Summary
- Final Fantasy has a vast franchise with 16 core titles, spinoffs, and more like card games, books, and action figures.
- The anime adaptations for Final Fantasy are limited, with some OVAs like On The Way To A Smile: Episode - Denzel and Last Order: Final Fantasy 7.
- Final Fantasy: Unlimited is the only fully-fledged anime adaptation with a unique Isekai storyline involving two twins and a golden gun-wielding stranger.
Final Fantasy is one of Square Enix’s biggest franchises. It began in 1987 in Japan and would eventually hit the West in 1990. There are sixteen core titles along with dozens of spinoffs and direct sequels. There are also card games, books, action figures, and more.
Final Fantasy: 6 Hardest Secret Characters To Unlock, Ranked
The franchise has done away with this idea recently, but Final Fantasy games used to feature secret characters that were very challenging to unlock.
For as big as the Final Fantasy franchise is, it is lacking in anime though. Altogether there is only one full season of an anime along with a movie and a collection of smaller OVAs and ads. It’s slim pickings for anime fans, but let’s rank them all out for the sake of the franchise’s history. Maybe one day Square Enix will greenlight an anime series based on one of the core titles like Final Fantasy 9 which feels like the most adventurous and light-hearted of the bunch.
6 On The Way To A Smile: Episode - Denzel
A Prequel To Advent Children
- Released: April 16, 2009 (Japan)
- Director: Shinji Ishihara
- Studio: A-1 Pictures
Final Fantasy 7: Advent Children was a big deal because it was the first direct adaptation of a video game in the series. This was an era wherein Square Enix greenlit a lot of projects from games to books. On The Way To A Smile, for example, was a collection of stories detailing what they were doing in the aftermath of Final Fantasy 7 like Tifa. Another character who got a chapter was Denzel, a new orphan who appeared in the movie.
On The Way To A Smile: Episode - Denzel was an anime adaptation of his chapter in the book. It’s not the most exciting chapter for fans since they didn’t have a close tie with him from the original game and not much happens in his day-to-day life. It doesn’t answer a lot of questions either but the animation is nice to say one thing positive. The anime was later packaged with the movie on Blu-ray.
5 Last Order: Final Fantasy 7
The Fall Of Sephiroth And Zack
- Released: September 14, 2005 (Japan)
- Director: Morio Asaka
- Studio: Madhouse
Last Order: Final Fantasy 7 was also an addition to home copies of Final Fantasy 7: Advent Children. It took place during the Nibelheim mission right before Sephiroth went berserk and killed the entire town. It’s a short one-episode OVA that gives fans a closer look at what went down between Zack, Cloud, Tifa, and Sephiroth. It was a nice addition to the DVD at the time since the only way players could experience this backstory was in Final Fantasy 7.
However, since then, Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7 has been released and Zack got more time to be developed. In that prequel, players got a chance to experience this backstory in greater detail for the first time. Plus it shone a brighter light on Zack who didn’t get much in the original game. Overall, Last Order: Final Fantasy 7 looks good but there are better ways to experience this story now.
4 Brotherhood: Final Fantasy 15
How The Heroes First Bonded
- Released: March 30, 2016 (WW)
- Director: Soichi Masui
- Studio: A-1 Pictures
Brotherhood: Final Fantasy 15 was one of many tie-ins that were announced during a big reveal event for Final Fantasy 15. It was also here that Square Enix announced the CG movie, Kingsglaive: Final Fantasy 15. The idea of Brotherhood: Final Fantasy 15 was that it was going to be free to stream on YouTube and include backstories of the four main boys of Final Fantasy 15: Noctis, Prompto, Gladiolus, and Ignis.
There is a bit of action in these short OVAs, but all of the episodes mostly fill out relationships like how Prompto lost a lot of weight in grade school to look better in high school. There were additional episodes released later to add more information on Noctis’ betrothed, Lunafreya, and Final Fantasy 15’s secret main villain, Arryn. Of the few episodes out there, Prompto’s feels like the best one but overall it’s just an okay slice-of-life series of shorts.
3 Final Fantasy: Legend Of The Crystals
A Great Looking OVA In Need Of An HD Update
- Released: March 21, 1994 (Japan)
- Director: Rintaro
- Studio: Madhouse
Final Fantasy: Legend of the Crystals was released in many forms between Japan and North America. Most notably, it was released in the West on two VHS tapes that contained two episodes although in most cases online, it has been strung together into a movie. That was three years after Japan too, so it took a while. That’s the only real way to watch it now, through Internet fan dumps. It has never been released on DVD or Blu-ray to give it an update which is a shame because the animation is top-notch for a 90s OVA series.
The story is set 200 years after Final Fantasy 5 and follows Prettz, a big talking swordsman, and Linaly, a timid Summoner, trying to protect the last remaining Crystal of Wind. Besides referencing the heroes from the game, most of the story is self-contained except for the appearance of Mid. It doesn’t quite feel like a Final Fantasy adaptation on any level, especially since Chocobos look like big skinless buzzards, but on its own, it is a good OVA.
2 Final Fantasy 14: Choose Your Life
Three Commercials With Stunning Animation
- Released: June 24, 2019 (Japan)
- Director: Yuhei Sakuragi
- Producer: Yuhei Sakuragi
Final Fantasy 14: Choose Your Life is one of the most bizarre anime adaptations yet. It was a series of commercials in Japan for the Shadowbringers expansion of Final Fantasy 14. The first one shows a male jumping into his online game and seemingly being sucked inside like an Isekai. In the second ad, it happens to a female as well.
Final Fantasy: The 10 Strongest Villains In The Series, According To Lore
Final Fantasy has a multitude of titles to its name and just as many villains. But, according to lore, which are the strongest in the series?
The ad campaign ends with the third commercial wherein these two meet, fall in love, and get married. While the total length of the anime is less than two minutes, it does have a nice story arc. Plus it has a lot of great highlights for things to do including Mahjong, hanging out at the beach, and racing Chocobo. It may be wild to nominate an ad campaign so highly, but these three commercials have excellent artwork and are just a joy to watch for longtime Final Fantasy 14 fans.
1 Final Fantasy: Unlimited
The Only Fully Fledged Anime Adaptation
- Released: October 2, 2001 (Japan)
- Director: Mahiro Maeda
- Studio: Gonzo
Final Fantasy: Unlimited is the only full-length season of a Final Fantasy-based anime on the market. While it doesn’t adhere to any of the games, it does pull enough in to seem like a good adaptation. It is a straight-up Isekai involving two twins, Ai and Yu, who travel to a new world called Wonderland.
There they meet Lisa, a martial artist, and a mystery stranger, Kaze, who has a golden gun. Together they try to take down an Empire that is draining Wonderland of its resources. Kaze is the main draw as his design is cool plus he has great Summon animations using his gun. It’s weird and a bit ethereal at times to be sure, but it is a fun romp with plenty of references from Summons to Chocobos to Moogles.
10 Final Fantasy Console Variations You Never Knew Existed
These special edition consoles are so rare and unique that many Final Fantasy fans have never seen them before.