Final Fantasy XIII

Timeless Final Fantasy series approaches thirteenth installment, but what makes it stand apart?

 

One of the longest-running and most prolific of all video game franchises, the Final Fantasy series has sold in excess of 90 million games over its twenty-year history. More than annual bestseller Madden NFL, but the franchise's success was born out of hardship.

 

Though it's hard to believe these days, the original game -- and its increasingly inaccurate "Final" moniker -- was intended as publisher Square's last-ditch effort to stave off bankruptcy. Released on the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1987, it proved a colossal success in its native Japan . Western audiences wouldn't receive the game until 1990, and ultimately drove it to sales numbers that topped the two million mark, cementing Square's future as a key international publisher.

 

Final Fantasies 2 and 3 didn't make it to Western shores at the time of their release, although we did get the fourth game, but called it the second. We then skipped the fifth, but received the sixth, although we called it the third...and if that's enough to make your head spin, you're not the only one. By the time the seventh game in the series was released, Square had apparently had enough of all the confusion, and since then Final Fantasy games have had the same names worldwide.

 

In the fast-moving, hit-driven world of modern video games, franchises that can survive more than a few years are considered unusual. The Final Fantasy series, which typically doesn't share plots, settings, or even characters between episodes, is doubly so. It's appeared on almost every gaming platform of any significance (though it shunned the original Xbox) and its numerous spin-offs have graced genres as diverse as turn-based strategy games, massively-multiplayer online worlds, fighting games, and even an ill-fated CGI movie.

 

Many though the Final Fantasy releases have been, it's the seventh that looms largest in gamer culture. Originally released in 1997 on the Playstation, this three-CD epic still holds one of gaming's most compelling stories -- and some of its most unforgettable characters. The emotional death of one of the game's central characters, Aeris, remains an oft-cited high-water mark in game history. One fan confessed to "crying at the dinner table" after the scene, and she's by no means the only one.

 

Persistent rumors of a Final Fantasy VII remake have thus far proven fruitless, but fans are still keen to relive the game: a downloadable version, playable on either PS3 or PSP, regularly tops Sony's Playstation Network charts, and a recent spin-off PSP title proved a massive sales hit. The soundtrack remains a classic, too: it's even made an appearance at an impressive number of concert halls.

 

The latest episode, Final Fantasy XIII, marks the first new core Final Fantasy release in nearly four years. Although in some ways -- like its role-based character development system -- it harkens back to earlier games, it's not afraid to break with tradition. Final Fantasy heroes have traditionally been sensitive, introspective males, but but XIII flips that tradition on its head by introducing the series' first female lead since the SNES era, Lightning. Despite her pink hair, she's actually a touch masculine. She's thrust into a characteristically intricate plot, involving two warring cities, a resistance movement, and a huge supporting cast.

 

A few lucky critics had nabbed early copies imported from Japan (where the game's been out since December) and considering the series' heritage, the results are surprisingly mixed. Although the battle system and the characters come in for plenty of praise, some critics are marking it down for its lack of variety and side-quests.

 

Perhaps it's a sign of the times. These days, role-playing games (like recent hits Mass Effect 2 and Fallout 3) focus more on open-world design and player choice than a deep main plotline. Recently, some strong suggestions from Square have indicated that Final Fantasies post-XIII could be heading in a different direction.