Summary
In an interview,Final Fantasy 14composer Masayoshi Soken stated that the critically acclaimed MMORPG could use more Final Fantasy 8 references if he had the choice. However, Soken added thatFinal Fantasy 14only makes callbacks to past titles if it fits what the developers have in mind, with careful planning being part of the process.
Soken took over main composer duties forFinal Fantasy 14following its disastrous 1.0 launch. Along with being the lead composer forFinal Fantasy 14’s subsequent expansions, Soken has also composed the soundtrack forFinal Fantasy 16, which earned him and Square Enix theBest Score and Music honors at The Game Awards in 2023. Although theFinal Fantasy 14OST has plenty of original songs from each expansion, including “Close In the Distance” and “Tomorrow and Tomorrow,” the MMORPG’s musical repertoire also includes covers from pastFinal Fantasygames, such asFinal Fantasy 9and even spinoffs likeFinal Fantasy Tactics.
While Final Fantasy 14 has covered different facets of the franchise between bosses and environments, the game’s composer said one entry could use more representation if given the chance.In a PCGamesN interview, Soken said that he would preferFinal Fantasy 8to get some more callbacks in future Final Fantasy 14 expansions or patches. However, Soken clarified his wish by stating that the developers at Creative Studio 3 are purposeful in picking whichFinal Fantasyto pull from, and he said that each has to fit with the stories that they want to tell.
Final Fantasy 14’s Soken Wants More Final Fantasy 8 Callbacks
Fortunately,Final Fantasy 8is not without its share of references withinFinal Fantasy 14, as the Gunbreaker job is an homage toFF8protagonist Squall Leonhart and his signature gunblade. Additionally, theShadowbringersexpansion introduced the Eden raid series, named and themed afterFF8’s ultimate Guardian Force. Eden was subsequently brought back toDawntrailviathe Futures Rewritten (Ultimate) raid challenge, with two of its phases featuring covers of “The Legendary Beast” and “The Extreme” fromFinal Fantasy 8.
Additionally, one ofFinal Fantasy 14’s most popular mini-games is the Triple Triad collectible card game, which originated fromFF8.Triple Triad cards with varying degrees of rarityare periodically added with each patch or expansion, along with different rule sets that keep players on their toes.
Given thatFinal Fantasy 14is a theme-park MMORPG, the possibilities for other games to get featured are nearly endless. ThoughDawntrailfeatures plenty ofcallbacks toFinal Fantasy 9in both its music and characters, only time will tell what Creative Studio 3 will do to fulfill Soken’sFF8request.
