If you had to create a mish-mash of elements to create a new FF using unique parts, what would you choose? What game's main ideas regarding plot, world, soundtrack, battle system, character progression, side quests, & villain would you use? What would the cast be?

You're only given two rules:
1. You can only use one game to create the "meat" of the game.
2. The playable cast can be 5-9 characters, but they must each be from a different game and have their plot lines more or less intact. You can have, say, both the battle system and a character from one game, but nothing else.


The Mechanics & Setting

  • Plot: VII: I like the Environmentalist & Anti-Corporate themes that resonate with real-world going-ons. Plus the Lifestream is excellent. The Sephiroth-related stuff might be played down though since he's not the villain anymore.


  • World: XV. I like the realistic modern fantasy setting and I think it complements VII's plot nicely. A certain degree of open-world with the Regalia is nice too. Large and beautiful modern cityscapes really appeal to me


  • Soundtrack: X. My personal favorite, both tragic and soothing. Plus I think it's fairly versatile.


  • Battle System: Tactics. Without permadeth, but brutal hard tactical combat incorporating height, range, and terrain would be excellent. Just add maybe varying objectives too.


  • Character Progression: XII/IZJS. Each character's board being unique but open-ended requiring you to make tough long-term decisions sounds sexy. My only significant change is have each character be able to pick between two-three weapons and instead of just getting access to new equipment, the party gets better at the particular weapon/spell/armor as well. Ranged weapons always deal less damage than melee ones.


  • Sidequests: IX. Superbosses, Hot & Cold, Terra Master, Synthesis, Stellazio, Jump Rope, and even optional plot-relevant content? Yes please!!


  • Villain: VI. Maybe less clown and more mad corporate underling. Kefka's nihilistic wackiness and love of power makes for an excellent foil to the themes of VII's almost Socialist themes.


The Cast



  • Protagonist: Terra Branford (VI). You can almost split Cloud & Aerith's roles in the plot between her with little effort. She's a supersoldier with false memories who has to regain her personhood in a world that has used her (Cloud) but is also of a race that has seen oppression from the antagonist's organization (Aerith). Watching her grow would be awesome. Her weapons would be Longswords and Maces. Her licenses would emphasize average combat stats and medium armor with high magic ability but a limited spell selection. Her Limit would remain Morph.
  • Flirtmance: Balthier (XII). Would flirt incessantly with Terra but never actually cross that line. Favors himself a leading man and has ties to the Shinra-esque organization through his father. Sort of a gentleman thief but shows he has a selfless side, who Terra learns to seize life by the moment but in turns to learns from her to be a bit more willing. Uses Rapiers and Rifles. Stats are balanced but favoring evasion/speed and skills that allow him to charm enemies as well as Time Magic. His Limit would allow him to target specific enemies' body parts for ridiculous damage.
  • Best Friend: Rikku (X). Similarly of an oppressed race whose status as scientifically advanced cultural outsiders, Rikku serves as a natural support to Terra, who can relate to a lot of her struggles but has a greater sense of self-identity. She serves as a little sister to Terra and crushes on Balthier whilst mocking his suave pretentiousness good-naturedly. Her weapons include Daggers and Claws and her licenses make her out as a fragile speedster/thief who can steal items. Her Limit remains Mix.
  • Cute Kid: Vivi (IX). He & Terra's storylines work well together, and Vivi's coming to term with him essentially being a creation is the soul of IX, and having a more morose character to balance out a couple of more optimistic characters. He's be a typically black mage and he uses Staves. His Limit remains Double Black.
  • Party Dad: Sazh (XIII). Sazh is the best part of XIII. He's a surprisingly grounded character and his status as an ordinary dude who wants to do the right thing and save his son, presumably from the villainous party. He'd be the designated healer and buffer of the party, using Pistols. His Limit would effectively be a full heal.
  • Team Pet: Nanaki (VII). I always think FF needs more non-humanoid characters and seeing Nanaki in a similar plotline based on racial exploitation works wonders. His ability set is pretty balanced, dealing decent damage and both support and offensive magic. He uses headresses? I guess? His Limit is Lunatic High.
  • The Muscle: Faris (V). A rival pirate to Balthier; they have a long history of tepid relationships and dealings, allowing her to be skilled at finding ways out of danger through her connections with the criminal underground. She's the token tank and uses Greatswords and Axes. Her Limit would allow her to one-hit kill a normal enemy or deals a ton of damage to a boss.
  • The Rival: Kain (IV). He's be recurring boss who eventually joins the party after seeing how truly evil the Bad Guys are. He'd use Spears, naturally and would have a variety of support abilities and Jump in addition to his excellent combat skills. His Limit would be a High Jump thing.
  • The Edgy One: Edea (VIII). There needs to more women older than like, 22, in Final Fantasy and Edea's status as a mind-controlled villain-turned-hero is cool and her haunting design makes her an excellent choice for a character, though I'd save The Reveal for the very last act. She'd use magic mid-range Javelins telekinetically and would have excellent spell selections but laughable physical stats.


That was a lot of work! Your turn!~