While not the very first JRPG ever made, Square Enix's Final Fantasy helped put the genre on the map and has helped shape the future of gaming for over 30 years. Despite the 15 mainline titles and countless spin-offs spanning all genres, there's one area the series has only explored once, and that's the dark, dingy streets of mature content, more fittingly the ESRB's "M for Mature" rating classification. Now, it appears after almost 35 years, Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin will be the second Final Fantasy game ever to receive an M rating.
Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin was first revealed at Square Enix's digital E3 2021 event, where the game was annouunced to be a collaboration between the giant Japanese publisher and developer Team Ninja, which is part of Koei Tecmo Games. The game is in ways a crossover between Team Ninja's successful Souls-like series Nioh and elements of the very first Final Fantasy game, originally released for the NES back in 1987. The game is a Souls-like set in the world of the original Final Fantasy, following three very angry men as they attempt to defeat the forces of "Chaos."
The game was met with mixed reception back in June where it was revealed with a unflatteringly edited trailer, with fans instantly mocking its over-use of the word "chaos." Later, Square Enix would release two demos for the game, both of which were met with more positive reception, with fans praising Team Ninja's blending of Nioh's combat with the Final Fantasy universe's magic systems. Despite this, the game's dialogue and storytelling have continued to fall victim to many ridiculing "Chaos" memes for their edge, and now it appears Square Enix is going all out with the heavy handed writing as it has been revealed that Final Fantasy Origin will receive a full M rating.
The ESRB's website details the content in Stranger of Paradise, claiming that "cutscenes depict additional acts of violence and blood/gore: civilians killed by soldiers; dead soldiers lying in large pools of blood; a character impaled through the chest; bloody limbs on the ground. Some female creatures appear topless, though with no discernible details (i.e., no nipples). The word “f**k” is heard in the game."
So get used to hearing the characters swear a lot and seeing enough violence and nudity to make an 80s heavy metal album cover blush, as it seems the tone of Stranger of Paradise will be something akin to Ninja Theory's DmC: Devil May Cry in terms of content. It's worth mentioning that the only Final Fantasy game to ever receive an M rating before this is Final Fantasy Type-0 HD, which received the rating for some sexual content and a lot of bloody violence, which that game is in no way shy to.
Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin will release on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S on March 18, 2022.
