FF7 secret: Why RPG characters only have 4 jobs
The world of Final Fantasy is constantly evolving, and in the latest installment, Final Fantasy 7 Revelation, that evolution is most visible in how the party members fight. Character development in this game goes beyond simple visual updates, introducing a deep, strategic layer through a new job system called FITS.
This system allows each character to equip four distinct classes, significantly altering their combat capabilities and offering snazzy new outfits. We are already seeing creative combinations, such as Cloud taking on the role of a Warrior or Tifa donning the mantle of a Black Mage, adding immediate depth to player choices.
Director Naoki Hamaguchi, who oversees the project, reflected on this design process, noting how much game development has changed in recent years. He found that creating complex systems like job mechanics is far more demanding than in previous eras of the franchise.
Hamaguchi pointed out that while classic Final Fantasy games offered robust job systems—allowing players to mix-and-match party members with over twenty different roles, as seen in titles like Final Fantasy 5—implementing such complexity in a standalone game is an immense challenge. He explained that achieving hundreds of jobs is simply “insanely difficult” unless the title is an ongoing experience constantly adding new content, which is the case for long-running MMORPGs like Final Fantasy 14.
Despite the limitations of only four FITS, Hamaguchi was clear about the system’s success. He emphasized that these defined roles added a substantial amount of strategic breadth for players to engage with, ultimately resulting in a really good addition to the overall battle system. Even with fewer options, managing the complexity across a large cast of characters required considerable effort and brought exciting new tactical possibilities to the forefront.
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