What Is The Golden Era Of Final Fantasy?

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Summary

  • The PS1 era was the golden age of Final Fantasy with modern settings appealing to new players.
  • Sleek advertising, CG graphics, and mature storytelling attracted a wider audience.
  • Final Fantasy 9 was a love letter to classic fantasy, marking an end to the traditional era.

In 1987, *Final Fantasy* was a huge risk for Squaresoft – they weren’t even sure if they could make another game if it failed. Luckily, it was a massive success, and the series has been releasing new installments ever since! *Final Fantasy* is now a cornerstone of the JRPG genre, and many fans have played at least one game from the series.

Final Fantasy fans often debate which games are the best, but let’s focus on the consoles themselves to determine the peak era. We’ll look at the games, their innovations, and the wider media landscape at the time – were there spin-off books, movies, or anime? Considering all of that, the PlayStation 1 has a strong claim to being the golden age of Final Fantasy, and here’s the reasoning.

The Mature Sci-Fi Settings Of Final Fantasy 7 And 8

Two Knockouts Back To Back

Okay, so growing up with Final Fantasy, FF7 was a total game-changer. It felt so different from anything before it, especially with that whole Midgar thing. It was like stepping into a cyberpunk future – people in suits, cars, cellphones… it was seriously ahead of its time and way more mature than previous games. Then FF8 came along, and while it didn’t throw you into a huge city like Midgar right away, the world it built was still really captivating.

As a huge Final Fantasy fan, I always thought it was so cool that Squall and his friends trained at Balamb Garden – basically a military school that could *move*! Looking back, Final Fantasy 7 and 8 really captured the feeling of the 90s, even though they were set in the future. I think that’s a big reason why so many people started playing the series with those games. Plus, the advertising was amazing – they really made it seem like you *had* to play them! And honestly, the stories felt more grown-up than the older NES games, which appealed to those of us who’d been playing since way back then.

Final Fantasy For A New Generation

Sleek Advertising Brought Final Fantasy To The Forefront

Players didn’t buy the original *Final Fantasy 7* on PlayStation because of its story – they discovered that while playing. What initially attracted them was the advertising. The game’s promotions featured the impressive computer graphics, but presented the game as something even more innovative than it actually was, making it seem like a truly revolutionary PlayStation experience.

Although the game’s graphics weren’t as polished as the pre-rendered cinematic scenes, it was a significant improvement over previous PlayStation games like *Beyond the Beyond*, *Wild Arms*, and *Suikoden*. The advertising campaign helped more people discover this RPG than any before it, which was great for the gaming community. This likely explains why *Final Fantasy 7* remains a beloved title for many, as it may have been their initial experience with RPGs – or even video games in general.

Final Fantasy 9 Rings In A New Millennium

A Final Farewell To Traditional Fantasy

Unlike *Final Fantasy 7* and *Final Fantasy 8*, *Final Fantasy 9* returned to a more classic fantasy world. While it still featured some technology, like airships, it wasn’t as prominent. The game was really a celebration of everything that had come before in the *Final Fantasy* series – a fond goodbye to the traditional style, the PlayStation 1, and a welcome to the new year 2000.

Honestly, *Final Fantasy 9* just hits different. It’s a really beautiful game, and even though it went back to a more classic feel instead of focusing on super-modern tech, the story is incredible. It deals with some really heavy stuff, like witnessing genocide multiple times, which was tough but impactful. The world is so vibrant and full of life, and the characters are all unique and come from these really imaginative races. If I had to pick *the* defining *Final Fantasy* game, the one that truly captures what the series is all about, it would absolutely be *Final Fantasy 9*.

Final Fantasy Tactics’ Strategic Dominance

The Spinoff To End All Spinoffs

Final Fantasy Tactics was a surprising game for longtime fans of the Final Fantasy series and turn-based RPGs. It introduced a new style of gameplay where players moved characters on a grid and customized them with different jobs. Like Final Fantasy 7 and 8, it featured a mature story, but arguably even darker, exploring complex themes of politics, religious wrongdoing, and featuring a good amount of on-screen violence.

The original *Final Fantasy Tactics* on PlayStation was famously difficult, which many players enjoyed. Now, after a long absence, *Final Fantasy Tactics* is making a comeback on current consoles as *Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles*. This September, a new wave of gamers will have the chance to discover why *Final Fantasy Tactics* was so influential, both within the *Final Fantasy* series and for the tactical RPG genre as a whole.

Forgotten Final Fantasy Games

Playing For The First Time

The original *Final Fantasy* came out for the NES in 1990. The second game released in North America was actually the fourth installment in the series, appearing on the SNES. *Final Fantasy 3* was really *Final Fantasy 6*, also on the SNES. Things got confusing when the series jumped to *Final Fantasy 7* on the PlayStation, which finally put the games in the correct order. The PlayStation release allowed fans to play two games they hadn’t been able to before. The true *Final Fantasy 2*, originally an NES title, was later included in *Final Fantasy Origins*, a collection that also featured the very first game in the series.

The *Final Fantasy Anthology* brought *Final Fantasy 5* and *Final Fantasy 6* to Western audiences. Combined with *Final Fantasy 4*, which was released in *Final Fantasy Chronicles* with *Chrono Trigger*, this meant players could experience most of the main *Final Fantasy* games up to the ninth one. However, the original *Final Fantasy 3* didn’t arrive in North America until 2006, when a remastered version was released for the DS. Even so, it was a fantastic collection of games for a single console.

The First Era Of Spinoffs

Squaresoft Got Experimental

The early *Final Fantasy* games on NES and SNES followed a fairly traditional formula, but the series started to experiment more with the PlayStation 1. While *Final Fantasy Tactics* is well-known and celebrated, there were other notable spin-off titles released for that console. One of these was *Mystery Dungeon*, a popular roguelike series, especially in Japan, that featured characters from various game franchises. For example, two *Chocobo’s Mystery Dungeon* games were released for the PS1, though only the second one was ever localized for Western audiences.

Besides those titles, Squaresoft released *Chocobo Racing*, which was similar to *Mario Kart*. While none of these games reached the quality of *Final Fantasy Tactics*, they demonstrated how willing Squaresoft was to experiment on the PlayStation. *Ehrgeiz: God Bless the Ring* is a good example – it wasn’t a traditional *Final Fantasy* game, but it included popular characters like Cloud, Tifa, and Sephiroth from *Final Fantasy 7*. In general, the PlayStation was a time when Squaresoft really pushed boundaries and tried out lots of different ideas outside of the main *Final Fantasy* series.

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2025-09-22 09:35