Final Fantasy IV

.

Final Fantasy IV

Title

Final Fantasy IV

Developer

Square

Publisher

Square

Director

Hironobu Sakaguchi

Producer

Masafumi Miyamoto

Artists

Yoshitaka Amano

Writers

Takashi Tokita

Composer

Nobuo Uematsu

Series

Final Fantasy

Platforms

Super Nintendo Entertainment System

Release

July 19, 1991

Genres

turn based role-playing

Mode

single-player

Final Fantasy IV is a turn based role-playing game by Square. It is the fourth installment of the Final Fantasy series and was directed by Hironobu Sakaguchi.

Synopsis

THE CRUSADE FOR THE CRYSTALS. In the Kingdom of Baron, powerful airships rule the skies. At the head of this elite fighting force is Cecil, Captain of the Red Wings.

As our adventure begins, Cecil and his squadron are ordered to steal a powerful crystal from a rival kingdom. Upon their return, Cecil questions the King's orders and is stripped of his command. To prove his loyalty, he must slay a dreadful monster and deliver a mysterious package to a neighboring town. But when the package explodes, destroying everyone, Cecil and his friend Kain vow to fight the King's dark forces. Will you be able to save the world from their evil plan to control the crystals?

Get ready for the most challenging role-playing adventure ever.

— The description of the NA box of "Final Fantasy II", as it was called upon it's NA release in 1991.

Setting

The Setting takes place on the Blue Planet, where it's surface world is inhabited by humans and the underground by dwarves. In it's orbital at has two moons, one natural and one artificially built by the Lunarians, also called the Red Moon. The Lunarians hail from a destroyed world, which remnants became an asteroid field around the Blue Planet.

Story

Cecil, captain of the Red Wings, steals the Water Crystal from Mysidia. After questioning the King od Baron's motives, he gets demoted and together with his friend Kain, Captain of the Dragoons, needs to deliver a package to the Village of Mist. Monsters bursts from the package and lay waste to the village. Rydia, a young girl from the village, summons Titan that causes an earthquake, seperating Cecil and Kain. Rydia is injured, and Cecil takes her to a nearby Inn. Soldiers from the Kingdom of Baron come for her, but Cecil defends her.

Cecil's love interest Rosa, a white mage, has followed him and is extremely ill with a fever. Cecil and Rydia meet Tellah who is going to Damcyan Castle to retrieve his eloping daughter, Anna. But Anna is killed in an attack by the Red Wings. Edward, the prince of Damcyan explains that the Red Wings' new commander, Golbez, did this to steal the Fire Crystal. Tellah leaves to exact revenge for Anna. The party finds a cure for Rosa's fever, and then decides to go to Fabul to protect the Wind Crystal. The Red Wings appear soon after they arrive, with Cecil's friend Kain as one of Golbez' servants. Kain attacks and defeats Cecil, and when Rosa intervenes, Golbez kidnaps her and Kain takes the Crystal. As the party around Cecil makes their way back to Baron, they are attacked by Leviathan and seperated.

Cecil awakes alone near Mysidia, where the residents deeply resent him for stealing the Water Crystal. In order to defeat Golbez, the Elder tells him that he must climb Mt. Ordeals to become a Paladin. Before he embarks, the twin mages Palom and Porom join him. On the mountain Cecil encounters Tellah, who is searching for the forbidden spell Meteor to defeat Golbez. After defeating the fiend Scarmiglione Cecil casts away the darkness within him and becomes a Paladin, while Tellah learns Meteor. Upon reaching the Kingdom of Baron and confronting the King, they learn that he is an imposter and one of Golbez' servants, Cagnazzo. After the fight, Cid arrives on the Enterprise. They are caught within a room full of traps, and Palom and Porom sacrifice themselves to save the party.

On the airship, Kain appears and demands from Cecil to retrieve the final crystal in exchange for Rosa's life. Kain then leads them to the Tower of Zot where Rosa is imprisoned. Golbez takes the crystal and attempts to flee, but Tellah casts Meteor, sacrificing his own life. This only weakens Golbez, but his mindcontrol over Kain is broken. Kain helps Cecil to rescue Rosa and defeat Barbariccia, another fiend of Golbez'. Rosa teleports the party out of the collapsing tower to Baron.

Kain reveals that Golbez needs four subterranean "Dark Crystals" to reach the moon. They travel underground and encounter the fight between the Dwarves and the Red Wings. They defeat Golbez, but cannot prevent him from stealing the Dwarves' crystal. With the help of the Dwarves the party reach the Tower of Babil, where the crystals are stored. However, they learn that the crystals have been moved to the top of the tower. After escaping a trap set by Golbez, Cid sacrifices himself to seal the passage between the two worlds. The Party is now joined by Edge, the prince of Eblan, and they travel back to the Tower of Babil to retrieve the crystals and take revenge upon Rubicante. Upon reaching the crystal room, they fell through a trap door back to the underground. They find Cid to be alive, and the party set out to retrieve the eighth crystal before Golbez can. When they take the crystal, Golbez appears and reveals that he still has control over Kain. He takes the crystal, and the party travel to Mysidia, where the Elder and mages summon the Lunar Whale, a transport ship to travel to and from the moon.

Arriving on the moon they meet Fusoya who reveals that Cecil's father was a Lunarian. He explains that Zemus wants to destroy life on the Blue Planet so the Lunarians can inhabit it. They're using Golbez to summon the Giant of Babil. The party returns to the Blue Planet and the overworld and underworld attack the Giant. After the Giant breaks, Golbez and Kain confronts the party. Fusoya breaks Zemus' control over Golbez, and in doing so releasing Kain as well. It is revealed that Golbez is Kain's older brother. Golbez and Fusoya travel to the core of the moon to defeat Zemus, and the party follows them. They witness how they defeat Zemus, only the be quickly fall to Zeromus, the embodiment of Zemus' hatred and rage. On the Blue Planet, the Elder of Mysidia tells everyone to pray for Cecil and his party, which gives Cecil the strength to fight and destroy Zeromus.

After the battle, Fusoya and Golbez decide to leave the Blue Planet with the moon. The party reunites in the Kingdom of Baron to celebrate the wedding and coronation of Cecil and Rosa as Baron's new king and queen, while Kain casts himself into exil on Mt. Ordeals to atone for his misdeeds.

References in Final Fantasy XIV

Legacy

• the servers "Mysidia" and "Fabul" refer to the respective village or kingdom.
• In Final Fantasy IV, Bahamut is sealed away in the Moon Dalamud, which appears bright red in the sky. This is a reference for Final Fantasy IV's Bahamut being sealed within the Red Moon.

A Realm Reborn

• the Drachen Artifact Armor for Dragoon is a reference to Kai Highwinds armor
• Battle Litany shows the iconic pose of Kai Highwind, which was also featured on the Cover of Final Fantasy IV.
• The allagan ADS enemies are based on the CPU boss of Final Fantasy IV.

Heavensward

• The Baron Circlet, Cecil Harvey's Paladin headband, was a pre-order bonus for Heavensward.
• The Tantra Artifact Armor is based on the artword for Yand Fang Leiden's by Yoshitaka Amano.
• In The Final Steps of Faith, during the second phase when Nidhogg takes the form of Estinien, his idle stance is the same pose as Kain Highwind's on the cover.
• The dark version that appears during the Dark Knight quest line is similar to the event within Final Fantasy IV.
• Calcabrina, the final boss of The Antitower, is a reference to the dancing doll demon in Final Fantasy IV.
• The first phase of the final boss of Pharos Sirius (Hard) - Progenitrix is based on the Mother Bomb from Final Fantasy IV.
• The second phase of the final boss of Pharos Sirius (Hard) - Progenitrix is based on the Dad Bomb boss from Final Fantasy IV -Interlude-.

Music References

Original Theme	Theme
Dancing Calcabrina	Dancing Calcabrina

Stormblood

• Mist Dragon, the final boss of The Burn, is a reference to the boss and summon 'Mist Dragon' in Final Fantasy IV.

Shadowbringers

• Giott is a reference to King Giott in Final Fantasy IV.
• Tomra is a reference to the dwarf village with the same name in Final Fantasy IV.
• In the The Seat of Sacrifice, the Warrior of Light will summon spectral lalafellin Black Mage and White Mage, performing Twincast. This is a reference to Palom and Porom performing Comet Twincast.
• Fandaniel's Lunar Primals - Lunar Bahamut, Ifrit, Odin and Ravana - are based on the Lunar Eidolons appearing in the Game Boy Advance Version of Final Fantasy IV. Their color scheme are based on the original game.

Endwalker

• The Lunar Whale is a reference to the Lunar Whale of Final Fantasy IV.
• The main scenario dungeons The Tower of Zot and The Tower of Babil are a direct reference to the same dungeons in Final Fantasy IV.
• The Magus Sisters - Sanduruva, Cinduruva and Minduruva - are based on the same bosses appearing in Final Fantasy IV.
• The function and location of The Tower of Babil is similar in Final Fantasy IV: it is located near the Eblan region and houses a portal to the Moon.
• Barnabas and Lugae are also bosses in the Final Fantasy IV dungeon of the Tower of Babil.
• Mare Lamentorum is a reference to the artifical Moon of Final Fantasy IV:
  • In both locations an antagonist - in Final Fantasy XIV's case Zodiark - is sealed within
  • The Watcher is a reference to Fusoya
  • The Loporrits are based in the Hummingways. Their appearance are based upon the 3D remake of Final Fantasy IV. They also live on the Moon and use their typical humming noise.
  • A Stone Face was also the entrance to a dungeon in Final Fantasy IV.
  • The first boss of Smileton is based upon the Wicked Mask enemies from Final Fantasy IV.
• The Meteia are based on the Maenads of Final Fantasy IV: The After Years. They are also able to create a hivemind and assess a world's state before destroying it.
• The prayers that revive the Warrior of Light's party during The Final Day is a reference to the prayers that revive Cecil's party during the Zeromus fight.
  • The description of the prayers are the same.

• Octomammoth's desgin is based upon the boss with the same name that appears in Final Fantasy IV.

• The Post-Endwalker Main Scenario Quests are heavily based upon Golbez and his four fiends, Scarmiglione, Barbariccia, Cagnazzo and Rubicante:
  • The Fell Court of Troia has the same name as the nation in Final Fantasy IV.
  • All arch fiends use their signature spells and attacks.
  • The Kingdom of Baron that briefly appeared in the Contramemoria is named after the Kingdom in Final Fantasy IV.
  • Mount Ordeals is named after the location in Final Fantasy IV.
  • In Final Fantasy IV Golbez fights along a Shadow Dragon
  • The Moon of the Thirteenth is heavily based on the Red Moon in Final Fantasy IV.
  • Zeromus is based on the final boss of Final Fantasy IV.

Music References

Original Theme	Theme
Tower of Zot	Tower of Zot
Welcome to Our Town	Welcome to Our Town! (Endwalker)
Battle 1	Battle 1 from FINAL FANTASY IV
Somewhere In The World	Somewhere in the World (Ambitions Writhe)
Troian Beauty	Troian Beauty (Endwalker)
Battle 2	FINAL FANTASY IV: Battle 2 (Endwalker)
Sorrow and Loss
Battle With the Four Fiends	Battle with the Four Fiends (Buried Memory)
Battle With the Four Fiends	Forged in Crimson
Sorrow and Loss
Suspicion
Another Moon	Another Moon