7 Video Game Franchises That You Didn’t Know Are Spin-Offs

7. The Mana Series Is A Final Fantasy Spin-Off

The Mana series is one of the more iconic JRPG series yet it's easy to forget that it was once a part of an even more iconic JRPG series, Final Fantasy.

The series started as Seiken Densetsu: Final Fantasy Gaiden, with Seiken Densetsu being the Japanese name of the Mana series.

The game lost the Seiken Densetsu / Mana title when it was released in America, being known as Final Fantasy Adventure over there. For Europe, the game was called Mystic Quest as Final Fantasy wasn't really a thing there at that time.

So yeah, it makes sense as to why nobody remembers that the Mana series is a Final Fantasy spin-off. Many Americans likely played Final Fantasy Adventure and didn’t even associate it with the Mana games. And many Europeans likely looked at Final Fantasy, Mystic Quest, and the Mana series as three separate entities, just with some similarities.

The Mana series quickly gained its own identity which further disassociated it with Final Fantasy. After the first game, the series was allowed to stand on its own feet and quickly dropped the Final Fantasy elements.