History FranchiseOriginalSin / FinalFantasy

* As detailed in [[http://www.cracked.com/blog/5-things-you-loved-as-child-really-arent-that-great/ this article]] from ''Website/{{Cracked}}'' and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=shE05uqR0Lk this video,]] ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'', with its focus on flashy visuals, cutscenes, and production values to rival Hollywood blockbusters, birthed many of the problems that plagued not only later games in the ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'' series (which culminated in the divisive ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIII''), but also AAA gaming in general, which became increasingly dominated by gorgeous graphics and cinematic spectacle at the cost of highly linear gameplay that's barely interactive. The difference was that ''Final Fantasy VII'' still had a deep combat system and a well-written (if [[BlindIdiotTranslation poorly-translated]]) story to make up for it.

* The RummageSaleReject character designs have pretty much always been there, but it wasn't evident in the early games because it simply wasn't possible for systems to convey them. One look at Creator/YoshitakaAmano's concept art says that "{{Bishonen}} wearing an entire thrift store" was the intended aesthetic from the first game. Hell, Creator/TetsuyaNomura was initially hired because his artwork was ''less'' overdesigned at the time than Amano's; compare [[https://i.imgur.com/VUlyuhM.png Terra's design]] to [[https://i.imgur.com/gQcFq3L.png Cloud's.]] But up until the later [[UsefulNotes/PlayStation PS1]] era, the closest you could get to that was deep into SuperDeformed. By the time the [[UsefulNotes/PlayStation2 PS2]] rolled in, not only did technology get to the point where those designs could be shown in standard gameplay, but if anything, the designs became more excessive, reaching its height in ''VideoGame/DirgeOfCerberus'''s many {{Fashion Victim Villain}}s.

* One of the longest running complaints about ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIX'' was the FinalBoss Necron being a GiantSpaceFleaFromNowhere that doesn't get any explanation in game, and feels out of place. Generally speaking, this was a complaint the series had for a long time, as several of the final bosses before Necron also came out of nowhere near the end of the game, such as [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyI Chaos]], [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyIII the Cloud of Darkness]], and [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyIV Zemus]]. However, what made Necron stick out was that the previously mentioned examples had a unique element to them that made them still work -- such as Chaos being a MetaTwist at the time by being the very first boss in the game coming back more powerful than before -- and they were at least relevant to the plot as TheManBehindTheMan. Furthermore, starting with ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyV'', the games made a conscious effort to avert this issue by establishing the main villain somewhere before or near the half-way point in the game, meaning villains like Exdeath, Kefka and Sephiroth were given time to establish their villainy and end the game as the FinalBoss. Necron, however, quite literally appears at the end for the finale, is never given a proper explanation as to what he is or what he is even doing beyond a vague idea of some kind of death being, and his fight robs the real BigBad Kuja of the chance to be beaten for good. Additionally, most of his predecessors happened relatively early in the series, which could be forgiven for their lack of buildup by the limited technology of the era and/or early stories being fairly basic -- Necron, at the tail end of the [=PS1=] era, didn't have that excuse.

* The series has alternated between having "classic'" medieval fantasy settings such as those found in ''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV FFXIV]]'', ''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyXVI XVI]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyTactics Tactics]]'', and more overt science-fantasy settings such as those found in ''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII VII]]'', ''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyVIII VIII]]'', ''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIII XIII]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyXV XV]]'', or some combination thereof (''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyX X]]'' being the odd one out, having been inspired largely by Southeast Asian cultures). This has led to a sort of rift within the fandom between those who prefer the medieval fantasy style and those who prefer a more science-fantasy aesthetic, with both sides arguing over which approach is more "faithful to the series' roots." Those in the latter group argue that the science-fantasy approach allots more creative freedom to the developers; providing more avenues for the series to experiment and evolve. Meanwhile, those in the former group have often criticized the more science-fantasy-based titles for feeling less "grounded" and "relatable" due to their shift towards technologically-novel concepts and away from established fantasy conventions which most fiction fans would already be familiar with. However, the series has always featured strange combinations of sci-fi and classic fantasy elements from the very beginning, with the former often serving to "spice up" and complement the latter. ''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasy FF1]]'' had a relatively Medieval-European setting but also included airships and a villain who was a time-travelling [[BossInMookClothing WarMECH]], and one of the last bosses of the first arc of ''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyV V]]'' was a giant laser cannon, just to give two examples. ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIV'' also had characters travel to an artificially-constructed moon and ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIX'' had some steampunk elements along with a villain seeking to [[spoiler: restore a lost civilization through genetic engineering]]. ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVI'' was the first game in the series to really start making heavier use of sci-fi elements which would go on to define later entries, with the plot revolving around a technologically-advanced empire, your party beginning the game piloting mechs, a SuperSoldier villain created through genetic experimentation and a DefectorFromDecadence hero who had gone through the same program. ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'' continued that trend when it shifted to full-on UrbanFantasy with a plot involving corporatocracy and environmental degradation, unethical human experimentation, genetic enhancement, an extraterrestrial villian with interdimensional powers, and a magic system which allegorized nuclear power. The difference however is that in entries ''I'' through ''VI'', these elements were fairly subdued. For instance, despite all its sci-fi tropes, ''VI'' still has a fairly straightforward plot about a rebellion fighting against an evil empire, and the story features many fantastical elements like European villages, sacred artifacts, possession by demigods and ancient monsters (Kefka was also the first to go all OneWingedAngel set to OminousLatinChanting). The sci-fi elements only started to become a problem when ''a detailed understanding of them'' became necessary ''in order to follow the narrative'', with said elements often becoming so convoluted that you needed [[AllThereInTheManual outside information]]. ''Final Fantasy VII'' may been seem as the origin of this, with external materials like the Ultimanias providing more detailed information about the world and backstory. But even then, the main plot of the game could still be understood and enjoyed without them--a significant amount of screentime is dedicated to explaining how VII's world operates, and the narrative is paced in such a manner as to avoid overwhelming players with too much novel information at once. By contrast, ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIII'' literally thrusts the player [[LostInMediasRes right into the middle of its story]] without doing ''any'' world-building, thereby necessitating that players rely on supplementary materials and datalogs in order to understand how the world operates and what the characters are even talking about when they use in-universe terms such as "Fal'Cie", "L'Cie", "Cie'th" and "Ragnarok"--consequently alienating a large number of viewers who may have already lost interest by the time they've finished piecing the story together. ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXV'' was similarly criticized for having its story divided out across many different pieces of media (including an online anime series, a feature-length film, numerous DLC and a novel), while ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVIIRemake'' suffered from ContinuityLockout, with fans noting that many plot details--especially [[spoiler: [[TheEndingChangesEverything the ending]]]]--won't make sense to players who aren't already familiar with the rest of the ''[[Franchise/CompilationOfFinalFantasyVII Compilation]]'' and/or already well-versed in the lore of the lifestream.

* The series has increasingly alternated between having "classic'" medieval fantasy settings such as those found in ''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIVARealmReborn FFXIV]]'', ''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyXVI XVI]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyTactics Tactics]]'', and more overt science-fantasy settings such as those found in ''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII VII]]'', ''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyVIII VIII]]'', ''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIII XIII]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyXV XV]]'', or some combination thereof (''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyX X]]'' being the odd one out, having been inspired largely by Southeast Asian cultures). This has led to a sort of rift within the fandom between those who prefer the medieval fantasy style and those who prefer a more science-fantasy aesthetic, with both sides arguing over which approach is more "faithful to the series' roots." Those in the latter group argue that the science-fantasy approach allots more creative freedom to the developers; providing more avenues for the series to experiment and evolve. Meanwhile, those in the former group have often criticized the more science-fantasy-based titles for feeling less "grounded" and "relatable" due to their shift towards technologically-novel concepts and away from established fantasy conventions which most fiction fans would already be familiar with. However, the series has always featured strange combinations of sci-fi and classic fantasy elements from the very beginning, with the former often serving to "spice up" and complement the latter. ''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasy FF1]]'' had a relatively Medieval-European setting but also included airships and a villain who was a time-travelling [[BossInMookClothing WarMECH]], and one of the last bosses of the first arc of ''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyV V]]'' was a giant laser cannon, just to give two examples. ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIV'' also had characters travel to an artificially-constructed moon and ''FinalFantasyIX'' had some steampunk elements along with a villain seeking to [[spoiler: restore a lost civilization through genetic engineering]]. ''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyVI]]'' was the first game in the series to really start making heavier use of sci-fi elements which would go on to define later entries, with the plot revolving around a technologically-advanced empire, your party beginning the game piloting mechs, a SuperSoldier villain created through genetic experimentation and a DefectorFromDecadence hero who had gone through the same program. ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'' continued that trend when it shifted to full-on UrbanFantasy with a plot involving corporatocracy and environmental degradation, unethical human experimentation, genetic enhancement, an extraterrestrial villian with interdimensional powers, and a magic system which allegorized nuclear power. The difference however is that in entries ''I'' through ''VI'', these elements were fairly subdued. For instance, despite all its sci-fi tropes, ''VI'' still has a fairly straightforward plot about a rebellion fighting against an evil empire, and the story features many fantastical elements like European villages, sacred artifacts, possession by demigods and ancient monsters (Kefka was also the first to go all OneWingedAngel set to OminousLatinChanting). The sci-fi elements only started to become a problem when ''a detailed understanding of them'' became necessary ''in order to follow the narrative'', with said elements often becoming so convoluted that you needed [[AllThereInTheManual outside information]]. ''Final Fantasy VII'' may been seem as the origin of this, with external materials like the Ultimanias providing more detailed information about the world and backstory. But even then, the main plot of the game could still be understood and enjoyed without them--a significant amount of screentime is dedicated to explaining how VII's world operates, and the narrative is paced in such a manner as to avoid overwhelming players with too much novel information at once. By contrast, ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIII'' literally thrusts the player [[LostInMediasRes right into the middle of its story]] without doing ''any'' world-building, thereby necessitating that players rely on supplementary materials and datalogs in order to understand how the world operates and what the characters are even talking about when they use in-universe terms such as "Fal'Cie", "L'Cie", "Cie'th" and "Ragnarok"--consequently alienating a large number of viewers who may have already lost interest by the time they've finished piecing the story together. ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXV'' was similarly criticized for having its story divided out across many different pieces of media (including an online anime series, a feature-length film, numerous DLC and a novel), while ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVIIRemake'' suffered from ContinuityLockout, with fans noting that many plot details--especially [[spoiler: [[TheEndingChangesEverything the ending]]--won't make sense to players who aren't already familiar with the rest of the ''[[VideoGame/CompilationOfFinalFantasyVII Compilation]]'' and/or already well-versed in the lore of the lifestream.

* ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVI'' was the first to really start using many of the sci-fi elements that would define the franchise (and might even be better known in the same form in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII''). While sci-fi had been done before (one of the last bosses of the first arc of ''V'' was a giant laser cannon, for example, and of course [[BossInMookClothing WarMECH]] from the first game), ''VI'' made a technologically advanced empire a major part of the setting and story, with your party beginning the game piloting mechs. Vector could be seen as a proto-Midgar and a predecessor to full-on advanced settings. ''VI'' also features a SuperSoldier villain and a DefectorFromDecadence hero who had gone through the same program. As for other weird elements, Kefka does the OneWingedAngel first and to a OminousLatinChanting style of song that would become standard. The difference was, at the time, they were fairly subdued. For instance, despite all of the sci-fi elements, ''Final Fantasy VI'''s story is still a fairly direct plot about a rebellion fighting against an evil empire, and the story still features fantastical elements such as magic to drive the plot forward. The most strange and drama-causing of a large cast of characters still pretty much boils down to a ChildOfTwoWorlds. These things only started to become a problem when understanding the nature of these elements became necessary to understand the plot, and the elements started to become so convoluted that you needed [[AllThereInTheManual outside information]]. ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'' might be seen as the origin of having some details explained elsewhere like the Ultimanias, but even there, the main plot of the game could still be understood and enjoyed without it. ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIII'' meanwhile, literally thrusts the player [[LostInMediasRes right into the middle of the story]] without doing ''any'' world-building, thereby necessitating that the player rely on supplementary materials and datalogs in order to understand what is going on and who the characters are, consequently alienating a huge swath of the audience who might have already lost interest by the time they've finished piecing the story together.

-->--''WebVideo/FinalFantasyInANutshell''

->'''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyI Warrior of Light]]''': Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. So you died, but got sent back in time by the Fiends, who you then sent forward, so they could send you back. So if you're the one who sent them forward in the first place and they were the ones who sent you back first, so you could send them forward, [[FridgeLogic then how the hell did this time loop start?]]
->'''Garland''': I...uh, well, it's like, um...uh...
->'''Warrior of Light''': I don't think we should do [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyVIII time travel again]] [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIII2 in this series.]]

''Franchise/FinalFantasy'' didn't suddenly shift towards {{Kudzu Plot}}s, [[NoSidepathsNoExplorationNoFreedom hallways]], and [[SpinOff spin-offs]] -- they were there from the very beginning.

* Exploration was largely an illusion even in the franchise's earliest games. Even if the game gave players two or three different directions to go, most of those directions are blocked off or don't provide them with much to do until more of the game is unlocked. You do still have to find the path to a degree, but the game pretty much always puts you on the same course. Starting with ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyX'', however, this illusion was completely shattered because by this point, the player wasn't even allowed to wander around almost-empty space anymore to provide the illusion of freedom. Further, around this time, open-world sandbox games had really become the norm, which meant that linear paths were much less tolerable. Still, reaction to this was tame compared to future installments, because while ''FFX'' does do the linear pathway, you're given a lot of npcs to speak to and some variety with mini-games and puzzles, as well as an in-story explanation of as to ''why'' you're stuck in a pathway [[note]]The party's alongside Yuna in a pilgrimage to [[spoiler: sacrifice herself against Sin]][[/note]]. ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyX2'', for as polarizing as it was, brought a more open-ended approach to the world of ''X'' and allowed players to explore almost the entire world from the beginning, which helped keep the idea of the linear focused games somewhat refreshing. ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIII'', on the other hand, stripped away the mini-games and puzzles and minimalized the npcs, making the straight narrow path much more obvious. Fans were also extremely critical of Square's justification (not wanting exploration to distract from the story)[[note]]even the game’s defenders tend to say the story takes double digit hours to get good[[/note]], with some seeing it as the developers being out-of-touch. With ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIII2'', ''VideoGame/{{Lightning Returns|FinalFantasyXIII}}'', and ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXV'', however, they abandoned that approach and featured some type of open environment for each of those games. ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVIIRemake'' moved back towards a linear approach, but largely faced praise for it, with reviewers burned out by the increasingly bloated sandbox games of 2020 praising ''Remake'''s focus and intimacy. ''VideoGame/StrangerOfParadiseFinalFantasyOrigin'' also does away with open world exploration, instead featuring a number of expansive missions for the player to fight through.
* ''Videogame/FinalFantasyVI'' was the first to really start using many of the sci-fi elements that would define the franchise (and might even be better known in the same form in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII''). While sci-fi had been done before (one of the last bosses of the first arc of ''V'' was a giant laser cannon, for example, and of course [[BossInMookClothing WarMECH]] from the first game), ''VI'' made a technologically advanced empire a major part of the setting and story, with your party beginning the game piloting mechs. Vector could be seen as a proto-Midgar and a predecessor to full-on advanced settings. ''VI'' also features a SuperSoldier villain and a DefectorFromDecadence hero who had gone through the same program. As for other weird elements, Kefka does the OneWingedAngel first and to a OminousLatinChanting style of song that would become standard. The difference was, at the time, they were fairly subdued. For instance, despite all of the sci-fi elements, ''Final Fantasy VI'''s story is still a fairly direct plot about a rebellion fighting against an evil empire, and the story still features fantastical elements such as magic to drive the plot forward. The most strange and drama-causing of a large cast of characters still pretty much boils down to a ChildOfTwoWorlds. These things only started to become a problem when understanding the nature of these elements became necessary to understand the plot, and the elements started to become so convoluted that you needed [[AllThereInTheManual outside information]]. ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'' might be seen as the origin of having some details explained elsewhere like the Ultimanias, but even there, the main plot of the game could still be understood and enjoyed without it. ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIII'' meanwhile, literally thrusts the player [[LostInMediasRes right into the middle of the story]] without doing ''any'' world-building, thereby necessitating that the player rely on supplementary materials and datalogs in order to understand what is going on and who the characters are, consequently alienating a huge swath of the audience who might have already lost interest by the time they've finished piecing the story together.

* The series became increasingly experimental with its combat systems and progression mechanics. While the series has always been experimental with its battle and growth systems (''Videogame/FinalFantasyII'' for example gets much flak for its more obtuse mechanics) the later games in the series took this tendency to the point where many fans began to feel that the series was losing its identity. For example, ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVIII'' replaced a traditional magic system with the Draw and Junction systems, which was criticized for being "tedious", "confusing" and making actual leveling largely pointless (as Junctioning did a much better job without also leveling up the enemies the party would face). This trend would continue with ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyX'' not using the ATB system for the first time since ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIII'' and dropping leveling in favor of a [[SkillScoresAndPerks skill-tree-esque]] mechanic. This would continue with further minimizing the turn-based aspects for more real-time battle mechanics to the point where ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXV'' is unambigously an action RPG, while ''VideoGame/StrangerOfParadiseFinalFantasyOrigin'' is a hack-and-slash game with some RPG elements. It's at the point where some fans don't see the new games as even truly being in the same series as the older ones.