Final Fantasy – Mystic Quest, released as Mystic Quest Legend in PAL regions and as Final Fantasy USA: Mystic Quest^[a] in Japan, is a role-playing video game for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. The game was released as a spin-off to Square‘s Final Fantasy series of video games. Final Fantasy Mystic Quest was first released in North America in 1992 and marketed as a “simplified role-playing game… designed for the entry-level player”^[2] in an attempt to broaden the genre’s appeal.^[3] The game’s presentation and battle system is broadly similar to that of the main series, but it differs in its inclusion of action-adventure game elements. Final Fantasy Mystic Quest was the first Final Fantasy game to be released in Europe.

In the game, the player controls a youth named Benjamin in his quest to save the world. His goal is to reclaim a set of stolen crystals that determine the state of the world’s four elemental powers. The gameplay takes a departure from the main series in a variety of ways. Many series staples are eliminated, such as random battles, save points, manual equipment, and the party system. Final Fantasy – Mystic Quest

The game received middling reviews and sales in North America and Japan, citing its simplified gameplay and lack of depth in the game’s story. Over time, the game has kept the reputation for being a “beginner’s Final Fantasy” and has been praised for its music. Final Fantasy – Mystic Quest

Gameplay – Final Fantasy – Mystic Quest

Exploration – Final Fantasy – Mystic Quest

Like previous games in the series, Final Fantasy Mystic Quest is presented in a top-down perspective, with players directly navigating the main character around the world to interact with objects and people. The game features a unique way of traveling the world map. Final Fantasy – Mystic Quest

Unlike past Final Fantasy games, players cannot freely roam the world map. Instead, they travel along set paths from one “icon” (pictorial image on the world map) to the next. Some routes are blocked off (restriction is indicated by a gray arrow), but become accessible when the player succeeds in a specific task, such as completing a dungeon. Once its path is open, the player can enter an icon; the game’s plot and action takes place within these icons, which include towns, dungeons, and battlefields.^[4] 

The game is characterized by featuring action-adventure game elements; besides jumping, players can use weapons outside of battle, which play an active role in exploration. Players can chop down trees with an axe, detonate bombs to open sealed doorways, or use a grappling hook to clear wide gaps.^[5]

 The game has more puzzles than earlier Final Fantasy games. In the Falls Basin, for example, players must move pillars of ice across the ground level in such a fashion that they can be used as platforms to jump across on the second level. Mystic Quest does away with save points; players can save their progress at any time during exploration.