During a special talk show (via Genki_JPN) featuring Nobuo Uematsu, the legendary composer behind the Final Fantasy series, new insights were shared about the franchise’s early history. Uematsu recounted little-known behind-the-scenes stories from the original Final Fantasy that highlight the challenges faced by the small team at Square in the 1980s.
One particularly striking detail concerned a serious game-breaking bug in the first Final Fantasy. According to Uematsu, the cartridges for the Famicom release had already been produced when the issue was discovered. To avoid disaster, Square employees had to create a warning slip that advised players not to perform a certain action that would crash the game. An astonishing 500,000 copies of the game had to be packaged with this slip, and the entire staff, from programmers to artists, joined in the process of inserting them by hand. Among those helping were Uematsu himself, pixel artist Kazuko Shibuya, and programmer Ken Narita.
Uematsu also shared a more personal story of how he came to join Square. He recalled meeting a mysterious individual who told him, “Next week your life will change.” Shortly after, he happened to bump into Hironobu Sakaguchi in Hiyoshi town. Sakaguchi expressed his ambition to transform Square into a proper company and invited Uematsu to come aboard. Without even submitting a resume, Uematsu accepted, calling the chance meeting his true interview. The first projects he worked on did not sell well, but Sakaguchi’s proposal for an RPG—Final Fantasy—ultimately reshaped the company’s future and cemented both of their legacies in gaming history.
Since its debut in 1987, Final Fantasy has grown into one of the most influential video game franchises of all time, selling over 200 million copies worldwide. The series is recognized not only for its role in popularizing role-playing games globally but also for its cutting-edge visuals and iconic music, much of which was composed by Uematsu himself. His recent recollections provide a rare glimpse into the humble yet pivotal beginnings of the franchise.
