Final Fantasystands as one of the most iconic video game series of all time. There are anumber of all-time classic titlesin this series' catalog, and with every game, Square Enix finds some new way to subvert the typical fantasy genre and bring a new host of engaging, relatable characters to their audience. If there’s one area that the series does tend to stick to, however, it’s in the linearity of each game’s story.
There are plenty of JRPGs where player choice can take the narrative in vastly different directions, but theFinal Fantasygames do not number among them. Games likeTriangle StrategyandTactics Ogreshow that Square Enix is able to take this more fluid approach to a story, however, and in these particularFinal Fantasygames, player decisions still hold an incredible amount of weight in the overall gameplay and story being put forth.
An absolute classic that’s been given new life,Final Fantasy 7 Rebirthbrings many modern twists to the classic title, and it’s no surprise that this iteration of Cloud’s journey has a greater emphasis on relationships and party companions. There are manykey dialogue choicesthe player can make as Cloud that determine who he ends up dating later in the story, as well as companions' overall loyalty towards him in the story.
The players' decisions not only determine what scenes they get to see as the story unfolds, but also how Cloud interacts with his party. It’s not on quite the same level as a branching narrative or multiple endings, but player decisions still carry a good deal of weight where companions are concerned.
Player freedom is a huge part of what makes MMOs so popular. The “massively” part of a massively multiplayer game comes from having plenty to do, plenty to see, andplenty of buildsto specialize in.Final Fantasy 14is no exception in this regard, but on top of player freedom in terms of customization and exploration, this title in decidedly nonlinear in a way that manyFinal Fantasygames aren’t.
Especially during the early parts of characters' careers in this game, players have branching opportunities to explore different regions and complete quests in whatever order they wish. Player decisions have a huge part in how their character progresses during those integral, early areas of FF14.
The ending inFinal Fantasy 6differs greatly depending on who the player decided to bring along with them. This game isconsidered a classiceven among other entries in theFinal Fantasyseries, and it’s not surprising to see something as ahead of its time as a fluid, companion-based ending showing up in this title.
Besides the small handful of mandatory characters, there are a host of optional characters that can be recruited, and each of them change the ending scene in some way, especially if they were recruited alongside someone they’ve grown particularly close to over the course of the story. It’s a very dynamic way of ending the game that rewards players based on the decisions they made to recruit - or ignore - certain companions.
The first game in this duology was often maligned for being too linear - a symptom more of its time than the game itself, which had the unfortunate luck of being made during the great open world craze of the early 2010s.Final Fantasy 13-2not only continuesthe high quality storyand gameplay of the first game, but ends on one of several paradox endings based on certain decisions made during the story.
These endings are all decidedly non-canon, with a very clear ‘true’ ending among the paradox endings, but that doesn’t change the fact that these are all fascinating windows into the world of this game, and excellent opportunities to see new dimensions to characters unfold.
Players Who Do Not Act Are Punished
Final Fantasy X-2
Last Time She Saved The World. This Time It’s Personal.Yuna’s Story Continues In The First True Sequel Of The Final Fantasy Series. New Dangers Threaten Spira. Familiar Allies Are At Hand. And Somewhere, Somehow, A Friend May Still Be Alive…- Change Jobs In The Heat Of Battle- Enter An Exciting Mission-Based Story With Non-Linear Gameplay- Experience Dynamic Combat
Similar toFinal Fantasy 13-2,this second-half counterpart to aFinal Fantasygame has abit more fluidityin how the story flows and functions, with two major endings, two secret endings, and - depending on what choices are taken during the story, a number of different cutscenes on either side of these endings to more personalize them. Many of these endings will be based around how Yuna and Tidus' relationship continues and progresses from the first game. For those that have kept up with their story across both titles, this is an incredibly emotional and compelling facet of the game, and one that will stick with players for a long time.
Players must also make spur of the moment decisions, with the final boss running on an unseen timer that grants a bad ending if they are not defeated in time. Altogether, there are a myriad of ways that this game lets the player make relatively small decisions, but with lasting consequences where the direction of the story is concerned.
