Memes / Final Fantasy

"The bard really was spoony! We checked!"

Final Fantasy. You know, that teeth-crunchingly popular series that everyone who actually plays video games has, at the absolute least, heard of? If it's that popular, with the release of each game, you know that it'll spawn memes.

When adding to this page, please write the meme, then add the explanation of the meme inside a labelnote titled "Explanation." Not everyone knows where a particular meme came from or how it's used, even if it's potholed.

Final Fantasy XIV has its own page.

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Final Fantasy I

• "I, Garland, will knock you all down!" ^ExplanationGarland's line to the heroes early in the game before getting completely thrashed, a shining example of what happens when Never Say "Die" and Good Bad Translation love each other very much. Like other such lines in the series, this one is kept in most of the later releases/retranslations of the game. It even made it into Dissidia (the reboot, that is) as an actual line of Garland's in-game and is also referenced with his Lv. 10 title in the same game, He Who Knocks Down.
• "Welcome to Corneria!" ^ExplanationIn a typical NES RPG, an NPC would say the same thing over and over, and one guy would always tell you where you were. Incidentally, this line isn't actually in the game, but comes from FFI spoof webcomic 8-Bit Theater.
  • "I like swords."^ExplanationOne of Fighter's Catch Phrases from the above-mentioned webcomic. It's notably associated with the above meme due to Fighter conversing with the guards who keep saying it.

Final Fantasy II

• Rebel curs!^ExplanationIn Fynn, one of the game's early towns, there are enemy Captains prowling the area. Talking to them prompts them to exclaim "Rebel curs!" and triggers a battle that will likely destroy the player's entire party if this enemy is engaged at the first possible chance. It's easily one of the most iconic parts of the already Nintendo Hard game's first act.
• "UBOAAAAAAAAAA" or "UNGAAAAAHHHH" ^ExplanationThe Emperor's death cry, the former being the Japanese transliteration and the latter being the English translation. It's a very popular meme in Japan, to the extent that it's the name of the Emperor's fan club. As with several FF memes, these became his death cries in Dissidia.
• I don't like being teased... ^ExplanationFrom the scene where the impostor Princess Hilda attempts to seduce Firion, which became a Mythology Gag in both PSP Dissidia games.
• Guy speak beaver. ^ExplanationGuy, the simple Gentle Giant of the hero group, can speak to animals, including beavers, as he was raised in the wild. At one point, Firion and the gang come across a colony of beavers living in a cave while searching for the Goddess's Bell, and Guy says this very line when they interact with the head beaver. This also happens to be the one point in the game where Guy is relevant. Fans latched onto this as a small-scale meme.

Final Fantasy IV

• "You spoony bard!" ^ExplanationThe infamous Woolseyism when Tellah chews Edward out after Edward's Love Interest Anna (who happens to be Tellah's daughter) dies. Referenced in Final Fantasy X, Final Fantasy XII, the PSP port of Final Fantasy Tactics, and Dissidia Duodecim; it's even why Noah Antwiler of The Spoony Experiment uses "The Spoony One" as his internet alter ego. Occasionally also seen as "You Spoony [Other Noun]." Sadly, the trope here has been renamed Quirky Bard.
• From the Japanese fandom: Iidesutomo! ^ExplanationGolbez's line when Fusoya urges him to "give his power to Meteor," translated in English as something like "Fine then" or "Very well." How big is this meme in Japan? In both the Japanese and English versions of Dissidia Final Fantasy, it's possible to get Golbez to say this very line by performing the inputs in his EX Burst at very specific frames, upon which his Shadow Dragon will speak Fusoya's line and Golbez will reply in kind. It's also an unlockable secret voice once you get Golbez to Level 100.
• What the hell is swoon? ^ExplanationThe original English SNES translation had "swoon" stand in for "KO", possibly a means for the game to comply to Nintendo's censorship policies.

Final Fantasy V

• "Enough expository banter! Now, we fight like men! And ladies! And ladies who dress like men! For Gilgamesh... IT IS MORPHING TIME!" ^ExplanationOne of GILGAMESH's very famous quotes.
• GILGAMESH! ^ExplanationThe fandom's view of GILGAMESH as a Memetic Badass crystallized in their need to spell out his name in ALL CAPS (emulating the warrior's very hammy ways) whenever mentioning him on forums. Sometimes doubles as an Interrupting Meme.
• TURTLE! ^ExplanationShouted by Exdeath when Ghido interferes with him. This didn't really become widespread until Dissidia came out, in which Exdeath says it again (in completely unrelated context), and as with everything else he said, his statement going memetic was just una-void-able.
• The laws of the universe mean nothing! ^ExplanationThe text accompanying Neo Exdeath's Grand Cross. Often thought to be said by Neo Exdeath himself, it's actually a descriptor of the attack's effect on the player's party — reality itself is twisting and breaking down all around them, hence the party being bombarded by numerous status effects simultaneously. The Japanese fandom was quick to latch on to this as a reaction to anything absurd or downright silly, followed by Dissidia bringing the line back as the name of Exdeath's EX Burst.
• Piano FLEX! ^ExplanationThere is a subquest involving playing all of the pianos in order to earn an extremely powerful Bardsong; every time a unique piano is played, your character's piano playing skills level up and the character poses heroically in the most Mundane Made Awesome manner possible.
• "Mwa-hahahaha... I turned myself into a tiny splinter, waiting for just this moment!" ^ExplanationSaid by Exdeath in the same conversation as "Turtle" above, when he revealed that after his apparent defeat by the heroes hands he actually did Exactly What It Says on the Tin and hid himself in Krile. While there is some Fridge Logic behind it, considering that he is actualy a tree, the sheer ridiculousness of the event and the fact that Exdeath is bragging about his awesome power of turning himself into a literal thorn in your side made it unforgettable by fans. This moment was so memorable that Exdeath did it again in Dissidia Final Fantasy: Opera Omnia, this time with Vivi.
  • "He turned himself into a splinter! Funniest shit I've ever seen." ^ExplanationThis meme is often combined with Pickle Rick one.
• Lenna is a poison addict.^ExplanationLenna is poisoned three times over the course of the story, and two of those times was of her own volition. The third incident is preceded by her leitmotif starting to play, as though the game is saying "here she goes again!"

Final Fantasy VI

• MOTHERFUCKER SUPLEXED A TRAIN! ^ExplanationFrom The Spoony Experiment referring to Sabin of Final Fantasy VI, who thanks to a Good Bad Bug can indeed use his Suplex move on the Phantom Train, raising Sabin to Memetic Badass levels. It became an Ascended Meme in VII, where Tifa's Meteodrive Limit Break can suplex anything.
  • Sabin suplexes himself. ^ExplanationIf you do the command for Suplex before he gets confused or if he randomly chooses to do so and he is the only living party member... This happens.
• SON OF A SUBMARINER! ^ExplanationA Woolseyism of Kefka's reaction when Edgar orders Figaro Castle to dive into the sand.
• This is sickening! You sound like chapters from a self-help booklet! ^ExplanationKefka before the final battle, mocking the speech that the cast has been doing.
• Don't tease the octopus, kids! ^ExplanationOne of Ultros' memetically memorable lines, often used out of context to refer to naughty tentacles.
• On a certain Imageboard, it became common to post a picture of Ultros (who's known for his weird lines) along with an Incredibly Lame Pun where the punchline is always spoiler marked.
• HATE HATE HATE HATE HATE HATE HATE HATE HATE HATE HATE HATE HATE HATE ^ExplanationKefka pitching an epic temper tantrum when Celes stabs him.
• I'm a general, not some opera floozy! ^ExplanationLocke's idea to capture Setzer at the opera is to have Celes, who looks like the opera star Maria, take her place in the show. Celes is not impressed with this plan, as the quote shows.
• Locke is not a thief, he is a TREASURE HUNTER! ^ExplanationBased on Locke's insistence on his profession. Expect to be corrected anytime you refer to him as a thief.
• Everybody wants Gau! ^ExplanationGau is the only character who has the Charm ability, which will make an enemy attack its allies until one of them dies or Gau casts Charm on somebody else. It works on all enemies.
• I thought it was about a clown...^ExplanationA popular joke made by fans of the game to troll other fans of the game regarding Kefka's jester-like attire.
• Ahem... there's SAND on my boots! ^ExplanationKefka does not enjoy being in the desert.
• One from the Japanese fandom: Shinjirarenai!!! ^ExplanationAt two points in the game, Kefka exclaims "シンジラレナーイ！！！", translated as "I don't believe this!" in the English script. For whatever reason, this caught on in the Japanese fandom in a similar way to Golbez's "いいですとも！"

Final Fantasy VII and Compilation of Final Fantasy VII

• Attack while it's tail's up! It's gonna counterattack with its laser.^ExplanationFrom the game's first boss fight. Due to a combination of poor translation and this line having to be split into one line after another, many players went ahead and indeed attacked while the boss's tail was up, not seeing the second line warning about the counterattack. Or they see both lines and assume it'll fire the laser if they don't attack. Either way, cue laser counterattack after hitting the boss, followed by massive damage and quite possibly a Game Over.
• Aerith dies. ^ExplanationThe most famous (and, at the time, spoileriffic) permanent character death in the game. Occasionally combines with the "Dumbledore dies" meme and someone else chimes in with "You son of a bitch!"
  • Aerith: Too Broken To Live^ExplanationGameplay-wise, Aerith is quite infamous for being a Game-Breaker incarnate, with her absurdly overpowered Limit Breaks, and being the best magic user in the game to go with it. The common joke is that Sephiroth kills her because he finds her way too overpowered.
• This guy are sick. ^ExplanationFrom a bit of the Good Bad Translation of Final Fantasy VII (Or Bad Bad Translation, depending on point of view). Has become a Shibboleth among Final Fantasy fans to separate the fans who played the games because of the Bishounen characters from the rest of its fandom.
• THERE AIN'T NO GETTIN OFFA THIS TRAIN WE ON! ^ExplanationBarret, channeling Mr. T in the opening mission.
• SEPHIROTH KILLED HARRY POTTER!!!◊ ^ExplanationA cosplay image of Sephiroth stabbing Harry Potter in the same way he stabbed Aerith.
• SUPERNOVA! Might want to go make a sandwich. ^ExplanationA dig at the Overly Long Fighting Animation that has since become endemic to the Final Fantasy series, in reference to Sephiroth's Supernova attack, which takes a whopping 2 minutes to unfold on-screen. Can also apply to the Knights of the Round summon, especially if Mime is in effect.
• Sit your ass down in that chair and drink your goddamn TEA! ^ExplanationOne of Cid's lines during the scene when the party is introduced to him.
• French frogs, big cherries, peter pan, magic cheese, SEPHIROTH ^ExplanationAnother mishearing, this time of the lyrics to the famous "One Winged Angel", the final battle theme. The actual lyrics are in Latin, but even more modern versions with better sound technology sound like a rather bizarre list in English.
• The Omega Kawaii Cloud Song. It's about Cloud. His bishieness is showing. It has spawned variations featuring characters from other fandoms.
• "Conflict Resolved!" ^ExplanationA line spoken by an unexplained disembodied voice whenever Zack wins a battle in Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII.
• "Is this the end?"; "I'm trying, I'M TRYING!" ^ExplanationDialogue between Tseng and Zack in Crisis Core during one of the Limit Breaks.
• "Shall I give you 'dis pear?" ^ExplanationA mishearing of Sephiroth's famous line in Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children: "Shall I give you despair?" Often accompanied by a picture of him Photoshopped so it looks like he's holding the fruit in question. The meme experienced a resurgence in late 2020 when Sephiroth used a similar line ("Now I shall give Smash despair!"), in reference to the original line, in his announcement trailer for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.
• GAY420GAY: "...COOLRANCH." ^ExplanationA memetic screenshot of Aerith's death scene◊ with the Hello, [Insert Name Here] feature being abused to its most bathosy limits.
• Chairith. ^ExplanationIn the remake, Aerith uses a folding chair to knock out one of Don Corneo's lackeys as she and Tifa break out of a side room to rush to Cloud's aid. It's a hilarious assertion of Aerith's original characterization, and it's been embraced by new and old fans alike, even garnering a good amount of fanart.
• Steppin' on the One Winged Beach ^ExplanationA clip from the SpongeBob SquarePants episode "Walking Small" synced to "One Winged Angel", Sephiroth's Signature Song. Has a longer version as of April 2020.
• Cloud's Stalker Ex-Boyfriend ^ExplanationIn almost every and any Final Fantasy VII Spin-off or even non-FFVII spin-offs and games, Sephiroth is almost always there to torment Cloud. A lot of jokes have been made in expense about Cloud not seemingly able to get away from his Archnemesis, this jokes pretty much reached it's peak when Sephiroth basically just forced himself into Super Smash Brothers Ultimate!
• Tifa's Theme has become a stock BGM track for sad scenes in fan videos.
• One-Winged Angel/DK Rap/Space Jam mashups.^note Following Sephiroth's inclusion in Smash, a video mashing up the DK Rap and OWA exploded in popularity, only for a second channel to start applying this mashup to other versions of One-Winged Angel, before also adding Space Jam's theme into the mix. Finally reached its logical conclusion by mashing up all three of them set to One-Winged Angel: Rebirth here.
• Good to see you... TWINK. ^ExplanationChris O'niell's SNOWBOARDING BLUES has a scene where Sephiroth calls Cloud a "twink", and people have been editing it into scenes with Sephiroth, such as Sephiroth's introduction to Smash.
• Carbuncle and Chocobo Chick's Remake designs. ^ExplanationWhen the designs for the Chocobo Chick, Cactuar, and Carbuncle summons were revealed, fans instantly took note of the enlarged heads given to Carbuncle and the Chick. Memes ranging from referencing Megamind or being compared to Markiplier's "It's Big Brain Time" to comparing the Chick to a Super Saiyan, Cloud, or Guy Fieri.
• TIIIIIII-FAAAAAAAA! ^ExplanationVideo game streamer Nyxipuff gets very excited whenever Tifa appears in any game featuring her, be it the original or the Remake or even Kingdom Hearts. It’s a Running Gag that she will shout Tifa’s name exactly like this the moment that she appears, and then gush about how great she is and how attractive she finds her. Many fans have taken to quoting this Incoming Ham phrase when expressing their own admiration of Tifa.
• Italian Tifa^ExplanationMany jokes about Tifa being Italian or otherwise associated with Italy ensued after a 2022 Italian senate meeting was interrupted by a Rule 34 animation of the character in an act of Zoombombing, where someone, usually an internet troll, interrupts a video conference by broadcasting material that is often disruptive and offensive in nature.
• "Get Nae Nae'd" ^ExplanationA caption on an image of the frog enemy "Touch Me". Often used for line-crossing memes about inflicting Disproportionate Retribution on a younger person.
• Segway Cloud^ExplanationFollowing the trailer shown at the September 2023 State of Play, the image of Cloud wearing shorts and a t-shirt, rolling round on a Segway, and with the Buster Sword still strapped to his back instantly became a meme for its sheer ridiculousness.
• Sephiroth busts a move^ExplanationA short cosplay video of Sephiroth dancing set to a funky rendition of "One-Winged Angel" is making it's way into the meme community in early 2023, mostly because of the sheer absurdity of seeing Sephiroth of all people get groovy. It's also commonly paired with Hungrybox's reaction to Sephiroths reveal in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.

Final Fantasy VIII

• In Japan, Squall is often associated with Japan's Mister Donut mascot Pon De Lion.
• ...Whatever. ^ExplanationSquall says this a lot in the English translation.
• "You're the best looking guy here." ^ExplanationRinoa compliments Squall when they first meet at the SeeD graduation ball, hoping to get him to come out of his shell. However, due to the limitations of the PlayStation and Squall leaning against a wall in the background, his face looks distorted and jumbled when shown up close. Fan artists took to drawing Squall as Ugly Cute, with distorted and uneven proportions to match his pixellated in-game face.
• GF ^ExplanationGF stands for Guardian Force, being the game's designated summoned eidolons. Interpreting the acronym as Girlfriend instead leads to utter hilarity, as statements like "the stronger your GF, the stronger we become", "you're forgetting something... your GF", and "since no GF is junctioned" take on a much more amusing meaning.

Final Fantasy IX

• Final Fantasy IX doesn't have many m — VISIT PLAYONLINE.COM FOR MORE INFO ^ExplanationThe official Prima strategy guide is notorious for having very little actual info on how to progress and instead constantly asks the reader to visit Playonline.com. Bear in mind, this was an era where people only had dial-up at best. Made worse by the fact that Playonline.com is now little more than a news site for Square's Final Fantasy XI MMO, with not a single bit of information on Final Fantasy IX anywhere to be found, making the Prima guide now nearly useless save for the item checklists and boss tips.
• Received Cancer!^ExplanationThe text box that pops up when you find the Cancer item in Burmecia. Usually used with the slang version of cancer and not tumors nor the crustacean constellation it's referencing.
• The Final Boss of Final Fantasy IX is Yoda.^ExplanationThe final boss of IX quotes Yoda's famous line from The Phantom Menace, "Fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, hate leads to suffering". The out of nowhere nature of said quote, couple with the out of nowhere appearance of the boss itself, has lead to fans to jokingly theorize that it was Yoda all along.

Final Fantasy X

• HA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA. ^ExplanationThe infamous "fake laughter" scene from Final Fantasy X, intentional Stylistic Suck that still garnered a Narm reaction out of the audience.
• NO TIME FOR LOVE. DESKTOP THREAD! and "SHOW ME YOUR DESKTOP, BITCH!" ^ExplanationA /g/ meme where some posters will post images of Tidus in threads where posters show off their desktops.
• "Stay away from the summoner!!" ^ExplanationA random female NPC in Besaid commanding Tidus to keep his distance from Yuna after he desecrated the local Yevin temple. Considering that the two hook up over the course of the game, her warning didn't seem to deter Tidus one bit. The line was also recycled in the updated re-release for the aftermath of a boss battle.
• "I was Out of the Frying Pan and into the freezer." ^ExplanationTidus's narration while stranded at Baaj Temple after escaping the not-meant-to-be-defeated-at-that-point-in-the-game-boss Geosgaeno and finding himself locked in a chamber with no fire to keep himself warm.
• "I NEED FOOD." ^ExplanationTidus again. After lighting a fire, he discovers he's hungry and belts out this line before briefly dozing off.
• Ride ze shoopuf? ^ExplanationThe Hypello have a mangled handle on the English language, which will become very noticeable very quickly. They'll ask you this line when you want to ride a shoopuf, the Spiran equivalent of elephants.
• I'm annoying, huh? ^ExplanationDuring the attack on Home, there's a voice shouting "Ajanouha ihtan!" ("Everyone under!" in Al Bhed) over the loud speakers over and over. Between the constant repetition and general unfamiliarity with the Al Bhed language, players often interpret the speech as—rather appropriately for some—"I'm annoying, huh?"
• No _____ / N_____^ExplanationBecause of the wide array of customization options compared to past Final Fantasy games, FFX is a popular game for Self Imposed Challenges, each with their own acronym, with an NSG (No Sphere Grid) run being one of the easiest of these. Other challenges include NSGIE (No Sphere Grid, Initial Equipment) NSGNSNCNO (No Sphere Grid, No Summon, No Customization, No Overdrive), and the SIC to end all FFX SICs, NSGNSNCNONENNENBB (No Sphere Grid, No Summon, No Customization, No Overdrives, No Escape, No "No Encounters", No Blitzball).
• "I'm gonna be a blitzball when I grow up!" ^ExplanationIn Kilika, following Yuna's first Sending, a boy found in one of the houses tells Tidus this when talked to, the silliness of the line added to by the fact that the NPC in question is rather hyperactive. This quote is actually faithful to the original Japanese script, but whereas the Japanese version of the HD remaster fixed this error (the line was changed to "blitzball player"), the line remained unchanged in English.
• Wakka's job class is Grand Wizard. ^ExplanationFlanderizing Wakka's Fantastic Racism to being part of hate movements has become popular thanks to the Two Best Friends Play LP of the game.
• "Withyunabymyside" ^ExplanationFor whatever reason, the English voice actors were not shown the footage while recording and so did not know exactly how much time they had to record their lines. To compound this, the game engine would crash if the audio was too long or too short. As a result, sometimes the audio is sped up in order to fit the allotted time for the character's dialogue. By far the most notorious being a passionate speech Tidus makes about the journey... ending with this suddenly erratic string of word.
• The Tee-dus vs. Tye-duh/dus debate.^ExplanationThe ever-present arguments over whether or not his name is pronounced Teedus or Tye-duh/dus as it was never spoken aloud in-game due to players being able to name Tidus and Final Fantasy X-2 respecting said decision by also not referring to Tidus by name. Word of God and James Arnold Taylor (Tidus's English voice actor) say it's the former, but the official verdict has done little to quell the arguments.
• To Zanarkand, like Tifa's Theme, is often used to convey sadness in fan vids.

Final Fantasy X-2

• I don't like your plan. It sucks. ^ExplanationUttered by Yuna near the end of the game. It's the most notable line in the game.
• LeBlanc's orgasmic moans.^ExplanationThere's a minigame were Yuna has to give LeBlanc a massage. Doing well makes LeBlanc sound like she's really into it.

Final Fantasy XI

• loldrg ^ExplanationA derogatory reference to the Dragoon job because of its former uselessness. "lolthf" and "lolpup" are variations that refer to the Thief and Puppeteer classes.
• "How do I kite Faust?"
• JP Button >
  • Claim NM
  • Get Gil
  • Make HQ
  • Be Stronger
  • Get Drop
• A Japanese one: "The fog is so thick I can't see the screen!" ^ExplanationThe words of a rather misguided Beastmaster party leader in response to his party being heavily damaged in a fight.
• "PS2 Limitations." The one and only reason why everything in the game is the way it is...^ExplanationIncluding not knowing how to code something properly or just being lazy. Carried over to XIV as well, switch "PS2" with "PS3".
• [Incredibly Tough] [Tarutaru] [Meat] [Rod] [You can have this.] ^ExplanationSome of the things you can get past the radar via the Auto-Translator. Also carried over to XIV.
  • [Mithra] [fun] [hole] [Can I have it?]
• Tarutaru punting. ^ExplanationThe diminutive race being mocked for their size.

Final Fantasy XII

• "I'M CAPTAIN BASCH FON RONSENBURG OF DALMASCA!", "BASCH LIVES!", and "DON'T LISTEN TO ONDORE'S LIES!" ^ExplanationFrom a hilarious side mission where Vaan raises a clamor to the effect that the character Basch is still alive. He does this by going up to random people on the street and shouting one of the aforementioned lines. The complete lack of reaction from the characters that Vaan yells this at makes it even funnier.
  • Extra lulzy because half of what Ondore says to people are lies, and he's the narrator of the game!
• "A TRIAL FOR ASHELIA B'NARGIN DALMASCA!"
• GILGAMESH's lines, again. It helps that he's voiced by John DiMaggio.
  • "NOW WE FIGHT!"
  • "YOU FACE THE MIGHTIEST SWORDSMAN IN ALL IVALICE! YOU FACE ME! GILGAMESH! LONG HAVE I SOUGHT THE BLADE OF LEGEND! SCOURED, HAVE I, THE FURTHEST MARSHES EAST AND WEST! AND NOW MY SEARCH LEADS ME HERE! TO YOU! YOURWEAPONSAREFORFEITTOME!" [sic]
• "I play the leading man, who else?" ^ExplanationBalthier's catchphrase, which fans eagerly agree with since he's the Ensemble Dark Horse.

Final Fantasy XIII

• RENONA REWIS!!! ^ExplanationThe outcry of some fans when it was revealed that a Leona Lewis song would be used as a theme for the English release of the game.
• Wanna know why everyone hates Jihl Nabaat? BECAUSE YOU DON'T FUCK WITH SAZH KATZROY, BITCH! ^ExplanationJihl Nabaat is disliked by many fans because of her treatment of Sazh and his son.
• "Moms are tough." ^ExplanationSaid by Hope's mother, putting on a brave face before going off to her death.
• You think you die and that's it?! You think you die and everything's all sugar and rainbows?! ^ExplanationOne of Sazh's lines to Vanille, which gained popularity when it appeared in the English trailer.
• FROCOBO SAYS YES/NO. ^ExplanationOccasionally said by HC Bailly during his Let's Play of Final Fantasy XIII.
• STEELGUARD! ^ExplanationA sketch involving Ali Hillis (Lightning) and Troy Baker (Snow) dubbing over a playthrough of the game, where Snow does nothing in battle but repeatedly use his Steelguard skill, and then runs off into danger without even batting an eyelash (which bites the entire party in the ass). A related meme is "I/Bitches like/love Steelguard!" as a retort to Lightning's remark "Nobody loves Steelguard." when the party is wiped out by a Boss in Mook's Clothing.
• Both of IGN's Gag Dubs are meme-spewing fountains due to their heavy dosages of Alternative Character Interpretation. Nearly every line is a meme. No kidding. One line ("Oh, hey what's up broduskis?", said by Snow to the faction of rebel fighters) was popular enough to spawn its own Facebook group.
  Sazh: Whaddya say, little man...girl...I can't tell what the fuck you are, but we gotta roll.
• GIVE ME COFFEE!! FOR THE HORSE!! FOOOOOOR!! THEEEEEEE!! HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOORSE!! ^ExplanationA popular mishearing of the opening lyrics of the penultimate boss theme.

Final Fantasy XIII-2

• "The cat is my only family!" ^ExplanationOne of Serah's sillier Live Triggers.
• TIME AND SPACE TIME AND SPACE TIME AND SPACE TIME AND SPACE ^ExplanationThe last few lines of the Historia Crux theme (sung by Origa no less) done in a very bombastic manner.
• While Square Enix plays inappropriate music. ^ExplanationThe number of times the story's mood swings and contrasts with the current music is numerous.
• "Come Forth, PuPu!" ^ExplanationRechallenging PuPu at the coliseum will have the Arbiter say this in his hammy way. And yes, it's pronounced exactly how looks. Also, he's played by Steve Blum.
• SO YOU THINK YOU CAN RIDE THIS CHOCOBO!^ExplanationThe one lyric everyone remembers from Crazy Chocobo, an aptly named hard rock version of the Chocobo theme. Final Fantasy XIV named the Chocobo Racing quest after it.
• Toriyama'd ^ExplanationIt means that if you play a game where he had a hand in the creative development, expect the story to troll you and make no sense.

Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII

• Hope's new handkerchief. ^ExplanationWhile people were initially upset that Hope was de-aged back to how he was in XIII, the only change to that attire was oddly well-received.
• Blasted fuckball! ^ExplanationOne of Sazh's lines misinterpreted; it's supposed to be "Blasted fluffball!" Gained prominence since it was in a trailer.
• Meow meow choco-chow. ^ExplanationA sidequest involves Lightning speaking this phrase to several chocobo-costumed women. She gets more and more annoyed and embarrassed each time she says it.
• Lightning returns Final Fantasy XIII.^ExplanationPeople were quick to point out that the title of the game was a hilarious pun. Meant to mock XIII and the fact that it spawned a trilogy.
• Built for sex ^ExplanationA sarcastic comment used to criticize Lighting's complete lack of curves and a rear end (and Toriyama for liking it), despite certain outfits exposing a great deal of her body.

Final Fantasy XV

• "Noctis orgy. Noctis orgy! NOCTIS ORGY!!!" ^ExplanationA mishearing of one character shouting "Noctis-ouji" ("Prince Noctis" in Japanese) in a trailer for Versus XIII.
• Comparisons between Noctis and Sasuke Uchiha from Naruto, and his powers to the Hiraishin.
• Comparison between the main cast and 90's boy bands.
• "Final Fantasy Versus XIII: Developed in 13 years."
  • Becomes Hilarious in Hindsight when you keep in mind the game was announced in 2006, came out in 2016, and its last DLC came out in 2019. So the meme is actually pretty close to the truth.
• "Lest the cook be sent away", and the dinner scene in general seems to have turned into this on GameFAQs.
• After E3 2013, "please be excited" became a common line on gaming forums regarding XV's development and future announcements.
• After the release of the TGS 2014 gameplay trailer, some have affectionately nicknamed the game Final Fantasy: Road Trip.
• Bald Tiny Wrestler Guy ^ExplanationThe way one of the characters' hands is positioned on the steering wheel of the car and the person in in the other seat are positioned, it looks as though there's a bald man.
• Photoshopping the group's car from the TGS 2014 trailer to make it look like they're driving by and looking out at other things. For◊ example.◊ This meme was so popular, Square Enix approved of it and they released official assets of the group in the car with a blank background for people to use to make them.
• "Awoo~" ^ExplanationDuring one close-up dialogue scene, Cindy's mouth movements makes it look like she's saying "Awoo~" and then smiling cutely.
• "Wake me up when September Ends"—the reaction to XV's release date. ^ExplanationThe initial one, that is, until it was delayed to November...
• Numerous jokes about the Wall (Lucis' magical barrier) being maintained by immigrants have sprouted in the wake of Donald Trump's infamous "Wall Speech."
• Pghjhogzzozfzgzuzhzh ^ExplanationA random nonsensical tweet sent out by someone in control of the FFXVEN Twitter account. Instead of deleting it, they ignored that it had even happened and left it up, to the amusement of fans. Even the FFXVJP Twitter account was confused by the tweet.
• "Erryday." ^ExplanationA line from Noct's English voice actor, Ray Chase, describing how Noct would respond to Prompto asking if he fishes every day. And apparently he's not making this up; that line in the script is spelled exactly the same way. And then in the final game, it shows up in the monster coliseum at Altissia when Prompt calls Noctis "sharp" (via good betting choices), and Noct responds with "Sharp erryday" (subtitle spelling and all).
• "HAH?!" ^ExplanationNoct's shocked reaction to the news of Insomnia's destruction in the Japanese dub; in English, he simply gasps out "What?!"
• Nomura's Vision ^ExplanationA manifestation of the game's Broken Base. This is the phrase used to mock fans who can't (or won't) get over the fact that Nomura is no longer on the project, and are upset that ideas from Versus XIII like Stella, Mafia-Regis and Prompto's original background/look are no longer a part of the game.
• Upon the discovery of the Level 75 Tonberry Knights, numerous Star Wars jokes spawned due to their knives turning into lightsabers when attacking. This can also apply to the Master Tonberry enemy fought as a Lv. 41 Hunt at Altissia and then later during the "World of Ruin" portion of Chapter 14.
• Who the fuck is Jared??! ^ExplanationThe player meets Jared for a few minor cutscenes early on in the game. Two chapters later he dies, and the game treats his death like a tragedy, if only because he was an old friend. Most players don't even remember who he was due to his being a minor character, leading to the aforementioned question. A few Flashback Cuts added in an update were likely made to address this.
• "That's it!" "What's up, Iggy?/What's what?" "I've come up with a new recipeh!" ^ExplanationWhat Ignis says whenever he comes up with a new recipe, which is to say, a lot.
  • This then became an Ascended Meme when the Moogle Chocobo Carnival and Assassin's Festival have Noctis say the line when ordering from the restaurants, accent and all. And when players first catch the Mummy Bass in the Royal Edition, Gladio actually prompts Ignis to say it, but Ignis already had a "recipeh" in mind so he declines.
  • The spelling of "recipeh" became a meme because of Ignis' accent when he says it. The Episode Ignis DLC actually named his ability to cook in the middle of battle "Quick Recipeh" and it's kept going from there into other spin-offs like Opera Omnia.
• Noodles ^ExplanationThe unashamed advertisement of Nissin noodles both in and out of game and Gladio's bizarre enthusiasm for them stands out, to say the least.
• IMPERIALS ABOVE US! ^ExplanationThe warning that the party members give whenever an Imperial army drops is about to drop soldiers from their ships comes up a lot, particularly since it often interrupts conversations.
• ブスティス/ブサティス / Bustis/Busatis ^ExplanationJapanese Fan Nickname (literally "Ugly-tis" from ブス/ブサイク) for how ridiculously unphotogenic Noctis is in a lot of photos when taken by Prompto, particularly in shots◊ of◊ him◊ smirking◊ face◊-on.◊ They've become a sort of meme◊ face◊ in Japanese fandom.
• Paint me like one of your French girls ^ExplanationDue to a pose◊ the Cactuar will sometimes strike in battle.
• Giving characters beards to age them up. ^ExplanationThree out of the four main cast end up with facial hair after the Time Skip, and when Ravus shows up in the alternate ending of Episode Ignis, the only thing he has to show for being ten years older is a white beard,. So people started joking about and Photoshopping beards onto Iris and Aranea for their World of Ruin designs. Of course, when Cor's appearance was revealed in the Updated Re-release, he also gets a beard.
• A close-up◊ of the royal monuments in the Insomnia Ruins reveals the name of the 108th King of Lucis to be Optimus Lucis Caelum. Cue Transformers jokes.
• Final Funeral Fifteen ^ExplanationOn November 8th, 2018, Square Enix decided to play a (prerecorded) broadcast to celebrate the game's second anniversary. Fans were hoping for some updates on previous announcements and maybe some fun surprises. What fans got instead was a series of downer announcements: The public announcement that Tabata had left Square Enix effective October 31st; an official notice of cancellation of three out of the four previously announced DLCs; and the previously announced Comrades standalone was stated to be restricted to consoles only. Square Enix didn't address support for the Windows Edition, leaving PC fans to wonder about the fate of the previously announced level editor and mod tools. Overall, fans were NOT impressed and treated this broadcast as a funeral for the game.
• Ardyn Did Nothing Wrong ^ExplanationEpisode Ardyn: Prologue, an anime short serving as a prequel to the DLC, revealed Ardyn to indeed be a kind-hearted healer, like he said he was, and was driven to villainy due to the machinations of his brother Somnus. There are many who feel that his actions in XV are justified due to this.
• FUCK SOMNUS ^ExplanationEpisode Ardyn: Prologue also reveals the extent of Somnus's crimes: his extreme method of combating the Starscourge — even to those victims merely suspected of being infected, sending his men to hunt down and possibly kill his own brother, vilifying and betraying him on the day of his ascension, killing the Oracle — who was also Ardyn's betrothed — and showing zero remorse over it, brutally stabbing Ardyn in the back while Ardyn was grieving over his beloved's body, as well as subsequently erasing Ardyn's name from history and making himself out to be a benevolent king. While a lot of fans turned against him after the prologue was aired, the hate has lessened somewhat following certain revelations in the DLC proper.
• FUCK BAHAMUT ^ExplanationAt the end of Episode Ardyn, Bahamut reveals that Ardyn was never meant to be king, but rather the very embodiment of the Starscourge to be killed by the King of Light; in turn, Somnus was chosen purely so that his line would produce said King of Light, who would sacrifice his own life to cleanse Eos of the darkness. In short, every horrible thing that has happened in XV was according to Bahamut's design. Needless to say, Bahamut very quickly earned his new status as a Nominal Hero... or if you've read Dawn of the Future, his status as the What Could Have Been Greater-Scope Villain.
• Would you like to purchase ___? ^Explanation Square-Enix's rather controversial use of DLC has caused many fans to snark about how they keep selling DLC to complete the story. This culminates when Tabata, the director, leaves Square-Enix and leads to several DLC being cancelled. This in turn leads to the cancelled DLC being released as a novel. Naturally, the novel has become a ripe source of snark.
• Noctis x Sarah ^ExplanationFans have quickly pointed out how Sarah developed a very strong camaraderie with Noctis, almost to the point where they joke that he had more chemistry with a girl he had only interacted with for 30 minutes than his own actual canon love interest.
• Still a better love story than Noctis and Luna.^ExplanationA very common criticism of the game is the lack of onscreen interactions between Noctis and Luna despite being listed as an Official Couple. As a result, fans will often bring up their romance as a very low bar for other romantic couples to cross, being derived from the "Still a better love story than Twilight" meme.

Final Fantasy XVI

• Square is cribbing notes from Namco. ^ExplanationAfter the reveal trailer and story information dropped, fans noticed that Clive Rosfield bears a lot of similarities to Velvet Crowe, the protagonist of the Tales Series game Tales of Berseria. Both are the protagonists of a Darker and Edgier game in their franchise, which is also the sixteenth mainline series entry. Both are Anti-Heroes obsessed with Revenge, spurned forward by the death of a little brother. Both have a color scheme that predominantly uses red and black, along with frayed and tattered clothing. And both use the power of other entities in battle — Ifrit for Clive, and a daemon for Velvet — which is manifested as a demonic-looking left arm. Some of the memes thus make tongue-in-cheek suggestions that Square Enix is doing Berseria with the Serial Numbers Filed Off, while others made Clive and Velvet into a Crossover Ship.
  • Square was cribbing notes from Xenoblade Chronicles.^{Explanation (SPOILERS)}Post-release, it has been observed by a fair few that XVI ended up sharing many story elements with the Xenoblade Chronicles games, including but not limited to: a villain voiced by Harry Lloyd who commandeers an ark called "Origin" (Z in Xenoblade Chronicles 3 and Ultima in Final Fantasy XVI), the main antagonist being a God who created man to worship them only to be forgotten due to their neglect, and plans to use the protagonist as a vessel in order to physically manifest and wipe the slate clean (Zanza in the first Xenoblade Chronicles and Ultima again), Ifrit and Phoenix doing a Fusion Dance akin to the Ouroboros from 3, Dominants losing control over their Eikons akin to how Mythra lost control over Artifice Siren in Torna or even how Fei Fong Wong lost control over Weltall in Xenogears, Barnabas Tharmr being voiced by David Menkin (who voiced Malos in Xenoblade Chronicles 2), etc. While some of these are too close to be intentional, the similarities nonetheless noticeable to people familiar with both series.
• MAKE US MORE MONEY. ^ExplanationSeveral production members from Final Fantasy XIV — including producer Naoki Yoshida, composer Masayoshi Soken, and writer Kazutoyo Maehiro — will also be working on XVI in the same roles. With how much XIV turned into a Cash-Cow Franchise for Square Enix, jokes abounded shortly after the "Dominance" trailer dropped that Square Enix is hoping the production crew can replicate the success.
• Hate crimes. ^ExplanationA leaked Brazilian rating for the game stated that it would contain "hate crimes" which led to jokes and speculation as to what said crimes might be.
• Derplander is in another game. ^ExplanationThe Ambition trailer revealed the character Barnabas Tharmr, who strongly resembles the poster boy and player stand-in used in the CG trailers and cutscenes of Final Fantasy XIV, specifically how he appears in Shadowbringers and Endwalker. Fans quickly caught on to the resemblance, with jokes ranging from how XVI is actually a new expansion with Barnabas being the appearance of the Warrior of Light in the expansion, to how Barnabas is actually an Odin-possessed WoL.
• You all know the target. ^ExplanationThe very first line spoken in the first trailer shown for the game has become a meme when information is shown for the game, or an event pops up that might contain new information. It is usually followed by others quoting the rest of that section of the trailer ad verbatim.
• Yes, you can indeed pet the doggo. ^ExplanationThe moment Torgal appeared, fans were clamoring for petting Torgal to be a game mechanic. And lo and behold, a later game trailer revealed that you can indeed pet him. There is even a PlayStation achievement named "You Can Pet the Dog" for petting him five times.
• Q: "Will FFXIV ever do a collaboration with FFXVI?" Yoshida: "Well, I have to ask the producer of FFXIV first." ^ExplanationNaoki Yoshida's sarcastic response to a common interview question, which many fans of both games found humorous. For the uninitiated, Yoshida is the producer of both games, so the answer is quite the no-brainer.
• Bahamut is finally as powerful as Donald Duck. ^ExplanationIn most Final Fantasy games, Bahamut's signature move is Megaflare, one of the most powerful spells in all of the settings. However, Zettaflare is a higher ranking version of Megaflare that is stated to be exponentially more powerful, and the only character that had canonically cast Zettaflare was Donald Duck in Kingdom Hearts III. Bahamut in XVI finally breaks that trend, casting his own version of Zettaflare during his battle with Clive.
• "Sic 'em, Torgal!" ^ExplanationOne of the handful of callout phrases Clive can shout when order his animal companion, Torgal, to attack an enemy. Players who make use of Torgal frequently in battle (or have the Ring of Timely Assistance equipped) will be hearing this particular phrase a lot.
• Boy scout Clive. ^ExplanationEach time Clive makes an alliance with village locals, the leader gives him a seal or badge to show residents that he can be trusted (unlocking Loads and Loads of Sidequests in the area). Based on locals' reactions, Clive wears the badges somewhere they can see it, and by the end of the game he has a collection big enough to be thought of as a boy scout.
• "Weeeellll~ Clive's mom is a bitch, she's a big fat bitch..." ^ExplanationDue to Anabella being a Hate Sink, fans have taken to singing that song whenever she appears.
• Clive's man-cleavage/Himbo Clive. ^ExplanationWhen Clive receives his late father's armor in Eastpool, he wears the shirt with leaving the top part of his chest unlaced, exposing some of his massive pectoral muscles, to the point where fans started drawing fanart of female and even male characters being impressed by his bust size and Clive being unaware of it.
  • "You will never understand the burden of trying to fit through tight spaces with these pecs." ^ExplanationOn July 21, 2023, Twitter/X account Incorrect FFQTS (Incorrect Final Fantasy Quotes) tweeted a picture of Clive mid-speech with this phrase as a caption. The following day, Ben Starr - Clive's English voice actor - quote tweeted Incorrect FFQTS's tweet along with a video of himself saying the line in Clive's voice.
• Kihel, the medicine girl. Her street cry of "Calmatives, Curatives, Restoratives" has become both meme and Ear Worm in the community.
• Hugo Cuck-a. ^ExplanationPost-release, Hugo Kupka gained a reputation among the game's fandom for being a giant simp for Benedikta, despite being played for a fool by her. Not only that, but Benedikta only ever had eyes for Cid and Barnabas, meaning that Hugo was obsessing all this time over a woman that didn't care at all for him. Furthermore, he takes her death terribly, and his attack on the Hideaway only results in him gaining a new enemy in Clive Rosfield. Finally, prior to him losing his mind to Titan completely, he hallucinates seeing a naked Benedikta and Clive being physically affectionate with each other, meaning that he was mentally cucking himself. For all this and more, Hugo is pretty much remembered almost solely for his lust for Benedikta despite being built up as a Genius Bruiser pre-release.
  • Need a hand, Hugo? ^{Explanation (SPOILERS)}The only other thing Hugo Kupka is known for aside from an Emasculated Cuckold obsessed with Benedikta is for having both of his hands chopped off by Clive in Rosalith, which were then replaced by two metallic hands incapable of being used like normal hands. So if he's not being mocked for his lusting over Benedikta, he's likely being mocked for the loss of both hands despite being the Dominant of Titan.
• Cockblocking Gav. ^{Explanation (SPOILERS)} Clive and Jill have a very slow burn romance. So when the moment in the Infirmary where they have a second Almost Kiss is ruined by Gav, the shippers half lovingly portrayed Gav as always interrupting them to the point the only way they could hook up is on a deserted beach on another continent. Despite the fact Gav only did this once and Otto also walked in on them, though he only assumed he was interrupting something romantic. Expect to find even fans of Gav poking fun at his moment of terrible timing.
• Sanbreque forever! ^ExplanationFans noticed that the salute the Knights Dragoon give to Dion is very similar to the Wakandan salute.
• Hydrogen Bomb vs Coughing Baby ^ExplanationIfrit vs Leviathan, the latter of whom is the Eikon of an actual baby.

Final Fantasy Tactics and Final Fantasy Tactics Advance

• The people of Ivalice were left with l...i...t...t...l...e... m...o...n...e...y... ^ExplanationFrom one of the very first narrations of the game (the ellipses represent unskippable pauses between each letter). Allegedly, it was a not so subtle hint from the translation team that they wanted a pay raise.
• This was the darkened items won't appear. ^ExplanationAn instance of the terrible translation job in the PlayStation version of the game.
• I got a good feeling! ^ExplanationOne of the things the generics sent on jobs can report back, which was given a Shout-Out in Final Fantasy XII.
• Defeat Dycedarg's elder brother! ^ExplanationThe (incorrect) mission objective where you have to defeat your/Ramza's elder brother, Dycedarg himself.
• ANIMALS HAVE NO GOD! ^ExplanationAlgus/Argath, expressing his opinion of non-nobles in one of the many, many, MANY moments that will cause the player to hate him.
• FUCK THAT, YOU'RE GOING HOME! ^ExplanationFrom Final Fantasy Tactics Advance, this more or less sums up a common interpretation of all the Character Development that Marche gets through the game, causing people to consider him a Designated Hero.
• Marche was right. ^ExplanationRelated to the above, used by those who defend Marche's actions.
• That's the most kupo thing I have ever heard! ^ExplanationMontblanc's (a moogle) reaction to hearing Marche's backstory at the beginning of the game.

Dissidia Final Fantasy and Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy

• THE VOID! ^ExplanationA reference to Exdeath's and the Cloud of Darkness' obsession with the Void.
• TURTLE! (or KAME! in Japanese) ^ExplanationAn alternate sound clip that players can buy after getting Exdeath to Level 100, which randomly activates during his EX Burst. This is a reference to a line Exdeath uttered in his battle with the ancient sage Ghido, a turtle. See the FFV section above for more details.
• TASTY ARROW! Hwahwahwa! DUDUDADA! ^ExplanationExdeath's hamminess shown in an Exdeath vs. Exdeath match.
• Because of the intensity of the battle and the less than perfect pronunciation of the voice actors, Dissidia has become infamous for misheard quotes, many (if not all) have risen to Memetic Mutation level. Some of the most famous include "GET THE FRUIT!", "Naive Weekly!", "To asylum beyond!", "I bring you dis pear," "Supper!", "There is no butter for this plane," and "Dorks unite!" More can be heard in these videos.
• I'm afraid the mouse is SMACK! ... dab in the middle of enemy territory. ^ExplanationOne of Kefka's lines to Zidane, in reference to Bartz.
• You've been KEFKAROLL'D! BAH! ^ExplanationAn (unfortunately removed) video mashing up several of Kefka's lines and mannerisms from the Japanese version of Dissidia with music, in a Rick Roll-esque fashion.
  • Here it is!
• Emperor Mateus "David Bowie" Palamecia. HEAVENS!! ^ExplanationA reference to the Emperor's similar look to Jareth (played by David Bowie) in Labyrinth, and referencing the phrases he uses to indicate his also memetic "Starfall" attack.
• The copious amounts of Foe Romance Subtext in the game, illustrated in this image. The Emperor is "UNGAAAAAHBULOUS!!"
• Captain Jecht. HE'S THE BEST! ^ExplanationA reference to Jecht from Final Fantasy X, who is now considered the Final Fantasy equivalent of Captain Falcon due to "Triumphant Grasp" bearing a very noticeable resemblance to Falcon Punch, and the fact Jecht is a Lightning Bruiser using only his kick and punch combos compared to the other characters. In addition, we have "RE-JECHT-ED!" and "OBJECHTION!" for whenever Jecht does something badass and simultaneously nullifies anything that his opponent tries to throw at him. Also often sarcastically mutated to refer to his stellar parenting skills regarding Tidus.
• THE GREATEST ATTACK EVER! ^ExplanationLaguna shouts this line when he gets a perfect EX Burst, and it became memetic from the moment it appeared in a demo video.
• LEG CRAMP! ^ExplanationLaguna's unfortunate habit of getting a leg cramp when he tries to talk to women, carried over to Dissidia 012 from his original appearance in Final Fantasy VIII, hilariously displayed in a scene with Cloud of Darkness.
• By now,◊ Kuja should be having his way with Zidane and Bartz. ^ExplanationA famous bit of Accidental Innuendo (or maybe not so accidental), in which Ultimecia taunts Squall about the teammates he ditched.
• Gimme a bite of SPICY HOT TACOS! ^ExplanationPrishe's secret voice clips replace her HP attack calls, EX Mode and EX Burst dialogue with comments about her being hungry and wanting various types of food. Thus there's some five or six of these, but this is the one that really caught on.
• Well now! Well now! Well now! ^ExplanationKuja's line while dodging, which quickly becomes annoying when heard over and over again.
• Seriously! ^ExplanationShantotto's line while performing Bind, which is just as annoying as Kuja's dodge quote.
• You're all fucked when Gilgamesh gets back. Gilgamesh's Army will have their vengeance!!! ^ExplanationA faction of fans proclaiming that everyone will play dearly for excluding fan-favorite Gilgamesh in the original Dissidia. This is based on the "You're all fucked when the Hulk gets back" meme popular during the Marvel Civil War. And now that Gilgamesh in is Duodecim, this has been occasionally mutated further into "So... are we fucked yet?"
• Too... many... innuendos...^ExplanationLet's just say that aside from mishearings, Dissidia is also infamous for Accidental Innuendoes.
• GARland and "Christopher Sabat (or Kenji Utsumi) will knock you all down." ^ExplanationGarland going from the first and easiest boss in FF history to a hickory-smoked machine of death and destruction.
• From the Duodecim trailers, DEM FEET. ^ExplanationFrom the trailer, where we're given a brief shot of Yuna walking on water. Only her lower body is visible, with her bare feet being prominent.
• Also from Duodecim, DEM ABS. ^ExplanationVaan's notable lack of a shirt, carried over from his original appearance.
• The Word Salad Title that is Dissidia 012: Duodecim Final Fantasy has been subject to several parody titles.
• "THUNNDAGAAAAAAA!!" ^ExplanationThis is one of Lightning's quotes in Dissidia 012, apparently when she uses Thundaga.
• BWAH-HAH-HAH-HAH!! ^ExplanationA particularly Narmful example of Exdeath's hamminess.
• Golbez keeps his pimp hand strong. ^ExplanationA few of Golbez's attack annimations includes a wide swinging backhand or "pimp slap."
• The "Tough Love" Machinima, a Valentine's Day-centered short featuring Dissidia characters, gives us these:
  • "Feel the wrath of RAGIWHAMIDOODOODA!!!!" ^ExplanationCloud's rage at Squall believing his relationship with Zack to be that of Ho Yay, leading Cloud to go into a long warcry/summon chant... that does nothing. At least to him.
  • "NO! I DON'T WANT YOUR GODFORSAKEN TEST-TUBE EXPERIMENTAL BABIES!!!" ^ExplanationKefka's response to Squall saying "Tell me you want my babies!"
  • "Hey, Jerry!" "Yeaaaah, Jerry?" "Did you hear about who's at Squall's place?" "No, I didn't. Because if I did I probably would have answered with 'who was at Squall's place?!'" "Well, I heard it was JENOOOOOOOOOOOOOOVAAAAAAAAAAAA­AAA!!!!!" ^ExplanationCloud's fake conversation out-of-sight to dick with Sephiroth for wooing Terra, which leads to the first instance of the line below.
  • "Jenova? JENOVA?! JENOOOOOOOOOOVAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!! JENOVAJENOVAJENOVAJENOVAJENOVA" ^ExplanationA Running Gag poking fun at Sephiroth's "mommy issues" by having Sephiroth break down into an incoherent, nearly epileptic fit at the mention of the words "Jenova" or "mother."
  • "I USED TO BE A WHALE!" "YOU WANTED TO BE A WHALE?!" "OF COURSE I WANTED TO BE A WHALE!!!" ^ExplanationJecht's Punctuated Pounding of his son Tidus after he thwarts Jecht's attempt to have Sephiroth give him a blowjob. Makes fun of Sin (the monster Jecht was unintentionally transformed into), as it resembles a giant space whale.
  • Probably mentionable that all of the above quotes where written by the same Machinimator, whose YouTube account is here.
    • He was also responsible for the equally memetic "Real Men" Machinima.
  • Speaking about Real Men Machinima, "Only Real Men Do X" is usually played whenever a thread about this video is posted.
  • And the RAGIWHAMIDOODOODA!!! was originated from Real Men Machinima. The effect's also worked accurately in this video, where the summon caused Squall and Cloud to freezing in the midair for several seconds.
• Shantrollto. ^ExplanationShantotto ALWAYS makes fun of her opponents, even if they look like her, with rhymes. "Jack of all weapons, master of none."
• Sad Box. ^ExplanationA joke translation of The Emperor's Merankoria no Ori. It picked up steam in reaction to people's disappointment with the official English translation Dreary Cell.

Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin

• "We're here to kill Chaos!"/Chaosposting ^ExplanationThe reveal trailer had the protagonist constantly reiterate his desire to kill Chaos. Combined with his generic look and name (Jack), Chaosposting became a meme instantly. (For example.) Further mutations would see Jack conspiring to kill Chaos for minor grievances along with edits of the trailer that either placed even more focus on the word "Chaos" or manipulated the speed of the video every time the word was said. Another variation has him saying this for other game series with an antagonist named "Chaos" such as Castlevania or Sonic the Hedgehog.
• Punching Edits ^ExplanationA still image◊ of Jack grabbing Garland and about to deliver a haymaker became◊ very memetic, being often used as part of the aforementioned Chaosposting and becoming a template for edits with other characters not unlike Chokeposting and Nolanposting before it.
• "The darkness is so thick I can taste it." ^ExplanationJack utters this quote during the trailer. As with Chaosposting, fans quickly latched onto the line, using it to either mock him for being super edgy or to claim he eats darkness... or something thick and dark.
• Lightning Prompto ^ExplanationJed, one of the protagonist's companions in the reveal trailer and demo, looks and sounds somewhat like Prompto, but with a pink hair color similar to Lightning's. It wasn't long before fans started joking Jed really is Prompto cosplaying as Lightning.
• The Knockdown 2: Garland's Return ^ExplanationNaturally, Garland's presence saw (yet another) resurgence for his immortal "I, Garland, will knock you all down!" And much like Dissidia, he's more than capable of making good on that claim here, though he doesn't say it in the demo much to people's disappointment.
• "Bullshit." ^ExplanationThe second demo features a scene where Jack says this before abruptly walking away while listening to a Limp Bizkit soundalike on a cell phone. The scene quickly became a meme for all the reasons you’d expect, with people either associating the scene with "sigma male grindset" memes or replacing the music in edits.
• Jack skipping cutscenes/"I DON'T GIVE A FUCK WHO YOU ARE" ^Explanation In the third demo, Jack cuts off Astos's monologue and tells him to just get to the point and tell them what they want to know. Then when early copies of the game were released, a clip of him cutting off the Lich's introduction by exclaiming "I don't give a fuck who you are!" went viral. This has spawned the joke that Jack is the kind of person who plays video games and skips the cutscenes, or that he's skipping cutscenes in-universe.
• "No, Jack. You are Chaos". ^{Explanation (spoilers)} The entire plot of the game, where Jack seeks to kill Chaos only to become it bears a hilarious similarity to the DOOM: Repercussions of Evil fanfic, where the main protagonist fights demons only to find out he's a zombie himself.
• "The real Chaos was the f(r)iends we made along the way." ^{Explanation (Spoilers!)}It turns out that Jack's four comrades become the Four Fiends, and they were in on the plan to turn Jack into Chaos. Thus, the old "real <X> was the friends we made along the way" meme is a totally accurate way to summarize The Reveal. To be even more on-the-nose, some phrase it "the real Chaos was the Fiends we met along the way".
• Jack is everything.^ExplanationThe official Final Fantasy twitter account occasionally tweets out about the series classes, putting pictures of characters from across the series who use said weapons or classes. After the release of this game, people noticed that Jack was appearing consistently as the fourth picture with his fistbump picture. Since Jack can be every class in this game, players began to joke that Jack is everything, to the point that Jack not appearing on a tweet earns comments about where he was, even if it has no reason for him to be there, such as celebrating Women's Day.
• "I knew you'd start spouting bullshit the second I saw you. You've got the look." ^{Explanation (spoilers)}In the Different Future DLC, the Emperor from Final Fantasy II invades Lufenia and starts monologuing about his superioirty, with Jack quickly responding with this line, giving the Emperor a Twitchy Eye. As most villains from the series are known for having at least one instance of Evil Gloating and are designed in a particular fashion, fans started applying this to antagonists from other games, such as Exdeath or Kuja.

General/Other

• Hooray, I win! FTW! ^ExplanationThe iconic Final Fantasy Victory Fanfare, used in the successful completion of any task. It was given a Shout-Out in Advent Children as Loz's ring tone, and many people have tried to add their own lyrics to the tune.
• Kimi ga Yo (2008-) ^ExplanationA Nico Nico Douga meme, which involves setting the lyrics of the Japanese national anthem to a medley of the Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy main themes. If you've already heard about it, it's probably because of the infamous Kumikyoku Nico Nico Douga.
• "Please be excited" ^ExplanationAt the PlayStation 4 unveiling in February 2013, Shinji Hashimoto said this after showing a tech demo from the previous year and promising something new at E3.
• "Weather" reports.^ExplanationGiven how many Final Fantasy protagonists are named for weather formations, expect a weather report featuring name puns (example: A Cloud-y day is ahead. Beware of Squalls, with high chances of Lightning and Snow).
• "Only two songs!"^ExplanationFF's lack of representation in Super Smash Bros. had not gone unnoticed by fans. And considering that other third-party series like Mega Man, Street Fighter, and Castlevania have over thirty songs, and that Final Fantasy had no characters cameoing as spirits from the franchise besides Cloud's fighter spirit, it led lots of fans to conclude that Square Enix was being too stingy with the Final Fantasy rights. All of these issues were finally resolved in December 2020 with the addition of Sephiroth’s Challenger Pack, along with an explanation revealing the complexity of licensing at least the music from Final Fantasy not completely being Square’s fault.
• "FF"^ExplanationCantonese slang for unrealistic daydreams.

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