After the surprise success of the first Final Fantasy in 1987, Hironobu Sakaguchi and his team immediately set out to work on a sequel which would be completely disconnected from the original. But what informed the creative direction of Final Fantasy II? What games were making waves in Japan in 1988? And how much of Final Fantasy II's overall design was influenced by Akitoshi Kawazu?

In this installment of the Final Fantasy retrospective, we'll be exploring the development of Final Fantasy II, including its earliest design documents and story plans, how and why the narrative direction was changed, and the need to move development to Sacramento, California in the latter months. We'll also be discussing at length the game's obtuse progression system, fans' distaste for it, the reputation it has cultivated for the game, and how later versions have changed it for the better.

Twitter:   / lorddrubie  
Patreon:   / andrewbluett  

Chapters:
00:00 - Intro
03:51 - Part I - Back From the Brink
08:03 - Part II - Everything Changes
15:38 - Part III - Final Fantasy II
17:44 - Presentation
20:27 - Structure Analysis
25:44 - Combat & Progression: Nurture Over Nature
42:34 - Difficulty Factors
51:45 - War, Death, Hope, & Betrayal
1:04:22 - Characters
1:16:27 - Climax
1:21:35 - Personal Thoughts
1:24:03 - Part IV - 33 Years of Refinement
1:38:46 - Part V - Reception & Legacy
1:45:25 - Epilogue & To Be Continued...

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