Was the Final Fantasy franchise influenced by Dungeons and Dragons?

[SuperMillionaire]

When Square first invented the Final Fantasy franchise, were they influenced by Dungeons and Dragons?

[qwertysaur]

Most likely

[oddler]

Abso-freaking-lutely. It was a game designed to simplify and streamline the basic principles of a D&D campaign.

[The Crystal]

I cannot answer your question. But I know that Star Wars have a big influence on the franchise.

[G13]

^ I agree! Biggs and Wedge anybody? Evil Empires! Young protagonists joining a rebel faction to overthrow the Evil Empire!

[Elly]

if i remember correctly they originaly made FF to be a last ditch effort to save their company, they decided on a game model that they hoped would be able to compete with Dragon Quest, both series' highly steeped in D&D but with much less focus on manual stat manipulation, and yes Square likes to pay tribute to Star Wars too but if i remember correctly the Star Wars referances didn't begin untill FFIII... Star Wars referances can also be found in the Chrono series, Biggs, Wedge, & Piete with Biggs translated incorrectly on the first release of CT as Vicks, for example, Square loves them some Star Wars...

[G13]

??? Square didn't make FF as a last ditch to save themselves. It was called Final Fantasy because it was going to be their last game. It was just a bonus that it saved the company.

[Elly]

i remember reading in several places (internet, magazines, ect...) that they made it to be either the final game or the game that would save the company, it was a make it or break it gamble that paid off for them in the end... so in essence it was a last ditch effort to save a failing company... they were planning to quit making games if FF failed but since it was a success they continued making more, saving the company was not a bonus it was the intent of seveal people within SquareSoft... only a fool would make a product expecting little to no return on their investment and the people at SquareSoft were not fools they just had a run of bad luck...

[Jiro]

You're both saying the same thing in different ways. Same dood, different hat.

Anything that dares call itself an RPG has been influenced by D&D. If it claims not to be, then it is lying or so goddamn revolutionary that it's not really an RPG anymore :p

[Shattered Dreamer]

I would say every RPG ever was inspired in some way shape or form by D&D

[MJN SEIFER]

There used to be an FF Name Origans site somewhere (not the compendium one) which had around half the FF1 monster's names as being "from D&D" (the other half where apparently "most likley a Square creation") the reasons the sites creator gave was that Square where about to give up on RPGs and created Final Fantasy as their swan's song (but it was so succesful they kept going) so they probably didn't put as much thought into naming random monsters like they did in their later games.

[NeoTifa]

Why D&D? Why not Call of Cthulu? >=(

[Kawaii Ryûkishi]

It's more than a vague influence endemic to all RPGs: most of FFI's bestiary comes directly from D&D's Monster Manual. The Beholder (a.k.a. EYE) enemy's sprite (http://storm.prohosting.com/coleco/ff1/enemies/bosses.html) was even altered from the Japanese version of the game (and carried over in subsequent versions) to make the resemblance less incriminating.

[G13]

i remember reading in several places (internet, magazines, ect...) that they made it to be either the final game or the game that would save the company, it was a make it or break it gamble that paid off for them in the end... so in essence it was a last ditch effort to save a failing company... they were planning to quit making games if FF failed but since it was a success they continued making more, saving the company was not a bonus it was the intent of seveal people within SquareSoft... only a fool would make a product expecting little to no return on their investment and the people at SquareSoft were not fools they just had a run of bad luck...

I'm confused. How can it be either of those reasons in the magazine you read but only one of them in your first post? I'm sure they all hoped it would save the company but I don't think they were counting on this one game to make up for every other failed game they made. I'm not trying to pick a fight, I'm just saying that, yes, "only a fool would make a product expecting little to no return on their investment", but only a fool would expect one game to reverse the effect of years of inadequate games. It did of course, but to expect it is... foolish.

[Bolivar]

FF and DQ were both influenced by the western computer RPG's like Ultima, which were in turn influenced by D&D.

The whole concept of being able to go out and fight monsters in you own fantasy campaign like in the books you read was itself a dream which D&D brought to life, so the entire genre really owes it to that.

I also recall hearing as well that a lot of the foes were directly taken from the Monster Manual.


Lastly, I think the story about it being their last game/game to save the company has been largely exaggerated over the years, and that Square really wasn't doing all that bad, at least in comparison to other developers who indeed went on to survive those early famicom/msx days. I know that's not the consensus today, but I'm just saying what I've gathered from reading about it over the years.

[Elly]

simple Guardian, you're looking at this one-sided... they put out the game with 2 expectations, like everyone else that takes a chance on a new product, first expectation was that it would fail and they would exit the video game development industry as a company, second if it succeeded (which it did) then they would continue on their chosen career paths with the company SquareSoft... like i said earlier it was a make it or break it gamble that happened to work out for them...

[NeoCracker]

From my understanding, Final Fantasy was thought to be Squares final game. They gathered up all their best talent, and fully intended to go out with a bang, to leave behind something memeroable before they faded away. This was their dream as a company, what they believed at the time to be their final act. Hence the name Final Fantasy. They made this game with no intention of it saving the company, as even the biggest hits of the time sales wouldn't have been enough to do so, so it didnt' even seem like a realistic option.

However, Final Fantasy exceeded all expectations, and became such a massive hit, it actually allowed the company to flourish.

I might be wrong on some points, but I do recall this being the case.

[G13]

Okay, putting it like that makes more sense than before. Either that or I'm just too tired to care about this anymore.

[Depression Moon]

How old is Dungeons and Dragons?

[oddler]

Apparently, 35 years old. Originated in 1974 (when the first box set was released). Source (http://www.ehow.com/video_4411657_origin-dungeons-dragons-rpg.html).

[eestlinc]

The genius of GrOgre is sui generis.

[SuperMillionaire]

1974... That means that Final Fantasy didn't arrive until 13 years later in 1987.

[Laddy]

Yes! Maybe not directly, but ALL RPG's are influenced by D&D heavily, either directly or indirectly.

And I highly recommend D&D to everyone who loves RPG's.

[SuperMillionaire]

I've began to take interest in video games Baldur's Gate and Neverwinter Nights, and I like how you can choose your "alignment" in life. Perhaps a future FF and D&D crossover?

[black orb]

FF and DQ were both influenced by the western computer RPG's like Ultima, which were in turn influenced by D&D..
>>> yep, thats pretty much the genesis of all the popular RPGs we are playing today..

[arcanedude34]

if i remember correctly the Star Wars referances didn't begin untill FFIII

The entire plot of FFII was lifted from Episode IV

[SuperMillionaire]

FF and DQ were both influenced by the western computer RPG's like Ultima, which were in turn influenced by D&D.

The whole concept of being able to go out and fight monsters in you own fantasy campaign like in the books you read was itself a dream which D&D brought to life, so the entire genre really owes it to that.

I also recall hearing as well that a lot of the foes were directly taken from the Monster Manual.


Lastly, I think the story about it being their last game/game to save the company has been largely exaggerated over the years, and that Square really wasn't doing all that bad, at least in comparison to other developers who indeed went on to survive those early famicom/msx days. I know that's not the consensus today, but I'm just saying what I've gathered from reading about it over the years.

How many Western RPGs are there? And a lot of D&D enemies were copied into FF?

[Bastian]

I tried playing D&D a few times and was bored to tears. Yuck.

Gimme a FF game over that crap any day.

[TurkSlayer]

if i remember correctly the Star Wars referances didn't begin untill FFIII

The entire plot of FFII was lifted from Episode IV

I made a thread on that theory once. (http://forums.eyesonff.com/final-fantasy-ii/61752-ffii-star-wars.html)

[seiferalmasy2]

Yes, and some of the monster names are homages to it :)

[SuperMillionaire]

I tried playing D&D a few times and was bored to tears. Yuck.

Gimme a FF game over that crap any day.

Probably because it wasn't in video game form?