GAMEPLAY

Final Fantasy games belong to a genre known as RPG. They are, however, quite different from Western role-playing games (also called PC-style), and are better described as Japanese, or console-style RPGs. Such RPGs are usually more linear than their PC counterparts, contain many more cut-scenes and scripted events, follow the story more closely, and offer the player much less freedom of choice. In fact, a more precise genre definition for such games would be "interactive stories with battles", rather than "role-playing". You don't really play a role in Final Fantasy: You follow a story that usually can't be altered, and have to indentify yourself with the heroes of a game without being able to make moral decisions for them. The interaction with the surrounding world is scarce in Final Fantasy. Aside from fighting and walking around, the controlled party can only talk to people and open treasure chests; no physical activities such as jumping or climbing are possible (although Final Fantasy X-2 changes that). Except for some occasional mini-games, Final Fantasy contains little action. The fights are also not controlled physically (by moving a character), but through a menu. In most Final Fantasies, a quick decision at choosing commands from the menu is necessary for a successful combat. Puzzle-solving is not uncommon to Final Fantasy, although the puzzles are usually fairly easy and don't occupy large portions of a game. Final Fantasy X contains the biggest amount of puzzle-solving, including whole areas dedicated entirely to puzzles.

THE STYLE

Like every video game series, Final Fantasy has a unique style. This style becomes evident when comparing the stories, the settings, the characters, and the mythology of Final Fantasy to those of other games. The style to which Final Fantasy (and most other RPGs) belong is often called "epic". Typical to epic games is their considerable length, a broad story line, and the connection between the actions of the heroes to the destiny of the entire world.

Story: All Final Fantasy stories are world-embracing, which means that the main goal of the heroes is always to save the world by preventing an evil force from destroying or enslaving it. No matter how personal their motives might be, the ultimate destination in each and every Final Fantasy game is the final dungeon, the lair of the villain, and the showdown between the player's party and their final adversary.

Typical for Final Fantasy stories is also their wide time spectrum. The "current" story is often connected to ancient prophecies or events, to the history of the world, or to a similar story that has happened before.