Physics of the World of Ruin

[Jiro]

Nah it's not going to be that academic. I want to have a talk about crazy things that happen in the WoR.

Like, say, how Sabin "holds up the house" so Celes can rescue that kid. We all know Sabin is balls awesome and tough as nails, but instead of holding up the house (which, I don't even get, and assume he was just keeping the entrance clear) he should have just punched a goddamn hole in the wall and got Celes and kid to escape that way.

And like, Cid says that a group of them lived on that island with an unconscious Celes for what, two years? I didn't see any high class medical equipment, so how the fuck did Celes not die? Their house is fucking tiny so a) how did other people live there and b) how did she not see the secret gap shut up 2D world crap?

SO yeah let's discuss what's up with the zany World of Ruin.

[The Man]

There's some crazy shit throguhout the game. The fact that Every single character manages to fall off an airship in the midst of flight and survive.

The island thing was for a year btw.

[Mirage]

They probably fed Celes Magic Fruits while she was in a coma.

[Inferno]

I like how the Dirt Dragon managed to get on the stage of the Opera House without breaking anything and gently waiting for battle without hurting anyone

[ShinGundam]

Physics in FFVI
http://24.media.tumblr.com/2b5cde2098d1cbd92ceccc6c00581cc2/tumblr_mm6ft7emRM1qdehubo1_400.gif

[Relena Peacecraft]

Physics in FFVI
http://24.media.tumblr.com/2b5cde2098d1cbd92ceccc6c00581cc2/tumblr_mm6ft7emRM1qdehubo1_400.gif

And yet, he can't lift a squirrel out of the ground. This reminds me of something I wrote probably 10-15 years ago, when I felt like analyzing the apparent physics of the world based only on available evidence. I'll just post what I wrote back then directly. Because, why not.



First, after measuring, it appears to take 8.92 seconds to travel around the Final Fantasy VI globe at full speed. This only applies in the north-south and east-west directions. The map is flat, which means that this planet is most certainly not a sphere. It could be a torus, but experimental data proves that is unlikely unless the game world speed engine automatically compensates for the fact that a torus has a maximum radius, a minimum radius, and an infinite number of them in between. This is unimportant for this discussion, however.

Given the fact that it takes 8.92 seconds to travel around the globe, we can determine that one of the two following ideas is true (or somewhere in between. These are the extremes.)

1) The circumference of the earth is 24,901.5 miles. If we assume the planet is the same size as earth, we come up with the following. 24,901.5 miles divided by 8.92 seconds gives 2791.65 miles per second. Calculating onward, we determine that the airship must be traveling at 10.05 million miles per hour for this to be true. Since this is a simple airship propelled by propellers, I highly doubt this conclusion. It does not matter that these are supposed to be fast airships. 10.05 million miles per hour is just plain ridiculous.

2) 2) Ok, assume the planet is a different size, and that the airship is normal. Today’s modern airships are not very fast. 20 mph seems to be a common number. However, these were fast airships, so lets assume they were able to miraculously achieve 50 miles per hour. 50 miles per hour is equal to .0138 miles per second. Multiplying this by 8.92 seconds yields a total distance of .1238 miles. Converted to a more recognizable unit, this is equal to 654 feet, 1.6 inches. Apparently, this planet is quite small. With further in-game measurements, I am sure I could extrapolate even more information, such as approximate size of people, and buildings.

For some reason, I wasn't even consistent in my analysis. Also, why did I ignore the obvious answer that the on-screen display is just a representation and that there's no fundamental reason that travel time in the game and in the real world must correspond. This is why you don't let weird teenagers write technical analyses of video games.

[Jiro]

That's an excellent analysis, but if you're shrinking everything proportionately, wouldn't you just end up with the same issues?

[ShinGundam]

That's an excellent analysis, but if you're shrinking everything proportionately, wouldn't you just end up with the same issues?
Worldmap takes a shape of cylinder rather than a sphere. In terms of scale, FF6 world is really small.

[LocoColt04]

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Well, you know, it's more badass and dramatic if he holds up the whole damned house.

And here's another one, unrelated to those previously mentioned... regarding jumping!

...should be completely impossible, given the characters can't jump any other height or length ever, aside from onto a raft and, in Gau's case, EVERYWHERE EVER.

[qwertysaur]

What is Gogo doing before you recruit him/her?

[KentaRawr!]

What is Gogo doing before you recruit him/her?

Hanging out in Final Fantasy 5, I'd imagine.

[Spooniest]

A realistic physical representation of a planet would be nigh-impossible within the confines of a computer program.

After all, if it were... (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1PejM57F8s)

[LocoColt04]

What is Gogo doing before you recruit him/her?- - -
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... being General Leo, duh!
I can only hope that's true.

[Spooniest]

What is Gogo doing before you recruit him/her?

Non-sequitur (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non_sequitur_%28literary_device%29)

You're not supposed to get it. It's just silly.

[Chris]

Gogo is a lady :confused:

[blackmage_nuke]

Size of the planet explains the low gravity which explains their amazing jumping abilities. Celes was kept alive with cure spells and regens. Kid was in the basement. Everyone on the island lived in the downstairs orgy pit behind the shelf. Dirt Dragon just wants to sing and dance