A look at the state of Final Fantasy
The last we heard of Final Fantasy was at the Tokyo Game Show this past month. The event basically had next to nothing new for Final Fantasy players. Square Enix, the developer of Final Fantasy, on the other hand has decided to jump on the Super Smash Bros. bandwagon that so many other developers have done before. Square Enix's being Dissidia: Final Fantasy, wherein they're putting the lead characters and villains from the main series against each other in one-on-one battles in yet another off-shoot Final Fantasy title.
This however is not the Final Fantasy most fans are craving for. That would be Final Fantasy XIII, and the wait for it has been a very long and one-sided one for fans. The title was announced over two-and-a-half years ago, and is projected to not hit shelves in North America until this time next year.
What has happened to Final Fantasy is that Square Enix--instead of releasing new installments, like Final Fantasy VII, VIII and IX, one after the other like generations past--has basically delayed the process and added filler. Final Fantasy VII was released in September 1997, Final Fantasy X in December 2001, that's four main series Final Fantasy's over five years. Final Fantasy X to the projected release of Final Fantasy XIII is a nine-year spread. This has had a huge impact on the series' popularity.
Looking at what Square Enix is mainly developing these days, it's Final Fantasy, Kingdom Hearts, and Dragon Quest titles. Every few years they release the actual lead games of each of these series, like Final Fantasy XII, Dragon Quest VIII and Kingdom Hearts II, but the years in between they develop off-shoot titles based on these three key franchises. In theory this is great for eager fans who want even more from their favourite games. There is no mistaking that the lead games from these three series are amazing titles, however this unfortunately has not been the case for the off-shoots, mostly.
None of the off-shoot titles, like the Compilation of Final Fantasy VII, have garnered the respect, or the sales, of the games they're living in the shadow off. This has left many fans wondering why Square Enix even bothers making these titles. The Compilation of Final Fantasy VII's complete sales, which include Advent Children, Before Crisis, Crisis Core and Dirge of Cerberus, have yet to surpass that of Final Fantasy VII's. Yet the amount of time spent developing those titles dwarfs that of Final Fantasy VII. Furthermore, Crisis Core is the only title of the group that has reviewed well among most gaming publications and fans, yet it is still can not touch the original's sales or impact.
Although reception among fans for offshoot titles is mixed, even more mixed is the reception of remakes. Square Enix so far has remade Final Fantasy I through IV, and rereleased all the way up to Final Fantasy VI. The company shows no signs of stopping either, as Final Fantasy V seems to be next in their sights.
The influence and respect the series used to have during the original Playstation era brought about the Role Playing Games (RPG) genre-hitting mainstream, and suddenly the market was filled with RPGs. This continued into the PS2 era as well, but with delays to Final Fantasy releases through that generation, what has happened now is that the entire genre hasn't quite broken into this generation.
Today's Final Fantasy fans are excited for Final Fantasy XIII, but mostly they're sick of waiting, and the off-shoot titles aren't keeping them all that interested. Admittedly Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII was finally a good game among many poor ones, but it was too little too late. Final Fantasy has lost its influence among gamers and the industry for the time being, and the release of XIII won't bring it back. What XIII will bring about is much more popularity, that will be soaked up by subsequent offshoot titles. However, if Square Enix manages to make these off-shoot titles more along the quality of Crisis Core, and say, Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings, they may be able to turn things around.
Future off-shoot titles from Square Enix at the moment consist Final Fantasy Versus XIII, Final Fantasy Agito XIII, Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days and Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep. At present all of these titles actually look quite promising, but that was also said about Dirge of Cerberus a few years ago. For the third best selling video game series, the state of Final Fantasy is the shakiest it's ever been. Final Fantasy offshoots have been bringing down the series up-until Crisis Core, and hopefully Square Enix has learned from this, for the sake of their fans and themselves.
This however is not the Final Fantasy most fans are craving for. That would be Final Fantasy XIII, and the wait for it has been a very long and one-sided one for fans. The title was announced over two-and-a-half years ago, and is projected to not hit shelves in North America until this time next year.
What has happened to Final Fantasy is that Square Enix--instead of releasing new installments, like Final Fantasy VII, VIII and IX, one after the other like generations past--has basically delayed the process and added filler. Final Fantasy VII was released in September 1997, Final Fantasy X in December 2001, that's four main series Final Fantasy's over five years. Final Fantasy X to the projected release of Final Fantasy XIII is a nine-year spread. This has had a huge impact on the series' popularity.
Looking at what Square Enix is mainly developing these days, it's Final Fantasy, Kingdom Hearts, and Dragon Quest titles. Every few years they release the actual lead games of each of these series, like Final Fantasy XII, Dragon Quest VIII and Kingdom Hearts II, but the years in between they develop off-shoot titles based on these three key franchises. In theory this is great for eager fans who want even more from their favourite games. There is no mistaking that the lead games from these three series are amazing titles, however this unfortunately has not been the case for the off-shoots, mostly.
None of the off-shoot titles, like the Compilation of Final Fantasy VII, have garnered the respect, or the sales, of the games they're living in the shadow off. This has left many fans wondering why Square Enix even bothers making these titles. The Compilation of Final Fantasy VII's complete sales, which include Advent Children, Before Crisis, Crisis Core and Dirge of Cerberus, have yet to surpass that of Final Fantasy VII's. Yet the amount of time spent developing those titles dwarfs that of Final Fantasy VII. Furthermore, Crisis Core is the only title of the group that has reviewed well among most gaming publications and fans, yet it is still can not touch the original's sales or impact.
Although reception among fans for offshoot titles is mixed, even more mixed is the reception of remakes. Square Enix so far has remade Final Fantasy I through IV, and rereleased all the way up to Final Fantasy VI. The company shows no signs of stopping either, as Final Fantasy V seems to be next in their sights.
The influence and respect the series used to have during the original Playstation era brought about the Role Playing Games (RPG) genre-hitting mainstream, and suddenly the market was filled with RPGs. This continued into the PS2 era as well, but with delays to Final Fantasy releases through that generation, what has happened now is that the entire genre hasn't quite broken into this generation.
Today's Final Fantasy fans are excited for Final Fantasy XIII, but mostly they're sick of waiting, and the off-shoot titles aren't keeping them all that interested. Admittedly Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII was finally a good game among many poor ones, but it was too little too late. Final Fantasy has lost its influence among gamers and the industry for the time being, and the release of XIII won't bring it back. What XIII will bring about is much more popularity, that will be soaked up by subsequent offshoot titles. However, if Square Enix manages to make these off-shoot titles more along the quality of Crisis Core, and say, Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings, they may be able to turn things around.
Future off-shoot titles from Square Enix at the moment consist Final Fantasy Versus XIII, Final Fantasy Agito XIII, Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days and Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep. At present all of these titles actually look quite promising, but that was also said about Dirge of Cerberus a few years ago. For the third best selling video game series, the state of Final Fantasy is the shakiest it's ever been. Final Fantasy offshoots have been bringing down the series up-until Crisis Core, and hopefully Square Enix has learned from this, for the sake of their fans and themselves.
