Final Fantasy

When the founding team at the studio Square was putting together its last chance in 1987, no one suspected that a name was being born that would go on to carry dozens of games across generations of consoles. The word „Final“ sounded like a farewell back then — instead it became the beginning of one of the greatest legends of the gaming industry.

Final Fantasy arrived with a simple but powerful idea: assemble your own party of heroes and lead them on an epic quest to save the world. At the start the player chooses and combines classes — fighter, black and white mage, monk, and others — and each combination fundamentally changes the style of play. The turn-based combat shown from the side, where your foursome faces off against the enemies, became one of the defining conventions of the entire JRPG genre.

For its time it was a remarkably sprawling adventure: you explore the world map, sail ships, fly an airship, and gradually uncover a story that isn't afraid even of a twist in time. This ambition, combined with the atmospheric music of composer Nobuo Uematsu, gave the game a depth few expected on consoles.

Legend has it that Square was on the brink of collapse at the time and Hironobu Sakaguchi bet everything on a single card. The game's success saved the studio and launched a franchise that to this day ranks among the most important in the whole field. The game reached the West in 1990 and helped open the door there for Japanese RPGs.

Today Final Fantasy is above all a historical milestone — the root from which the entire tree of modern JRPGs grew. To play it is to return to the basics, to the moment when the rules that still hold today were being written.

Why play: For an encounter with the roots of the entire JRPG genre and with a game that literally saved Square and founded an immortal franchise.