Four warriors set out to save a world that the Emperor of Palamecia is bringing under his rule; Nintendo of America's press release calls them a band of orphans who lead a resistance against an evil empire. final-fantasy-ii-history/story
PublisherVC ファイナルファンタジーII (Wii Virtual Console product page) · first paragraph — ours: to save a world being brought under the rule of the Emperor of Palamecia, four warriors, the protagonists, set out on an adventureパラメキア皇帝によって支配されつつある世界を救うべく、主人公である4人の戦士が冒険へと旅立ちます。Nintendo Ships Final Fantasy I & II: Dawn of Souls (press release) · press release, on Final Fantasy IIIn "FINAL FANTASY II," a band of orphans leads a resistance force to free the world from the clutches of an evil empire.Cited by: Final Fantasy II
Famitsu's 2023 retrospective sums up the story as Firion, who lost his home to the Palamecian Empire's invasion, joining the rebel army to challenge the Emperor. It calls the opening, in which the party is wiped out by enemies at once, novel, and recalls the companions lost one after another as the story goes on. final-fantasy-ii-history/story-famitsu
Web『FF2』が発売35周年。河津秋敏氏による前衛的なシステムが特徴。全滅から始まる衝撃のオープニングも忘れられない【今日は何の日？】 · paragraph beginning ストーリーは — ours: Firion, who lost his homeland to the invasion of the Palamecian Empire, joins the rebel army and challenges the Emperorパラメキア帝国の侵略で故郷を失ったフリオニールが反乱軍に参加し、皇帝に戦いを挑むというもの『FF2』が発売35周年。河津秋敏氏による前衛的なシステムが特徴。全滅から始まる衝撃のオープニングも忘れられない【今日は何の日？】 · paragraph beginning ストーリーは — ours: the staging in which the party is beaten by enemies and wiped out right at the start was novel冒頭でいきなり敵にやられて全滅するという演出が斬新でしたし『FF2』が発売35周年。河津秋敏氏による前衛的なシステムが特徴。全滅から始まる衝撃のオープニングも忘れられない【今日は何の日？】 · paragraph beginning ストーリーは — ours: the companions sacrificed one after another were painful tooつぎつぎと犠牲になる仲間たちにも心を痛めましたCited by: Final Fantasy II
Final Fantasy II has no character classes, experience points, or levels. The abilities a character uses are the ones that grow: each weapon type and spell has its own skill level, which rises the more it is used, and its power with it. final-fantasy-ii-history/no-levels
ManualFinal Fantasy II (Famicom, Japan) instruction manual · p. 38, 成長, first paragraph — ours: there is no idea of occupations or experience values; the manual sets this against earlier RPGs職業や経験値といった考え方はありませんFinal Fantasy II (Famicom, Japan) instruction manual · p. 38, 成長, second paragraph — ours: basically, the growth systems are built on the idea that the abilities you use grow基本的には、使った能力が成長するという考え方で、それぞれの成長のシステムが作られています。Final Fantasy II (Famicom, Japan) instruction manual · p. 38, 成長, second paragraph — ours: the more you use a weapon or spell, the more its skill level rises, and with it the power it shows武器や魔法を使えば使うほどそれぞれの熟練度が上がり、それに従い絶大な威力を発揮する様になっていますVC ファイナルファンタジーII (Wii Virtual Console product page) · growth section — ours: this game has no idea of experience values or levelsこのゲームには経験値やレベルといった考えかたはありません。The manual's Japanese quotes are read from its page image (leaf n37); the pinned OCR text has the same lines with OCR errors.
Cited by: Final Fantasy II
A character's stats change with what they do in battle, not with the number of battles: fighting with a weapon raises Strength, and casting spells raises Intelligence or Spirit. final-fantasy-ii-history/growth-by-action
ManualFinal Fantasy II (Famicom, Japan) instruction manual · p. 38, 成長, third paragraph — ours: each value changes with how you fight and what happens in each battle; the sentence opens by saying the stats don't simply rise by repeating battles戦い方や1つ1つの戦闘の内容によって、それぞれの数値が変化していく様になっていますVC ファイナルファンタジーII (Wii Virtual Console product page) · growth section — ours: the Fight action, attacking with a weapon, raises the parameter Strength, and Magic, attacking with spells, raises Intelligence or Spirit武器で攻撃する「たたかう」という行動では、「ちから」というパラメータが上がり、魔法で攻撃する「まほう」では、「ちせい」や「せいしん」が上がるCited by: Final Fantasy II
When a conversation turns up an important word, a chime sounds and the word is bracketed; the player can memorize it, and later ask other characters about any memorized word. final-fantasy-ii-history/word-memory
ManualFinal Fantasy II (Famicom, Japan) instruction manual · p. 8, 情報収集, ★おぼえる — ours: when a conversation has an important word, a chime sounds and the word is shown in 【 】 brackets; the page goes on to the Memorize command会話の中に重要な単語があるとチャイムが鳴り、単語は【 】でくくって表示されます。Final Fantasy II (Famicom, Japan) instruction manual · p. 9, 情報収集, ★たずねる — ours: choosing the Ask command opens the word window, which lists the memorized words to ask aboutコマンドウインドで“たずねる”コマンドを選ぶと、ワードウインドが開きPp. 8–9 are missing from the pinned OCR text; the quotes are read from page images n7 and n8.
Cited by: Final Fantasy II
Square's Famicom Tsushin advertisements, one before release and one after, sold the game on a growth system without experience points, in which weapons and spells grow stronger with use, and on WMS, a new conversation system built on memorized words. The pre-release one called the growth system a landmark that would transform the Famicom RPG. final-fantasy-ii-history/advertised
MagazineBiweekly Famicom Tsūshin, no. 61 (1988-11-11): Final Fantasy II advertisement · advertisement, scan leaf n100 — ours: it gives weapons and magic a growth element, so the more you use them the stronger they become武器、魔法に成長要素を持たせ、使い込むほどその威力が増してゆくというものBiweekly Famicom Tsūshin, no. 61 (1988-11-11): Final Fantasy II advertisement · advertisement, scan leaf n100 — ours: a landmark system that transforms the Famicom RPG, where having a strong weapon used to be enoughただ強い武器を持てばよかった従来のファミコンR・P・Gを革新する画期的なシステムといえるだろうBiweekly Famicom Tsūshin, issues 65-66 (1989-01-06) · p. 53, Square advertisement — ours: a growth system without experience values経験値のない成長システムBiweekly Famicom Tsūshin, issues 65-66 (1989-01-06) · p. 53, Square advertisement — ours: a new conversation system that lets you gather information with words you have learned覚えた単語の情報収集ができる新・会話システムBiweekly Famicom Tsūshin, no. 61 (1988-11-11): Final Fantasy II advertisement · advertisement, scan leaf n100 — ours: WMS, a new conversation system that changed information gathering情報収集を変えた新・対話システム“WMS”The issue-61 advertisement (dated 11 November 1988) counts down to release; the issue-65/66 one (6 January 1989) asks whether the reader has already set out.
Cited by: Final Fantasy II
The end credits name Hironobu Sakaguchi as director and Masafumi Miyamoto as producer; Hiromichi Tanaka, Akitoshi Kawazu, and Kouichi Ishii for game design; Kenji Terada for the scenario; Yoshitaka Amano for character design; Nasir Gebelli first among the programmers; and Nobuo Uematsu for music. final-fantasy-ii-history/credits
CodeFinal Fantasy II (NES) disassembly and ROM info · ff2j.asm#L25565-L25633; "PROGRAM\n NASIR GEBELLI"
0E/BE24: 10 12 0F 07 12 01 0D FF 18 0E 01 13 09 12 18 07
0E/BE34: 05 02 05 0C 0C 09 00
…
0E/BE3B: 13 03 05 0E 01 12 09 0F FF 18 0B 05 0E 0A 09 18
0E/BE4B: 14 05 12 01 04 01 00
…
0E/BE52: 03 08 01 12 01 03 14 05 12 18 04 05 13 09 07 0E
0E/BE62: FF 18 19 0F 13 08 09 14 01 0B 01 18 01 0D 01 0E
0E/BE72: 0F 00
…
0E/BE74: 07 01 0D 05 18 04 05 13 09 07 0E FF 18 08 09 12
…Final Fantasy II (Famicom, Japan) instruction manual · p. 48, Project Staff — the manual's staff page names Amano, Terada as scenario writer, and Gebelli as programmerCHARACTER DESIGN : YOSHITAKA AMANOBiweekly Famicom Tsūshin, issues 65-66 (1989-01-06): Final Fantasy II advertisement · advertisement p. 53, staff line — the advertisement's staff line names Amano, Terada, Gebelli, and UematsuMUSIC: NOBUO UEMATSUChecked by claude, 2026-10-25 — decoded each credit's bytes at L25565-L25633 by script (01–1A for A–Z, 18 a space, FF a line break, 00 the end); every name and role decodes as stated, and the listing's comments agree but for DIRECTERThe credits also name programmers Naoki Okabe and Katsuhisa Higuchi, graphics by Kazuko Shibuya and Ryoko Tanaka, sound design by Masanori Hoshino, and two program assistants. The director's title is spelled DIRECTER in the bytes (04 09 12 05 03 14 05 12); the listing's comment corrects it.
Cited by: Final Fantasy II, Final Fantasy III
Fan transcriptions of Famicom Tsushin's cross review give Final Fantasy II scores of 9, 9, 9, and 8 out of 10 from its four reviewers, a total of 35 out of 40. final-fantasy-ii-history/famitsu-review
Value
{
"review": "Famicom Tsushin",
"of": 10,
"reviewers": [
9,
9,
9,
8
]
}row 234, FC ファイナルファンタジーII — the row also gives Square and 1988/12/1735 ( 9/ 9/ 9/ 8)ファイナルファンタジーII ファミ通クロスレビュー · the four review boxes — the page gives 東府屋ファミ坊, 水野店長, and 森下万里子 9 eachTACO.X ８点Both sources are fan compilations, and the original issue and date are unconfirmed: the fan transcription cites Weekly Famicom Tsushin no. 224 (2 April 1993), long after release, likely a reprint or a miscitation, and the GEIMIN list gives no issue.
Cited by: Final Fantasy II
Famicom Tsushin's '89 All Software Catalog called the scenario a continuous saga that stresses character, "narrow and deep", and the growth by skill level novel; it placed the game twelfth in its overall Top 50 of sales since the magazine's first issue. final-fantasy-ii-history/catalog-1989
MagazineFamicom Tsushin '89 All Software Catalog, p.78 (Total Top 50), reader's photograph · p. 75, entry 377 — ours: the scenario is a continuing epic, 'narrow and deep', that values character; the growth system by skill level was novelシナリオは、"狭く深く"キャラクター性を重視した連続大河ドラマ。熟練度による成長システムは斬新だった。Famicom Tsushin '89 All Software Catalog, p.78 (Total Top 50), reader's photograph · p. 78, 総合TOP50, rank 12 — the page totals the magazine's own sales charts from its first issue to 1989 no. 14; ranks only, no unitsファイナルファンタジーIIRead from a reader's photograph of the spread (the pinned copy); the photo carries no book title, which comes from the poster.
Square Enix counted 1.28 million copies of Final Fantasy II shipped by 31 March 2003 across its NES, PlayStation, and other versions, 1.08 million of them in Japan and 0.2 million abroad. final-fantasy-ii-history/shipments-2003
PublisherTitles of game software with worldwide shipments exceeding 1 million copies (as of 31 March 2003) · p. 27, table of titles shipping over 1 million — the FINAL FANTASY II row, in thousands of units under Japan, Abroad, and Total, as of 31 March 2003NES/PS/Other 1,080 200 1,280Cited by: Final Fantasy II
