Summary
Square Enix’sFinal Fantasyfranchise is one of the oldest video game franchises still alive and well to this day, and while this is largely due to the success of its many mainline installments, that prosperity can also be attributed to its bold spin-offs. Spin-off titles likeFinal Fantasy Tactics,Final Fantasy Type-0, andStranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Originhave all proven that the longstanding series can explore a variety of different genres — like Roguelike, RTS, and Racing — and still maintain its popularity. However, there is still one genre theFinal Fantasyfranchise has yet to fully adopt that would be oddly perfect for a spin-off: horror.
It’s no secret that the horror genre in gaming has gained significant mainstream traction in recent years, with successes like theDead Spaceremake,The Outlast Trials,Phasmophobia, andCapcom’s series ofResident Evilremakesall leading the charge. In light of that, there’s little reason why theFinal Fantasyseries shouldn’t pick up on the trend and perhaps introduce the first-ever legitimate horror experience set in theFinal Fantasyuniverse. After all, the franchise has introduced plenty of elements that already fit the horror genre perfectly, including many of its enemies and its willingness to explore dark themes.
The Horror Genre Would Fit a Final Fantasy Spin-Off Perfectly
Many of Final Fantasy’s Enemies Are Terrifying
More than anything else,Final Fantasyhas proven itself worthy of the horror label in its enemy design. While noteveryFinal Fantasyenemyis terrifying to behold, they very much are in many of the series' darker titles, and that is steadily becoming even more true as modern technological developments allow for increasingly detailed visuals.Final Fantasy’s Tonberry, for one, has always been one of the series' most terrifying enemies, though more so on account of its demeanor than its design. Almost anyone’s first encounter with a Tonberry inFinal Fantasyis likely to send shivers down their spine, as the eerie creature’s mysterious persona makes it almost too much to bear.
AlongsideFinal Fantasy’s creepiest enemies are its most grotesque, like the iconic Malboro orFinal Fantasy 10’s Yunalesca. A properFinal Fantasyhorror game might see players racing through a dark dungeon with a massive Malboro tailing them, where their only hope is escape rather than a simple remedy. Other enemies in theFinal Fantasyseries are simply frightening to look at due to their otherworldy design. The Daemonwall inFinal Fantasy 15, for example, is by far one ofFinal Fantasy’s most terrifying enemies, along with Jenova Dreamweaver fromFinal Fantasy 7 Remake.
The Final Fantasy Series Has Been Known to Explore Dark Themes
Horrifying enemy designs aren’t the only thing that would justify a horrorFinal Fantasyspin-off, as its willingness to explore dark themes is a franchise staple and could open the door for a similar experience in a horror game. Since its inception,Final Fantasyhas flirted with dark and unsettling themes, from the chilling experiments ofHojo inFinal Fantasy 7to the existential dread of Sin inFinal Fantasy 10, the series is no stranger to horror in this sense. The only thing keeping these dark themes from being called “horror” is the fact that there is often far too much hope present inFinal Fantasyfor it to ever reach such a state.
Final Fantasy’s Tonberry, for one, has always been one of the series' most terrifying enemies, though more so on account of its demeanor than its design.
In other words, in order forFinal Fantasyto truly delve into the horror genre, it would need to be willing to let some or all of that hope be unattainable, and it would also need to be bold enough to let certain things happen on screen that it might not have allowed before.Final Fantasy 16is one of the few installments in the series to have a more mature approach to its story, but even with that increased maturity, it only treads the border of horror and never fully commits to it. Perhaps a futureFinal Fantasyspin-off, even more than a mainline installment, could find a way to make horror work, especially given the series' affinity for terrifying enemies and dark themes.
