[Tristam]

That seems to be the legend behind the making of Final Fantasy, but I wonder how much of this is BS. Previously Square had released Tobidase Daisakusen (known in the US as 3-D WorldRunner) which, according to Sakaguchi, sold about 500,000 copies (I don't know if this is worldwide or just in Japan, but either way it ain't a bad number). Of course, Acclaim would've received some of the profits for publishing it in the US. Then they released Highway Star, which sold 410,000 copies in Japan, 1,150,000 copies in the US, and 400,000 copies in Europe for a total of 1.96 million copies sold. Of course, Nintendo published it in the US as Rad Racer, so they would've sucked up some of the profit, and Mattel distributed it in Europe.

Then we have Final Fantasy, which sold 520,000 copies in Japan, and only 260,000 copies here in the US. So how did these sales "breathe life into a dying company" (a frequently used quote) when Rad Racer failed to do so? And between 3-D WorldRunner and Rad Racer, I can't see Square as a "dying company." It's possible that Rad Racer was just one of those games that sold over a gradual period of time whereas Final Fantasy was an instant hit, but that's all guesswork.

What do you guys say?

[Ichiban Crush]

There were also games they released before and during that flopped like a big ol' donkeydick. But I'm not a Square expert so don't ask me.

[TheRedEye]

500,000 is INSANE, especially for back then.

[Tristam]

Ichiban Crush: Yeah, I'd think that King's Knight sucked enough to fail commercially. As for their really early Japanese PC game releases, I can't say how that all went (e.g., The Death Trap, Will, Alpha, Cruise Chaser Blassty); the game sales couldn't have been that bad, I assume, since Square declared independence from their parent company in 1986.

TheRedEye: I was just comparing that number to Rad Racer's sales, which nearly quadrupled it.

EDIT: For the record, I'm working on completely revamping the Wikipedia article for Square (check out the sorry state of the article and you can see why). Among other things, I'm going to rigorously cite any claims made - this includes statements like "...and so Final Fantasy saved Square from bankruptcy..." At the same time, I want the article to be easily accessible to non-experts.

As a fan of Final Fantasy and Square, I'm trying to remind myself not to be "Final Fantasy-centric" or "Square-centric" when writing this, and to treat Square like any other third-party video game developer - this would entail the inclusion of criticisms of Square. Speaking of which, I'm glad that I read through the board discussion over the FF4/Seiken Densetsu article, since I'd almost forgotten the debate over "what is an RPG?" At any rate, the article will definitely include some mention of Final Fantasy falling under the "conventional" definition of RPGs (basically, a console RPG). While we're on that abandoned SD game for the FDS, I actually found two screenshots on the Web for this game on a Japanese web site:

http://www.ne.jp/asahi/oroti/famicom/mab02.html

Scroll down a bit to see them along with the ad. There's always the possibility that they're doctored, but they look pretty convincing to me. I've never seen screenshots for the game, and those make it look like the project might've been further than that chick that worked for Square let on (although it's been pointed out that screenshots can be very misleading in this respect).

[ClamIAm]

[handofg0d]

I will agree with ClamIAm on this one. In fact in a recent interview in an issue of Nintendo Power, with sound designer (or something like that) on Twilight Princess, he named Deep Purple as a major influence.

[obijethro]

Yes it did

The owner of Square was flat broke but had enoughf money for one more game to be his "Final Fantasy." Thats were the name comes from. You can read a lot about it and all the other FF games here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Final_fantasy

[Smeg]

Wow what a wonderful resource this "Wikipedia" is! What an astounding find! Kudos to you, smart guy!

(PS this game still blows)

[ClamIAm]

Hey guys did you know you can fold a $20 bill to show a picture of the TWIN TOWERS?!?!

OMG CONSPIRACY!

[Wonderbutt]

If FF for the NES was so huge and credited with "saving Square", then why was'nt FF 2 & 3 released here in the US?
Maybe Square was waiting to see what the SNES was going to do in the US first?
I don't think the game was a life saver, more like a Certs.

[Mack_the_Hairbrush]

Becasue Final Fantasy didn't sell very well in the US.

[Smeg]

and sentence fragments are

[Wonderbutt]

sentence fragments sell well 'round these parts honey chile

[TheRedEye]

ohhh honey chile what story would you like mammy to tell you tonight?

[Wonderbutt]

Hmmmm Tell me the story about the buttery kid who hoarded Color Dreams carts.

[Optimus Christ]