Fight, Magic, Items: The History of Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, and the Rise of Japanese RPGs in the West
- Downloads：7062
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2022-09-10 09:21:37
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Aidan Moher
- ISBN：0762479639
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
Take a journey through the history of Japanese role-playing games—from the creators who built it， the games that defined it， and the stories that transformed pop culture and continue to capture the imaginations of millions of fans to this day。
The Japanese roleplaying game （JRPG） genre is one that is known for bold， unforgettable characters; rich stories， and some of the most iconic and beloved games in the industry。 Inspired by early western RPGs and introducing technology and artistic styles that pushed the boundaries of what video games could be， this genre is responsible for creating some of the most complex， bold， and beloved games in history—and it has the fanbase to prove it。 In Fight， Magic， Items， Aidan Moher guides readers through the fascinating history of JRPGs， exploring the technical challenges， distinct narrative and artistic visions， and creative rivalries that fueled the creation of countless iconic games and their quest to become the best， not only in Japan， but in North America， too。
Moher starts with the origin stories of two classic Nintendo titles， Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest， and immerses readers in the world of JRPGs， following the interconnected history from through the lens of their creators and their stories full of hope， risk， and pixels， from the tiny teams and almost impossible schedules that built the foundations of the Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest franchises; Reiko Kodama pushing the narrative and genre boundaries with Phantasy Star; the unexpected team up between Horii and Sakaguchi to create Chrono Trigger; or the unique mashup of classic Disney with Final Fantasy coolness in Kingdom Hearts。 Filled with firsthand interviews and behind-the-scenes looks into the development， reception， and influence of JRPGs， Fight， Magic， Items captures the evolution of the genre and why it continues to grab us， decades after those first iconic pixelated games released。
The Japanese roleplaying game （JRPG） genre is one that is known for bold， unforgettable characters; rich stories， and some of the most iconic and beloved games in the industry。 Inspired by early western RPGs and introducing technology and artistic styles that pushed the boundaries of what video games could be， this genre is responsible for creating some of the most complex， bold， and beloved games in history—and it has the fanbase to prove it。 In Fight， Magic， Items， Aidan Moher guides readers through the fascinating history of JRPGs， exploring the technical challenges， distinct narrative and artistic visions， and creative rivalries that fueled the creation of countless iconic games and their quest to become the best， not only in Japan， but in North America， too。
Moher starts with the origin stories of two classic Nintendo titles， Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest， and immerses readers in the world of JRPGs， following the interconnected history from through the lens of their creators and their stories full of hope， risk， and pixels， from the tiny teams and almost impossible schedules that built the foundations of the Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest franchises; Reiko Kodama pushing the narrative and genre boundaries with Phantasy Star; the unexpected team up between Horii and Sakaguchi to create Chrono Trigger; or the unique mashup of classic Disney with Final Fantasy coolness in Kingdom Hearts。 Filled with firsthand interviews and behind-the-scenes looks into the development， reception， and influence of JRPGs， Fight， Magic， Items captures the evolution of the genre and why it continues to grab us， decades after those first iconic pixelated games released。
Reviews
Beth Cato
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I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley。Japanese RPGs saved my life。 They made my life what it is today。 Aidan Moher approaches the games with much the same passion and emotion， and his intimate analysis of the history and very experience of Japanese-influenced role-playing games make this book an incredible read。 He delves with the full progression of the industry from D&D to Wizardry to the rise of Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy for Nintendo， and continues from there right I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley。Japanese RPGs saved my life。 They made my life what it is today。 Aidan Moher approaches the games with much the same passion and emotion， and his intimate analysis of the history and very experience of Japanese-influenced role-playing games make this book an incredible read。 He delves with the full progression of the industry from D&D to Wizardry to the rise of Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy for Nintendo， and continues from there right up to the present day with a look at MMORGs and the rising indie programming scene。 The amount of research involved is obvious and extensive， but the book never feels stodgy or academic。 On the contrary， I felt like I was geeking out with a friend--and I kept feeling the compulsion to share trivia with my own best friend， my husband， when he was nearby。 "Hey， did you know that。。。" He fully appreciated the data points。 We've been married over twenty years and as a bride I walked down the aisle to the Final Fantasy theme。 We are very much the audience for this book。This book is a fond nostalgia trip and a must-read for JRPG lovers whether they've been playing for forty years or five months。 。。。more
Katheryn Haskell
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This was an extremely informative book， and I enjoyed it tremendously。 It covers from the very beginning of JRPGs straight through this 2020。 While it doesn't hit EVERY game （obviously， that'd be a long book） I believe it does well in explaining Final Fantasy， Dragon Quest and the genre generally。 While I knew a lot of the information going into this， I still learned some thing and had a good time reading。 Now， if you're not a JRPG or at least a gamer person， I'd probably pass。 It's very technic This was an extremely informative book， and I enjoyed it tremendously。 It covers from the very beginning of JRPGs straight through this 2020。 While it doesn't hit EVERY game （obviously， that'd be a long book） I believe it does well in explaining Final Fantasy， Dragon Quest and the genre generally。 While I knew a lot of the information going into this， I still learned some thing and had a good time reading。 Now， if you're not a JRPG or at least a gamer person， I'd probably pass。 It's very technical， and probably not particularly enjoyable if you have no stake in it。 It sometimes feels like an essay， so if you're already bored of the subject， I can imagine it would be boring that way as well。 However if you like games， this is definitely a fun read， I already recommended it to me FFXIV Free Company。 I really enjoy that when the book mentions a game that it isn't focused on， it gives the game its own little segment and tells the synopsis and such for it， which is really cool if you're interested in picking up new titles。 My biggest issue was formatting。 I have a Netgalley version that I got for free， so this may be different in the released ebook version， but the footnotes were all over the place and mildly distracting， as were those information points for not talked about games。 I've seen how this usually looks in physical books， and I'd definitely recommend getting a physical copy over an ebook version。 Great read， regardless！ I would be interested in reading more things like this！ 。。。more
Max
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Moher has a high understanding of JRPGs and their history。 Through his writing it’s obviously how much joy he has had playing RPGs throughout his life and how much they mean to him。 His enthusiasm made me dig out my own classic consoles and boot up some of the games he talks about in the book。 It was a real pleasure reading his thoughts on some of the greatest games of all-time。 If you have any interest in Final Fantasy， classic games， or how the video game industry works you owe it to yourself Moher has a high understanding of JRPGs and their history。 Through his writing it’s obviously how much joy he has had playing RPGs throughout his life and how much they mean to him。 His enthusiasm made me dig out my own classic consoles and boot up some of the games he talks about in the book。 It was a real pleasure reading his thoughts on some of the greatest games of all-time。 If you have any interest in Final Fantasy， classic games， or how the video game industry works you owe it to yourself to pick up his novel。 。。。more
Dan
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This book is my life in an alternative history。 This is my life where my friends spent time with JRPGs instead of beat 'em ups and sports games。 This is my life where I didn't spend most of my early 20s replaying Bioware games because of how much I enjoyed them （and due to a serious lack of funds）。 This is my life if I didn't spend most waking hours working in my early 30s。 This book talks about the kind of experiences that I've tried to recapture despite never having most of them originally。 It This book is my life in an alternative history。 This is my life where my friends spent time with JRPGs instead of beat 'em ups and sports games。 This is my life where I didn't spend most of my early 20s replaying Bioware games because of how much I enjoyed them （and due to a serious lack of funds）。 This is my life if I didn't spend most waking hours working in my early 30s。 This book talks about the kind of experiences that I've tried to recapture despite never having most of them originally。 It succeeds at capturing that nostalgia and allowing the reader to experience it along with the author。I love reading nonfiction and specifically love history books。 This is a history book filled with vignettes and anecdotes about different games， creators， and periods of video game history。 It is also the history of a genre and the history of a medium that has adopted so many of the ideas that originate with or iterated upon by JRPGs。 This book both informs and makes me nostalgic for things I mostly never experienced。 It's a combination that makes for a great read and provides a roadmap for experiencing some of the great JRPGs that deserve to be replayed or experienced for the first time。 。。。more
（a）lyss（a）
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I received a copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review。 This book is around 3。5 stars for me。 I can see it being interesting to those who are really into RPGs， but it is at times a very technical and academic read。 This book covers the history of RPGs and JRPGs and how they are so popular today。 The book follows the careers of prominent game creators and RPG artists and game designers。 The book is full of interviews， anecdotes， and has informational blurbs about variou I received a copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review。 This book is around 3。5 stars for me。 I can see it being interesting to those who are really into RPGs， but it is at times a very technical and academic read。 This book covers the history of RPGs and JRPGs and how they are so popular today。 The book follows the careers of prominent game creators and RPG artists and game designers。 The book is full of interviews， anecdotes， and has informational blurbs about various games throughout the chapters。 Overall an informative read。 。。。more
Sarah
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**Many thanks to Running Press and Netgalley for an Advanced Reader's Copy （ARC） of this book**I grew up with JRPGs when I was a kid， and still love them today。 When I saw this title on Netgalley， it went on the top of my reading list。 And， it did not disappoint。I never knew the history of JRPGs， so I was pleasantly surprised to learn all the ins and outs of Dragon Quest， Final Fantasy， and other properties of Square Enix， as well as a few from other makers I had never heard of。 Because of this **Many thanks to Running Press and Netgalley for an Advanced Reader's Copy （ARC） of this book**I grew up with JRPGs when I was a kid， and still love them today。 When I saw this title on Netgalley， it went on the top of my reading list。 And， it did not disappoint。I never knew the history of JRPGs， so I was pleasantly surprised to learn all the ins and outs of Dragon Quest， Final Fantasy， and other properties of Square Enix， as well as a few from other makers I had never heard of。 Because of this book， I bought and downloaded RPG Maker MV for my Switch， and I have a deeper understanding of the work it takes to make an RPG。。。 let alone a good one （or a decent one！）。 This book is such a fun read， and worth the time for any gamer。 It is very well researched; I can tell the author loves these games as much as I do！ But， many might need to take breaks between readings though， because the information is （appropriately） dense to unpack。All in all， I enjoyed this book a lot！****One note that I will not fault the writer for: the format of the ARC I received， and possibly any digital copies。 This book is best enjoyed in print form。 Digitally， some sections of footnotes and "game-dropping" boxes （like name-dropping， only with the author's favorite titles that are pertinent to the information he discusses at the time） were confusingly out of order。 Sometimes， I had to flip ahead several screens in order to read the footnotes， or the boxes of information popped up in the middle of paragraphs。 It took me a bit to discover why that was: for the footnotes， the book was following the natural progression of printed book pages， and how page breaks would work， where the footnotes would be at the end of the page。 Not sure about the game info boxes。 。。。more
Daniel Dockery
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