Four orphan boys, raised by the elder Topapa in the frontier village of Ur, set out into a cave that opened when a great earthquake sank the crystal underground. Nintendo's page sums up the story as four who receive powers from the crystals and, as Warriors of Light, save a world wrapped in darkness. final-fantasy-iii-history/story
ManualFinal Fantasy III instruction manual (Famicom, Japan) · opening story (scan page 03), last stanza — ours: the four boys were orphans, raised by Topapa, elder of the frontier village Ur; a great earthquake sank the crystal underground, and they came to the cave that formed there４人の少年達はみなしごで
辺境の村「ウル」の長老トパパに育てられた
大地震でクリスタルが地中に沈み
そこにできた洞窟へとやってきたVC ファイナルファンタジーIII (Wii Virtual Console product page) · game introduction, story paragraph — ours: the story unfolds of four who receive various powers from the crystals and, as Warriors of Light, save a world wrapped in darknessクリスタルからさまざまな力を授かった4人が、光の戦士として闇につつまれた世界を救う物語が繰り広げられます。Cited by: Final Fantasy III
Each of the four characters has a job, which decides whether they are good with a sword or can use magic. The jobs grow in number as the story goes on, and a character can change job at any time outside battle. final-fantasy-iii-history/jobs
PublisherVC ファイナルファンタジーIII (Wii Virtual Console product page) · game introduction, jobs paragraph — ours: each of the four protagonists has a job; depending on it, one is good at attacking with a sword or can use magic. The kinds of job increase as the story goes on, and there are many. Jobs can be changed at any time, so make a party you like4人の主人公にはそれぞれジョブ（職業）があり、ジョブによって剣での攻撃が得意だったり、魔法が使えたりします。物語が進むにつれてジョブの種類は増え、その数は豊富です。ジョブはいつでも変更できるので、自分好みのパーティを作ってみてください。Famicom Tsushin, vol. 5 no. 10-11 (11 and 25 May 1990): new-game cross review · p. 16, Final Fantasy III column, description — ours: in particular, jobs can be changed at any time except during battleなかでも職業に関しては、戦闘時間以外ならいつでも変更が可能になっている。Cited by: Final Fantasy III
Not every job is open from the start: each time the party meets one of the crystals around the world and receives its power, the number of jobs it can change to grows. final-fantasy-iii-history/job-crystals
ManualFinal Fantasy III instruction manual (Famicom, Japan) · p. 38, 初めからどんなジョブにもチェンジできるの？ — ours: each time you meet a crystal somewhere in the world and receive its power, the number of jobs you can change to increases世界のあちこちにあるクリスタルに出会い、その力を受けるたびにチェンジできるジョブの数が増えてゆくのです。Cited by: Final Fantasy III
A job change costs capacity, a value won in battle like money and experience. The cost depends on the current job and the new one, and without enough capacity the change can't be made. final-fantasy-iii-history/capacity
ManualFinal Fantasy III instruction manual (Famicom, Japan) · p. 37, キャパシティって何？ — ours: it is a value earned in battle, like money and experience. The capacity a change needs differs with the current job and the job changed to, and without the capacity needed you cannot change job戦闘によってお金や経験値と同様に獲得することが出来る値のことです。チェンジに必要なキャパシティは現在のジョブとチェンジするジョブの種類によって異なり、必要なだけのキャパシティがなければジョブチェンジする事は出来ません。Cited by: Final Fantasy III
The old job leaves nothing behind: a mage who becomes a warrior can no longer use any magic, and the stat values change according to level. final-fantasy-iii-history/clean-break
ManualFinal Fantasy III instruction manual (Famicom, Japan) · p. 37, チェンジした場合、前のジョブの影響は？ — ours: none at all. For example, if a mage changes to a warrior, magic becomes completely unusable, and the stat values also change according to levelまったくありません。例えば、魔道師から戦士にチェンジした場合、魔法はまったく使えなくなり、ステータスの値もレベルに応じて変化します。Cited by: Final Fantasy III
The manual suggests matching the party to the place: turning everyone into mages for an area of enemies only magic works on, or forming a party strong against sea enemies at sea. final-fantasy-iii-history/party-by-situation
ManualFinal Fantasy III instruction manual (Famicom, Japan) · p. 37, first paragraph — ours: for example, fighting in an area of enemies only magic works on with warrior-type characters is a disadvantage, so you can make everyone a mage type by job change, or at sea form a party of characters strong against sea enemies例えば魔法しか通用しない敵のエリアを、戦士系のキャラクターで戦うのは不利ですから、ジョブチェンジによって全員を魔道師系にしたり、海では海の敵に強いキャラクターでパーティを編成したりCited by: Final Fantasy III
Each job keeps a proficiency that grows with the time spent in it. A job with high proficiency costs less capacity to change to, and proficiency slightly raises attack effect and hit rate. final-fantasy-iii-history/proficiency
ManualFinal Fantasy III instruction manual (Famicom, Japan) · p. 38, 1つのジョブを長く続けてもメリットはないの？ — ours: each job has a value for the length of its experience, set as proficiency; changing to a job of high proficiency needs less capacity. High proficiency also raises attack effect and hit rate slightly1つ1つのジョブにはそれぞれその経験の長さを表す値が熟練度として設定されており、熟練度の高いジョブへのチェンジなら、必要なキャパシティ値も少なくなります。また、熟練度が高ければ、攻撃効果や命中率もわずかながら高くなります。Cited by: Final Fantasy III
Every adventurer starts as the Onion Swordsman (たまねぎ剣士), a half-grown youth unskilled with sword and magic who can use only the crude weapons and items found while exploring and hardly grows however much it levels. final-fantasy-iii-history/onion-swordsman
ManualFinal Fantasy III instruction manual (Famicom, Japan) · p. 42, たまねぎ剣士 — ours: the starting point of those who set out to adventure. But they are half-grown youths in everything, unskilled with sword and magic, able to use only the crude weapons and items found while exploring, and however much their level rises they hardly grow冒険を志す者の出発点です。でも、すべてに半人前の若者で、剣の腕も魔法の腕も未熟で、探検中に見つけた粗末な武器やアイテム程度しか使いこなすことが出来ず、いくらレベルを上げても、ほとんど成長しません。Cited by: Final Fantasy III
Four airships appear. Cid's, the first, flies at twice walking speed; the Enterprise, a ship that turns into an airship at the press of A, flies at four times walking speed but can't land on ground; the Nautilus flies at eight times walking speed. None of these crosses mountains; only the last, the Invincible, can. final-fantasy-iii-history/airships
ManualFinal Fantasy III instruction manual (Famicom, Japan) · p. 27, 飛空艇 — ours: this time four kinds of airship in all appear before you今回は全部で4種類の飛空艇が皆さんの前にお目見えします。Final Fantasy III instruction manual (Famicom, Japan) · p. 27, シドの飛空艇 — ours: it is the first airship you get最初にあなたが手にする飛空艇です。Final Fantasy III instruction manual (Famicom, Japan) · p. 27, シドの飛空艇 — ours: it flies at twice walking speed. It cannot cross mountains歩くスピードの2倍の速度で空を飛びます。山を越える事は出来ません。Final Fantasy III instruction manual (Famicom, Japan) · p. 27, エンタープライズ — ours: with the A button it changes from a ship into an airship and can fly at four times walking speed, but it cannot land on groundAボタンで船から変形して飛空艇となり、歩く速度の4倍で空を飛べるようになります。ただし陸地に着陸する事は出来ません。Final Fantasy III instruction manual (Famicom, Japan) · p. 27, エンタープライズ — ours: it cannot cross mountains (like Cid's airship)山を越える事はできません。Final Fantasy III instruction manual (Famicom, Japan) · p. 27, ノーチラス — ours: it flies at eight times walking speed歩く速度の8倍で空を飛びます。Final Fantasy III instruction manual (Famicom, Japan) · p. 27, ノーチラス — ours: (like the two above) it cannot cross mountains山は越えられません。Final Fantasy III instruction manual (Famicom, Japan) · p. 28, インビンシブル — ours: the last one you get is this Invincible. Only this ship can cross mountainsあなたが最後に手に入れるのが、この「インビンシブル」です。この船だけが山を越える能力を持つのです。Cited by: Final Fantasy III
Famicom Tsushin's four cross reviewers scored Final Fantasy III 9, 9, 10, and 8 out of 10, a total of 36 out of 40. final-fantasy-iii-history/famitsu-review
Value
{
"review": "Famicom Tsushin",
"of": 10,
"reviewers": [
9,
9,
10,
8
]
}p. 16, Final Fantasy III column, the four reviewer boxes — the scores printed large behind each reviewer's text, in the order 東府屋ファミ坊, 水野店長, 森下万里子, TACO・X; read from the page image9 9 10 8Cited by: Final Fantasy III
Square Enix's 2006 press release for the Nintendo DS remake says the 1990 game was "the first entry in the world-renowned franchise to sell over a million units". final-fantasy-iii-history/million-seller
PublisherTHE LEGEND UNVEILED: FINAL FANTASY III SHIPS TO RETAILERS · first paragraph — the release gives no figure, region, or date for the countFINAL FANTASY III was the first entry in the world-renowned franchise to sell over a million units.Cited by: Final Fantasy III
Square Enix's 2006 press release calls Final Fantasy III the title that introduced moogles, summons, and the job system to the series. Famitsu in 2020 called it the last new Final Fantasy for the Famicom and the foundation of the later series, adopting the job-change system and summoned monsters. final-fantasy-iii-history/introduced
PublisherTHE LEGEND UNVEILED: FINAL FANTASY III SHIPS TO RETAILERS · description paragraphthe title that introduced the popular moogles, summons, and the dynamic job system, which have become some of the most recognized elements of FINAL FANTASY『FF3』30周年で訊く、開発秘話ミニインタビュー。ジョブデザインや魔剣士、たまねぎ剣士の秘密も · article lead — ours: FFIII was the last new FF on the Famicom, and, adopting for the first time the job-change system and summoned beasts that became series staples, it laid the foundation of the later FF series; Famitsu's own lead, not the interviewees'『FFIII』は、ファミコン最後の『FF』新作で、シリーズでおなじみとなるジョブチェンジシステムや召喚獣を初めて採用するなど、以後の『FF』シリーズの礎となった作品だ。Cited by: Final Fantasy III, Final Fantasy V
The Japanese ROM's credits, as decoded in everything8215's listing, list Nasir for programming, K. Terada for the scenario, Y. Amano for graphics, N. Uematsu for music, H. Tanaka and K. Aoki for design, K. Yoshii and K. Higuchi for programming, K. Shibuya, H. Nakada, and K. Ishii for graphics, H. Sakaguchi as director, and M. Miyamoto as producer. final-fantasy-iii-history/credits
CodeFinal Fantasy III (NES) disassembly and ROM info · ff3j.asm#L1367-L13791F/A628: 02 07 "PROGRAM NASIR" 01
02 06 "SCENARIO K.TERADA" 01
02 07 "GRAPHIC Y.AMANO" 01
02 09 "MUSIC N.UEMATSU" 00
1F/A670: 02 08 "DESIGN H.TANAKA" 01
02 0F "K.AOKI" 00
1F/A68B: 02 07 "PROGRAM K.YOSHII" 01
02 0F "K.HIGUCHI" 00
1F/A6AA: 02 07 "GRAPHIC K.SHIBUYA" 01
02 0F "H.NAKADA" 01
02 0F "K.ISHII" 00
1F/A6D3: 02 06 "DIRECTOR H.SAKAGUCHI" 00
…Checked by claude-agent, 2026-10-23 — read the prologue text the listing decodes at 1F/A628-1F/A6EA, between the title and copyright lines and the opening narration; the bytes weren't independently verified, as no clean Japanese ROM was at hand to decode themCited by: Final Fantasy III
Famitsu describes Hiromichi Tanaka as the game's designer and Koichi Ishii as the designer of the job characters, and Dengeki Online calls Tanaka the maker of the Famicom version. Hironobu Sakaguchi, in Famitsu's words the creator of the series, asked Ishii to draw the job characters. final-fantasy-iii-history/roles
Interview『FF3』30周年で訊く、開発秘話ミニインタビュー。ジョブデザインや魔剣士、たまねぎ剣士の秘密も · article introduction — ours: Hiromichi Tanaka, who served as game designer on FFIII『FFIII』でゲームデザインを務めた田中弘道氏『FF3』30周年で訊く、開発秘話ミニインタビュー。ジョブデザインや魔剣士、たまねぎ剣士の秘密も · article introduction — ours: Koichi Ishii, who handled the design of the jobs and so onジョブなどのデザインを担当した石井浩一氏インタビュー『ファイナルファンタジーIII』 · article introduction — ours: Tanaka, who made the Famicom versionファミコン版を制作した田中氏『FF3』30周年で訊く、開発秘話ミニインタビュー。ジョブデザインや魔剣士、たまねぎ剣士の秘密も · section 改めて聞く『FFIII』開発秘話, Famitsu's bracketed note — ours: Sakaguchi (Hironobu Sakaguchi, the creator of the FF series)坂口さん（坂口博信氏。『FF』シリーズの生みの親）『FF3』30周年で訊く、開発秘話ミニインタビュー。ジョブデザインや魔剣士、たまねぎ剣士の秘密も · section 改めて聞く『FFIII』開発秘話, Ishii's answer — ours: one day Sakaguchi came to me and said, 'Won't you draw the job characters?'ある日、坂口さんが自分のところにきて、「ジョブのキャラクターを描いてくれないか」と。Cited by: Final Fantasy III
Tanaka said Nasir Gebelli programmed the game, and that when Gebelli's visa ran out partway through and he went home to the United States, the team took its equipment there and spent nearly the last two months of development in Sacramento. A Famitsu note credits Gebelli with the airship scenes and other processing unusual for the time. final-fantasy-iii-history/gebelli-sacramento
Interview『FF3』30周年で訊く、開発秘話ミニインタビュー。ジョブデザインや魔剣士、たまねぎ剣士の秘密も · section 改めて聞く『FFIII』開発秘話, Tanaka's answer — ours: the programmer was Nasir Gebelli (who did the programming for the airship scenes and other processing unusual for the time), but his visa ran out and he went back to America partway through development. So we decided to take the equipment to America and continue there. The bracket is Famitsu's note, in the style of its other bracketed notesプログラムを担当していたのはナーシャ・ジベリ（『FFIII』の飛空艇シーンなど、当時では異例の処理を行うプログラムを担当）でしたが、ビザが切れて開発途中でアメリカに帰っちゃったんです。それで、アメリカに機材を持ち込んで開発を続けることにしたんですが『FF3』30周年で訊く、開発秘話ミニインタビュー。ジョブデザインや魔剣士、たまねぎ剣士の秘密も · section 改めて聞く『FFIII』開発秘話, Tanaka's answer — ours: so we spent nearly the last two months of FFIII's development in Sacramento, making it in a condominium with the curtains shutそういうわけで、『FFIII』の開発最後の2ヵ月近くはサクラメントで過ごしていまして、コンドミニアムでカーテンを閉め切って作っていましたね。Cited by: Final Fantasy III
Asked whether the last dungeon took its length because a debugger said it lacked bite, Ishii said it did: Sakaguchi got worked up, said he would change it, and the save points went. Tanaka said the debugger was Toshiaki Suzuki, then a high-school part-timer who had called it too easy. final-fantasy-iii-history/last-dungeon
Interview『FF3』30周年で訊く、開発秘話ミニインタビュー。ジョブデザインや魔剣士、たまねぎ剣士の秘密も · section 改めて聞く『FFIII』開発秘話, Ishii's answer — ours: that's right. Sakaguchi got worked up and said 'Then I'll change it!', and the save points disappeared. Famitsu's question gives the debugger's remark that it had no biteそうです。坂口さん（坂口博信氏。『FF』シリーズの生みの親）がムキになっちゃって、「じゃあ変えてやるよ！」と言って、セーブポイントがなくなりました。『FF3』30周年で訊く、開発秘話ミニインタビュー。ジョブデザインや魔剣士、たまねぎ剣士の秘密も · section 改めて聞く『FFIII』開発秘話, Tanaka's answer — ours: that debugger was Toshiaki Suzuki, now a planner on the FFXIV team. Back then he was a cheeky high-school part-timer: 'This is easy' (laughs)そのデバッガーは鈴木敏章といって、いまはプランナーとして『FFXIV』チームにいるんですけどね。昔は高校生のバイトで生意気だったんですよ、「これじゃカンタンだ」って（笑）。Cited by: Final Fantasy III
Tanaka said the DS remake added 3D graphics, rebalanced jobs, and new characterization for the four heroes, and Square Enix credits Akihiko Yoshida with designing the four main characters and their job outfits. Tanaka told Dengeki Online the remake dropped the original's opening, in which all four start together, because so abrupt a start felt wrong. final-fantasy-iii-history/ds-changes
PublisherTHE LEGEND UNVEILED: FINAL FANTASY III SHIPS TO RETAILERS · statement by Hiromichi Tanakaincluding new graphics in 3D, rebalanced jobs, and brand-new characterization for the four young heroesTHE LEGEND UNVEILED: FINAL FANTASY III SHIPS TO RETAILERS · features listCharacter Designer Akihiko Yoshida, of the award-winning and critically acclaimed FINAL FANTASY XII, lends his talents by designing the four main characters and the outfits of their unique jobsインタビュー『ファイナルファンタジーIII』 · Tanaka's answer on the changed opening — ours: we dropped the opening in which all four start at once because, back then, a story that began so abruptly felt off. Dengeki's question notes that the DS opening has Luneth go alone序盤の4人同時スタートをやめたのは、当時、あまりにも唐突に始まる展開は違和感があったものですから。Cited by: Final Fantasy III
