While the majority ofFinal Fantasycharacters over the years have been well-developed in their respective games, there are a few characters who deserved a lot more screen time.The decades-long JRPG franchise is well-known for how dense its character arcs areand how they connect to the overarching campaigns that put the parties together. This merges with gameplay, as the variousjobs inFinal Fantasyadd more variety to team compositions.
Narrative depth is one of the franchise’s greatest strengths, and this is possible because its games often prioritize smaller parties with well-developed characters rather than a huge number of playable units with solely gameplay at the forefront. This extends beyond simply theprotagonists fromFinal Fantasyand reaches secondary characters, too, some of whom I would have liked to see more of.
5Beatrix In FF9 Is Well-Developed, But Needed More Gameplay Time
The Fan-Favorite Paladin Never Officially Joins The Party
Beatrix is a fan-favorite character inFinal Fantasy 9. The general of Alexandria’s army spends a lot of her time aiding Queen Branhe, who herself is manipulated by Kuja, and, as a result, is even a boss in the game – and one who cannot be defeated. Eventually, she does become an ally, and her story arc of redemption is a memorable one.
During very specific and limited moments, you can control Beatrix in battle, and you understand the breadth of her strength as a paladin.She’s a fun character to play, and her role in the story’s development is crucial, even if contained. I do believe, however, that she deserved a lot more gameplay time.
Even though she is portrayed as an antagonist for a large portion of the game, she does temporarily join the party’s ranks, but her participation is so limited thatBeatrix never fights alongside Zidane inFF9. It would have been great if her participation in the game had been extended, giving us more time with her powerful abilities and more interactions with other characters.
If therumors aboutFinal Fantasy 9 Remakeprove to be true, I hope that Square Enix augments her presence as a playable character. The company has shown that it intends to improve character arcs in theFF7 Remakeseries, as exemplified by the Avalanche members, for example, andBeatrix is an obvious choice for some narrative tweaks if the remake ever happens.
4Minfilia Never Got What She Deserved In FFXIV
The critically acclaimed MMORPGFinal Fantasy 14is a great example of just how well-developed side characters can be. The Warrior of Light’s companions, like Alphinaud, Alisaie, Estinien, Y’shtola, and so many others, are what carry the game forward. Along with your main character,all these characters can be considered protagonists in their own right. However, Minfilia deserved a lot more.
The former leader of the Scions of the Seventh Dawn and later Word of the Mother is an extremely important character when it comes to how she connects the world to Hydaelyn.The development of her story arc is impressive and memorable, and it spans across hundreds of hours of gameplay, as Minfilia is present inA Realm Rebornand then continues to appear in other expansions.
The one issue I have with Minfilia Warde is that we never really get a grasp of just how strong she is, other than as an emissary for the Primal. Surely, Minfilia isn’t too well-suited for combat as Thancred or Urianger, but she is very powerful, and I always felt like she wasn’t adequately represented in this way throughout the campaign.
Minfilia does have a lot of screen time overall, but the problem is with how this screen time is presented. For most ofA Realm Reborn,Minfilia feels like a lowly quest giver, but not an active participant in the story. This is her duty as the head of the Scions, but I would’ve loved to see her take on more active roles, something that happens on a much smaller scale in otherexpansions forFinal Fantasy 14.
3Kimahri Pales In Comparison To Yuna’s Other Guardians In FFX
The Ronso Hardly Ever Speaks
There is a reason for Kimahri to rarely ever speak inFFX: he is ashamed of his broken horn, which is seen as disgraceful among the Ronsos. As such,the moments in which he actively participates in conversations in the game are extremely limited. Kimahri often offers words of advice when needed, but otherwise, he remains stoic.
This is a great personality trait for the character, as, even in silence, it gives him more depth and a backstory to be curious about. Despite this,Kimahri pales in comparison to the rest of Yuna’s guardians. Even the ever-stoic Auron, for example, speaks quite often, giving him a more active role within the party and the decisions that they make.
Meanwhile, Kimahri never really grows too much, which is a pity. It would have been much better if he had started off barely speaking.Then, gradually, he could feel more at ease and accepted by the party, continuously increasing his participation through dialogue. This would have been a great character arc that ties in with what the series is all about: adventures with friends.
Kimahri is a great character inBrandon Sanderson’s favoriteFinal Fantasygame, though he could have had a lot more active screen time, despite being with the party for the majority of the campaign’s duration.He does appear in the sequelFFX-2, but that is a game that fans like myself tend to ignore altogether.
2Freya Is One Of FF9’s Best Characters, But She Deserved More
The Burmecian Dragoon Is Worthy Of Her Own Game
My second-favorite character inFF9, Freya Crescent is also one of the best characters in the game from a narrative perspective. The Burmecian Dragoon joins the party after a few hours of gameplay, and her presence is one that sticks with you.Freya has what is arguably one of the saddest story arcs in the game, as she sees her kingdom destroyed.
Despite how emotionally scarred she is as she searches for Fratley and then by the sight of the destruction wrought upon both Burmecia and Cleyra, she is an extremely friendly character who has great interactions with her party members.Her dynamic and loyalty to Zidane are impressive and reflective of how honorable she is.
Her story arc is somewhat complete, as she does reunite with Fratley. Even though he has no memories of his past or their previous relationship, both Burmecians become a couple and discuss plans of rebuilding Burmecia. It’s a full circle, andthere isn’t anything missing from Freya’s story arc, but it left me wanting so much more– which could be addressed in a remake, despite myconcerns withFFIX Remake.
Freya spent five years searching for Fratley, and it would have been great to see more of that rather than have it portrayed as a tedious and somewhat hopeless expedition across Gaia.Freya is one of the coolest characters in the game, and it feels like she deserved more screen time, despite being in the party for the majority of the campaign.
1Lunafreya Is FFXV’s Most Underdeveloped Character
Luna’s Poor Narrative Arc Reflects The Game’s Development Issues
Lunafreya’s underdeveloped character story is a direct result of the messy development process that wasFinal Fantasy 15. I remember being stunned at how quickly the character was killed off in the campaign after hours of waiting to meet her.Lunafreya’s death is symbolic, but it doesn’t really have the impact it meant to.
Instead of being shocked at the event itself, I was shocked by how much of a poor narrative decision it was to kill her off. Lunafreya’s demise is supposed to change the course of the game and alter Noctis’ motivations altogether, butit just feels like a minor bump in the roadbecause we never really got to actually meet Lunafreya and create any sort of connection with her.
Lunafreya’s true story arc was heavily impacted by the issues that arose during the development ofFFXV. The game director changed, development was reinitiated, and the project was fast-forwarded in a way that compromised the quality of the story. Of course, Lunafreya wasn’t the only one affected, as characters like Aranea Highwind were tragically underdeveloped.
There were hopes for more content for Noctis’ betrothed viaEpisode Lunafreya, a DLC, but allexpansion packs afterEpisode Ardynwere canceled. It’s a pity, because Lunafreya’s lack of narrative development is one of the many factors that undercuts the potential ofFFXVas a remarkableFinal Fantasygame, despite it still being a good game overall.
