TheFinal Fantasyfranchise’s cover art has evolved significantly over the last 35 years. The series' beginnings feature ultra-simplistic covers for games likeFinal Fantasy 2, and evolved to the stunning hand-drawn works that characterize games likeFinal Fantasy 6,and has grown into the more recent covers that rely on rendered 3D graphics likeFinal Fantasy 15.TheFinal Fantasyfranchise has pretty much tried it all when it comes to cover art.
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Since basicallyevery main series Final Fantasy gameboasts at least one alternate cover (for different release regions) and the franchise itself has a plethora of different spin-off titles, there are close to 100 different covers to choose from when deciding on the bestFinal Fantasycovers. These games, though, have some of the best designs.
5Final Fantasy 7
It’s easy to applaud the cover ofFinal Fantasy 7after playing the game, but even when the game was first released, beforeCloud Strifewas a household name, this cover was still special. The visual of Cloud looking up at the Shinra building is a stunning image, but the design choices here are intriguing on their own. To offset the eye-popping white background with Mako-inspired turquoise accents makes for a cover that is hard to ignore.
It’s probably cheating a bit to include artwork inside the case, but the depiction of Sephiroth walking through a wall of flames located on the right inlay completes the package. It is visually a perfect contrast— Sephiroth’s image is mostly black and red, whereas the front cover is mostly white and blue-green. Not only is it beautiful, but it also left fans immediately intrigued as to who thismysterious Sephiroth characterwas.
4Final Fantasy 6
Though it was released on the SNES asFinal Fantasy 3, the Super Famicom version, released asFinal Fantasy 6, got a much better cover. The Super Famicom release laid out the steampunk, dystopian aesthetic that informs the game, and let fans know immediately that this was going to be an entirely different experience from previousFinal Fantasytitles.
The cover itself consists ofFinal Fantasy 6’s Terra Branfordpiloting Magitek armor as she looks out over the city of Vector. The drawing bears all the characteristics that madeFinal Fantasyartist, Yoshitaka Amano, so beloved by fans: a whimsical yet intense style inspired by Japanese woodblock prints.
3Final Fantasy 11 Ultimate Edition
There may be more covers forFinal Fantasy 11than there are atoms in the universe. The initial release, each expansion, and multiple collected editions each have at least one cover, and there are also covers for different regions and their respective expansion variants.Final Fantasy 11has more covers than any otherFinal Fantasytitle.
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The best is Japan’s cover forFinal Fantasy 11 Vana’diel Collection 2which bundled the initial game and the four expansions that were available at the time, but a close second goes to the cover of the more recent collection, known asFinal Fantasy 11 Seekers Edition, which adds in the fifth expansion,Seekers of Adoulin. WhileFinal Fantasy 11’s time has come and gone, there are a handful of features that could beadded toFinal Fantasy 14from the original MMORPG.
2Final Fantasy 10
This title has an ostensibly terrible cover, showing just a shot of Tidus standing, fully clothed, in the water. Still, the cover forFinal Fantasy 10is oddly effective. Not only does it have an absolutely beautiful color scheme, but it showed off the massive step-up in graphics betweenFinal Fantasy 9andFinal Fantasy 10.
For what it’s worth, though, if Square Enix had opted to use the front page of the game’s manual as the cover rather than the actual cover,Final Fantasy 10wouldn’t be such a polarizing choice for this list. The cover of the manual does the same job of highlighting the game’s graphical improvements over its predecessors, but it sports a more powerful, emotional image ofTidus and Yuna, one of the most beloved pairings inFinal Fantasy.
1Final Fantasy 14: A Realm Reborn
Very few games have had a comeback likeFinal Fantasy 14. After rebooting in 2013 after a failed launch,Final Fantasy 14has slowly risen to become one of the most popular MMORPGs on the market today. As it continues to bolster its story withexpansions like Endwalker, the game shows no signs of slowing down. During its initial reboot,Final Fantasy 14came out with a pair of iconic covers that are up there with any in theFinal Fantasyfranchise.
The Collector’s Edition tookFinal Fantasy 14back to the franchise’s roots by plastering a Yoshitaka Amano cover on the box that is up there with his earliest work. It was breathtaking, immediately recognizable, and everything that fans could have wanted. The cover for the game itself was equally epic, displaying a massive party engaging in battle with Diamond Weapon. It signaled a renewed interest inFinal Fantasy 14and helped assure fans that the new iteration would be a game that was true to theFinal Fantasyfranchise.
