Summary
Final Fantasyisa series that has become renowned for its villains. Still, though the games may be drastically different with each entry, one thing is guaranteed: plenty of villainous monologues will be spoken throughout the story. Most of theFinal Fantasyvillains love nothing more than preaching to the party about their ideology and reasons for their actions, but this has also led to some incredible quotes that have ended up becoming iconic.
Whether it be a creepy bit of dialogue or something more thought-provoking, a huge part of the appeal of villains is their way with words, andFinal Fantasyantagonists are certainly no slouch in this area. These are some of the most iconic quotes that have ever been uttered by aFinal Fantasyvillain, and what exactly they mean in relation to the context of the game and its characters.
Though Kefka does eventually become a much bigger threat tothe main partyfrom the halfway point ofFinal Fantasy 6onwards, he doesn’t seem all that menacing at first. In fact, the first time players see him, he’s wandering towards Figaro Castle with two Imperial guards, but stops in his tracks to give them a simple demand; to clean the sand off his boots. It’s a clever way to depict Kefka as some sort of seemingly uninteresting and weak character, only to then completely subvert expectations later on once his nihilism begins to take hold of him.
This provides a subtle glimpse at the kind of twisted personality that Kefka has become known for, but also how much authority he holds over his peers, despite being such a buffoon. Kefka has had an incredible number of memorable quotes, but this one especially stands out for how much it says about the speaker.
Ultimecia is often considered to be one of the best-written villains in all ofFinal Fantasy. Rather than taking over the world with a gigantic army of loyal servants, Ultimecia’s grand plan is to compress time and space itself so that she becomes a literal god, and though it sounds outlandish, she actually comes pretty close to pulling it off.
One particularly revealing quote that sounds completely different from everything else Ultimecia says throughout the game is one where she begins to expose her underlying fear of time itself. It’s almost as if she’s trying to warnSquall, and even the player to a certain extent, about the power and inevitability of time, and how it ultimately controls everything, no matter how much power a single mortal possesses.
It can always be a spine-chilling moment when a video game villain calls out the player for their actions, but one of the earliest examples of this comes fromFinal Fantasy 2’s Emperor. After all, the entire game involves players running through waves of soldiers and monsters to try and reach him, but it also exposes just how devious he is as a leader.
The Emperor is known for being ridiculously cocky, and will gladly go against his word to outsmart his opponents whenever he gets the opportunity. He’s very much a coward, yet he still has the gall to say this to the player, which is a clever way to show just how manipulative he is.
The world ofFinal Fantasy 10is hounded byan enormous unstoppable monster called Sinwhich attacks civilization every few years, causing mass devastation. The pilgrimage Tidus and Yuna go on is to prevent this from happening, at least for a while, but one person who goes against the mold and thinks about things a little differently is Seymour.
Seymour believes that, rather than living in constant fear, it would be better if everyone was outright killed, and as a result, the very idea of hope just doesn’t exist in his mind. There’s a constant sense of dread that carries along the journey ofFinal Fantasy 10which picks up towards the end, so when Seymour says this, it’s truly impactful and gets the player thinking about whether Sin can be stopped once and for all.
Final Fantasy games are renowned for their long and compelling stories, but when it comes to the first game, it’s clear Square was still finding its footing with the series. As a result,Final Fantasy’s story barely even exists, and the main villain, Garland, doesn’t get many scenes to prove his worth as a big and scary antagonist.
There is one scene near the beginning where he gets to make an impression right off the bat, and that’s when he clearly states “I, Garland, Will Knock You Down” to the party as they begin to approachthe princess. It’s a silly phrase, but also one that makes this legendary fallen knight seem pretty endearing rather than intimidating. It might not have been the intent, but it helped to make Garland a little more memorable in a game that is fairly light on character development.
In stark contrast to Zidane, Kuja is a villain who has no feelings of hope within his heart and is very much presented as being a personification of nihilism. As a result, he has a bleak outlook on life, and though he’s usually clever with his words, now and again, he exposes just how little he truly cares about those around him.
Thankfully though, he does eventually come to grow as a character after accepting his mortality, and gradually starts to grow out of this mindset. With that being said, this quote is by far the most vivid glimpse into Kuja’s mind, which perfectly encapsulates how he feels, and how dangerous he really is.
It doesn’t matter how close to death Sephiroth is, he will always manage to find a way back through his inseparable bond with Gaia, which is made crystal clear through this chilling quote. Sephiroth may be an immensely powerful being, but he’s also someone who has seeped into Cloud’s memories, and who he can never seem to escape from.
This particular quote is said at the end ofFinal Fantasy 7: Advent Children, and it’s a simple yet powerful way to remind Cloud no matter how much he tries to run, he will always be forced to face his personal demon head-on. This quote has also become even more relevant to Sephiroth’s character given his antics in the latestFinal Fantasy Remakegames.
