Hi!
I think it's just me, but I noticed some very strange facts, that indicate another reason, why Hironobu Sakaguchi really developed Final Fantasy: Sega.
Yeah, it sounds odd. But Square's history is at least filed with many links to Sega. It seems to me, that Square saw a in their point of view good Sega-game and started to copy and update it a bit. Here are my examples:
Mister Viking -> King's Knight:
Sega's Mister Viking was a automaticaly vertical scrolling shooter for Sega's System-1-Board released in 1984, when you believe in
Wikipedia, where you play a an viking walking to the north instead of an airplane or spaceship.
Video
Square's
King's Knight was 1st released on September 18, 1986 for Famicom. It's a vertical shooter and you play one of 4 medieval characters walking to the north.
Video
I know, that there were many shooters at that time scrolling vertically - but ancient protagonists walking instaed of high-tec-war-mashines flying was very rare. I admit it could be a funny coexistence.
Out Run -> Rad Racer
Sega's
Out Run was an arcade checkpoint-racer, in which you drive with a red sportscar and always start in a sandy area, where the road is lined with palmtrees and some of the cars you're overtaking resemble
Volkswagen Beetles. The game reached japanese arcades September 20, 1986.
Video
Square's
Rad Racer was an arcade-styled checkpoint-racer, in which you drive with a red sportscar or F1-/Indycar and always start in a sandy area, where the road is lined with palmtrees and nearly all of the cars you're overtaking resemble
Volkswagen Beetles. The game reached japanese Famicoms on August 7, 1987.
Video
I have to say, that Rad Racer had a 3D-Mode before Out Run 3-D was released (1989).
Space Harrier -> 3-D World Runner
Sega's
Space Harrier was a 3D-shooter, where you play a guy (no plane, no spaceship), who is flying in the depth of the screen, shooting monsters and avoiding obstacles. One of the bosses, for expample, resembles a snake or snake-like dragon flying freely through the 3rd dimension.
It was released in 1985 (japanese SG1K-MkIII/Master-System-Version on December 21st, 1986)
Video
Square's
3-D World Runner also was a 3D-Shooter, where you also play a guy instead of any kind of flying vehicle, who isn't flying the whole time, but running and jumping abnormaly long and high in the depth of the screen, shooting monsters and avoiding obstacles. The 1st of the bosses resembles a snake or snake-like dragon flying freely through the 3rd dimension.
The game released on March 12, 1987 on Famicom.
Video
That were the examples if found, but there could be some more Squaresoft-Games looking very similar to Sega-Games and were released late enough to be clones of them.
Phantasy Star - Final Fantasy
So far I recall the Making-Of-Story of Final Fantasy, there was told, that Squaresoft only had a few games like Rad Racer or 3-D World Runner, which were no financally disasters, and was facing bankruptcy. There was only budget for one more game. (If you think about it: Square financed Final Fantasy with Sega's ideas
) So Sakaguchi got free hand and made the game he wanted to make: a roleplaying game like the very popular Dragon Quest. And because of assumption, that it will be the last game for Square and himself, he named it "Final Fantasy".
But it's not so common knowledge, that
Final Fantasy was released in Japan on December 18, 1987 - 2 days before Sega's
Phantasy Star. Some will think "Yes! Square did it! Earlier than Sega! Your mother is this theory!" or something like that. But my theory says "really?"
I can't imagine, that Sega made it a big secret out of the fact, that their fans don't have to buy an Famicom or look in envy to that platform, because they will also get a JRPG for the MarkIII/Master System. And in my theory the Square-Boys are at least Sega-fans and inspired by the annoucement. But they were also rivals with only one last chance for making a game, so they tried to release a fantasygame and finish their JRPG-incarnation before Sega becomes 1st. In that hurry, Square was unable to making
the game optical appealing
like this, but we are in Japan and in the 1980's, when gameplay was much more important than today. Some problems with the balance of Final Fantasy could also be a circumstantial evidence for the rush it was developed.
So, I'm finished. I wish, I could find more proofs for this little story and I'm sure, that it will be crushed in no time... but eventually you had fun by reading it and watching the videos :3
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Final Fantasy - history rewritten?
