Typically in the RPG genre, the player takes the role of a goodly band of heroes. Yes, there are often anti-heroes, morally questionable bandits and such among them, but you tend to be the good guys. A ragtag band of warriors who are the last hope to defeat an evil that threatens the planet or the entire universe. That sort of thing.
Needless to say, the Final Fantasy franchise has had a huge influence on the genre, and these traditions are alive and well throughout the series. That doesn’t mean the main characters are beyond reproach, though. Far from it. Here are some of the worst situations and errors in judgment they have ever found themselves in (or made).
10 Cloud’s Mismanagement Of The Black Materia (Final Fantasy VII)
Through the course of Final Fantasy VII, the player accrues some incredibly powerful Materia. From destructive summon monsters that could eat Godzilla for breakfast (we imagine the great lizard would be quite tough to chew) to formidable spells like Ultima, Cloud and crew get their hands on a whole lot of firepower.
All of these pale in comparison to the Black Materia, though. Sephiroth is desperate to acquire the ultimate destruction magic, Meteor, and how does he does so? By manipulating his ‘puppet’ Cloud, that’s how. By this point in the game, it’s more than clear that Cloud isn’t the most stable of individuals, and carrying it around himself (and later assigning a lone buddy to do so) isn’t the greatest of ideas.
9 Squall Leaping Into Space After Rinoa (Final Fantasy VIII)
Now, the Final Fantasy fanbase has mixed feelings about Squall Leonheart. Is he a well-developed and multi-faceted character who slowly and adorably falls in love? Is he a lazy and one-dimensional guy whose ‘feelings’ were hurriedly thrown into the mix? That depends who you ask.
One thing we can probably agree on is that Squall’s behaviour on Esthar’s space station was about as reckless as it’s possible to get. When Rinoa was cast aside by her fellow sorceress, adrift in space, there really wasn’t the remotest possibility of rescuing her. Only the plot armor of the Ragnarok (and the bizarre, lumpen, color-coded creatures that infested it) got the pair of them out of that mess.
8 Noctis’ Trial Of Leviathan (Final Fantasy XV)
Granted, you could say that nothing that happened during the Trial of Leviathan was Noctis’ fault directly. You absolutely could. Even so, there’s really no questioning the fact that this sequence was one of the most unmitigated disasters of a game that had a heck of bleak outlook at times.
During this titanic battle, Lunafreya is stabbed by Ardyn Izunia, while Noctis is powerless to help her. This attack, and the cataclysmic, heart-wrenching and super watery cutscene that follows, is absolutely devastating. Darn it, Noctis, you knew that Lunafreya was in way over her head here.
7 Celes’ Betrayal Of The Empire (Final Fantasy VI)
Celes Chere is a vital member of the party in Final Fantasy VI. This Rune Knight is a very versatile party member, adept physically and magically and offering a range of useful techniques. The player doesn’t know very much about her past, but we do know that she certainly made a huge mistake in her career.
The party meets one-time General Celes in a cell, where she is awaiting execution for betraying the Empire. We never learn the details of the crime, but it’s very clear that she wouldn’t have been sucked into this whole mess with the rest of the party if he hadn’t perpetrated it. Still, she has a conscience, and you’ve got to appreciate that.
6 Red XIII Doubting His Father (Final Fantasy VII)
Final Fantasy VII’s Red XIII is an even more enigmatic character. When we meet him in the Shinra Building, the nefarious Professor Hojo is trying to breed him with the kidnapped Aeris. The logistics of that whole idea aside, we’ve got a great, intelligent, talking dog-wolf on our hands here, which is curious even for this game’s bizarre world.
Later, we arrive in Cosmo Canyon, where the ever-wise Bugenhagen learns that Red XIII believes his own father, Seto, is a coward who abandoned his home when the Gi tribe attacked to save himself. Bugenhagen takes him to a secret cave, where it’s revealed that Seto actually fought to the end to defend his people. Even after the Gi’s poisoned arrows turned his body to stone, Seto continues to watch over Cosmo Canyon.
5 Zidane Thinking His Friends Would Abandon Him On Learning The Truth About His Origins (Final Fantasy IX)
Out of all of Final Fantasy IX’s colorful cast, Zidane Tribal is definitely the most positive and happy-go-lucky. For a protagonist, that was a huge breath of fresh air after the likes of Squall and Cloud. However, even Zidane had his moments. Most famously, the one on Terra after he learns that he is actually a Genome intended to stir up warfare and ultimately destroy Gaia.
Distraught at this revelation, Zidane tries to turn his back on his friends and proceed onwards without them, beset by monster after monster. He refuses to believe that they will continue to support him and fight by his side, even as they each prove that this isn’t the case. It was our hero’s darkest hour, but, ultimately, it needn’t have been.
4 Lightning’s Standoffishness (Final Fantasy XIII)
As we mentioned in the last entry, a lot of Final Fantasy protagonists have a way of being aloof, isolated, unwilling to open up. Considering the various traumas they’ve endured, this is entirely understandable, but it’s all kinds of counterproductive in a series that highlights the importance of teamwork and friendship.
Final Fantasy XIII’s Lightning is a woman so determined not to open up that nobody even knows her real name. As the game (and the series it spawned) progresses, we learn more about why this is and we get to see her gradually lower her guard. It would have been far better for her relationship with Hope (and the progression of the game’s events in general) if she’d been more willing to alter her outlook, though.
3 The Light Warriors Ensuring Their Names Would Be Forgotten Forever (Final Fantasy)
Now, heroes like The Doctor (of Doctor Who fame) don’t dash around saving lives, planets and solar systems for the accolades. They do it because they have the means and the moral compass. With great power comes great responsibility, as dear old Uncle Ben once said.
Even so, it’s nice to get a little acknowledgement every now and then, isn’t it? Otherwise, you’re just left sitting there staring at a fantastic selfie with a single like, comment or heart emoji posted on it, and nobody wants that. With this in mind, it’s a crying shame that, after bringing an end to Chaos’ time paradox in the original Final Fantasy, the four Light Warriors changed the course of time. By so doing, they erased their names and the memories of their heroism from time.
2 Bartz Investigating The Meteor (Final Fantasy V)
If science fiction and horror movies have taught us anything, it’s that when a meteor crashes to earth, it’s very rarely a sign of anything good. Moreover, the sight of the crash really isn’t a place you want to be sniffing around. Remember what happened to Edgar in Men in Black? Exactly.
Still, a curious adventurer like Bartz Klauser isn’t the kind of guy who’s going to care about anything like that. He learns of the strike and he’s straight over there investigating. Predictably, this decision leads to all manner of strife for our hero (and more meteors), and, as he meets Lenna and Galuf at the site, he is buoyed along on the adventure.
1 Tidus’ Notorious Laugh (Final Fantasy X)
Pop culture can be confusing at times, can’t it? You just never know what’s going to become a snarky meme next. It’s often the most unlikely thing. In the case of Final Fantasy X, a certain laugh of Tidus’ has gone down in infamy.
On the surface, this is a sweet moment. Yuna, in one of her lowest moments, asks to hear Tidus laugh. Just laugh. Sadly, he belts out a… well, this was the franchise’s first game to feature voice acting, so it wasn’t fair to expect perfection just yet, but this was the worst laugh in the history of laughter. You were supposed to be comforting her, Tidus.
NEXT: 10 Best Final Fantasy Games Of The Decade, Ranked
