Final Fantasy (universe)

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Final Fantasy (universe)
File:FinalFantasyLogo.png
Developer(s)	Square Enix
Publisher(s)	Square Enix
Designer(s)	Hironobu Sakaguchi
Genre(s)	Role-playing game
Console/platform of origin	Nintendo Entertainment System
First installment	Final Fantasy (1987)
Latest installment	Final Fantasy XIV: Heavensward (2015)
Article on Wikipedia	Final Fantasy (universe)

The Final Fantasy universe (ファイナルファンタジー, Final Fantasy) refers to the Smash Bros. series' collection of characters, stages, and properties that hail from the world famous RPG franchise owned by Square Enix.

Franchise description

Final Fantasy is one of the most popular and longest-running series of Japanese Role Playing Games. The first installment of the series was released for the NES in 1987 and was an immediate success, famously saving developer Squaresoft (as it was then known) from bankruptcy. The game starred four nameable, silent protagonists known as the Light Warriors; the player could select one of six classes for each character at the beginning of the game. The storyline was simple, with the Light Warriors journeying to defeat four elemental Fiends, although it did feature a twist at the end. Many of the monsters in the game were inspired by the tabletop RPG Dungeons & Dragons.

Squaresoft would release two more Final Fantasy titles for the NES, followed by three for the SNES, although the second, third and fifth installments were not released in America, resulting in the fourth and sixth games being localized under the names Final Fantasy II and Final Fantasy III respectively. Over time the series became more complex and story-driven, as well as drifting away from the traditional medieval fantasy setting and introducing an increasing number of sci-fi elements while still featuring swords and magic.

Although the series was successful from the beginning, its popularity skyrocketed with the release of Final Fantasy VII. The game was developed for the PlayStation instead of the Nintendo 64, a pivotal decision that gave Sony's new console an edge over Nintendo; it was considered a major killer app for the system, and its success made its protagonist, Cloud Strife, into an unofficial mascot for the PlayStation console and the Final Fantasy series as a whole. It was also the first game in the series to be released in Europe. Nintendo systems have not seen a mainline Final Fantasy game since, although they do regularly receive spinoff titles, as well as remakes of the first six games.

Much like Fire Emblem, the main Final Fantasy series games do not form an on-going story but focus on separate stories with different cast and settings but similar themes and elements such as elemental crystals, summons and Moogles. This does not mean that sequel games don't exist, however. Some installments become successful enough to get their own spinoffs, forming a sub-series notably with Final Fantasy XIII, Final Fantasy X and most prominently, Final Fantasy VII.

In Super Smash Bros. 4

Characters

• 
  Cloud: The main protagonist of Final Fantasy VII made his debut in the Smash Bros. series as a downloadable character in Super Smash Bros. 4.

Stages

• Midgar

Media with elements from or in the Super Smash Bros. series

Final Fantasy II

Chocobos appears as an upcoming downloadable content headgear. The Leviathan appears on the Midgar stage.

Final Fantasy III

Odin, Ramuh, and Ifrit appear on the Midgar stage.

Final Fantasy VII

Cloud Strife appears as an upcoming playable downloadable content character in Super Smash Bros. 4 alongside Midgar, an area from Final Fantasy VII. Bahamut Zero, which appears on the aformentioned stage, also originates from this game.

Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children

Cloud's outfit and sword from the CGI movie appear as an alternative costume.

Dissidia: Final Fantasy

Cloud's default Smash costume takes cues from the design used for his default costume from this game, including the more realistic proportions and loosely fastened boots.

Trivia

• Final Fantasy and EarthBound are the only universes with playable characters that do not have a character from their original installment playable in Smash Bros.
• Several Final Fantasy characters representing generic classes and creatures had previously crossed over with the Mario universe in Mario Hoops 3-on-3 and Mario Sports Mix both of which were developed by Square Enix. However, Cloud does not appear in either of them, and is in fact the first named Final Fantasy character to appear in a Nintendo crossover.
  • Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars was also developed by Square Enix and includes references to the Final Fantasy series including an optional boss who was designed as an allusion to the Final Fantasy series.
• Final Fantasy and Mega Man are the only third-party universes to have debuted in a Nintendo system. In fact, both universes debuted on the NES.
• Xenogears from the Xeno series started out as an early concept for Square's Final Fantasy VII. The company deemed it "too dark and complicated for a fantasy", but Takahashi was allowed to develop it as a separate project.
• Final Fantasy is the first universe to introduce a new company after the initial release of Super Smash Bros. 4.
• Final Fantasy creator Hironobu Sakaguchi also directed The Last Story which is also represented in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U by trophies.