseries and then a title for mobiles.
Tidus
For the sequel, "Final Fantasy X-2", producer Kitase thought that the greatest fan expectation was for the reunion of Tidus and Yuna after their separation in the first game. The game generated rumors about Tidus' connection with the villain, Shuyin, who was physically similar and had the same actors. Square responded that such a storyline, given Tidus' nature, would be too complicated. For the remastering of "Final Fantasy X" and "Final Fantasy X-2", producer Kitase's motivation was to have people too young to have played the games experience them; his son was only old enough to know the characters of Tidus and Yuna from "Dissidia Final Fantasy" and its prequel. For the first two "X" games' rerelease, Nomura redesigned Tidus based on his older appearance from the audiodrama "Will". For the franchise's 30th anniversary, Square presented Tidus' new design in a museum.
Dissidia Final Fantasy
A follow up to "Dissidia" titled "Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy" was released in March 2011 for the PlayStation Portable. Since "Dissidia" had a concrete ending, the team decided to make the story a prequel. Tetsuya Nomura stated that there would be no more "Dissidia" games following "Dissidia 012" although the series may continue "in another form" since the team already believed they did enough with the fighting genre. The main story of "Dissidia" also served as a basis for the 2012 rhythm game "Theatrhythm Final Fantasy" for the Nintendo 3DS, which also uses multiple characters from the "Final Fantasy" series. In 2013, Ichiro Hazama stated that he and much of the team intended to make a third "Dissidia" title, but did not mention possible platforms. In February 2015 at Japan Amusement Expo (JAEPO), a gameplay teaser trailer was unveiled for a new game titled "Dissidia Final Fantasy" coming to arcades in Japan, later released for PlayStation 4 as "Dissidia Final Fantasy NT". Unlike the previous "Dissidia" titles, this game features 3v3 combat, as well as adding new playable characters such as Y’shtola and Ramza Beoulve.
Final Fantasy Type-0 HD
At Tabata's suggestion, Naora expanded the color palette to increase the game's realism and tie in with "XV"s art style. The original idea was to change the original red hue to a golden one to match the redone logo, but the graphics looked too dark on the large screen even with the adjustment, so blue tones were added to brighten up the scenery. Additional bass sounds were added to the sound effects, as the original platform's speaker system had previously limited the range and strength of sounds. The original camera behavior needed to be developed from scratch, as the camera angles used in the original looked out of place on the large screen. During the run-up to release, the team made modifications to the camera after receiving negative comments during demonstrations, addressing scenery collisions and the visibility of player and enemy characters during active gameplay. Because of these modifications, character speed and movement could be increased and improved. By December 2014, the game was in its final stages of development and undergoing debugging.
History of Eastern role-playing video games
In 1999, the cinematic trend set by "Final Fantasy VII" continued with "Final Fantasy VIII", which introduced characters with a proportionately sized human appearance. The game also featured a level-scaling system where the enemies scale in level along with the player's party. Similar level-scaling mechanics have been used in a number of later RPGs, including "", "Silverfall", "", "Fable II", "Fallout 3", and "". Square also expanded on the non-linearity of "SaGa Frontier" with their 1999 action RPG "Legend of Mana", the most open-ended in the "Mana" series, allowing the player to build the game world however they choose, complete any quests and subplots they choose in any order of their choice, and choose which storyline paths to follow, departing from most other action RPGs in its time. That same year, Square's survival horror RPG "Parasite Eve II" featured branching storylines and up to three different possible endings, while the sci-fi RPG "" boasted as many as 86 different endings, with each of the possible permutations to these endings numbering in the hundreds, setting a benchmark for the amount of outcomes possible for a video game. Using a relationship system inspired by dating sims, each of the characters in "Star Ocean" had friendship points and relationship points with each of the other characters, allowing the player to pair together, or ship, any couples (both romantic heterosexual relationships as well as friendships) of their choice, allowing a form of fan fiction to exist within the game itself. This type of social system was later extended to allow romantic lesbian relationships in BioWare's 2007 sci-fi RPG "Mass Effect". However, the relationship system in "Star Ocean" not only affected the storyline, but also the gameplay, affecting the way the characters behave towards each other in battle. Another 1999 RPG, "", also featured dating elements, including the option to engage in a homosexual relationship. That same year saw the release of "Chrono Cross", which became the third game to receive a perfect score from GameSpot, after "The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time" and "Soulcalibur". The game featured two major parallel dimensions, where the player must go back and forth between the worlds to recruit party members, obtain items, and advance the plot, with events in one dimension influencing the other. Like its predecessor "Chrono Trigger", "Chrono Cross" featured a New Game+ option and multiple endings, with at least a dozen possible endings based on the player's actions.
Final Fantasy Agito
The first hint of its existence became public when Square Enix trademarked the name in May 2013. The game was first announced in the second September issue of "Famitsu Weekly", and was demoed during TGS 2013. Originally scheduled for release in the winter of 2013, it was delayed due to development problems concerning environment sizes, which needed to be scaled down. It was rescheduled for the first quarter of 2014, then was pushed forward to spring of that year. Street clothes for the characters were offered as a pre-registration bonus, while a code to download outfits inspired by Kurasame, a supporting character from "Type-0", were included in the final volume of the spin-off manga "Final Fantasy Type-0 Side Story: Reaper of the Icy Blade". Pre-registration closed on May 7, 2013. Chapter delivery began the day after the game's official release on May 14, 2014. The base game was a free download, but players had the option of buying items, restore health and speeding up re-spawn time via microtransactions. The original version also reset individual character experience levels at the end of a playthrough, while an update in 2015 allowed players to carry over experience levels between playthroughs.
Characters of Final Fantasy XV
The concept and setting of "Final Fantasy XV", initially a spin-off titled , was created by original director Tetsuya Nomura. Initially in development for PlayStation 3, "Versus XIII" was shifted to the eighth generation consoles PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. During this transition, "Final Fantasy Type-0" director Hajime Tabata became co-director; later in development, he assumed full directorial duties from Nomura. The development period ultimately lasted about ten years, although Tabata now refers to "Versus XIII" and "XV" as different games.
Characters of the Final Fantasy Type-0 universe
The concept, which was set within the mythos of the "Fabula Nova Crystallis" subseries, was for a much darker scenario than other "Final Fantasy" games. The main cast were designed by Nomura and Naora, while side characters were handled by Nakaaki. Multiple pieces of merchandise and additional media have been created around the characters, including trading cards and multiple manga. They have been the subject of positive reviews in Japan and import reviews: the main praise has gone to their interactions and writing, while the main criticism was difficulties arising from handling the large cast. Western reviews were also generally positive about the character portrayals, but there were criticisms about dialogue, character interactions, and the quality of the localization.
Final Fantasy Type-0 HD
In Japan, "Type-0 HD" reached the top of the sales charts in its debut week, selling 93,000: the PS4 version accounted for roughly 92,000, while the Xbox One version sold roughly 1,000. "Type-0 HD", together with "", provoked a rise in sales for the PS4 while other console sales remained consistent, but it ultimately performed poorly, selling through only 59.59% of its shipment. It had sold over 128,000 units in Japan by August 2015, being the 26th best-selling video game during that period.
Fabula Nova Crystallis Final Fantasy
Speaking about the "XIII" games in particular, Parish suggested that their mixed reactions influenced the title changes of other games in the original series, giving the teams a chance to give those games more of their own identity. He also felt that the decision to expand the "XIII" storyline into multiple games "probably worked out just as well". The presentation of the mythos and its terms received mixed reactions in "XIII", resulting in the production team toning down their use for "XIII-2". Siliconera writer Spencer Yip, in his review of "Lightning Returns", commented that the story and pace of the game was "muddled" by the mythos. In 2016, RPGFan writer Mike Salbato wrote a retrospective of the "Final Fantasy XIII" games and their version of "Fabula Nova Crystallis": he felt that the lack of specific references to the mythos in "XIII" had harmed general comprehension, and that a reliance on foreknowledge made its sequels difficult to play as standalone titles. In contrast, the portrayal of the mythos in "Type-0" was praised by RPG Site's Erren Van Duine in an import review of the title, with him saying that "elements such as l'Cie and fal'Cie are handled in much more interesting ways". When commenting on the lore of "Final Fantasy XV", Andrew Reiner of "Game Informer" praised the story for sticking to basics and avoiding "[overwhelming] the player with lore or branching threads, something "Final Fantasy XIII" struggled with".
Final Fantasy Awakening
Planning for "Awakening" began in November 2014, with full development starting at the beginning of 2015. The game was designed as a successor to "Final Fantasy Agito", which had hit insurmountable technical barriers which stopped further development of its online functions. "Type-0 Online", as it was called, was co-developed by Square Enix and Chinese online game developer Perfect World. While Perfect World handled primary development, the original staff of "Agito" supervised the project. Perfect World was chosen as they had extensive experience with domestic and international online games. After "Agito" shut down, the development team transferred over to work on "Awakening". Over 100 staff at Perfect World were attached to the game's development for more than a year. Development went on for longer than anticipated, although it progressed smoothly when it neared its first open beta. It was built upon the Unity game engine.
Characters of the Final Fantasy Type-0 universe
are the main protagonists and playable cast of "Type-0", later revealed to have been chosen for their potential to become saviors referred to as Agito, a group of people created to force open the barrier between the mortal world and the Unseen Realm. Each member of Class Zero also appears in "Agito", although the others are in different classes while Ace remains a member of Class Zero. They can also be summoned into battle to assist the Cadet. In "Type-0", Machina and Rem were recently transferred to Class Zero but not fully classed with the rest of the group. During their battle with the Rursan Arbiter, Class Zero are fatally wounded, and during their final moments, they imagine their possible post-war lives. Their deaths are instrumental in convincing Arecia to free Orience from its cycle of war.
Fabula Nova Crystallis Final Fantasy
"Final Fantasy Type-0" received a manga adaptation illustrated by Takatoshi Shiozawa. It began publication in the November 2011 of "Young Gangan" and was collected into a single volume and released in April 2012. The manga was translated into English and released as part of the western collector's edition for "Type-0 HD", available exclusively through Square Enix's online store. A second manga following one of the game's secondary characters, , began serialization in May 2012. The latter manga was created by Shiozawa under direct supervision by Tetsuya Nomura. The manga ended in January 2014, with a bonus chapter released in February of the same year. It will be released in the west in July 2015, licensed by Yen Press. Two novels detailing an alternate version of "Type-0", titled , were released in April and June 2012. "Agito" received another "Change the World" novel adaptation focusing on two of the game's supporting characters. Ultimania guides and companion books have been released for the majority of released games.
Tidus
Tidus makes few appearances in the plot of the 2003 sequel, "Final Fantasy X-2", although meeting him is the player's objective. Two years after the events of "Final Fantasy X", Yuna sees a sphere with a young man (resembling Tidus) trapped in a prison. She joins the Gullwings, a sphere-hunting group, and travels around Spira in the hope of finding more clues that Tidus is alive. The individual in the sphere is later revealed as Shuyin. Depending on the player's development during the game, the "fayth" will appear to Yuna at the end and tell her that they can make Tidus return to her. He then appears in Spira, and he and Yuna are reunited. In another final scene, Tidus (unsure whether or not he is still a dream) wants to remain with Yuna. He is also an unlockable character as Star Player, a blitzball player. In "Final Fantasy X-2: International + Last Mission" (the game's updated version), Tidus is a playable character for battles. An extra episode, set after the original game's play-through, reveals that he is living in Besaid with Yuna. An illusion of Tidus also appears as a boss character.
Tidus' dialogue, monologues and songs were included on the "Final Fantasy X Vocal Collection" and "feel/Go dream: Yuna & Tidus" CDs. Although he does not fully understand that he is not the "fayth" dream, Tidus feels that disappearing would be preferable to making Yuna cry again. The novel "Final Fantasy X-2.5 ~Eien no Daishou~", set after "Final Fantasy X-2", explores Tidus and Yuna's visit to Besaid Island 1,000 years before. The HD remastered version of "Final Fantasy X" and "Final Fantasy X-2", "Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD Remaster", adds an audio drama ("Final Fantasy X: Will") in which Tidus is a new blitzball star who appears to be concealing an injury. After Yuna breaks up with him, Tidus helps her on a quest to defeat a reborn Sin. Tetsuya Nomura made a revision of Tidus's design for this game, hinting it will be used in a possible "Final Fantasy X-3".
Final Fantasy VII
The game inspired an unofficial version for the NES by Chinese company Shenzhen Nanjing Technology. This port features the "Final Fantasy VII" game scaled back to 2D, with some of the side quests removed. The game's popularity and open-ended nature also led director Kitase and scenario writer Nojima to establish a plot-related connection between "Final Fantasy VII" and "Final Fantasy X-2". The character Shinra from "Final Fantasy X-2" proposes the concept of extracting the life energy from within the planet Spira. Nojima has stated that Shinra and his proposal are a deliberate nod to the Shinra Company and that he envisioned the events of "Final Fantasy X-2" as a prequel to those in "Final Fantasy VII". The advances in technology used to create the FMV sequences and computer graphics for "Final Fantasy VII" allowed Sakaguchi to begin production on the first "Final Fantasy" film, "". The game introduced a particular aesthetic to the series—fantasy suffused with modern-to-advanced technology—that was explored further in "Final Fantasy VIII", "The Spirits Within", and "Final Fantasy XV". Re-releases of Square games in Japan with bonus features would occur frequently after the release of "Final Fantasy VII International". Later titles that would be re-released as international versions include "Final Fantasy X" and other follow-ups from the franchise, as well as the "Kingdom Hearts" series.
Final Fantasy
Several video game publications have created rankings of the mainline "Final Fantasy" games. In the table below, the lower the number given, the better the game is in the view of the respective publication. By way of comparison, the rating provided by the review aggregator "Metacritic" is also given; in this row higher numbers indicate better reviews.
The "Final Fantasy" series and several specific games within it have been credited for introducing and popularizing many concepts that are today widely used in console RPGs. The original game is often cited as one of the most influential early console RPGs, and played a major role in legitimizing and popularizing the genre. Many console RPGs featured one-on-one battles against monsters from a first-person perspective. "Final Fantasy" introduced a side view perspective with groups of monsters against a group of characters that has been frequently used. It also introduced an early evolving class change system, as well as different methods of transportation, including a ship, canoe, and flying airship. "Final Fantasy II" was the first sequel in the industry to omit characters and locations from the previous game. It also introduced an activity-based progression system, which has been used in later RPG series such as "SaGa", "Grandia", and "The Elder Scrolls". "Final Fantasy III" introduced the job system, a character progression engine allowing the player to change character classes, as well as acquire new and advanced classes and combine class abilities, at any time during the game. "Final Fantasy IV" is considered a milestone for the genre, introducing a dramatic storyline with a strong emphasis on character development and personal relationships. "Final Fantasy VII" is credited as having the largest industry impact of the series, and with allowing console role-playing games to gain mass-market appeal.
Final Zone
Final Zone (known in Japan as FZ Senki Axis) is an isometric mecha shooter game created by Wolf Team for Telenet Japan and its Renovation Products subsidiary in 1990. Players take on the role of a mecha operator outfitted in the NAP suit. The NAP suit can carry 14 weapons out of the 20 available weapons and it is up to player to use them to their maximum benefit. It was followed up by a sequel on the TurboGrafx-16.
Final Fantasy X-2
The game's sidequests include minor tasks and quests, optional bosses and dungeons, and the most minigames of any "Final Fantasy" at the time of its release. These minigames include Gunner's Gauntlet (a third-person/first-person shooter game) and Sphere Break (a mathematical coin game involving addition and multiplication), as well as the fictional underwater sport blitzball originally featured in "Final Fantasy X" with a different control scheme. Director Motomu Toriyama has explained that one of the concepts at issue during development was providing a large variety of minigames, such that "if you bought "Final Fantasy X-2" you wouldn't need any other game".
Final Fantasy IV
Final Fantasy IV, known as Final Fantasy II for its initial North American release, is a role-playing video game developed and published by Square (now Square Enix) for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. Released in 1991, it is the fourth main installment of the "Final Fantasy" series. The game's story follows Cecil, a dark knight, as he tries to prevent the sorcerer Golbez from seizing powerful crystals and destroying the world. He is joined on this quest by a frequently changing group of allies. "Final Fantasy IV" introduced innovations that became staples of the "Final Fantasy" series and role-playing games in general. Its "Active Time Battle" system was used in five subsequent "Final Fantasy" games, and unlike prior games in the series, "IV" gave each character their own unchangeable character class.
Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD Remaster
Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD Remaster is a high-definition remaster of the role-playing video games "Final Fantasy X" and "Final Fantasy X-2", originally developed by Square (now Square Enix) on the PlayStation 2 in the early 2000s. It also features story content previously only found in the "International" versions, and a new audio drama set a year after the events of "X-2". The collection saw graphical and musical revisions and is based on the international versions of both games, making certain content accessible to players outside of Japan for the first time.
Final Fantasy Type-0
"Note: The plot of Type-0 is the same in its original version and the high-definition remaster Final Fantasy Type-0 HD, so the terms and quotes used in the text are from the localization of the high-definition remaster rather than unofficial translations."
Final Fantasy Type-0 HD
In Western territories, demand was notably higher due to the original version not being released outside Japan. In the UK, "Type-0 HD" reached second place in the gaming charts behind "Battlefield Hardline", while it reached tenth place in the North American charts for March. As of October 2015, "Type-0 HD" had sold over one million copies worldwide, making a solid contribution to Square Enix's fiscal income for the year and the company's catalog of eighth-generation console games.
Final Fantasy X-2
As with "Final Fantasy X", an expanded international version was produced for "Final Fantasy X-2". This version of the game, titled "Final Fantasy X-2 International + Last Mission", introduces two new dresspheres, an additional "Last Mission" at a location called "Yadonoki Tower," and the option to capture numerous monsters and characters including Tidus, Auron and Seymour from "Final Fantasy X"—as well as several supporting characters from both games—during battle. This version was never released outside Japan, although the English voices were used for the main story in the International version (not in the Last Mission). Due to this change, parts of the Japanese subtitles were changed or altered to fit the voice-overs. This was detailed in the official strategy book for the International version (see below). In 2005, a compilation featuring "Final Fantasy X" and "Final Fantasy X-2" was released in Japan under the title "Final Fantasy X/X-2 Ultimate Box".
Final Fantasy Type-0
"Famitsu" called the original version's gameplay a "stressless experience", praising the game's size and saying the action-oriented battle system made it "a very different "Final Fantasy"". "Dengeki PlayStation" similarly praised its size and the tense combat, though the review found aspects of the navigation less appealing. Hindman was generally positive about most aspects of gameplay and the high replay value, but found faults with the scripted opening of the overworld and the real-time strategy segments. Van Duine said the gameplay encouraged immersion and was harsh on novices; she praised several aspects of gameplay, but described the leveling system as "tricky". The multiplayer functions were universally praised in Japan. Opinions were divided on the original camera, with "Famitsu" praising its movement, while Van Duine and "Dengeki PlayStation" found issues with it getting stuck in the environment or impeding visibility. The character AI also received criticism for being unresponsive or wayward.
Development of Final Fantasy XV
To promote the game, and also forming part of the collection, a mobile app titled "Justice Monsters Five" was developed. Based on an arcade-style mini-game from "XV", it used gameplay similar to the "Monster Strike" series and incorporated classic "Final Fantasy" monsters. "Justice Monsters Five" was released on August 30 for mobile platforms, and eventually shut down on March 27, 2017, seven months after its initial release. A planned Windows 10 version was not released. A second promotional item was "A King's Tale: Final Fantasy XV", released through GameStop and EB Games in North America as a free pre-order bonus. Playing as an arcade-style beat 'em up, "A King's Tale" relates King Regis' exploits thirty years before the game's events, told to the young Noctis by Regis as fairy tales. "A King's Tale" was later made available for free for PS4 and Xbox One on March 1, 2017. In addition, another mobile game titled "King's Knight: Wrath of the Dark Dragon" released in 2017. It is a remake of the 1986 game, and was available in "XV" as a game Noctis and his friends play. Square Enix and Machine Zone collaborated on a massively multiplayer online role-playing game for mobile devices based on the content of "XV", first released on June 28, 2017. Titled "" and developed by Machine Zone's subsidiary Epic Action, the game involves players taking the role of characters from "Final Fantasy XV" and fighting other player armies in real-time battles for control of the Crystal.
Final Fantasy Type-0
The gameplay was inspired by the multi-character system of "Before Crisis", while the naming of magic styles after weapons of war made reference to first-person shooters. The combat was designed to be filled with tension and portray each playable character's personality on the battlefield. The Eidolons were originally not controlled in realtime, but during the development of Ifrit, Tabata did some testing with real-time commands. The results impressed him enough that he decided to overcome the technical difficulties involved and make the Eidolons controllable. Due to technical restrictions and the presence of the Academy Assist function, the game's artificial intelligence for playable characters needed to be limited to healing, survival and other minor actions. The game's multiplayer was deliberately designed around restricted segments. Its development was still ongoing during the summer of 2011, with a temporary stoppage of PlayStation Network that year negatively affecting its development. Because of the size of the project, debugging the game took far longer than anticipated. Between the release of the demo and the full game, adjustments were made to gameplay mechanics and the in-game camera. In a post-release interview, Tabata commented that he would have liked to expand the multiplayer functions to include an ad-hoc function and expanded cooperative gameplay, and create a more forgiving learning curve for players.
Final Fantasy Type-0 HD
After "Type-0" received a 2011 Japan-only release on PSP, "Type-0 HD" began development in mid-2012 as part of a move to promote the next generation of gaming consoles, and gave the opportunity for multiple changes to refine the experience for players. Outside of updated graphics and an expanded color palette, "Type-0 HD" is largely identical to the original PSP version, although the original's multiplayer functionality was dropped, and additional difficulty levels were implemented. "Type-0 HD" reached high positions in international sales charts, and has sold over one million copies worldwide as of October 2015. It received praise for its story and battle system, while criticisms have focused on its HD upgrade and localization.
Kinoko Nasu
Following the success of "Tsukihime", Type-Moon became a commercial organization. A sequel to "Tsukihime", "Kagetsu Tohya", was released in August 2001. On 28 January 2004 Type-Moon released "Fate/stay night", written by Nasu; it, too, gained great success, becoming one of the most popular visual novels on the day of its release. A sequel to "Fate/stay night", "Fate/hollow ataraxia", was released on 28 October 2005. Nasu's visual novel work ("Fate/stay night") has been adapted to extremely popular manga and anime series.
Final Fantasy Awakening
Final Fantasy Awakening is a multiplayer action role-playing game developed by Perfect World and published by Square Enix for iOS, Android, and Microsoft Windows. It was first released in China for iOS and Android devices in December 2016, with releases in other languages including English over the following two years. The game is set in the universe of "Final Fantasy Type-0", forming part of the "Fabula Nova Crystallis" subseries. Acting as a replacement to "Final Fantasy Agito", the game features multiplayer hack-and-slash gameplay.
Final Fantasy XIII-2
The story of "Final Fantasy XIII-2" follows on from that of "Final Fantasy XIII", but as is typical for the series, it is unrelated to all other previous "Final Fantasy" games. In "XIII", one of the fal'Cie—a god-like race—transformed a team of six people, the primary characters of the game, into l'Cie (servants of the fal'Cie with magical powers and a 'Focus'—an assigned task to be completed within a time limit), in the hope that they would initiate the end of the world. The six were intended to cause the large, inhabited floating sphere named Cocoon to fall into the world below, named Gran Pulse, killing all of the humans of Cocoon. At the finale of the game, two of the l'Cie transformed into a crystal pillar to support Cocoon, preventing the catastrophe.
Final Fantasy VII (NES video game)
The game has received praise from various sources. Journalist Derrick Sobodash stated that while the game would not be an entirely new experience for those that played the original "Final Fantasy VII", he added that "...this title can hold its own against the other NES Final Fantasy games", further calling the effort "surprisingly professional". Kotaku editor Luke Plunkett cited the Famicom game as "...an achievement I have no hesitation in labeling Herculean", further calling it "...a triumph of the human spirit". Boing Boing Gadgets and Wired News writer Joel Johnson described the game as "more than just a knock-off — it's an act of true skill and commitment by an unknown team of Chinese coders". GamePro named it one of the thirteen best fan-made video game remakes, placing first on their list and described as "the video game equivalent of the Human Genome Project", despite its flaws.
Development of Final Fantasy XV
After TGS 2014, where "Episode Duscae" was first announced, Tabata and the team adjusted the gameplay experience based on fan feedback. The original plan was for a large area of the worldmap that players could explore using the car. While the ability to drive the party's car was originally included, it was later cut as Tabata feared that the feature would be too new for older fans of the series, who might have mistaken "XV" for "a driving game". The team decided to focus on the characters and environment. The demo included English and Japanese audio for all regions. The demo released in all regions alongside the physical and digital releases of "Final Fantasy Type-0 HD". The physical version was exclusive to day-one editions of "Type-0 HD", while the digital version was valid for two months after purchase. The code had to be redeemed within one year of purchase. While players could save their progress in the demo, save data could not be carried over to the main game. Despite this, the team announced its intention to create a bonus for those who purchased the demo. A patch titled "Episode Duscae 2.0" was released in June 2015, which included enhancements for the camera and controls, fixes for bugs, and adjustments to gameplay. The demo ran on Version 1.5 of Luminous Studio.
Final Fantasy VII
The world of "Final Fantasy VII" is explored further in the "Compilation of Final Fantasy VII", a series of games, animated features, and short stories. The first title in the "Compilation" is the mobile game "", a prequel focusing on the Turks' activities six years before the original game. The CGI film sequel "", set two years after the game, was the first title announced but the second to be released. Special DVD editions of the film included "", an original video animation that recounts the destruction of Nibelheim. "" and its mobile phone counterpart, "", are third-person shooters set one year after "Advent Children". "Dirge" focuses on the backstory of Vincent Valentine, whose history was left mostly untold in "Final Fantasy VII". The most recent title is the PlayStation Portable game "", an action role-playing game that centers on Zack's past.
Final Fantasy II
Final Fantasy II is a fantasy role-playing video game developed and published by Square (now Square Enix) in 1988 for the Family Computer as the second installment of the "Final Fantasy" series. The game has received numerous enhanced remakes for the WonderSwan Color, the PlayStation, the Game Boy Advance, the PlayStation Portable, and multiple mobile and smartphone types. As neither this game nor "Final Fantasy III" were initially released outside Japan, "Final Fantasy IV" was originally released in North America as "Final Fantasy II", so as not to confuse players. The most recent releases of the game are enhanced versions for the iOS and Android, which were released worldwide in 2010 and 2012, respectively.
Recurring elements in the Final Fantasy series
The battle system for "Final Fantasy XIII" was designed to retain the strategic elements of earlier titles while emulating the cinematic action of "Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children". While retaining the ATB system, elements such as magic points were removed, and a strategic role-change system dubbed the Paradigm System was implemented, with the roles being based on "Final Fantasy" jobs. "Final Fantasy XIII-2" continued using the Paradigm system with added gameplay functions based on criticism of the first game, while "Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII" changed to a more action-based, single-character version that incorporated design elements cut from "Final Fantasy XIII". "Final Fantasy XV" used an action-based system that was described as a "realistic" version of those used in the "Kingdom Hearts" series and spin-off title "Final Fantasy Type-0". Unlike all previous mainline "Final Fantasy" titles, the players could only control one character out of the four-strong party. While the team experimented with multiple character control, it was decided that it presented too many development difficulties.
Fate/stay night
On October 28, 2005, Type-Moon released a sequel to "Fate/stay night", titled "Fate/hollow ataraxia". Its plot is set half a year after the events of "Fate/stay night" and features new characters such as Avenger, Bazett Fraga McRemitz, and Caren Ortensia, alongside returning characters such as Shirō Emiya, Saber and Rin Tōsaka.
Recurring elements in the Final Fantasy series
The first title to receive a direct sequel was "Final Fantasy X": "Final Fantasy X-2" is set in the same fictional world of Spira, while using a lighter tone than its predecessor. No sequel to "Final Fantasy X" was planned initially. "Final Fantasy XIII" was also intended to be a standalone title, and was later expanded into the series' first official trilogy with the development of "Final Fantasy XIII-2" (2011) and "" (2013). "Final Fantasy VII" was later expanded into a multimedia series titled "Compilation of Final Fantasy VII", which included video games ("", "", "") and film projects ("", ""). A different subseries linked by common elements, and indirectly inspired by the "Compilation", is "Fabula Nova Crystallis Final Fantasy": while the subseries' games have unique settings and stories, they all share a common mythos surrounding crystals and their associated deities. "Fabula Nova Crystallis" was originally planned as a platform for the development of multiple games planned out in advance, compared to "Final Fantasy" producer Shinji Hashimoto to the "Star Wars" and "The Lord of the Rings" film franchises. A world later incorporated into the "Final Fantasy" series is Ivalice, the setting for titles within the game collection known as the "Ivalice Alliance". Taking place within a single world across a large time period, Ivalice is the setting for "Final Fantasy Tactics" (1997), "Final Fantasy XII" and "Vagrant Story" (2000). "Vagrant Story" did not originally take place in Ivalice, being incorporated into the subseries by Square Enix long after its release. The game's references to other "Final Fantasy" titles were originally intended as fan service. Ivalice itself was the creation of Yasumi Matsuno, the main creative force behind "Tactics" and "Vagrant Story". It first appeared in "Tactics". Matsuno's work with Ivalice later inspired the scenarios for "A Realm Reborn".
Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII
The concept of "Lightning Returns" originated during development of "XIII-2", while the development team was brainstorming ideas for possible continuations of the story and universe of the games, though there was no solid decision to make a second sequel to "XIII" at the time. Development of "Lightning Returns" started in May 2012, soon after the release of "Requiem of the Goddess", the final story-based DLC episode for "XIII-2". According to Motomu Toriyama, he had wanted to tell more stories about Lightning, and the DLC had not provided a satisfactory ending for her. The game was designed in a shorter time than the other games in the series; Yoshinori Kitase explained that this was because the team did not want players to forget the story of the previous games, and the team needed to work especially hard as a result. Another reason was that the team wished to bring the "XIII" series to a close before the release of the next generation of gaming hardware. The title was also chosen to be the last original "Final Fantasy" game on seventh generation consoles, and next-gen versions of the game were not considered. Developer tri-Ace, who had previously worked with the team on "XIII-2", returned to help with the graphics.
Final Fantasy VII Remake
Final Fantasy VII Remake is an upcoming action role-playing game developed and published by Square Enix for the PlayStation 4. It is a remake of the 1997 PlayStation game "Final Fantasy VII", retelling the original story following mercenary Cloud Strife as he and eco-terrorist group AVALANCHE battle against the corrupt Shinra megacorporation, and the rogue former Shinra soldier Sephiroth. Gameplay is planned to be a fusion of real-time action similar to "Dissidia Final Fantasy", and strategic elements, and the game will be released as a multipart series.
Final Fantasy Type-0
The game's theme song, "Zero", was composed and performed by Japanese rock band Bump of Chicken. The band, which was a big fan of the "Final Fantasy" series, was contacted by Square Enix to compose and perform the song and agreed readily. It was brought in after the platform move onto the PSP, but while the game was still titled "Agito XIII". While looking for inspiration, the band was able to see in-development screenshots of the game, samples of the script, and character illustrations. The band was mostly given a free hand while composing the song. Its one guideline was provided by Tabata, who suggested the theme song for "Centuries of Picture", "Is Paris Burning?" by Takeshi Kako, as a source of inspiration. Multiple versions of "Zero" were composed for use in different areas of the game. At the request of band leader Motoo Fujiwara, Amano's logo artwork was used for the cover of the single's limited edition.
History of Eastern role-playing video games
In 2001, "Final Fantasy X" made advancements in portraying realistic emotions through voice-overs and detailed facial expressions, which have since become a staple of the series, with "Final Fantasy X-2" and other subsequent titles (such as "" and "Final Fantasy XII") also featuring this development. It also replaced an overworld map with the traversing of real-time 3D environments, which has also become a standard of the series, as demonstrated in "Final Fantasy XI", "Final Fantasy XII" and "Final Fantasy XIII". The game introduced several other gameplay elements to the series, such as its Conditional Turn-Based Battle System and Overdrive Limit Breaks. It became a major worldwide success, largely due to its "dynamic" presentation, "movie-quality CGI" cutscenes, and "well-scripted, well-acted dialogue," that helped it become a major success, helping to establish the PlayStation 2 as "the console of choice for gamers looking for a cinematic experience and narrative polish" that had been lacking in most previous RPGs. Around the same time, the first entry in the "Shadow Hearts" series was released. The series would later be acclaimed for its darker Lovecraftian horror narrative revolving around "an emotional journey through the reluctant anti-hero's quest toward redemption." Much like the "Chrono" series, the "Shadow Hearts" games offer multiple endings.
Final Fantasy X
The advancements in portraying realistic emotions achieved with "Final Fantasy X" through voice-overs and detailed facial expressions have since become a staple of the series, with "Final Fantasy X-2" and other subsequent titles (such as "", "Final Fantasy XII", "XIII" and its sequels, and "XV") also featuring this development. Traversing real-time 3D environments instead of an overworld map has also become a standard of the series. "Final Fantasy X" can be considered a pioneer in 3-D RPG maps.
Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD Remaster
The audio drama sparked speculation of a second sequel to "X". In a February 2014 interview, Shinji Hashimoto said that the audio drama was simply meant to expand on the universe and did not mean a sequel was in development. Prior to this, Nojima stated that if there was enough demand, there could be developments, and that he would like to write the story for a second sequel. Nojima later revealed to "Famitsu" "For the record, there’s a plot from start to finish, and if there’s some way we can have it show up elsewhere… well, so I’ve said to Square Enix.”
Later, speaking with "Famitsu" in a feature concerning industry rumors, Kitase denied that a second sequel was in development, and that both "Eien no Daishō" and the audio drama were simply intended as standalone continuations of the games' universe. Shinji Hashimoto revealed in October 2016 that "Final Fantasy X-3" is possible but Square Enix is currently busy with other projects and he also confirmed that the audio drama is the basis for it.
Fabula Nova Crystallis Final Fantasy
The games have been complemented and expanded upon through other media. For "Final Fantasy XIII", a small book of short stories titled "Final Fantasy XIII - Episode Zero" was released, first through the game's website and then as a print release in December 2009. It shows events prior to the game's opening. A second novella, "Episode i", was published via "XIII-2"s official website, bridging the narrative gap between "XIII" and "XIII-2". Alongside "XIII-2"s Japanese release, a book detailing events not shown or described in the game titled "Fragments Before" was released in December 2011 including "Episode i"; this would be followed up by "Fragments After", released in June 2012. Only "Episode i" has received an official English release. "Lightning Returns" was also set to receive a prequel novel by Benny Matsuyama alongside the game's Japanese release in November 2013, however this was later cancelled due to the author falling ill. A three-part novella exclusive to "Famitsu Weekly" magazine titled "Final Fantasy XIII Reminiscence: tracer of memories" was released across June and July 2014. It was written by Daisuke Watanabe, who handled the scripts for the "XIII" games, and takes place immediately after the ending of "Lightning Returns". "Reminiscence" was later released online.
Final Fantasy Type-0
"Type-0" uses a real-time, action-based battle system similar to the system used in "". The player is allowed access to three characters, which they can swap between at any time. The two not being controlled are managed by the game's artificial intelligence. Each character has a specific weapon, and special attacks unique to a character are unlocked as they gain experience levels. During combat, characters lock onto targets while attacking and can switch targets. Characters are able to perform precisely timed attacks during the period when an enemy unit is attacking: the "Break Sight", which deals high damage, and the "Kill Sight", which kills a standard enemy with a single hit. Three characters can also be commanded to use a combining their attacks to deal higher damage to a target. Aside from human enemies, the game features multiple recurring "Final Fantasy" monsters. In addition to enemies encountered in missions, there are special enemies that can be encountered while exploring the world map.
Final Fantasy XIII-2
The narrative was divided into smaller "pieces of drama" similar to a television series rather than one overarching story piece. This was reflected by the game's working title "Final Fantasy XIII: Season 2" when the project was first proposed within the company. Unlike "Final Fantasy X-2", which had a more cheerful and humorous feel than "Final Fantasy X", the staff members wanted the overall tone of "Final Fantasy XIII-2" to be serious as well as darker and more mysterious than its predecessor. The original scenario had called for Serah to travel alone with Mog. However, Kitase felt that their dialogue was "quite girly, almost camp and a bit over the top" and resulted in a tonal shift that was too similar to the one from "X" to "X-2". Noel was added to the story to counter this. Watanabe considered scriptwriting for the game's two-character party difficult. With the lack of varied personality traits provided by an ensemble cast, he had to ensure that conversations between Serah and Noel would not be repetitive or unrealistic. Unfamiliar concepts and terms in "Final Fantasy XIII", such as "l'Cie" and "fal'Cie", were deemed too difficult to understand and hence avoided in the sequel. A story link to "Final Fantasy Type-0" via the location Valhalla was planned but later discarded.
Final Fantasy Type-0
Multiple pieces of merchandise were created for the game. An "Ultimania", part of a series of dedicated guidebooks, was released in the same month as the original game. It contained story and character breakdowns, concept art, and interviews with developers. A different book, was also released in October. It featured character biographies, details on the world of Orience, and interviews with the voice actors for Class Zero. The following year, a dedicated art book was released containing artwork of the game's characters and monsters, and an interview with Tabata. Characters from the game, including Ace, Machina and other members of Class Zero, appeared in the fourth series of releases for the "Final Fantasy Trading Card Game". In November 2011, a manga adaptation of "Type-0", illustrated by Takatoshi Shiozawa, began serialization in "Young Gangan" magazine. The manga has been collected into a tankōbon volume and was released on April 21, 2012. Another manga titled also illustrated by Shiozawa, began publication in "Young Gangan" in April 2012. It ended in January 2014, with a bonus chapter being published in February of that year, and was later released in five compiled volumes. Yen Press began distribution of the manga in the west in July 2015. Square Enix released two novel adaptations, in April and June 2012, depicting an alternate version of "Type-0"s story: and The novels were written by Sōki Tsukishima.
Final Fantasy Awakening
"Awakening" takes place in Orience, a world divided between four warring nations. It is referred to as a "parallel world" to that of the original "Type-0". Similar to "Type-0" and "Agito", the world is locked in a repeating spiral of history, with "Awakening" being an iteration of that history.
Final Fantasy Type-0
The music for "Type-0" was composed by Takeharu Ishimoto. He had previously composed the music for "Before Crisis", "Crisis Core" and "The World Ends with You". Ishimoto gave the music a dark and heavy feel, describing the themes as "war, life, and death". He used less rock elements than in his previous games to promote a feeling of immersion. One of his primary instruments was the guitar, which Ishimoto played himself during recording sessions. Although the title was for the PSP, the team did not want to hold back despite hardware limitations, recording a quantity of tracks unusual for a spin-off "Final Fantasy" title. Wherever possible, the recording was done live. The orchestral and choral elements were performed by the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and the Cantillation chamber choir, and the recording and mixing of these tracks was done at the Sydney Opera House. Recording for other tracks was done at Ishimoto's studio in Japan. After recording, Ishimoto combined the orchestral and choral elements, and rearranged the main leitmotifs to create more variety in the score. Arrangements for the orchestral tunes were done by Kentaro Sato, while arrangements for other tracks were done by Rieko Mikoshiba.
Final Fantasy Awakening
It was first hinted with the announcement that "Agito" was shutting down in November 2015. The company stated that a "reborn" version of "Agito" would be shown off at the 2015 Tokyo Game Show. The game was announced at that event under the provisional title Final Fantasy Type-0 Online, along with its release window and that players of "Agito" would receive an unspecified "favor" if they chose to play "Awakening". A beta test was scheduled for Chinese territories in the winter of 2015. The first beta test ended up starting in mid-April 2016. When it was first announced, a localization for Europe and North America was under consideration. At the 2015 AWS Summit Tokyo, the open beta for Japan was announced for June, with releases following in Japan, North America and Europe. Its first playable appearance was at the 2016 ChinaJoy Expo. It was also stated at the event that Perfect World would act as the game's publishers in Asian territories outside Japan. In October 2016, it was announced that the game would be renamed "Final Fantasy Awakening", releasing under that name in China. The game became available for general download in China on December 14, 2016.
List of Final Fantasy media
A large number of spin-off video games have also been made for the "Final Fantasy" series. These spin-off games vary in their relation to the main series; the first, "The Final Fantasy Legend" games, were marketed as related in North America but were considered to be the first three games of the "SaGa series" in their native Japan, and later "SaGa" games released outside Japan bear no "Final Fantasy" branding. "Dissidia Final Fantasy", on the other hand, is a fighting game using characters from the main series exclusively. Overall, more than 30 games have been released as spin-offs of the main "Final Fantasy" series, many within their own sub-series.
Final Fantasy X-2
On September 13, 2011, Square Enix announced that "Final Fantasy X" would be re-released in high-definition for the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Vita, in celebration of the game's 10 year anniversary. Yet rumors spread that it would also include its sequel "Final Fantasy X-2" In January 2012, production of the game had started. Producer Yoshinori Kitase will once again be involved in the production of the game, wishing to work on its quality, yet again no confirmation yet of the inclusion of the sequel. On February 18, 2013 the first footage of the PlayStation Vita version of "Final Fantasy X HD" was released, showing off HD models of Tidus, Yuna, Bahamut and Yojimbo. On 19 March, it was confirmed that the PS3 version of the game would also include its sequel "X-2", and that it would also be remastered in HD and would be based on the International version. "Final Fantasy X-2 Last Mission" was later announced to be remastered in HD and included as well. The HD remastered games for the PS3 was released under the title "Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD Remaster". The two games were sold separately on PlayStation Vita in Japan with "Final Fantasy X HD Remaster" to include "Final Fantasy X HD Remaster" and "Final Fantasy X Eternal Calm HD Remaster" and "Final Fantasy X-2 HD Remaster" to include "Final Fantasy X-2 HD Remaster" and "Final Fantasy X-2 Last Mission HD Remaster". They were sold together with a voucher to download "Final Fantasy X-2 HD Remaster" for free in regions outside Japan as well as in Japan. Square Enix launched an official website for the two HD remastered titles in March 2013. In 2014, it was announced that the remaster would be released for the PlayStation 4 in Spring 2015. It was later released for Windows in May 2016.
Final Fantasy Type-0
"Type-0" was released on October 27, 2011, receiving both physical and digital releases. It was initially announced for release in summer of that year, but unspecified difficulties with development including the stoppage of PlayStation Network caused a delay. It was then announced for released on October 13, but was delayed by two weeks. While Square Enix stated it wanted to improve its quality, no other information was given. It was speculated to be due to complaints surrounding the camera control and other gameplay elements. The releases of the soundtrack and the theme song were also delayed. "Type-0" was one of a few releases for the PSP to be released on two UMDs, as Tabata wanted to cut as little content as possible, which would have been impossible if they had settled for using one UMD. A demo for the original game was released in August 2011, featuring seven playable characters and four missions at locked difficulty levels. Save data could be transferred to the full game, unlocking special costumes and items and keeping experience points. A second demo was released on November 22, a month after the full game's release. It replaced the original demo and gave players access to exclusive items and costumes. A collector's edition was released exclusively through Square Enix's online store, containing artwork, a limited edition version of the soundtrack, postcards and a booklet of character introductions. The title was later added to their Ultimate Hits budget title collection.
Final Fantasy XIII-2
Despite its strong sales, "Final Fantasy XIII" had been criticized on several fronts. Complaints included that the game had been too linear, had not allowed enough interaction with non-player characters, and had not featured enough minigames and puzzles. The developers intended to address these criticisms with the sequel by adding the Historia Crux system, numerous sidequests from non-player characters, and the casino minigame area. Environments were made more explorable and the artists were given more freedom to include their own ideas in the game's locations, in order to rectify the shortcomings of the more artificial seeming settings in "Final Fantasy XIII". Although the developers were explicitly responding to the criticism, they saw the changes and additions as making the sequel in line with what players had hoped "Final Fantasy XIII" would be, rather than backing away from the changes that game had brought to the series. For the structure of side quests and some other aspects such as the abundance of chocobos and the more open environment, the team drew inspiration from Rockstar San Diego's "Red Dead Redemption". The game also included multiple endings, which Toriyama referred to as a first for the series.
Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD Remaster
The HD remaster covers both "Final Fantasy X" and its sequel "Final Fantasy X-2". The first game follows the journey of the teenager Tidus who is transported to the world of Spira after an encounter with a creature known as Sin. He becomes one of the guardians of the summoner Yuna, protecting her on a pilgrimage to defeat Sin and finding out how the creature is linked to Tidus' and Yuna's late fathers. Gameplay relies on the Conditional Turn-Based Battle system that allows for swapping party members in mid-combat. Characters are leveled up by means of the Sphere Grid on which the player may choose a specific skill to learn or attribute to improve. The second game is set two years after the events of "X" and features Yuna as a treasure hunter in search of spheres leading her to Tidus. It reintroduces the series' classic job system in the form of the Garment Grid: jobs can be acquired as dresspheres, costumes that give the player characters different abilities, throughout the game and may be changed in battle. "X-2" includes multiple minigames such as Sphere Break and blitzball, the latter of which also featured prominently in "X".
Final Fantasy IV
With its character-driven plot, use of new technologies, and critically acclaimed score by Nobuo Uematsu, "Final Fantasy IV" is regarded as a landmark of the series and of the role-playing genre. Due to this, it is considered to be one of the greatest video games of all time and one of the most important and influential games in the role-playing genre. The various incarnations of the game have sold more than four million copies worldwide. A sequel, "", was released for Japanese mobile phones in 2008, and worldwide via the Wii Shop Channel on June 1, 2009. In 2011, both "Final Fantasy IV" and "The After Years" were released for the PlayStation Portable as part of the compilation "", which also included a new game, set between the two; "Final Fantasy IV: Interlude". Ports of the Nintendo DS remake were released for iOS in 2012, for Android in 2013 and for Windows in 2014.
Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo Tales
"Final Fantasy Fables" is a "Final Fantasy" spinoff starring a Chocobo in a setting which features common elements and creatures of the series. Music from the rest of the series is also reused. The game is composed of a number of minigames woven into a main adventure. The game was received positively by critics, who appreciated the originality and light-hearted nature of the title.
Final Fantasy Tactics
The world of "Final Fantasy Tactics" has been featured in several other Square video games. After the game's release, the development staff went on to develop "Vagrant Story", which featured several subtle references to "Final Fantasy Tactics". In an interview with the French video game magazine "Joypad", Matsuno stated that both titles are set in the same fictional world of Ivalice. During the development of "Vagrant Story", Matsuno and Sakaguchi initiated a sequel to "Tactics", which would have used 2D graphics due to issues with 3D development at the time. Due to the team's committent to "Vagrant Story", the project was outsourced to an unspecified developer, but was cancelled for unspecified reasons.
Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD Remaster
While the majority of the gameplay for "X" and "X-2" remains unchanged, the games have undergone an extensive graphical update and a large amount of the music for "X" has been rearranged. All regional releases contain content from the "International" versions: "X" has the expert Sphere Grid and several optional bosses, while "X-2" comes with extra dresspheres and new minigames. The Creature Creator system was added, whereby players can capture enemy monsters and certain non-player characters (NPCs) to train them and to have them fight alongside the party in battle, similar to the "Pokémon" series: these captured allies can also be fought and strengthened in a coliseum. Lastly, "X-2" includes the "Last Mission" extra dungeon that plays in the style of a roguelike 3D game, having a grid-based layout across which the characters move and take on enemies. Layouts are generated randomly and each opponent is allowed as many turns as the player has taken. As in the main game, the player characters can equip jobs in the form of dresspheres. The "Eternal Calm" movie that bridges the gap between "X" and "X-2" is included in the collection as well. The collection allows for cross-platform saving between the PlayStation 3 (PS3), PlayStation Vita and PlayStation 4 versions and both games have their own trophy lists which are shared across the three platforms.
Characters of the Final Fantasy Type-0 universe
Western reception of the characters has been mixed to positive. IGN's Meghan Sullivan said that the story's focus on young cadets sent into battle "reminder that it’s the young who die in war, and who are the first to be forgotten." She also praised the comedic side characters, which helped strike a balance with the serious story. "Game Informer"s Matt Miller was fairly critical, saying that the abundance of main characters hampered character development, and found conversations "stilted and melodramatic". Alexa Ray Corriae of GameSpot was pleased with the main cast, enjoyed the romance between Rem and Machina, and praised the reactions of non-playable characters around the Peristylium to Class Zero's achievements during the story. Her main criticism was that she found the supporting cast fell short as the player often needed to remember faces only briefly seen before. Becky Cunningham of GamesRadar said that Class Zero's incerations with the story's political intrigues and interpersonal drama "make a story worth experiencing." GameTrailers' Michael Damiani felt that the character's "awkward" dialogue hampered the otherwise intriguing story, saying that the script relied too much on the player accepting leaps in logic on a character's say-so.
Characters of the Final Fantasy XIII series
"Final Fantasy XIII" - a role-playing game released by Square Enix in 2009 - revolves around the struggles of a group of humans over a predestined fate. The game's two sequels, "Final Fantasy XIII-2" and "", build on the first game's story and mythos. In video game publications and among the staff at Square Enix, the three games have come to be referred to as the "Lightning Saga", and the core concepts they contain are drawn from the mythos of the "Fabula Nova Crystallis" subseries. The visuals of the original characters were designed by Tetsuya Nomura and Nao Ikeda, while many later characters were created by other designers, including Hideo Minaba, Yusuke Naora and Toshiyuki Itahana. Their original stories were created by Motomu Toriyama and written up by Daisuke Watanabe.
Characters of the Final Fantasy Type-0 universe
The setting of "Type-0" was written around the "Fabula Nova Crystallis" subseries, which also includes "Final Fantasy XIII" and "Final Fantasy XV". The mythos involves how humans are manipulated and controlled by the world's deities. The crystals of "Type-0"s world were the equivalent of the fal'Cie, demigods serving these deities. Originally, the crystals were to have been called "fal'Cie". The characters Arecia, Gala and Diva were also created to fill the roles of fal'Cie. The approach taken to the incorporation of the mythos was that the world of Orience was part of a shared universe that also contained the worlds of "XIII" and "XV" rather than a standalone existence. As opposed to "XIII", which told a story directly related to the mythos' deities, "Type-0" focused on the human side of the story, depicting the deities' role in world events from a historical standpoint. A key element carried directly from the mythos is the l'Cie, humans chosen by servants of the world's deities to fulfill a pre-determined task called a "Focus". Tabata neglected including elements from the "Fabula Nova Crystallis" mythos until approximately halfway through the process. Chiba and Obake were the ones responsible for including the elements in the storyline, as well as including the cyclic nature of the game's world to help communicate some aspects of the mythos: originally disliked by Tabata, he later said that it suited the game due to the heavy eastern influences.
Bump of Chicken
Their song "Zero" was also featured as the opening song for "Final Fantasy Type-0".
Final Fantasy IV: The After Years
Final Fantasy IV: The After Years is an episodic role-playing video game co-developed by Matrix Software and Square Enix, as the sequel to the 1991 title "Final Fantasy IV". Originally released in Japan as a mobile game in 2008, an enhanced WiiWare port of the title was released in North America, Europe and Japan in 2009. In 2011, the game was bundled with "Final Fantasy IV" as the PlayStation Portable compilation "", which also included a new game; "Final Fantasy IV: Interlude", which served as a bridge between the original game and "The After Years". Using the same style as the Nintendo DS version of Final Fantasy IV, this game was remade for the Android and iOS platforms.
Mobius Final Fantasy
Collaboration events with "Final Fantasy Record Keeper", "Final Fantasy X", "Final Fantasy Type-0", "Final Fantasy VII Remake", "Terra Battle", "Final Fantasy XII", "Final Fantasy XIII", "Hoshi No Dragon Quest", "Final Fantasy XV", "Final Fantasy VII" and "Final Fantasy XIV" have also occurred in the game.
Development of Final Fantasy XV
Two notable limited time events were developed for the game. The "Moogle Chocobo Carnival", a carnival event with minigames themed around the "Final Fantasy" series Chocobo and Moogle mascots, ran from January to February 2017. The Carnival was brought back between July to August of that year. From August 2017 to January 2018, the game featured a collaboration with Ubisoft title "Assassin's Creed Origins", with a story quest and special accessories themed after the game. A particular item which unlocked a themed costume during the event was offered during the second Chocobo Carnival. The collaboration also saw elements from "Final Fantasy XV" included in "Assassin's Creed Origins". A later notable collaboration was a free playable mission featuring Noctis teaming up with Sarah, the protagonist of the Mistwalker-developed "Terra Wars". The mission released alongside accessories for "Comrades" themed after "Shadow of the Tomb Raider". One of the last collaborations will be one with "Final Fantasy XIV", where Noctis and his party fight the summon Garuda.
Spira (Final Fantasy)
Spira is the world of "Final Fantasy X" and "Final Fantasy X-2", but elements of its world and characters have been included in other "Final Fantasy" media. For "Dissidia Final Fantasy" and its sequel/remake "Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy" the characters Tidus, Yuna, Jecht and an area known as were featured. The Dreams' End shares similarities to the final area of "Final Fantasy X" complete with a large replica of Jecht's sword in the center. "Final Fantasy X"s Tidus and Wakka are supporting characters in "Kingdom Hearts", "" and "Kingdom Hearts coded". Auron makes an appearance in "Kingdom Hearts II" as a supporting team member and "Final Fantasy X-2"s main cast of Yuna, Rikku and Paine appear also make an appearance as supporting characters. Tidus, Auron and Yuna are also playable characters in "Theatrhythm Final Fantasy".
Yusuke Naora
Having worked on the game since its title was changed, Naora was very excited and nervous creating a trailer for the game to appear on copies of "Final Fantasy Type-0 HD".
Final Fantasy Type-0
In the first week on sale, "Final Fantasy Type-0" sold 472,253 units, topping Japanese sales charts and selling through 79.08% of its initial shipments. As of January 16, 2012, the game had sold 746,203 copies in Japan. It was the best-selling game of 2011 for Japanese media retail shop Tsutaya, beating "Monster Hunter Portable 3rd" (PlayStation Portable) and "Final Fantasy XIII-2" (PlayStation 3). It was also the store's best-selling PSP title of the year, followed by "Monster Hunter Portable 3rd" and "Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy".
Final Fantasy Type-0
"Final Fantasy Type-0" is set within Orience, a land divided between four nations or "Crystal States". Each nation has crystals of power based on the Four Symbols, which are in turn their national emblems. The Dominion of Rubrum uses the Vermillion Bird Crystal, which controls magic; the Milites Empire controls the White Tiger Crystal, containing the power of science and weapons; the Kingdom of Concordia uses the Azure Dragon Crystal, containing the power of Dragons; and the Lorican Alliance is home to the Black Tortoise Crystal, containing the power of shielding. Each nation has an academy, or Peristylium, to research and protect the country's respective crystal. The crystals have the ability to mark humans as their countries' servants. These servants, called l'Cie, are branded with a symbol and are given a "Focus", a task to complete. While blessed with long life and the ability to transform into crystal, l'Cie are cursed to lose their memories over time. The people of Orience also lose their memories of the dead so they will not be held back by any past regrets and continue strengthening their souls through conflict, a mechanism put in place by the crystals for the convenience of the deities who crafted them. The main aim of many characters is to become Agito, a legendary figure who will appear and save the world from Tempus Finis, an apocalyptic event that will destroy Orience.
X-COM
Because of the series' popularity, various other developers have created spiritual successor games similar in theme and tone of the "X-COM" games (sometimes called ""X-COM" clones"; Julian Gollop also himself called turn-based tactical game genre in general as "sons of "Rebelstar"" in a reference to one of his earlier games). The level to which they borrow from the original series varies.The franchise was also referenced in the "Civilization" series of strategy video games that had partially inspired "X-COM" in first place. The original game received an unofficial sequel in the 1997 expansion set "Civ II: Fantastic Worlds" for MicroProse's "Civilization II", in a scenario set on the Phobos moon of Mars. Firaxis' "Civilization V" features a unit type named XCOM Squad.
Fabula Nova Crystallis Final Fantasy
The "Fabula Nova Crystallis" mythos has received mixed reactions from gaming sites. "Hardcore Gamer"s Brady Hale called the series "anything but ordinary" in the variety of games it featured. In an article concerning the 25th Anniversary event for the "Final Fantasy" series, Joystiq's Ben Gilbert called the "Fabula Nova Crystallis" mythos "occasionally bizarre and often beautiful". In 2014, Jeremy Parish of USGamer said that the series was "much ado about nothing", stating that since the games shared a large amount of themes and plot points with the main series, there seemed little reason for a distinction. TechnoBuffalo's Ron Duwell, in an article concerning a documentary video on "Final Fantasy XV", called the series "overly ambitious", but felt that it was worth "Fabula Nova Crystallis" "[imploding] upon itself" if "Final Fantasy XV" fulfilled its promises. Kat Bailey, writing for USGamer as part of her review for "Final Fantasy XV", said that series fans were ready for the subseries to come to an end with the game's release. RPG Site's Chelsi Laire called the subseries "a series of successes and failures, but mostly the latter" due to its troubled development, but hoped that the company would revisit the brand in the future.
Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII
Rumors about a second sequel's existence started even before "XIII-2"s release, when a domain name was registered in the name of "Final Fantasy XIII-3", however it turned out that the domain was registered by the company's western branch without the main company's knowledge. After "XIII-2"s cliffhanger ending became common knowledge, the game's creators released a statement saying that the ending was meant to prepare fans for coming DLC packets that would expand upon the game's story. However, after the release of the last piece of DLC, company officials stated that they would be releasing future content related to "XIII". By August 2012, during the run-up to a special 25th Anniversary commemoration event for the "Final Fantasy" series, a teaser site titled "A Storm Gathers" was released, promising new developments for the "XIII" series and its main protagonist. The game itself was finally unveiled at the event, with Toriyama, Kamikokuryo, Abe and Kitase detailing the core concepts of the game. Because character dialogue varied due to the time of day in-game, the western release of the game was delayed by over two months after the local release, as there was far more translation, dubbing work and lip-synching than in previous titles. For the promotion and marketing of the game, the development team rethought their strategy. They worked closely with Yohei Murakami, the publicity and marketing agent for many Square Enix games. "Lightning Returns" was heavily promoted at gaming events throughout 2013. As part of the promotion campaign, Lightning and monsters from the "XIII" series featured in a series of in "".
Fabula Nova Crystallis Final Fantasy
A recurring race in the games are god-like beings created by Pulse and Lindzei to act as their servants in the mortal world. In the original mythos and the "XIII" games, the demigods are called fal'Cie . They take the form of crystal-powered mechanical beings in the "XIII" games. In the universe of "Type-0", they are both semi-sentient crystals and humanoid beings living among the people. The fal'Cie have the ability to imbue chosen humans with magical powers and assign them a task to complete either willingly or unwillingly. "Final Fantasy XIII" and "Type-0" refer to these people as l'Cie and the task given to them as a Focus. In the worlds of "XIII" and "Type-0", there are two possible outcomes for l'Cie: once their Focus is fulfilled, they can go into 'crystal stasis', transforming into a crystal statue, and gain eternal life, but if they fail they become mindless crystalline monsters. In "Type-0", l'Cie are chosen by the crystal of their country, and given great power to fulfill their assigned Focus, but lose their memories if emotionally unstable. While not referred to as such using the original terminology, humans imbued with magic and burdened with a task exist in "Final Fantasy XV", one of them being the main protagonist Noctis.
Final Fantasy Type-0
"Type-0" has never received an official localization in its original form. During development, while it was still titled "Agito XIII", Tabata said he was trying to make the game appealing to North American players. Despite a localization being confirmed as in development in an official guidebook interview, the original version of "Type-0" was not released in the west. In the wake of the game's release in Japan, 1UP.com and Joystiq speculated that the game could be successfully brought west as a port to the PlayStation Vita. Tabata later commented that the main reasons for the game not being localized were the flagging Western PSP market and uncertainties surrounding the Vita's commercial success.
Final Fantasy XV
Initially announced in 2006 alongside "XIII" and "Type-0", the game was publicly rebranded at the 2013 Electronic Entertainment Expo, with regular updates on the title beginning the following year. A demo titled "Final Fantasy XV: Episode Duscae" was released in March 2015 as a limited addition to "Final Fantasy Type-0 HD". The game's localization was handled by Dan Inoue, who used different accents for characters to denote their origins on different parts of Eos. In addition to English, Japanese and European languages, the game was localized for Latin America with Latin American Spanish and Brazilian Portuguese text: this was the first time a "Final Fantasy" title was localized into these languages.
Fabula Nova Crystallis Final Fantasy
"Type-0" had a highly positive reception in Japan, with it garnering near-perfect scores in "Famitsu" and "Dengeki PlayStation". Import reviews were also fairly positive, sharing many points of praise with the Japanese reviews. "Type-0 HD" also received a positive reception in the west, with main praise going to the story, characters and action-based gameplay. Other aspects came in for criticism, such as elements of the graphics upgrade, the real-time strategy segments, and the localization. Western previews of "Agito" have also been positive, with critics agreeing that it looked good on the platform and worked well from a gameplay standpoint. "Final Fantasy XV" was positively received by many journalists; praise went to aspects of the story, the main characters, battle system and graphics, while the overarching plot, supporting cast and other technical elements such as the camera and late-game changes in gameplay were criticized.
Spiritual successor
One example of a spiritual sequel resulting from legal issues is "Dark Souls" by From Software, inspired by "Demon's Souls" by the same studio. The rights for "Demon's Souls", an exclusive title for the PlayStation 3, was held by Sony Computer Entertainment, preventing From Software from making a successor on other platforms, leading them to create a new property with similar gameplay mechanics for the Xbox 360 and other platforms. Another example is "Perfect Dark", developed by Rare as a spiritual sequel to their licensed title "GoldenEye 007". Rare had planned to develop a sequel to "GoldenEye" but lost the license as they were outbid by Electronic Arts. The developers still wanted to complete another spy-based title and developed "Perfect Dark" with a new story but with similar mechanics to "GoldenEye". 
All "Final Fantasy" games in the original series are spiritual successors of the original game rather than being sequels. The first proper story sequel was "Final Fantasy X-2".
Development of Final Fantasy XV
Since its original announcement, release of information became sporadic, leading to video game journalists labeling it as vaporware and eventually to rumors of its cancellation. After its public rebranding in 2013, the silence continued until its appearance at the 2014 Tokyo Game Show, at which point development and progress information was released on a regular basis. A demo for the game, "Final Fantasy XV: Episode Duscae", was released in March 2015 with first print copies of "Final Fantasy Type-0 HD". Promotion for the title was effectively restarted at the 2015 Gamescom. Its release was delayed due to polishing work and the wish for a simultaneous worldwide release, something no other mainline "Final Fantasy" title had managed to accomplish. Cosmetic, gameplay and story-based downloadable content were developed between 2016 and 2019 to fix issues raised by players and expand upon the base game.
Final Fantasy Type-0 HD
"Type-0 HD" was released on March 17, 19 and 20, 2015 for North America, Japan and Europe respectively. It came with both English and Japanese voice tracks for all regions. The game included a demo of "Final Fantasy XV", titled "Final Fantasy XV: Episode Duscae". The demo was only available in limited quantities: it was exclusive to physical first-print editions, and came with the digital edition for two months after release. The collector's edition, available through Square Enix's online store and at Amazon.com, came with a special CD featuring tracks from "Type-0" and "Agito", a calendar featuring official artwork, a Vermillion Peristylium ID card, a set of five cards modeled after those used by Ace in battle, and a cadet scarf. Limited editions of the game were produced for North America and Europe, for sale at selected high street and online stores. A PlayStation 4 hardware bundle was also produced for Japan, featuring a copy of the game and download code for the "XV" demo along with a console themed after the game. A port to Microsoft Windows via Valve Corporation's Steam platform was developed. This port was created in response to fan demands for a PC version. In contrast to the console version, the PC port allowed graphic adjustments, and included fixes for camera control and motion blur issues raised by players and reviewers after release. The port was released on August 18, 2015. As part of the promotion for the port, "Final Fantasy"-themed pre-order gifts for use in "Dota 2" were created.
Fabula Nova Crystallis Final Fantasy
"Type-0" sold over 472,000 units in its first week, and went on to sell over 740,000 units in Japan. The title was also added to the company's list of Ultimate Hits, re-releases of lucrative titles. "Type-0 HD" reached the top of the sales charts in its debut week, selling 93,000 units, though it ultimately performed poorly in Japan. It was among the ten top-selling games in March for the UK and US. By April, "Type-0 HD" had shipped over one million copies worldwide. "Agito" was highly successful in Japan, achieving 500,000 registered users within a week of release. By November of the year of release, the game had received one million downloads. "Awakening" met with commercial success in China, achieving two million downloads within its month of release. Upon its release, "Final Fantasy XV" sold five million copies worldwide through retail shipments and digital sales, breaking sales records for the "Final Fantasy" franchise.
Characters of the Final Fantasy Type-0 universe
While they are members of Class Zero in "Type-0", they appear in other classes during the events of "Agito".