Monday marks 30 years since Final Fantasy IV debuted in Japan! The game means a lot to many players out there, and it’s a good time to reminisce about it. Who’s your favorite character? Who’s the coolest? Hey, who has the best pixel art? However you think about what makes the best Final Fantasy IV character, let us know your picks! These are ours.
I would have to say Rydia is the best Final Fantasy IV character. Or, at the very least, she’s one who goes through some of the most changes and growth. We meet her when she’s a child. Because of Cecil’s, and by extension our, actions, her world is torn apart. She’s left terrified and mourning.
Then, before she has a chance to adapt to her new normal, the game shakes up her entire life again. She’s thrust into a whole new set of circumstances, the likes of which normal people couldn’t imagine. But, as a result, she comes out of it all one of the strongest, most sympathetic, and best characters in the game. — Jenni
I don’t exactly have any good reason for this, but I just love Fusoya from Final Fantasy IV. The Lunarian is an interesting character who relays a lot of neat plot elements and background secrets, but he’s most interesting to see in combat. The man is a magical juggernaut, capable of all of the most powerful spells in the game. With limited MP, he’s kind of like revisiting Tellah, except he can cast Meteo without dying. Which means I get to fling Meteo around at whatever enemy I choose. Well, for the short time he’s around.
Also, the man is 95% beard, which makes for this really great pixel design. Especially if he falls in combat, where he basically collapses into this sea of flowing beard. I just love his design, and that he lets me use a spell the game had gone out of its way to show was the most powerful magic in the universe. “Oh, that spell kills people to use? Yeah, I use it casually.” Fusoya is a magic beast. — Joel
As much as JRPGs are about telling a specific story with carefully-defined characters, I’m still a big fan of customization. And that was rarer in the early days! Given that, my favorite Final Fantasy IV character is Namingway.
Namingway’s presence in FF4, and Final Fantasy in general, represents the idea of reinvention. You can rename your characters! You can fundamentally change who you are! It’s never too late. And it also isn’t too late for Namingway, who picks up some new lifestyles himself in later entries.
Also that little fella is adorable. — Graham
What do you think is the best Final Fantasy IV character? Let us know in the comments or on Twitter! And read our other handy roundtables for more thoughts from the Siliconera team.
