First Final Fantasy Game?

Final Fantasy is one of the foremost examples of fantasy RPGs, but I for one found out after years of fooling around with forums online that featured facts about Final Fantasy VII, that one Final Fantasy game that people fought for as their favorite game ever forged by the facilities of our fathers and forefathers. After I found out about this famous franchise, I found out I had already followed in other’s footsteps and had found a Final Fantasy game to play. However, my first Final Fantasy game was a spinoff far removed from the franchise and featured a far friendly format for fighting foes in fights. First off, the spinoff was Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo Tales. This game was a fondness of mine during fourth and fifth grade when I had the most fun finding time to fool around in funny games. For the record, going forward this will feature fragmented spoilers. I figure that is only fair when talking about the features of this fabulous spinoff in the Final Fantasy franchise. The plot is fairly straightforward. You are a finely feathered fowl known as a chocobo frolicking on a farm with your feather friends. One day on the farm as it is time for fun fables to be read, a fearsome looking fable from far away is brought in by a fellow friend of the farm who loves finding fascinating books. The farm owner flips the pages to find it is filled with freaky fortunes that foretell a frightening fate will fall upon the farm. This freaks out the fellows gathered there and soon the fable is revealed to be a fearsome foe trapped in the form of a fable. He feeds off of the friendly fowl at the farm save for yourself and a few friends without feathers. He then flies off to find the facilities he needs to free himself and achieve his final form.

Now in true Final Fantasy fashion you must fight and defeat the fearsome foe that has broken free. The game’s foundation is focused on different fantastic fables that have fallen in different places and have found themselves filled with magical force. The main feature of the game is fighting it out with feathered fiends in friendly games to fulfill different tasks. these function as a way to find paths to move forward to face the foes you need to fight for the main game. Each fable you find has three fortunate happenings that once fulfilled in the fable can help you find your way forward. Of course there are not just fables to find as there are fun minigames that feature a few fun prizes to help fight foes. The fables also feature some of these as well. These fun prizes are for the fights you face to move forward. There are only a few fights, but they are fought by fighting with cards. Yes, to face off against foes, you must find fearsome cards and configure a deck that can face off against them. You can find many of them in fables and fun minigames, but some are found just by finding them on the floor. There are factors that can influence the feasibility of your deck such as the form of the foes in the opposing force. It is fine to fail at first as you just need to find cards or fill up a different deck before fighting again. There are four minibosses and four major bosses in the four featured sections of the game. Each fight is fought with your best fighters from you deck. Fighting and defeating them all will lead to the final fight.

You see, after defeating the fable boss for the fourth time, he reveals it was fate to fail to you four times and that by fighting and defeating his four forms, he can finally achieve his final form. That was why he didn’t feed on you at the farm. After he flies off you head to the final area to fight his final form in… air hockey? For real? Oh right, I forgot about the fun and friendly vibe for a few seconds. Anyway, you fend him off and finish the job by using the fearsome might of the four crystal and finish the game. The game finishes with it all being a fever dream with the farm having never fallen to the dark fable. All in all, it is a fun game that features a different formula from other games in the franchise. Of course in fourth grade I didn’t fathom that this was a spinoff of a famous franchise. Further down the line I would finally play a full-on Final Fantasy game in the form of Final Fantasy V. I figured it wasn’t fair for me to judge a franchise from a game I played fifteen years ago. It was fun for sure, but it felt a bit more formulaic that the freedom offered in the Final Fantasy spinoff game that fueled a few moments of friendship in fourth and fifth grade. It’s not fair to do this to Final Fantasy V, especially since the freelancer system which allows freedom to perform different professions for fun is far more flexible than other titles in the franchise. I guess I just felt like finding an excuse to fondly look back on a familiar but nearly forgotten game from before when I just found things fun. In fact, fables and fairytales were some of my favorite pastimes other than gaming. I found the game so much fun, I once failed to find my copy of it and used my few funds to pay for another one. Fortunately, it was the final time. Anyway, that was fun. Feel free to let me know of your old favorites if you feel that is fine. Otherwise, farewell and have a fabulous Friday! Fin.