The Problem With Final Fantasy VI

by Sean Daugherty 

Four years, and almost two sequels later, the sixth entry in Square's Final Fantasy series holds audiences captivated like no other RPG. Veteran gamers consider it the best in the series, and for the initiated, it becomes the high water mark to judge all other role playing games by.

Final Fantasy VI (or if you prefer the American title, Final Fantasy III) was the first real role playing game I had ever played. It caught my attention, and was by no means an unplayable bad game, but, particularly looking back on it with years of hindsight, I cannot help but wonder what all the fuss was about. Final Fantasy VI, while not worst entry into the series, is far more memorable for its faults than its successes, in my ever-so-humble-opinion.

To its credit, it certainly aspires to heights. Its story is quite possibly the most daring of any game in the series to date. However, the execution left something major to be desired. The game presents us with a laughable cipher for a main villain; a character only one step beyond the cardboard cut-out monsters of the earliest console RPGs. Kefka is not so much a person as an obstacle: The game hints at a degree of humanity (or, rather, human madness) within him, but never bothers to develop it. He is thrown into one unbelievable situation after another, and the most crucial turning point for his characterization is roundly dismissed after the destruction of the Floating Continent. His presence in the second half of the game is laughable, as well: An issue is made of the Light of Judgement and how Kefka's iron grip extends across the world, but the only evidence ever offered of the Light's use is in two cities. Indeed, the world seems hardly changed at all.

Other aspects of the story are lacking, as well. Characterization is an improvement over Final Fantasy IV, but still falls into recognizable cliches. Only a handful of FF6's large cast are developed sufficiently. Locke, Terra, and Celes are delved into heavily, the other characters have noticeable flaws, from the minor and almost forgivable, such as Edgar's illogical and uncharacteristic faked amnesia, to the egregious (why, exactly, was Mog hanging around?).

But then, these faults are forgivable, provided the game offers strengths in other areas. Indeed, a story which aspires to perfection and fails is still commendable in a way, say, the original Dragon Quest was not. The difference, however, is what Dragon Quest lacked in story, it made up for in game play mechanics. Final Fantasy VI, however, has no such saving grace.

The fault does not lie at the core battle system, basically intact from the previous game in the series (Final Fantasy V), to be sure. Even the Relic system was an interesting and worthwhile addition, if cumbersome in execution. No, the major problem, which greatly detracts from the game itself, is the utterly horrid magic system, which is, bar none, the worst in the series.

The Esper system, to start with, is quite possibly the least inspired concept ever to appear within the games. The magic distribution is simply horrendous: It's not so much that any character can cast magic that *every* character can cast magic. Final Fantasy IV, V, and VII all had either enforced or practical limitations on the use of magic: In FF4, only those preordained by the game could ever cast a spell. In FF7, the limitations in Materia use and available slots prevented one character from becoming too powerful (until the availability of a Master Magic Materia, and gathering three of those was unlikely, anyway). Even FF5, which offered magic casting ability for all, provided for limits in the different classifications of magic (white, black, and space/time). FF6, however, offers no such controls. Your strongest physical fighters can routinely rip off one Ultima after another, a situation exacerbated by the overabundance of magic aid items, such as the Economizer and Gem Box.

The result of all this was quite possibly the least challenging entry into the series at the time. The game was not only not challenging, but lost a degree of originality. Presumably to preserve some individuality of characters, Square included character specific skills. And while some of these were truly interesting and worthwhile (Locke's Steal, Strago's Lores, and Relm's Control), a number were out and out fluff (Relm's Sketch and Setzer's Slot were too unpredictable to be of much use, and Celes's Runic only served any real purpose on rare occassions).

Finally, the aesthetic concerns. The graphics were indeed more advanced than both Final Fantasy IV and V, but lacked something vital. Perhaps it was an over reliance on Mode 7 effects, which produced effects ranging from overly flat and poorly scrolling (map screen sequences) to the outright laughable (the infamous mine cart sequence). The colors were also a bit too two-toned for more tastes (though this was apparently the intent). However, we were offered the gorgeous character and monster designs by Yoshitaka Amano, so all was not completely lost <Grins>.

As for the music? There were several standout tunes: Terra's theme, Kefka's theme, the final boss battle, and the theme from Owzer's House all stand out in my mind. But, all in all, the soundtrack lacked the variety of any of the other games. Only a very few songs differed significantly in style (the battle with the Atma Weapon), and all the regular battle musics were entirely forgettable. As a collection of individual pieces, it stands up to any of the other games in the series. As a complete work, it fails miserably.

Now don't get me wrong: I have highlighted mainly the faults I find in Final Fantasy VI in this essay. I do not hate the game by any means. It was the game which initially drew me into the console role playing game scene. But, truth be told, I'd much rather be playing Final Fantasy V, or Final Fantasy Tactics any day of the week. Obviously, your mileage may, and probably will, vary.