Final Fantasy

Final Fantasy is a Japanese video game series created by Hironobu Sakaguichi, and developed by SquareSoft (later SquareEnix).

Most of the video game titles published (the main series currently stands at 14 titles) are fantasy or science-fantasy RPGs, although it could be argued that Final Fantasy XI - an MMO, still counts as an RPG. Movie titles, strategy games, other video games, anime, printed media, and other paraphernalia have also been published. None of the central titles have any kind of storyline relationship to one another, and are essentially self-contained continua save where one gets a continuation sequel or spin-off game.

The Final Fantasy series has been covered by several artists, including Yoshitaka Amano, Tetsuya Nomura, and Akihiko Yoshida.

Despite being developed in Japan, the Final Fantasy series still enjoys a lot of popularity on a more global scale. This, along with the fact that a movie based on FFVII was recently released, means that there is plenty of Final Fantasy Fanfic and hence Badfic to go around.

Game Play
The original Final Fantasy series was a classic turn-based RPG battle system: meaning, each character had a character class (or specialized moveset) and attacked in a turn order to reduce an enemy's hit points to 0. This battle system was simple until Final Fantasy IV, which used an active-time turn based battle system. This kind of battle system was kept, improved, and modified in various ways until Final Fantasy X, which used a conditional (no time pressure for picking actions) battle system. Real time battles were the system of choice in the MMORPG Final Fantasy XI. Final Fantasy XII uses a real-time battle system once again.

The Final Fantasy Tactics series uses a turn-based strategy game style interface.

The Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles series uses a real-time (and if you wish it, co-op!) battle system.

Releases and Timelines
thumb|right|300px|It is an RPG.The first Final Fantasy game was intended to be just that: a final fantasy title by Squaresoft, which at the time did not have a sunny outlook for its continued existence. This proved to be a load of balderdash later, when the very first Final Fantasy game proved to be not only extremely successful, but company-saving. Years later, the Final Fantasies have proved to be anything but final. This is a list of big releases, as of 2010 accompanied by original Japanese release date: Also released are And, Furthermore, There are like a zillion more games, including games released for mobile phone, remakes of these games for newer consoles, other spin-offs, and more. But these are the biggest releases, and if anybody wants to expand this list, please do.
 * Final Fantasy (1987)
 * Final Fantasy II (1988)
 * Final Fantasy III (1990)
 * Final Fantasy IV (1991)
 * Final Fantasy V (1992)
 * Final Fantasy VI (1994)
 * Final Fantasy VII (1997)
 * Final Fantasy VIII (1999)
 * Final Fantasy IX (2000)
 * Final Fantasy X (2001)
 * Final Fantasy XI (2002)
 * Final Fantasy XII (2006)
 * Final Fantasy XIII (2009)
 * Final Fantasy XIV (2010)
 * Final Fantasy Tactics (1997)
 * Final Fantasy Tactics Advance (2003)
 * Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles (2003)
 * Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers (2009)
 * Final Fantasy Mystic Quest (1992)
 * Final Fantasy Dissidia (2009)

Installments
Because there are so many installments, and because they are all singular, it would not be sensible to summarize them all here. Instead, enjoy many links to the Final Fantasy wikipedia pages..

Final Fantasy
You can read about the original Final Fantasy game here.

Rarely does the original Final Fantasy appear in badfic. Final Fantasy 1, on the NES could only be told in intermittent snippets and its age prevents fangirls from picking it up first. Little fic of it is written at all, much less badfic. However, one of the Light Warriors and a villain from this game appears in Final Fantasy Dissidia-- and may revive a bit of zeal for the world or even just that character at least.

A lot of Final Fantasy badfic has to do with badficcers trying to create the popular webcomic 8-Bit Theatre.

Final Fantasy II
You can read about Final Fantasy II here.

Final Fantasy II is also pretty absent in badfic. However, this game did introduce many things the Final Fantasy series now takes as staples, such as the appearance of chocobos (large ostrich-chicken-like beasts of burden) and the inclusion of a character named 'Cid.' It gained little notoriety outside of Japan, however -- though its remakes did well overseas. In addition, a character and a villain from the game has been included in the Square-Enix fighting game Final Fantasy Dissidia... which has recently provoked at least a little interest from fangirls. This might be a good thing. Might.

Final Fantasy III
You can read about Final Fantasy II here.

This game wasn't even released outside of Japan (where it enjoyed a good reception despite its grind-heavy difficulty) until a 1996 remake made it known. However, this is the first game that incorporated special battle commands (specific skills to each combat member) and to also use the 'summon' mechanic to summon powerful allies to fight. The remake is for DS, but is actually fairly difficult, which makes it unlikely a fangirl will write much about it -- as exposure equals fanbase. Once again, a character and a villain from it appears in Dissidia -- so fangirls may get a little exposure that way.

Final Fantasy IV
You can read about Final Fantasy IV here.

You can also read about its phone-game sequel here.

This was the second Final Fantasy game to be released in North America, and the first localization sucked. This was a time before the ESRB, so overt references to death were removed as well as any possible judeo-christian words... and the quality was that of a blind idiot translation. However, it has enjoyed several re-releases and has done very well. It introduced the idea of a troubled hero that must handle his demons before he handles the world, which extrapolates to angst in the greater fandom abstraction. Fanfiction is not widespread, but it is definitely there: and by extension there must be badfic somewhere. Unfortunately.

Cecil makes an appearance in Final Fantasy Dissidia, along with Golbez.

This is the game that the expletive "You spoony bard!" came from. Some agents (and others) familiar with the game may use this in an effort to remain Friendly To All Audiences.

Final Fantasy V
You can read about Final Fantasy V here.

This game sold fairly well, and has had several re-releases... but for nothing more recent than the Game Boy Advance. As such, fic about it is somewhat limited... but this was also the game that introduced a 'job' mechanic that allowed a character to play as different classes. This feature lead to modern diversity in the game series in character classes and probably the wide range of 'jobs' an original character (or Mary Sue) could take. Like all of the other games, a hero (Bartz) and a villain (Exdeath) appear in Final Fantasy Dissidia.

Speaking of Exdeath... he's a tree. No, really.

Final Fantasy VI
You can read about Final Fantasy VI here.

This game is nearly the same as Final Fantasy V in terms of badfic saturation. The latest release was on the Game Boy Advance, and young chipper badficcers are not quick to pick anything but the new release up. This was the first Final Fantasy game to take on a more science-fantasy feel to it. Also, both Terra and Kefka show up in Final Fantasy Dissidia.

Another note: Kefka is a cult favorite villain. There are some places that would say Kefka is the best bad guy in all of Final Fantasy. Don't argue with them. They will not relent.

Final Fantasy VII
You can read about Final Fantasy VII here.

Also, about its side-game Dirge of Cerberus here.

AND YET AGAIN about its other side game Crisis Core here.

There was going to be a phone game, too -- but it never got off the ground. If you are a Final Fantasy fanatic, you must be locked in a box without the internet to NOT know how insanely popular this series still is. It has gotten a mobile phone game, and anime OAV, not one but two side-games, and a whole movie to it. Fangirls still go wild over Sephiroth, even MORE since the movie, and YET AGAIN since the side game Crisis Core came out and it's shown that Sephiroth was actually a decent person once upon a time. Fanfiction is spread far and wide, and with the amount of pairing possibilities, badfic is inevitable. Count on it. Also count on that badfic to be bad. Really, really bad. Do not go to the Unclaimed Badfic page. Do NOT scroll down to 'Cloud Mows The Lawn.'

DO. NOT. DO. IT.

Also, Cloud and Sephiroth are in Dissidia. And the fans rejoiced.

Final Fantasy VIII
You can read about Final Fantasy VIII here.

There is a very decent amount of fanfic and badfic for Final Fantasy VIII -- not as much as for Final Fantasy VII, but the depths of its badness are just as luridly awful. This was the first Final Fantasy that had fully realistic-proportioned cut-scenes, and so has a little more depth of emotion where Final Fantasy VII fell a bit short. Many fans decry Squall as an overly-cardboard angst-ridden character... even more than Cloud, who showed some emotion sometimes.

Both Squall and Ultimecia appear in Final Fantasy: Dissidia.

Final Fantasy IX
You can read about Final Fantasy IX here.

There is some badfic. Not as extremely virulent as VII or VIII, but it is there. Once again, this game was a sort of callback to early Final Fantasies, and it also looks much more polished than VII or VIIc -- so there is an appeal to fangirls. However, as the main character is a more impish character rather than a 'bishie', there's not as much fuss over him.

Of note, there is a slightly abrasive difficulty curve in the game's battle progression that may dissuade some from getting further than the first few areas. As many young fangirls don't like to spend effort, this could deter some. Also, this game is just old enough to be obsolete on a few consoles, yet not have enough notoriety to draw those young fangirls like VII or VIII.

Zidane and Kuja are seen in Dissidia: Final Fantasy.

Final Fantasy X
You can read about Final Fantasy X here.

Also about its sequel Final Fantasy X-2.

Final Fantasy X has a massive amount of badfic. A combination of a pretty world and high visibility of the title (to the point of being the first Final Fantasy to get a direct sequel!) draws fangirls to it. The most common fics are terrible OCs and self-insert fics where the Mary Sue is either a summoner or a guardian -- which are both awful jobs, really. It gets crossed over a lot with Kingdom Hearts, and High School AUs are also quite popular here. AUs in general are popular here, actually -- some more awful than others.

It is the belief of many fans that Tidus is the 'worst' Final Fantasy hero. Whatever this means is subjective.

Both Tidus and his father Jecht are in Dissidia: Final Fantasy.

Final Fantasy XI
This was a Massively Multiplayer Online Game. You can read about it here.

It was not-that-cared-about, especially in the face of Warcraft and other budding MMOs. Many have forgotten about it. Too few even cared enough to write much badfic about it. This is impressive.

There is a sizable amount of porn art concerning it, though. And as with all MMOs, beware the terrible ERP (erotic roleplay) transcripts and any other bad shenanigans.

This takes place in the Ivalice canon, and as such can be connected to Final Fantasy Tactics and other games that occur in Ivalice.

Final Fantasy XII
You can read about Final Fantasy XII here.

There is actually a surprising lack of really outwardly obvious Final Fantasy XII badfic -- very few Mary Sues, but far more badly-thought-out romance fics. However, it is a common fan opinion that Balthier is a better main character than the hero Vaan, and that the character Fran is possibly one of the sexiest characters in a Final Fantasy yet.

This game also takes place in Ivalice, and so can be connected to Final Fantasy XI and Final Fantasy Tactics.

Final Fantasy XIII
You can read about Final Fantasy XIII here

Final Fantasy XIII is still relatively new (less than 2000 fanfics in the Pit) and as such the amount of badfic is directly relative to the amount of fic around at all. However, as it is being released on more expensive and newer consoles (and not the Wii, either), slightly fewer young fanbrats are likely to pick it up.

Despite its newness, there are many fans that do not like this game. The map design is very linear, like a corridor of fights -- subjecting you to the story in an almost cinematic fashion. The main character was very blatantly stated to be similar to Cloud Strife, but a girl. BioWare's Lead Writer even went so far as to call it 'not an RPG.' Whether badficcers care about such things, though, is up to debate.

Final Fantasy XIV
This is another Massively Multiplayer online game. You can read about it here.

Badfic about this continua is unknown, mostly because of its poor critical reception. As of this wiki edit, there are less than 10 fics concerning it at all published in the Pit. However, because all things exist on the internet there must be some, somewhere. There must. Or there soon will be.

Like all MMOs, do not be surprised if you see transcripts of terrible ERP (erotic roleplay) or other bad shenanigans that have taken place within its confines.

Final Fantasy Tactics
Final Fantasy Tactics is a turn-based strategy game. You can read more about it here.

The original Final Fantasy Tactics game was a departure from the standard RPG style of Final Fantasy. Even though it has had remakes, it has less than 500 entries in the pit and very little badfic: just a lot of unfinished fics and mediocre fics. It does allow the creation of new characters in a way, so OCs seem to be popular.

This game takes place in Ivalice, and can be considered in the same world as Final Fantasy XI and Final Fantasy XI.

Final Fantasy Tactics Advance
Final Fantasy Tactics Advance is another turn-based strategy game. You can read more about it here.

Final Fantasy Tactics Advance is a spin-off of the original Final Fantasy Tactics, and was popular enough to even warrant a sequel. It uses the same style of turn-based strategic combat on an isometric field.

Although there are only about 200 entries for this game in The Pit and less than 100 for its sequel, there is a high chance of encountering badfic here. The plot itself consists of self-inserts into Ivalice, which practically canonizes others to do the same. Other than Self-inserts, there is a not-inconsiderable amount of AU and drama in fics due to the main characters of Tactics Advance being (at least slightly) angsty teenagers with miserable lives.

Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles
This is a series of spin-off action/role-playing games. Currently there are six titles (seven if you count the browser game) and you can read about them here. It also got a manga

Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles is very different from other Final Fantasy games. The first installment had a wildly different tone from the main series, and was not liked by some fans. However, it does have a dedicated fanbase in its own right. There are less than 500 fics in The Pit for all 8 games, but the fandom for the first few games doesn't seem to contain virulent enough fangirls to make a lot of really obvious badfic. However, the original game on the Gamecube relies on a party of completely original customizable characters... so the potential for bad OCs and Mary Sues is there.

The newest installment may not help promote goodfic, for the tone has changed greatly and shifted in the direction of the main series slightly -- attracting mainstream fangirls. Already there are a lot of romance fics chiefly concerning Crystal Bearers... well-thought-out or not.

Mystic Quest
Released in 1992, this spin-off was intended to be an entry-level RPG game that would broaden the audience for Final Fantasy and similar game series. A lot of the signature elements of Final Fantasy games were removed or modified: for example, there aren't random battles, but enemies on the map you have the choice to approach or avoid. Other games would use methods similar to this later. However, its easy difficulty and simplistic graphics aside, it failed to popularize console RPG games to western audiences... and that sort of success wouldn't happen until Final Fantasy VII was released.

Final Fantasy: Mystic Quest does not even have a section in the Pit, and it is unknown if any substantial fic of it exist, let alone badfic. Its age and extreme obscurity makes the outlook extremely unlikely.

Dissidia
A massive crossover game featuring characters from all of the main series of games (those with roman numerals in the titles) excluding the MMO Final Fantasy 14. More information can be found here.

The fic in this continuum is very small, numbering under 500, as of this edit. With so many male characters (most of which already have large fanbases), it is an assurance that there will be much slash. Many other fics are humour based, or have the inclusion of more fighters (OC or from other series). Luckily, much of the fiction is written by good, or at least decent authors and Badfic is rare. There is a small amount of OC's, self inserts, and Mary Sues, though this is sure to increase at some point.

As an after thought, while the game itself showcases characters from the earlier games who had very little exposure due to various reasons, this also opens up the way for fan girls to these as well, and an increase in badfic activity can be expected. It happened for Super Smash Bros., so it has a good chance of happening here.

Kingdom Hearts
Kingdom Hearts is a game made in a partnership between Square-Enix and Disney. It includes versions of many Final Fantasy characters -- but these incarnations should NOT be seen as canon to the original games. In fact, as the Kingdom Hearts franchise went on, it became more Square-Enix-saturated than Disney saturated, so some fangirls of Final Fantasy games often are drawn to the increasingly convoluted and JRPG-type plot... and blendings of Kingdom Hearts and Final Fantasy games are quite common.

This can manifest in a whole spectrum of quality or badness. On one hand, you have some fics that try and make Kingdom Hearts-verse versions of Final Fantasy characters that weren't included in the games -- and then go on interesting adventures to explain where they were and what happened to their worlds. But on the other hand, you have Sora and Riku going to class in a Highschool-AU fic with Tifa and Yuna.

Mixing up Kingdom Hearts and Final Fantasy canons CAN be a charge... but it depends which section or game the fic is listed under. If a fic is mostly Kingdom Hearts foolery, and it's listed under 'Final Fantasy', it is definitely a charge for a misplaced or mislabeled fic.

The Kingdom Hearts fandom can get really bad, so when it bleeds into other fandoms, it sometimes gets even worse.

Missions in this Continuum

 * Agents Tyler and Kirsten, DMS-Video Games
 * Assassins Please Enter Stage Left, (Final Fantasy VII)
 * Sewer Rats, (Final Fantasy VII)
 * a child hero, (Final Fantasy VII)
 * Real Killers Always Improvise, (Final Fantasy X)
 * Can You Repeat What You Just Called Yourself?, (Final Fantasy X)
 * Got Grammar?, (Final Fantasy X)
 * Say what?, (Final Fantasy X)
 * Sues and Sniper Rifles, (Final Fantasy X)
 * Bullets of Bad Characterization (Final Fantasy X-2), Agents Katrina and Samuel (DMS-Freelance)
 * The Story, and Epilogue, of Rain Strife (Final Fantasy VII), Agents Arti and Lunac (DMS-Video Games)