Summary
With as long-standing a franchise of story-focused titles asFinal Fantasy, it should come as no surprise that not all of its climactic final moments are as gung-ho and celebratory as others. While manyFinal Fantasygames end with the title’s heroes enjoying the newfound strength and freedom of their successful pilgrimage, some experiences can leave players wondering if there was more that could have been done.
From multiple acts of noble self-sacrifice to much-loved party members setting off to find their place in the world after the credits roll, Square Enix seemingly has no issue with turning the classical hero’s journey on its head. Here are themost bittersweet endings featured inFinal Fantasygames.
Despite its 2009 release garnering much criticism due to its seeming linearity,Final Fantasy 13’s seventh-generation JRPG narrative has arguably been looked at more kindly in recent years. As a result, many players have since concluded that Lightning’sstory is one that is well worth experiencing, and its sacrifice-tinged conclusion is tantamount to that critical pivot.
WithFinal Fantasy 13’s god-like antagonist Orphan finally defeated and the majority of the party safely crystallized, Fang and Vanille remain to halt the oncoming collision between the world of Gran Pulse and the moon-like superstructure Cocoon. What is entailed is a traditional tale of sacrifice that is impactful, not only due to the player’s lack of ability to alter the outcome, but the collaborative effort that is required by the two mages to transform into the legendary being Raganarok to save not only their friends but all those who exist on the planet below.
Considering thatFinal Fantasy Type-0’s portable narrative is the first experience of Square Enix tackling a Mature title, the 2011 action role-playing game’s heart-wrenching climax comes as no surprise.Concluding a harrowing taleportraying the horrors of warfare and pitting friends against one another before allowing Class Zero a brief moment of mortality-embracing respite in the game’s final moments,Final Fantasy Type-0remains one of the long-running JRPG franchise’s most grief-stricken narratives.
Although the apocalyptic occasion of Tempus Finis has been temporarily halted, and the world ofFinal Fantasy Type-0has been effectively saved, the very human imaginings of Class Zero’s possible future and remembrance of all those who had died to get them to that point make for poignant moments in the title’s last story beats.
WithFinal Fantasy 9’s acclaim as containing one ofFinal Fantasy’s best fantasy worlds, the balanced approach of Square Enix in tackling lighthearted struggles and mortal despair has become a series-defining benchmark. As has since become tried and tested for the decades-long anthological JRPG franchise, the universe-threatening antagonist has been painstakingly vanquished, yet the very human desire to save all those possible remains. As such, Zidaine leaves the party to attempt to aid once-villain Kuja in retreat.
While Kuja’s fate is ultimately to die as the Iifa Tree collapses around him, the post-conclusion lives of the party characters are detailed to the player, and Zidaine is revealed to have survived. Although most of the party go on to live long and whole lives,Final Fantasy 9’s death-tinged climax is continued through the reveal that the Black Mage Vivi has seemingly passed away due to the class' limited lifespan, although even this is turned bittersweet as he is survived by the reveal that he has fathered multiple identical offspring.
Although theOgre Battle-inspired tactical role-playing game mechanics ofFinal Fantasy Tacticscertainly prioritize gameplay functionality and mechanical cohesion over Square’s usual grand narratives, the 1997 TRPG still retains much of the bittersweet storytelling the franchise is known for.
Although it is successful in providing a cohesivesynergy between appealing aesthetics and strategic depth,Final Fantasy Tactics' climax brings together its themes of betrayal and distrust to the forefront as players enact one of the series' most grand-scale battles. Bolstered by a lengthy epilogue that tackles the tumultuous regicide and suppression of the truth that has spread rampantly in the game’s later years,Final Fantasy Tactics' conclusion leans heavily on the idea that just because the story is over doesn’t mean that all has been set right in the world.
In marketingFinal Fantasy 15with a strong focus on the game’s clear themes of forged brotherhood and a whole host ofuniquely elongated boss battles, Square Enix seemingly sought to put the action role-playing game’s personal scale and grand narrative scope at the forefront of players' minds. As a result,Final Fantasy 15’s closing hours are spent not only separated from the party of fraternal comrades that the player has spent the entire game relying on for an in-game period of ten years, but it also introduces the idea of a sacrifice.
Although self-sacrifice has been a proven plot beat ofFinal Fantasystories since its earliest entries,Final Fantasy 15’s explicit focus on the friendship and bond between Noctis and his three road-trip-assisting allies reinforces the impact of such a fatal decision, asthe game’s near-30-hour runtimehas been spent bolstering their bond. Though it’s hard to watch Noctis go, his sacrifice made it possible for the rest of the world to live on.
Despite its place in the early annals of the anthological role-playing game franchise,Final Fantasy 2’s story-heavy focus and the idea of taking down a tyrannical emperor have not only remained pivotal to its continued appreciation but influenced the central themes and scope of theFinal Fantasyseries in its decades-long history. Although the demonic game-spanning antagonist is ultimately defeated and the world saved from cataclysmic tyranny, the game’s final moments are spent bidding farewell to not only the title’s 20-hour narrative but also a core member of the party.
With the Emperor defeated in his final resting place of the Jade Passage and the formerly antagonistic Dark Knight Leon aiding in his imprisonment, the party is once again disbanded. During these final moments, the brother of Maria leaves to seek solace for the betrayal and pain he has inflicted not only on his home but his family.
ConsideringFinal Fantasy 6’s unique approach to the Japanese role-playing genre in choosing tonot feature a protagonist per se, the Super Nintendo Entertainment System classic’s ability to invoke a sense of relatability and humanity in its 16-bit party is core to its seemingly continued acclaim.
As a result, the initially unsuccessful pilgrimage to defeat the franchise-defining villain Kefka in his madness-induced state is bolstered by the weight of the 1994 title’s consistent effort at humanizing its characters. Although the player is ultimately successful in besting Kefka and preventing any more unnecessary destruction from sweeping across the land, their initial failure resulted not only in the humiliating defeat of the player but the continued suffering and death of seemingly millions of innocent civilians.
Although theFinal Fantasyfranchise has produced arguably one of the most consistently revered stories in the video game industry,“many people agree that the tenth mainline entry boasts the most well-written narrative.“As such, it should come as no surprise that its penultimate moments are similarly poignant and fulfilling.
AsFinal Fantasy 10’s 45-hour-long exploration of the 2001 entry’s cyclical conflict between summoners and Sin comes to an ultimate conclusion, with Yuna banishing both the Aeons and Sin to the amalgous Farplane, Tidus is left to vanish before her very eyes. With the cycle concluded, all related mystical apparitions are similarly dissipated, which results in the game’s central hero speaking his final words to his friends and found family before disappearing in front of them.
