It’s been over three decades since the debut of the original Final Fantasy game but fans have endlessly debated on what is the best game in the series. A recent interview with series creator Hironobu Sakaguchi may have finally ended that debate, for now.
In the interview Sakaguchi mostly talked up the origins of the series and how they learned as they went, adapting and changing the series through the years.
“Final Fantasy I, the moment we completed it and released it to the market, provided myself with a huge sense of accomplishment and achievement. Simply because it was the first game that we didn’t know what we were doing, and how the market would react at the time,” Sakaguchi said to Inverse.
It was in this interview that Sakaguchi revealed a surprise – what he thinks is the most complete and arguably the best game in the series:
“In terms of the FF that I think is the ‘most complete; I believe Final Fantasy VI comes close, and does stand out above the other Final Fantasies, especially because it was the last Final Fantasy to use pixel art in all of its visual expression,” Sakaguchi said.
Later in the interview Sakaguchi talked up the very lifeblood of the series, its DNA, or rather what exactly makes a Final Fantasy game holistically?
“I understand and know that this is a very widely debated topic, but I really think it has turned into something that has a different meaning for everyone,” Sakaguchi said. “If I had to give some kind of core ingredient, I would say it’s the story and world. These two are a must for any Final Fantasy and the common denominator across all of them.”
He added, “The world setting needs to contain some kind of thematic element that is loosely tied to current events. I think the world itself needs to have some kind of thematic backbone or message that gives a different perspective, or a thought-provoking prompt for players.”
So there you have it – the last pixelated mainline Final Fantasy game, Final Fantasy VI, is the most complete game in the series according to its original creator.
Square Enix has somewhat acknowledged the appeal of their “golden era” of pixelated RPGs by returning to form, via its new “HD-2D” games like Octopath Traveler and the soon-to-be-released Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake, both of which proudly use pixelated sprites over 3D environments.
