Final Fantasy is a fantasy role-playing video game developed and published by Square in 1987. It is the first game in Square's Final Fantasy series, created by Hironobu Sakaguchi, the story follows four youths called the Light Warriors, who each carry one of their world's four elemental orbs which have been darkened by the four Elemental Fiends. Together, they quest to defeat these evil forces, restore light to the orbs, and save their world. The elemental powers of this world are determined by the state of four crystals, each governing one of the four classical elements: earth, fire, water, and wind. The world of Final Fantasy is inhabited by numerous races, including humans, elves, dwarves, mermaids, dragons, and robots. Most non-human races have only one town in the game, although individuals are sometimes found in human towns or other areas as well. Four hundred years prior to the start of the game, the Lefeinish people, who used the Power of Wind to craft airships and a giant space station, watched their country decline as the Wind crystal went dark. Two hundred years later, violent storms sank a massive shrine that served as the center of an ocean-based civilization, and the Water crystal went dark. The Earth crystal and the Fire crystal followed, plaguing the earth with raging wildfires, and devastating the agricultural town of Melmond as the plains and vegetation decayed. Some time later, the sage Lukahn tells of a prophecy that four Light Warriors will come to save the world in a time of darkness. Final Fantasy was originally conceived under the working title Fighting Fantasy, but trademark issues and dire circumstances surrounding Square as well as Sakaguchi himself prompted the name to be changed. Hironobu Sakaguchi had intended to make a role-playing game for a long time, but his employer Square refused to give him permission as it expected low sales of such a product. However, when Dragon Quest was released and proved to be a hit in Japan, the company reconsidered its stance on the genre and approved Sakaguchi's vision of an RPG inspired by Ultima and Wizardry. Only three of his colleagues volunteered to join this project headed by him because he was thought of as a "rough boss" in spite of his unsuccessful creations. Eventually, Final Fantasy was developed by a team of seven core staff members within Square referred to as the A-Team. Download Final Fantasy For NES
