The grind
I don’t need moogles and chocobos, or even crystals and summons. I need magic spells, abilities that get more powerful the more you grind, and equipment that makes you stronger, especially if it’s found off the beaten path. Keep me on rails as much as you like, but occasionally let me lose on a small town full of side-quests and fields of constantly refilling monsters to bash. Some friends will become enemies, some enemies will become friends, and if I’m really lucky at least one of them will suffer from memory loss or even be a clone. Most of all, though, the music just needs to kick ass and send me down an existential rabbit hole of past, present, and future whenever it pops back on five, 10, or even 30 years later. — Ethan Gach
Those are our takes. Do you think differently? What makes a Final Fantasy game a Final Fantasy to you?
