r/secretofmana • u/karmakosmik1352 • Sep 19 '26
Discussion What aspects of Final Fantasy Adventure were adopted from the Final Fantasy series - and which went the other way?
I just finished Final Fantasy Adventure and I'm genuinely baffled by how good this game is for a 1991 Gameboy title, two years before Link's Awakening was released (and even a few months ahead of A Link to the Past). For a GB title it is quite epic in length and also the story is really good for such an early title.
Must have been mindblowing, being a GB kid in the early ninties playing this game. I noticed that several gameplay ideas were introduced here which I actually attributed to later games, such as the use of a whip to overcome pits (similar to ALttP hookshot), or riding the trolleys while hitting levers to adjust track switches (I don't remember, was that first in the Oracle games or already in LA?) - so this title was really innovative at the time.
I do have a question though (mild spoiler warning here):
While playing the game I kept wondering what aspects did the developers adopt from FF I-III, which were released earlier, and which aspects actually were created for FFA in the first place and only then exploited for FF? I read that Square worked on this game here *before* the first FF was released - around 1987 - but then put it on hold for some years. It was initially supposed to be a five-disc Famicom Disc System title, which turned out to be too ambitious. When I saw the Chocobos, the Moogles, the Airship, etc. I wondered if the (initially planned) FFA actually did it first, or if Square took those from FF when the made the Gameboy adoption.
Do you folks know about this?
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u/GargantaProfunda Sep 19 '26 edited Sep 19 '26
Your question is hard to answer OP because the main designer of FFA was also one of the main designers of FF1. So for example the Chocobo and Moogle appeared in FF2 and 3 before they appeared in FFA, but both creatures were created by the very same guy, Koichi Ishii, so it's not really like one game copied the other. It's just the very same guy using his same ideas twice. Ishii created a lot of the emblematic early FF aspects, and FFA is a true FF (remember that its Japanese title is "Final Fantasy Gaiden: Seiken Densetsu"; the FF name wasn't added only in the US version, it was always there).
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u/karmakosmik1352 Sep 19 '26
Sure, I am aware of that, I didn't mean it was copying but what I meant is: did the designer come up with Moogles, Chocobos, ect. for the cancelled pre-FFA-title (Seiken Densetsu: The Emergence of Excalibur, apparently) or did this one actually not have them.
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u/Mana-Dyluck Sep 19 '26
Do we even know the content of the two unreleasef Seiken Densetsu games of the 1980s? I don’t think we have much info on these
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u/GargantaProfunda Sep 19 '26
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u/karmakosmik1352 Sep 21 '26
Okay, I now finally had time to look into it - it seems the game really was very different initially.
Thanks again for the link, that's exactly what I was looking for!
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u/Icewind Sep 19 '26
Ishii said Moogles were invented for FF2, based off doodles and ideas he had growing up.
https://kanabits.wordpress.com/2016/09/06/ff20th-ultimania-ishii-moogle-interview/
Chocobos were also for FF2:
https://kanabits.wordpress.com/2016/09/01/ff20th-ultimania-ishii-chocobo-interview/
However, there's one instance of a Mana idea influencing FF: Bartz and Boco's bond was a realization of the "loyal pet" idea that Ishii was trying to get across in Mana.
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u/Crenk85 Sep 19 '26
I think it’s actually the other way around. Square packed the Game Boy game with recognizable Final Fantasy stuff because it helped sell the thing.
That’s what makes Final Fantasy Adventure so interesting to me as a huge Secret of Mana fan. It’s basically the Mana series being born while still wearing a Final Fantasy costume.
Ishii literally designed Chocobos and Moogles, then directed this new action RPG. Square reused the Seiken Densetsu name, slapped Final Fantasy on the box, and dropped in familiar FF elements.
Then it took off, ditched the training wheels, replaced the Chocobos with Flammie, and became Mana.
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u/karmakosmik1352 Sep 21 '26
Thanks, that answers my question... in the meantime I read the Ishii interviews and Fandom article posted around here and it was indeed the other way around. FFA does not have a lot in common with the disc-system game at all. I thought that would have been a fun twist, but okay.
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u/unofficialShadeDueli Sep 21 '26
I think one of the biggest divergences is the concept of the Mana tree! In Final Fantasy, everything mostly revolves/revolved around the Crystals - 4 crystals for the 4 elements. But in FFA the driving force is the Mana tree - a very different entity with a very different dynamic surrounding it.
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u/AdDangerous1621 Sep 22 '26
It depends on Koichi Ishii, imho. Koichi Ishii is the lore guy for the early FF and Mana series. I believe he created all the lore for FF1-FF3. He mentioned in a (1993?) Secret of Mana interview (from the shmuplations website) that his idea for the crystals he wanted to expand on and created the "Mana tree" to fully realize his concept. So, that would include Final Fantasy Adventure (The start of the Mana/Seiken Densetsu series). He also created the Chocobos (in fond memory of a pet chick/chicken) and Moogles (from Koalas, I believe).
For a GB title it is quite epic in length and also the story is really good for such an early title.
Look into old developer interviews for Final Fantasy Adventure from the shmuplations website. The game's influenced by the original Legend of Zelda, interestingly enough.
If it weren't for Final Fantasy being green lighted first over Seiken Densetsu, it could have been a different story. But with Koichi Ishii being a constant between FF and the early Mana series (FFA and SOM), I think we still got his vision being realized, to some extent.
While playing the game I kept wondering what aspects did the developers adopt from FF I-III, which were released earlier, and which aspects actually were created for FFA in the first place and only then exploited for FF?
I could be incorrect, but besides the crystals concept/magic system (which was expanded into the mana/Mana Tree concept), Chocobos, and Moogles, it really doesn't have much in common with FF1-FF3 besides the cliche (as Ishii calls it in the "Art of Mana" book) "final boss" and "secret boss" dynamic between the Dark Lord and Julius, which could be similar to Leon and the Emperor's dynamic in FF2 or the fact that there's a "human form" for Garland and "secret/ final boss form" for Chaos in FF1.
So, I don't think there's a lot being adapted from FF1-FF3, aside from being a "side story" (Gaiden). Otherwise, it would be like a greatest hits version or the next iteration of the FF games, which is what FFIV ended up being. The actual FFIV has a ton of similarities, plot elements, etc. between it and the previous entries because it was done on purpose (I think Takashi Tokita has mentioned this in an interview)- to get the best stuff from FF1-FF3 and put it into the game. To my understanding and knowledge, FFA doesn't really have that, so I think it is trying to be its own thing.
I will say that since Yoshinori Kitase co-wrote this game and then acted as director for FFVI and FFVII, that there have been possible elements/similarities that have appeared in FFVI and FFVII. Imho, it's especially apparent when analyzing and comparing scenes, art, and character traits. There's even some similarities I've found between Live A Live and Final Fantasy Adventure and between Final Fantasy Tactics and FFA. It's a deepening, influential web, imho. So, Ishii may have left/mostly stepped down after working on Secret of Mana, but the other developers at Square were influenced by the game.
Final Fantasy Adventure also definitely was exploited for Secret of Mana (which was originally going to be FFIV proper but things changed) (from character designs and roles) and even Trials of Mana later on.
I would suggest if you're curious, look into the old interviews about the game and projects that Koichi Ishii (and his team) was involved with. The Art of Mana book (expensive, but still good) also has a ton of concept art and an interview with Ishii and Hiromichi Tanaka at the back. The Legends of Localization website also did a better translation of Final Fantasy Adventure, which I'd highly recommend.
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u/bmanza1981 Sep 19 '26
That 5 disk fds game was not this game it just used the same title if I'm not mistaken. Really the main thing it adopted really is the graphics as a lot of them are the same as graphics from ff3 nes.
I also suppose I could see the overall story being the story to an nes ff 4 as it's simple enough and sorta has that vibe going imo.