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Final Fantasy (1987)
First released in Japan in 1987, Final Fantasy was known for its detailed (!) and colorful 8-bit sprite graphics--even after its release in North America three years later. -
Final Fantasy IV (1991)
The first Final Fantasy game to see release on the Super Famicom, FFIV used a similar style of sprite graphics to the first three games of the series (which graphically were largely differentiated from each other by the presence or absence of backgrounds during random battles). Final Fantasy IV featured higher color counts and sprite fidelity, as well as making use of the SNES's unique hardware to employ NES impossibilities such as transparent fog and scaling backdrops during airship travel. -
Final Fantasy VII (1997)
Released for the PlayStation in 1997, Final Fantasy VII was the first in the series to feature 3-D, polygon-based graphics (though cheats such as pre-rendered backgrounds and full motion video prevailed for all the PlayStation games in the series). While primitive, textureless, and squat, the rendered characters were remarkable for their time, and Square would continue to refine the FFVII formula with its next two entries in the series. -
Final Fantasy X (2001)
Released a mere year into the PlayStation 2's lifespan, Final Fantasy X was another leap in graphical prowess for the series. Aside from much-improved modelling, textures, and resolution, it is the first Final Fantasy game to have fully 3D environments (as opposed to pre-rendered backgrounds as in VII, VIII, and IX), as well as motion-captured acting in cutscenes, many of which were rendered in real time.
