50 Vehicles from the Final Fantasy Franchise
Celebrating The Art & Design of Amazing Airships!
This Final Fantasy compendium celebrates the art and design of amazing airships and vehicles in this gaming universe, which is now more than three decades old.
Starting as the last project of the young Hironobu Sakaguchi, who was hoping to end his career in video games on a high note, the first Final Fantasy game’s title was meant to reflect the finality of his masterpiece just as he was about to bow out. Square, which is now Square Enix Holdings, an internationally recognized powerhouse of gaming, was struggling to sell their RPGs and nearing bankruptcy in the late 1980s.
Final Fantasy Vehicles infographic50 Vehicles From the Final Fantasy Franchise
Two Decades of Iconic Video Game Artistry
| Vehicle and Game |
|---|
| Phantom Train, Final Fantasy VI |
| Hardy-Daytona, Final Fantasy VII |
| SeeD Personal Carrier Vehicle, Final Fantasy VIII |
| Galbadia Armored Personnel Carrier, Final Fantasy VIII |
| Galbadia Soldier Motorcycle, Final Fantasy VIII |
| Doomtrain, Final Fantasy VIII |
| Timber train, Final Fantasy VIII |
| Air Cab, Final Fantasy IX |
| Quatro, Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within |
| Remnants of Sephiroth motorcycle, Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children |
| Fenrir, Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children |
| Purge train, Final Fantasy XIII |
| Regalia, Final Fantasy XV |
| Vehicle and Game |
|---|
| Sky Warriors Airship, Final Fantasy |
| Cid’s Airship, Final Fantasy II |
| Dreadnought, Final Fantasy II |
| Invincible, Final Fantasy III |
| Falcon, Final Fantasy IV |
| Lunar Whale, Final Fantasy IV |
| Blackjack, Final Fantasy VI |
| Highwind, Final Fantasy VII |
| Tiny Bronco, Final Fantasy VII |
| Balamb Garden, Final Fantasy VIII |
| Galbadia Garden, Final Fantasy VIII |
| Ragnorak, Final Fantasy VIII |
| Hilda Garde I, Final Fantasy IX |
| Invincible, Final Fantasy IX |
| Prima Vista, Final Fantasy IX |
| Fahrenheit, Final Fantasy X |
| Celsius, Final Fantasy X-2 |
| Shera, Final Fantasy: Advent Children |
| Dragonfly GL, Dirge of Cerberus: Final Fantasy VII |
| Strahl, Final Fantasy XII |
| Galbana, Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings |
| Lindblum, Final Fantasy XIII |
| Enterprise, Final Fantasy XIV |
| Vehicle and Game |
|---|
| Canoe, Final Fantasy |
| Magitek Armor Transport Ship, Final Fantasy VI |
| Cargo Ship, Final Fantasy VII |
| Junon Underwater Reactor submarine, Final Fantasy VII |
| SeeD Assault Boat, Final Fantasy VIII |
| Alexandria Ferry, Final Fantasy IX |
| Blue Narciss, Final Fantasy IX |
| Brahne’s Fleet ship, Final Fantasy IX |
| Altissa Gondola, Final Fantasy XV |
| Vehicle and Game |
|---|
| Chocobo, First appearance Final Fantasy II |
| Gargant, Final Fantasy IX |
| Shoopuf, Final Fantasy X and X-2 |
| Cetus, Final Fantasy: The 4 Heroes of Light |
| Coeurl, Final Fantasy XIV |
That’s why the title includes the word ‘final’; but for me, the title ‘Final Fantasy’ reflects my emotional state at the time and the feeling that time had stopped,” Sakaguchi said in the Beyond Final Fantasy DVD extra feature.
But Fainaru Fantaji was a polished work that pulled him and the company out of the financial crisis. It was responsible for dispelling the myth that American kids didn’t like or want RPGs. It’s more than 90 sequels have led to a huge creative universe, with every aspect of the series from the soundtracks to the airships setting the bar for artistic integrity in gaming. Even though Sakaguchi resigned in 2004 to start his own studio, which would later create the perhaps ironically named game for Nintendo The Last Story, the franchise has continued to spread into more consoles and, indeed, more genres, such as MMOs. It’s even resulted in films and TV mini-series.
Fans will debate on which game is the best, and even which Final Fantasy airship or vehicle is the coolest. Is it the Final Fantasy X airship, the Fahrenheit? Is it the Final Fantasy VI phantom train? Or perhaps it’s the Hardy-Daytona owned by the classic character Cloud Strife? Motorcycle options are often ridden by both heroes and villains, but trains and airships are often the best way to get about. They often function as a safe haven for the players between missions. On the other hand, the airship of the game is a massive super-weapon that needs to be taken down, as with the Dreadnought.
The very important gaming franchise has had a lot of love and creativity poured in, in almost every element, including the design of Final Fantasy airships and vehicles. These complicated, beautiful ships and trains tend to help it make it feel like it’s truly a game worthy of the series.
It’s an important aspect, because the thread between the series seems to be purely aesthetic; gameplay, themes, and environmental feel are what pulls the series together, rather than recurring characters (like Link in The Legend of Zelda), recurring settings (as in Halo), or recurring goals (as in Pokémon). There are occasionally recurrent names and plots, but each game is independent. Indeed, most fans believe that the whole of the Final Fantasy series does not, in fact, take place in the same universe. If anything, it’s a closely knit multiverse, as plot elements in the series sometimes affect the whole universe.
These Final Fantasy ship names help paint the picture of the true diversity of the franchise. No matter where or when you are traversing, you’ll likely be doing it with a unique artistic style that’s not quite steampunk and not quite cyberpunk.
Use this collection to explore the breadth of the beauty of the Final Fantasy vehicles, which has gripped players’ imaginations no matter where they go, while they’re taking down Sin or just chocobo racing.
