Ive betrayed no one, Ive simply come to my senses, Kain Highwind mutters as he turns on his so-called ally and rejoins the protagonists, stabbing their opponent in the back. This shocking moment, among the many plot twists in the middle of Final Fantasy IVs story, is conveyed through only dialog. Although released in 1991, Final Fantasy IV still captivates players through its storytelling which has redefined adventures through the medium of video games. Final Fantasy IVs story elegantly combines both traditional and revolutionary elements. Because Final Fantasy IVs story is replete with well-developed characters, revolutionary presentation methods, and memorable moments, it should be compared to the quality of novels and well thought out screenplays.
Final Fantasy IVs story includes well-developed characters. Cecil Harvey, the storys main protagonist, starts the game as the eminent, feared and respected Dark Knight, the commander of the Red Wings of Baron. After a mission to the city of Myssidia to recover (or steal) the water crystal, Cecil doesnt come home to cheers and praise, but rather to the stripping of his position as the commander of the Red Wings by the king of Baron. The king tells Cecil he will consider giving back Cecils position if Cecil goes on a certain mission to simply bring a ring to a village. Unbeknownst to Cecil, upon the rings delivery the ring causes genocide of all of the people in the village, save one. Struck with anguish, he leaves Baron and journeys with the sole survivor of the village. Later on in the story, he decides he must ascend Mt. Ordeals to better protect his friends. When he reaches the peak, a mysterious voice comes out of nowhere telling him firmly, Bid farewell to your bloodstained past. Cecil then drops the title of Dark Knight and becomes a Paladin, which changes his armor from bulky and black to graceful and white, which alters him forever. Another well developed character is Cecils best friend, Kain, the games Shadow, a traditional archetype in storytelling. He starts out the game as the unwavering leader of the Dragoons of Baron. After Cecil leaves on his journey, the antagonist, Golbez, controls Kains mind and commands him to go after Cecil and his friends, who interfere with Golbezs agenda. Throughout the course of the game, none of the characters have any idea where his loyalty stands. The player doesnt even know. The characters and the player also dont know if Golbez is using Kain or if Kain is using the pretext Golbez is manipulating him. Final Fantasy IVs characters are among the first ever in a video game to be this developed, thus revolutionizing games characters for the next twenty years.
Final Fantasy IVs presentation follows suit to its characters; it possesses a variety of attributes, which set the standard for games to come. The storys perspective has completely unique attributes to it. No avid reader that has read a book has read a story in the perspective Final Fantasy IV gives its readers or in this case, its players. The story's perspective has uniqueness to it. Instead of they as in only the characters in the game, the story's perspective includes the player. This would make the games perspective we. The player has an investment in the story and the characters well-being more so then any reader enjoying a book would be invested. The players care more because of the fact they control the characters as they travel on their quest. Along with perspective, Final Fantasy IVs story also does an amazing job at keeping the story focused. With the grandness of the game (a thirty hour story), it would be easy for the story's path to go astray. It keeps the main story consistently going, along with some subplots at the same time. A great example would be with the character Edge. Edge, the prince of Eblan, wants to avenge his mother and father and the main characters agree to aid him with his vengeance. Rather than dropping the story to pursue Edges vengeance, the characters have dialogue for the subplot as well as for the main story. The subplot may even give hints as to the explanation of certain critical events in the main story. These revolutionary techniques helped set the standard for stories through the new medium of video games as color influenced modern-day film.
Final Fantasy IV definitely wasnt the first video game; however, neither was The Wizard of Oz the first film, but like The Wizard of Oz, Final Fantasy IVs story possesses a plethora of moments which have worked their way into the memories of many. The archetype jester has representation in the game as two characters, a brother and sister named Palom and Porom. The novice ten-year-old learners study black magic and white magic respectively. After walking into a trap, the walls in a lengthy hallway start closing in on all of the heroes. When the situation seems hopeless, they say their goodbyes, and they turn themselves to stone, stopping the walls and saving the rest of the heroes lives. The drama of Palom and Poroms sacrifice doesnt compare to the games most surprising and climactic moment. The stage has been set. Cecils destined fight against the antagonist Golbez arrives. After the dreadful and spectacular fight comes to a close, the story should be over or so the player thinks. The characters travel to the moon, and they meet the Lunarian, Fusoya, who reveals everything. He tells them the Lunarians, an advanced species (who look exactly like humans), have been vigilantly waiting for the human race to become less war-like. They agreed to put themselves to sleep on an artificial moon until the one day humans and Lunarians could live together in harmony. He informs them that Golbez was being controlled by the evil Lunarian, Zemus, who wants to kill all of the humans. Golbez and Kain had been previously manipulated because both of them felt unending rage deep within their hearts. The characters confront Zemus, only for him to be resurrected. A vision hits Cecil revealing that not only does he have half Lunarian blood, but Golbez does as well. In fact, a revelation also comes with the vision which tells Cecil that he and Golbez share the same parents. Star Wars: Episode V The Empire Strikes Back contains a similar situation; the antagonist, Darth Vader, reveals himself to be the protagonists father. These moments have impacted players to the same degree as iconic movies and books have with their audiences.
Final Fantasy IVs story compares to first-rate tales with its character, presentation, and unforgettable moments. Final Fantasy IVs story influenced emphasis on strong characters, as the story was the among the first video games to add such depth. Another distinctive attribute of the game is the innovative presentation. The story, made up of several heart-felt moments, focuses on the value of hope in times of darkness. Gamespot.com game reviewer, Greg Kasavin, distinguished Final Fantasy IVs story as the game which pioneered the whole concept of dramatic storytelling in an RPG.
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(I wrote this for my composition class last year. Even one year later, I think it's a pretty good paper -- I got an A on it, of course. I wish I would've written something about how it's unfortunate how after FFIV, deep storytelling in videogames has seemingly been confined to RPGs. After Telltale's The Walking Dead, it would seem that deep storytelling outside of RPGs has had a rebirth. I hope this is the case, because I believe that the true potential of gaming as a medium for deep storytelling has yet to be fully realized. The potential is limitless.)