Final Fantasy V is a favorite among Final Fantasy 16 developers

Finally, the Localization Director, Michael-Christopher Koji Fox, had a valid but macabre reason for his particular liking of Final Fantasy V. According to him, Final Fantasy V was "the first one that really blew me away", pointing out the fact that "a main character dies" midway through the game.

The concept of finality and death had been relatively unexplored in gaming at that point, which is probably why FFV stuck out to Koji Fox and many other gamers.

One of Yoshida's favorites was Final Fantasy VII for its content, which he says "was almost unbelievable at the time", saying that it made you feel "the incredible power of Square's developers at the time."

Ironically, other more well-known titles, like the aforementioned Final Fantasy 9, weren't mentioned at all.

In case you're wondering why most people have little clue about Final Fantasy V, it's simple: the launch version never came out in the West.

Final Fantasy V came out in Japan in 1992 and Final Fantasy VI came out two years later. Unfortunately, localization of the former took too long because Square was also working on Secret of Mana simultaneously. Unfortunately, by the time that Square had finished its development on Secret of Mana, Final Fantasy VI was also already out in Japan. But, the official word is that FFV was deemed too difficult for gamers in the West. Because of this, Square chose to go with FFVI instead, which was released as Final Fantasy III in North America because only two other Final Fantasy games had made it outside of Japan at that point: Final Fantasy I and Final Fantasy IV.

It wasn't until 1999 that Final Fantasy V finally came stateside as part of the Final Fantasy Collection alongside Final Fantasy IV and Final Fantasy VI.

Criminally underrated doesn't even begin to describe Final Fantasy V as it hasn't been as re-released and ported as much as other entries. Its predecessors have been ported more often (too often, in fact), and Final Fantasy 6 is one of the most beloved JRPG titles of its era, right alongside the likes of Chrono Trigger.

Despite the lack of familiarity among casual audiences, hardcore fans are well aware that FFV left an indelible impact on the franchise. After FFIV introduced gamers to protagonists that were actual characters with completely separate character arcs, FFV solidified the franchise's job system, which has since been used by future entries and even several other non-Square Enix titles like Bravely Default and Octopath Traveller.

Who knows? Now that Square Enix is in the mood to do remakes and remasters (Final Fantasy 9, Final Fantasy X, and Final Fantasy Tactics are reportedly atop the list), Final Fantasy V might finally get the credit it deserves.

For now, fans can look forward to playing Final Fantasy 16, which will carry trace elements of Final Fantasy V. The game will come out on June 22 but the well-received demo is already out. Unfortunately, spoilers are all over the internet, so beware. FF16's review embargo lifts sometime next week ahead of its release.