5 Games That Prove Final Fantasy Has Become Nothing More Than A Cash Cow

Exemplifies - Unnecessary Sequels

Final Fantasy IV was the first truly great Final Fantasy game. The first title in the series to be released on the SNES, it featured an epic story that spanned three explorable worlds and a sizable cast of characters that all had their part to play.

Said story ended on a fairly cheesy note, with lead character Cecil and primary villain Golbez realising that they are long-lost brothers from an alien race and teaming up to defeat the greater evil, but the key point is that it did end, with every character's arc wrapped up in the process.

Cut to almost two decades later where Square-Enix, having never previously been in the business of making sequels (or prequels), were now putting them out left, right and centre. Some of these had been good if not spectacular, (Final Fantasy X-2 and Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core), others not so much (Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings and Dirge Of Cerberus: Final Fantasy VII).

At no point did anybody think that Final Fantasy IV needed a sequel seventeen years after its original release, but the decision to go ahead with one was made anyway after the game had been remade several times over during the 2000s. Admittedly, The After Years isn't outright terrible, but its narrative is hardly original and it comes across as nothing more than a rehash of its predecessor.

Given Square Enix's current track record, we'll probably see at least two sequels to Final Fantasy XV before we see Final Fantasy XVI, most likely interspaced with follow-ons to Final Fantasies VIII and IX when somebody in their marketing team catches on to the fact that they haven't made any yet.