Villainpedia: Kefka | Final Fantasy VI

[@Ghostcharm]

ladies and gentlemen, check out my brand new merch store - theghostshop.com/ use code "GHOSTOPENING" for 15% off during the next month and thank you for watching

[@KonstandinosZarkadas]

Great vid my dude, Kefka has been one of the best villains of all history. And ff6 just might be one of the best things i played while growing up... with 7th saga really close behind.

[@sup1602]

The best anti sponsor, the self sponsor.

[@bradhorowitz2765]

An excellent video! Keep it up! I can’t wait for you to cover other ff villains. Yeah yeah I know you’ll probably cover Sephiroth (who is excellent) but I am hoping you eventually cover Kuja from ff9 and the villains from ffx!

[@SpitDragon]

Oh Hello. I see you're covering My Idol. Go On (If you don't say he's the single best and all most powerful being in square history, I will roast you) lol 😅

[@davidkieran]

been looking forward to this video since i first seen one of your videos. and while it was great and worth the wait....... i dont think ill ever forgive what you done to shadow...you c$%t!

[@lorcan0c]

34:02 fun fact about Shadow's saving of the party here. When he says "I'll find my way back, trust me!" he means it. If you just run all the way to the exit and leave, he dies off-screen in the subsequent time-skip to the world of ruin because he had no way off the floating continent. But- if you stay by the exit and let the clock run to *almost* zero, he'll show up, thank you for waiting for him, and he survives to the endgame. Love that the game puts his fate in your hands and tests you like that, seeing if you're willing to risk your party to save him and return the favour.

[@ivercingetorix1367]

That's amazing. I really missed out not playing this game all these years. That's such a great payoff.

[@robachmusic]

Shadow is probably my favorite character in any Final Fantasy game. When I played that part, luckily I made it to the ship with a suspicious amount of time left, so I looked around for items until time almost ran out. I was horrified by what almost happened. Him and Interceptor made the game for me.

[@ProducerX21]

Me as a kid to potential friends "Did you wait for Shadow before jumping off the floating island?" "No" "Then we can’t be friends"

[@jimmydaddo9357]

You get him at the coliseum

[@LastOneLeft99]

When I was a kid I figured he found his own way off so I didn't wait for him......................I was so mad when I found out I was supposed to wait :(

[@3Kefka6Palazzo9]

Kefka is the only villain in FF history that allows himself to lose which is truly a testament to his awareness of what he has become, as his madness like most, was a fine line between genius and insanity. After successfully destroying the world, he allows the heroes to reassemble and reveals to them that the only real meaning to be found after the chaos of destruction is the peace of nothingness which he flaunts to them when he says “The end comes…beyond chaos”. He has always been my favorite FF villain because Kefka, unlike all other FF villains, does not lament or make excuses for his death. When he is killed he goes in complete silence which is further proof that he died as planned. He is the ultimate archetype of the mad genius who figured out too late that what lies beyond unlimited knowledge and power is a decent into insanity and a desire for it all to end in the peace of nothingness.

[@TejanoPendragon]

It's always been a read of mine that Kefka never Lies to you (except when he's acting on behalf of Ghestal); he doesn't need to, he knows who he is and doesn't mind that you do. So when Kefka sais "Hello Friends" when he sees you on top of the tower that he means it, you're the only people who've ever beat him and the only people he respects, the closest thing he's ever had to Friends And *most importantly* when he asks you "Have you found your Hope in this Nearly Dead World of Ours" that it's a real question, Kefka has everything, and none of it satisfies him anymore, he's done nothing in almost a year but wait for you, to ask that very question. *and then* when all of you are able to say Yes, but none of you can give him an answer that resonates to him, that's when he fires the lasers again, for the first time in a year and he does it in order to Force You to stop him. That having not found a remaining reason, even from you, he commits to being ended by the heroes.

[@maiorano84]

I really like this take. I think it gives Kefka a little too much credit, as there is no humanity left in him to care about having friends or wanting to be destroyed, but it's still a super cool idea nonetheless.

[@JokerDoom]

Fantastic write up. I've always felt that Kefka truly embodied what a jester is. He's entertaining, he's wacky, but most importantly he's tragic. The story of Kefka is one of a man who is suffering, and who's only entertainment is making others suffer. The world of ruin is a reflection of Kefka's inner self. I think too many people get hung up on him being random or just pure evil. He is pure evil, but the reasons for his evil are far more understandable than he's given credit for. That's what makes him scary, too. People like that are out there. The people who suffer internally, and want to burn the world down because of it.

[@EddieSpaghetti69]

@@maiorano84 Well, that also depends on what you see as a "friend", which you *arguably* are to Kefka; I wouldn't say he's non-hostile, but he doesn't do things out of direct malice for the party nor does he really care about the "pawns" on the world. You're the only beings that could stand toe-to-toe with him and have a modicum of comprehension of what he is and why, he doesn't have to schlack it up to pretend, like for the rest, and is allowed to stand un-masked before the party. To someone whom *never* has had friends, you would come off as incredibly friendly in a world that is breaking; and to decide once in *god-like form* to *stand up to him* after is what a real friend would do. Not saying that we *are* friends, but I can comprehend where the masked jester comes from. You're the few people that he does not have to be masked, *nor a jester,* around. Kefka can be himself, which is *arguably* very dangerous for everyone involved as Kefka is very much mad and likely insane.

[@Th3HedonismBot]

So, at the end of everything, all he requires is a test of your reflexes?

[@BleachDemon707]

Well, he's the only ff villian that kept his promise to destroy the world 🤷‍♂️ And that, I can respect 👍

[@SirVyre]

A small detail about the sword Kefka hands Celes... It's Gestahl's sword. It's hard to tell but he takes something from Gestahl before handing it to Celes. He intentionally disarmed Gestahl's one means of hurting him that wasn't magical. Yes, he knows the lore! He knows how the Triad works! Seems like The Empire had lore books or that Kefka gained a keen intuition on all things magical from his magic induction process.

[@TubeTAG]

Brilliant preparation or dumb luck from the oh-so-random Kefka? Truly up to interpretation.

[@AlexofZippo]

It’s one of the things that makes Kefka so dangerous; he’s not a fool, he’s not an idiot, though he plays both when it suits him. He was smart enough to be the top candidate for gestahl’s supersoldier program. I wonder what the man kefka used to be would think of what he became…

[@joshshin6819]

When did we learn about Kefka handing Celes the Emperor's sword?

[@RudeMackDude]

Kefka, hojo, and ninas dad from full metal alchemist are some of the most evil minded and plot against anyone have no loyalty only their needs and wants ahead of everyone and thing are just tools and test subjects

[@freddynovember5842]

Nice detail!

[@Greatblade141]

Something I noticed about a lot of Kefka’s hd designs is that his makeup kinda gives me the impression that he’s being forced to smile. Like, he makes a ton of jokes and acts funny all the time, but really he’s infuriated that no one else can see life the way he does

[@brunop.8745]

"Life is all a big, meaningless joke! Then why aren't you laughing?" - the Joker (paraphrased)

[@thejake267]

Yeah, I definitely see a lot of Joker in him. I think because Kefka’s mind snapped, he just sees everything as meaningless and therefore everything is just a joke. So if everything is just a joke, you might as well smile as you do whatever you want, because it is all meaningless

[@chrisstorrer]

I can't help getting all emotional and wistful when I hear this game's theme music.

[@Pyre]

Terra's Theme was designed to make you feel like you're going on a grand journey. But it always reaches into that part of you from when you were young, that fully believed magic was real. And wrenches your heart wishing for it again, eh?

[@johnnybensonitis7853]

Man, I was in 6th grade when this game came out. I got it for Christmas that year, and on the second week of vacation off school I basically just played the game like crazy. At the time it really did "knock your socks off" as there was nothing else like it, at least nothing I had experienced. I had no idea what to expect, so the World Of Ruin just blew my dumb kid mind out the back of my head. And other kids at school would probably concur to this day the same types of feelings because we talked about it a lot when Xmas break was over! Great video, this really took me back! Really grateful for the time put into covering so much here, and the excitement for the game here in the vid is not only appreciated but definitely shared.

[@JobeStroud]

My friend got it for Xmas as well when it came out. I would go over to just watch the game.

[@johnnybensonitis7853]

@@JobeStroud Nice! It's a pretty good game to watch for sure when someone isn't grinding.

[@JobeStroud]

@@johnnybensonitis7853 Well back then. Gamefaqs was very new. So loads of schoolyard theories. Well, at least with us nerds.

[@battlericky17]

The part where he poisoned the water supply reminded me of that SpongeBob scene “Hey poisoned our water supply….and burned down our crops” “he did???” “NO BUT ARE WE GUNNA WAIT AROUND UNTIL HE DOESSSS?”

[@antonakesson]

I love how one of gamings best villains is one made 30+ years ago. Quality writing is timeless

[@TrueLight-zr8ou]

kefka is not even close to a good villain has bad writing not scary

[@antonakesson]

@@TrueLight-zr8ou Thank you for sharing your opinion. Hope it makes you feel better.

[@PPWF-n1f]

THE BEST .. PERIOD!

[@PPWF-n1f]

​@@TrueLight-zr8ouYou are the lowest common denominator, truly

[@chocopuddingcup83]

@@TrueLight-zr8ou Huh? Villains don't need to be scary, they just need to be effective.

[@LordMarcus]

I've always thought, even at the time, that Kefka won the game. He accomplished his goals. The only reason you can kill him at the end is because he *wants* to be killed. Even at his own end, he wins.

[@zacharylunstrum5623]

That Biggs and Wedge were transported to the world of Chrono Trigger, they work at the carnival in the doppelganger tent

[@etaquince5220]

So that why their names were familiar!

[@nicholasbehe6686]

I think they were also in Star Wars? Or was that Vicks and Wedge?

[@ubergodofdewm]

​@nicholasbehe6686 the characters from SW are why those two have those names, iirc

[@bandwagonbuzzard1617]

​@@ubergodofdewmyep. Those two, in varying forms, are in several games. They're not the same, just easter eggs.

[@alundrajehuthy1801]

And Crono sent them back, but to FF8 where they since serve Galbadia and repair the comm tower...

[@Exile_Sky]

I always liked to picture the final fight with Kefka as physical representation of what he went through since the magic was shoved into him. Suffering. - The Fiend at the body. Dissociation. - The many faces of Kefka Ascension. - The personality that boiled to the top. Enlightenment. - The final resolution on the world, life, and its meaning to him. Kefka was a very damaged and broken person, who's most nihilistic and malicious impulses were not only encouraged, but thoroughly rewarded. Which I think makes him a wonderfully evil and horrifying villain, because you can honestly see him doing things that the darkest parts of your mind come up with and then laughing about it.

[@jmtexx]

Isn’t ascension the sharpening of the final personality created by all?

[@Exile_Sky]

@@jmtexx I'm not quoting any kind of philosophy. Though you probably could relate it to Buddhism, I guess? vvv The idea is vvv Suffer pain. Deal with trauma. Overcome the trauma. Hone perspective from the pain and following trauma. ^^^ ^^^ What words you use to explain it is up to you. I've always taken Enlightenment as the final step, because knowledge tends to be a hindsight sort of thing. You overcome whatever your problem is and reach enlightenment. The process of overcoming is an ascension in itself. Mistaking the zenith for the rise has always been a weird concept to me.

[@Argyle117]

Dude I love your story telling. I genuinely love how not only do you explain the character but the world building of the game to fully explain the motivations history and how the character goes to become how we know them in the game. I wish you would make videos just telling the stories of games themselves. Like final fantasy for example, there’s way too many of them now that I don’t wanna jump in the middle of things but I’ve always wanted to listen to the story of the games, and I know others have done it, but I personally love your story telling and editing to explain things.

[@KyngofIce]

What better way to hit off the new year than with one of the most iconic FF villains AND Ghost's dulcet vocals

[@madamminalost]

90 seconds in and so much Cyan, my favorite video game characters of all time and maybe my favorite character ever. Thank you.

[@madamminalost]

(to follow up, I checked a guide and it said to leave Cyan behind for the final battle. But I love him, I kept him in, and he ended up doing the killing blow. I was so proud of him)

[@rctecopyright]

Thou doth enjoy the character Cyan? Very well!

[@madamminalost]

@rctecopyright .... I got opera omnia purely for Cyan, used to tweet at the account when they forgot his accent and saved everything to make sure Cyan was always fully kitted out.

[@theonlybilge]

It's Cayenne, like pepper.

[@deseosuho]

Yeah he used Cyan in his party comp throughout, it looks like. Playing as a kid in the nineties it definitely felt like the game created 4 characters obviously superior to the others to use as your main party: Edgar, Celes, Sabin, Terra. Never really used Cyan

[@BurghezulDjentilom]

In my humble, old fuddy duddy opinion, this was the most beautiful FF game. One gets SO tired of the "nuanced morality" type of villains these days.

[@Roggenschrotdosenbrot]

But not our boy. He's just nuts

[@vasudeanguy8523]

Nuanced morality has its place. However, sometimes you just need a nutzoid moustache-twirling, Dick Dastardly bad guy.

[@proboz]

The best villain in the series and one of the best in all of gaming. Pure chaos and evil. No nuance, no subtlety, no bullshit. What you see is what you get.

[@rockowilson2320]

I wish they would've did a remake for this instead of FF7.

[@Sentinel82]

@@rockowilson2320 Nah they'll butcher it like they have with the 7 remake.

[@ReksNuadiah]

Not only a new Ghost video, but a video on the primary villain for THE game that's influenced my tastes, that my earliest clear memories ARE of family playing the game? You spoil us, and me especially, sir. Edit; A VERY small thing about Biggs and Wedge isn't just that they're killed - it's... Well, that we don't even _know_ what happens to them. They just _disappear._ THAT also sets a VERY alarming tone for just _how_ dangerous and unpredictable magic can be, and honestly _more thoroughly_ sells the Warring Triad's power being a world-ending threat without being "evil" in nature.

[@JobeStroud]

They were transported to the Chrono Trigger universe.

[@mrmosty5167]

Kefka and FFVI are legendary. I played it when I was 14 and it blew my mind. So much so that it inspired me to create a scrapped comic series I worked on for nearly 2 years. I essentially tried channeling all my incel rage at the time into this one Kefka-like villain who is so dissatisfied with the world that he enters cryo-stasis hoping to awaken into a better future. Yet like Kefka, the guy snaps during cryo sleep and awakens into a world that is nearly destroyed because of something he failed to do. He misunderstands this as humanity's hedonistic ways causing the planet's downfall and gains enough power from his madness to literally make all humans numb to pleasure. However a group of heroes called the Guiders, much like the Returners, arise to stop the villain. Without going too much further there are some twists and turns but this story was essentially my homage to FFVI and Kefka born out of my now-quelled anger at being a frustrated autistic loner. I still think about it and it has evolved in many ways but if I ever get more time I'd love to get back to it somehow...

[@Alfonse-dm6ht]

Neat. As For The Last Sentence Yes Get Back To It

[@AKITM]

Dude you should! That would make an interesting comic book.

[@machouchacha]

Final Fantasy VI is my favorite video game of all time. I played it first in the year it came out (1994), and I've done maybe a total of 30 full playthroughs of it over the course of the last 30 years. I have never seen a piece of content so accurately and precisely explain why this is one of the best games to have ever existed. You have done an absolutely incredible job with this. Thank you so much.

[@OtherMomo]

I love how FF re-uses names throughout the series but never re-uses them in the same ways, like how Cid is a scientist for the empire here but in other games he's an ally and even a main party member Id like to see a villain/hero pedia vid that actually follows a re-occurring name through the series, if that sounds like an interesting project or something you can spin into your style.

[@theonlybilge]

In one game he's an abusive husband because he can't admit that he's a fuckup, and in another he smokes and cares about his daughter.

[@BbNaB]

Cid and Patches, two characters that are actually dozens of characters yet I doubt many of them would get along.

[@tonts5329]

Cid was also a scientist for the Empire in FFXII, but he didn't go through a redemption arc. In fact he was also working with magic in FFXII, specifically Magicite and variants like Nethicite.

[@ditzyhere3138]

He has a pretty big role in ff14 as a brilliant scientist who ran away from the game's version of the Empire. Although, I can't stand him because any time there's any kind of tech based problem he's there and solves it in a flash. Comes off as Gary Stu to me but he's generally well loved.

[@boobah5643]

The only _Final Fantasy_ without a Cid was the original, and between remake retcons and _Dissidia_ it now has, I think, two. As does _FFXII,_ IIRC.

[@lazaroskarmaniolas7410]

It's always a pleasure to watch videos about villains, especially my favorite villain ever! (Well, him and Dr. Weil from Megaman Zero, totally not a suggestion for a new vid WINKWINK) To add to my two cents, Kefka really is a direct opposite to all the characters of FF6. Final Fantasy 6 is a game with a story that heavily revolves around loss. Cyan losing his family, Shadow losing Baram, Locke losing Rachel, Terra losing her memories, Edgar and Sabin losing one another, Setzer losing Darill and so on. They all respond with empathy, courage and the strength to move on. Kefka is utterly incapable of empathy. So he couldn't make these kinds of choices. Really, his broken mind could only find happiness in destruction and death. The fact that he was a magic user in a world where magic is extremely rare made him especially powerful, giving him delusions of grandeur, thinking he's "all-powerful". The only reason he doesn't kill Gestahl is because he kept indulging Kefka's lust for carnage. The moment he holds him back, Kefka kills him. But more than that, when Celes stabs him with the sword, Kefka utterly panics because... well, he thinks himself a god. But Gods don't bleed. If he bleeds, then he's no God. In fact, he'd be just as mortal and weak as the people he kept senselessly murdering throughout the game's narrative. Just another body to rot and die in the dirt. And then he just SNAPS. Somehow, this one-dimensionally evil villain gets character development! Finally, at the top of his tower, we see him embrace his most nihilistic tendencies. He thought that the people of the world would lie down and die. But they didn't. They kept on living and kept building back up anything he destroyed. Which baffled him to no end. Kefka is more than just a lack of empathy or madness. He's the worst possible reaction to loss - cynicism. "Everything sucks and it will always stay that way no matter what. It's pointless to try. Burn everything to the ground because nothing matters." He's that voice in your head that tells you to give up when you're in grief. It felt really, really cathartic to put an end to this guy.

[@TheFu3lman]

"Kefka is more than just a lack of empathy or madness. He's the worst possible reaction to loss" And there it is... put to words what I've always felt but had no clue how to. After losing my wife in 2017, I went through (and am often haunted by the specter of) a phase where my horizon was always in flames. If the universe was cruel enough to take her from this world, then both the universe and this world could burn for all I care, and I might as well find joy in that if I couldn't find joy in anything else. I find it astounding that you were able to discern and distill that kind of (profound) reaction from the behaviors of an antagonist that many consider one-dimensional. His lack of popularity... perceived or otherwise... might stem from a lack of people who've been broken enough to sympathize.

[@youtubecommenter6753]

Not cynicism; nihilism.

[@kingleech16]

So what you’re saying is, he’s a jerk. 🙂

[@lazaroskarmaniolas7410]

@@kingleech16 Oh yeah. He's the biggest jerk there is. And you can become just like him if you have nothing to care about.

[@lazaroskarmaniolas7410]

@@TheFu3lman You have my condolences for your loss, sir. See, I've learned that One-dimensional characters that are written well are characters that force other characters to change around them. Villains work better when they're connected to the heroes. If Kefka is connected to the Returners and the Returners are connected through loss, then Kefka must also be connected to loss. It helps that I really, REALLY like Pure Evil villains. As in, villains that make even other villains uncomfortable.

[@elmejorado2]

Does anyone else love that there's Golden Sun music playing in the background?

[@GrantasaurusHex]

Oh man, what a walk down memory lane. Of all the many, many games I've played in my life, this one had the biggest impact on me. I played it as a kid when it came out and it absolutely stunned me with its deep storytelling and compelling characters. A note on Shadow... He has an interesting backstory which can only be experienced through his nightmares. These dreams are triggered randomly by sleeping in specific inns throughout the world while Shadow is in your party. In short, he and his best friend were criminals on the run from the Empire. His friend was wounded while being pursued by soldiers and asked Shadow to mercy kill him. Shadow couldn't do it, leaving his friend to be captured by the Empire. Therefore, when Shadow jumps in to save everyone on the Floating Continent, it's actually a redemption moment for him. This time, he chose not to leave his friends behind, but to fight and potentially sacrifice himself saving them. On another point, it is heavily implied through the dreams that Shadow is Relm's estranged father. When Shadow meets Relm for the first time, she pets Interceptor. Shadow says, "The dog bites," but is surprised to find that Interceptor is especially friendly with Relm. If you've seen all the nightmares before this scene, it's the cutest moment. Shadow's rich and mysterious past is one of my favorite aspects of the game. Thanks so much for making this video. I loved it!

[@Alucard131]

You left Shadow to die on the floating continent! I am disappoint. 😢

[@TheAdarkerglow]

To be fair... Spoilers ... you never really save Shadow. He dies on the floating continent or he dies with the collapsing tower. It's a bit more poignant to leave him behind, to have the death of the world cost the party directly, mechanically, from a narrative perspective.

[@tpolutts3309]

​@@TheAdarkerglow It's been a while. Collapsing tower? Kefkas tower?

[@SpitDragon]

MUH POOR BOIIEEE NOOOOOO!!!

[@andyplaysinthedark2129]

​@@TheAdarkerglowmassive disagree. That is a cope imo. You can say that with Cid on the little island but not Shadow.

[@jami_holmes]

creepiest thing about Keefka in Final Fantasy 3 Super Nintendo & Final Fantasy 6 for the PlayStation & Nintendo Switch is go into the The Gold Saucer then go into the Ghost Hotel of Final Fantasy 7 right when you set foot in the hotel you hear a ghostly laugh sound ! its Keefka’s evil Laugh

[@JRGomez81]

Some more trivia: at the time of FFVI's development, Batman the Animated Series was still making new episodes. The Japanese dub of which featured Shigeru Chiba (Kuwabara from Yu Yu Hakusho) as the voice of Mark Hamill's Joker. The director for FFVI had also said he wanted Chiba to voice Kefka because of that. When the Dissidia games rolled around he did just that and cast Shigeru Chiba as Dissidia Kefka.

[@patches365]

The game never even says that Kefka was a soldier. The "Magitek Knight" thing in the line about his origins was just a weirdly literal reading of the word "魔道士", which is just "mage/sorcerer", and is also a different word from "魔導戦士" that was used to describe Celes, which is closer in reading to "Magitek Knight". Instead, the word used to describe Kefka is the same word that Strago uses to describe the mage ancestors of Thamasa, except Strago uses the spelling "魔導士", which is pronounced the same as "魔道士" and means basically the same thing, it just uses a different variant of the middle character. Edgar also refers to Kefka in his introduction with the "魔導士" spelling, so I wonder if the "魔道士" from the guy in the Vector pub was just a typo, since this is the only place where this spelling of the term shows up. To me, Kefka's overblown sense of entitlement, gaudy clothing, and expectation of doing whatever he wants without consequence points more towards someone from the aristocracy. In the Imperial Camp, he gloats to Sabin that he'll make him sorry, then runs away after one hit and has some underlings fight Sabin instead, painting him as someone who has a high opinion of himself but nothing to show for it. Leo is also described as being the opposite of Kefka in every way, and we know that Leo got his position through hard work and without magic. So that points more to Kefka being an entitled brat who possibly pressured Cid into making him the first infusion recipient before the process was ready because he wanted to have something no one else had, and to also be given more power without having to work for it.

[@GitGoodGaming]

Kefka is the best and most CRIMMINALLY underrated FF villian ever made.

[@deseosuho]

Underrated? Isn't he everyone's number 2 pick after sephiroth?

[@ThatOtherRaccoon]

I remember being a kid and trading games with my cousin for our Super Nintendos. He said that he had this game my uncle bought for him at a yard sale. It had a small winged cat on the front and it said Final Fantasy III on it. I vaguely remember beating it, but what I never forget are Kefka’s laugh and Kefka’s theme.

[@pancakesean6888]

Back when FF3 came out on the SNES Kefka and the mature themes of this game marked a significant change in what games could do. While Kefka himself is an amazing villain, the entire story of FF3 was so grounded and intense it really pushed the entire medium forward. Fantastic villain and game.

[@antonakesson]

Don't you mean FF6?

[@BananaBanditos]

Ultima III had released eight years prior. Final Fantasy VI, while great, didn't break some perceived barrier into narrative driven games that some try to credit it with.

[@Wohlfe]

​@@antonakesson FF6 was released as FF3 originally in the US

[@MisogynyMan]

@@Wohlfe So FF6.

[@captainbarbossa289]

@@BananaBanditosagreed. Ultima and Phantasy Star II had already tackled a lot of the subject matter that FF6 did, and weren’t afraid to go even further. I love 6, but it definitely wasn’t doing anything with the subject matter that hadn’t been done before at the time.

[@seanmcnally4818]

This was my all time favorite Final Fantasy game! Kefka was sadistic, cruel, evil and I think underrated. He literally 'destroyed the world' he accomplished what most villains could not. He's better than Sepiroth.

[@tmfk777]

Sepiroth...the pretty boy with mommy issues. Hardly a villain.

[@vigo2669]

I always thought Kefka's "Statue of the Gods" was simply his replacement for the Warring Triad.

[@Cobaltate]

You can have "One Winged Angel", I'll take "Dancing Mad" all day, every day.

[@darkhunter5293]

Amen to that, that edgelord is NOTHING compared to Kefka!

[@aa-tx7th]

lol absolutely not dancing mad isnt even top 5 of final fantasy tracks let alone of music as a whole one winged angel is EASILY top 10 tracks of all time for ANY genre of music you need to calm down son dancing mad is good but it isnt even close to great.

[@theonlybilge]

Fithos. Lusec. Wecos. Vinosec.

[@Dayemon]

The Black Mages performing Dancing Mad is what put it top 5 for me...

[@barubary436]

@@aa-tx7th Let's not forget the technical limitations of the SNES though. For example, in Advent Children One Winged Angel got a lot of improvement, and IIRC Nobuo Uematsu said that was how he originally wanted the track to go, but the original PlayStation couldn't handle it. There have been other remixes for the other FF7 games that have come out, but FF6 hasn't gotten a full remake or any prequels/sequels. When it inevitably does, I think Dancing Mad would become a much stronger contender.

[@jmtexx]

7:35 Kefka was the epitome of Machiavellian cunning-a soldier who thrived on strategy over brute force. While others charged into danger, he stayed sharp, ensuring his survival at any cost. Think of him as a twisted mix of the Joker and a chess master, someone with nothing to lose and everything to gain. Joining the military wasn’t about patriotism; it was a calculated move, a last-ditch effort to claw his way to power. It’s even possible he played his superiors like pawns, convincing them he was indispensable while scheming his way to the top. Crafty, ruthless, and a survivor to the core.

[@damiencrossley7497]

OK he is the ultimate FF villain! All other badguys: Im gonna take over/destroy the world! Kefka: DID BOTH!

[@KGBBooks]

My first Final Fantasy was IV (II on the Super Nintendo.) I’ve played them all since then, but VI is the one that thrilled me the most, the one I miss, the one I look at through nostalgia glasses. Great, great game.

[@nightcrowred]

I literally just started this video. And you have acknowledged the thing that most people ignore the fact that the heroes lost and the world was destroyed, even some of the heroes in the story gave up and when getting your crew back together, it is optional, whether or not to pick everybody up. If you can find them, they all moved on with their lives and tried to pick up where they could that to me was amazing. And i'm so glad to hear someone acknowledge it.Final fantasy six is my all time favorite final fantasy and all time favorite rpg.

[@usuario-e3y]

We need a remake before we gave up...

[@boobah5643]

You have to pick up Celes (natch, she's your initial POV for the World of Ruin,) Edgar (so you can reach Setzer) and Setzer (because you need an airship to reach Kefka.) Conveniently, you now have three one-man parties to finish the dungeon. Although if you're not intentionally avoiding people you'll almost certainly snag Sabin before his brother.

[@TheMrSeagull]

Something I learned by accident, you can actually save Cid from death! If you feed him only the fastest fish, he will recover and help Celes off the island! I flipped out as a kid, playing a cart I rented over and over, when I stumbled upon this. I gushed this discovery to my dad who had no idea what I was talking about lol.

[@boobah5643]

Yeah, Ghost alludes to this in the video. But unless you realize that the fish speed is more than cosmetic, you're almost certainly going to be feeding Cid the slow, sickly, and easy-to-catch fish, dooming him.

[@misoPOW]

Such gorgeous commentary. Made me dust off my old copy of FF"3". I was in junior high school when I first played it and Kefka destroying the world was the 3rd game that made me cry and feel absolutely lost in my own thoughts over a game. First and Second times was the end of Secret of Mana and FF7. By that point, I associated Square as the game company with stories that will make you feel deep emotions. Thank you, Ghostcharm!

[@RexisSOUL]

FF6 is the story of of Kefka going "It's Kefka time!" And Kefkaing all over the world until he gets beaten to death by self-help books

[@arturofernandez725]

thought that was Morbius?

[@Fortmik]

That’s a quite shallow and immature interpretation.

[@CiscoGarcia-j2z]

That made me laugh, thanks! It was made for young people and that was very apparent when I replayed it as an adult. My favorite story from the innocent age.

[@chrispysaid]

​@@Fortmikduh, that's why it's funny. Heard of a joke before?

[@soothsayerslunk1]

Son of a submariner! I can’t with you ATM

[@PaKePo]

Can't believe I just watched a 50+ minutes video on a character from a game I've never played. Great composition and great narration 🤝🏻 , congratulations.

[@josecuvi2282]

If you never played it you may not enjoy it as much as those who did when it first came out. But this game was revolutionary for it's time and earned a special place in the hearts of many, mine among them. I sincerely recommend it. Though it is dated so if you go into it do so remembering this is an old game.

[@TheUKNutter]

One thing that must be mentioned is the music when you first enter the World of Ruin. The sorrowful, stabbing chords along with the wind howling is still one of the most unsettling things I’ve ever heard in a video game.

[@powerofk]

It’s not often that the antagonist in the story is the real main character. Seriously. FF6 has a huge cast of protagonists. Some are more important than others (see Terra & Celes v. Relm & Strago), and most of them have decent story arcs (especially Terra & Celes), but the main character really is Kefka. The entire story revolves around him. And he has his own arc, diving further and further into madness. And when he gets what he wants-infinite power-he gets bored with it. There’s just so much enjoyment he can get destroying stuff, and you really get the idea that, once he has nothing left to destroy, he plan on destroying himself.

[@attaxiaffxi7033]

It's often understated how effective the game's imparted assumption that the floating continent is the final dungeon.

[@deseosuho]

Parallels with Chrono Trigger's set up of the magus fight. The full presentation of that, the setup, the howling wind, the epic music, still gives me chills

[@budderk1305]

The whole thing about sitting down to dinner with Gestahl while listening to him being 'sincere' is such a boneheaded anime protagonist blunder, lmao. The man still started wars and handed power to the likes of Kefka, you can't just go "Oh shucks we all make mistakes, it's good enough that you feel bad about it :)"

[@ProducerX21]

My favorite villain. My first rpg as a kid. If I could go back to trusting modern game developers I would love to see a sequel to this game. Imagine a teaser trailer where a random man is digging into some rock when he uncovers an intact magicite crystal. The scene shifts to different towns rebuilding with groups of familiar looking characters. We see blurred or shadowy outlines of characters like Terra Celes and Locke. The world is healing 10 years after the world of ruin. They thought magic was erased from the world. But then it slowly zooms into the rubble of Kefka’s tower. Underneath the rubble we see something move as it cuts to black. Then we hear Kefka’s laugh followed by the new title A man can dream

[@xanderpiz8770]

I felt like the developers did both the game (normal world) and the sequel (ruined world) in the same game for this very reason.

[@tonts5329]

I mean I feel like FFVI told a complete story, no real need for a sequel or a prequel. A full remake wouldn't be a bad thing though, especially with how far the visuals/graphics have come along. They could maybe add on a little to the story I suppose?

[@evan8542]

NEW GHOSTCHARM VIDEO LET'S FUCKING GO

[@MegatonHero]

Well fucking done, my guy!! Kefka has been my favorite game villain since I was a kid and played it on the SNES back when it was called Final Fantasy 3 and it is great to see his story be told with such care to detail. Thank for you this, man! Excellent, excellent video!

[@TrojanGamer10]

Kefka is the embodiment of "Let's roll with this"

[@penguindrummer252]

His canonical artistic renditions are all just really good as well I need to add. Overworld sprite? Iconic. First boss sprite? Enchanting, dastardly. Final boss sprites? Gloriously grotesque. But that concept art/full portrait of his showcased in the video takes the cake, shit's like laying eyes on the essence of something divine. Just jaw-dropping pencil work on that one, I'd get it framed if it didn't make me look like a damn sociopath. First inductee into the video game Louvre for sure. What a delightful character.

[@Gafgarion852]

Immediate thumbs up before watching a single second of it, highly underrated villain from one of the best games of all time. Thanks for doing this one.

[@joeykornegay4587]

Goodness, have I had a field day discovering channels like this that do such top tier retrospective and explanations of iconic video games like yours man. Much love! I’ve (unfortunately) yet to play FFVI but it’s definitely gotta happen soon! Side note, I’m not sure who’s more cruel--Kefka or the designers the dungeon with the Magic Master 😭

[@ellisnorn259]

FF6 was one of the first games I ever played, and no joke played a huge role in my development. This was a much anticipated video for me, and you killed it as always. Thanks, Ghost! You da best. PS I bought a ton of merch too 🤙

[@arsonal3]

Beautiful essay. Honestly, having played FFVI before VII, the one thing I always felt was how Sephiroth wasn't really that successful. I had honestly played the two games in the same year. All the news had been building up on FFVII, and I had a friend who said that he loved the series and that I could borrow his version of FFIII (VI). Having only played Super Mario RPG and, way earlier, Sword of Vermilion, I was in for quite the experience. Final Fantasy VI blew my teenage mind's socks off. I hadn't, to that point, seen a story where the villain won. It felt so life-defining. All the attempts were thwarted, and I'm sure I dropped the controller after the story picked up with Celes. Till that point, as you stated, the plot was what all stories attempt to be, constantly being in a tug-of-war with the villain, or what I thought at the time as the lackey only to find that a mastermind could be usurped and my amazing team tossed away as nothing more than trash. After that, I beat the game and was excited for FFVII, but no matter how cool I thought Sephiroth was, he was nothing compared to Kefka. All my friend groups laughed, and while they never played the game, they could look at Kefka's art and conclude that Sephiroth would beat him in a battle. Well I'm going to get off my soapbox and thank you again for a great video essay. Hoping maybe a new update if the FFVI 2.5D rumors turn out to be true.

[@SirVyre]

Have you not played 6 in a hot minute? Kefka doesn't get to take the Magicite that you get in The Magitek Research Facility. He demands that Celes bring it to him, but she warps him away. He does gain magicite later, perhaps from other parts of the facility, and definitely during the events at Thamasa, but you escape Vector with the magicite, that's how you fix Terra with her Dad's magicite. Like what?

[@Brew78]

It's interesting this video came up in my feed today (great video, btw), as I've been thinking a lot about Kefka lately. Specifically, my kids have been on a huge Imagine Dragons kick lately, and this one song they have called "Gods Don't Pray", every time I hear it, it makes me think of Kefka. Like, he could have written it. If Kefka went out to do karaoke, this is the song he'd choose. "You should see the view up here, Gods don't pray, Gods don't pray, hey"

[@BboyDrMadison]

I LOVE how the comment section is sharing all of their Kefka observations and knowledge. Here's something that I've noticed about one of his later depictions. In FF14, your character is imbued with something known as "The Echo". Without going into it, it's the equivalent of a type of clairvoyance. Jedi like premonition. Foresight in Xenoblade. An advanced Sharingan eye... ... It's a bit more complicated than this, but the way that it's presented in combat is that your enemy displays a "dangerzone" in the area that they are going to attack. You see their cast bar, you see the direction they're going to rotate, the shape of the attack. You can even tell if you can tank, interrupt, or misdirect the attack. Your character literally sees the reality that the attack happens right before the reality exists. NOT with Kefka. Kefka is the only boss that can, ON COMMAND, intend for a spell to do something, only for it the do the EXACT OPPOSITE. Some of my friends argued that he's just faking you out by making you THINK he's going to do something, then changes it. But your ability is CLAIRVOYANCE!!!! For all intents and purposes, you are in the reality where kefka is going to cast Ice3 Directly next to himself, only for you to move away, and for it to crash down at the far end of the arena!! My point is... in SPITE of what Kefka is consciously aware of, and in spite of his intentions, he is completely aware that he is the pure unperceived embodiment or random chaos. Shoving around the very pillars of reality is pretty on brand for him, and the results were never going to be any concern of his. (For anyone wondering how to dodge his attacks, you have to watch his animation precast. If it's normal... the spell is normal. If your premonition shows question marks around him, your premonition can't be trusted. He can also store these mixed-up spells, and surprise-drop them on you later with NO premonition warning AT ALL either way)

[@1SpicyMeataball]

It took you that many paragraphs just to say Kefka is unpredictable and chaotic...

[@coloquintedetoux6899]

​@@1SpicyMeataballI enjoyed the reading. No paragraph felt unnecessary, this desribes well how FFXIV achieves story telling through gameplay mechanics.

[@boobah5643]

It honestly never occurred to me that telegraphs in _FFXIV_ were supposed to be an aspect of the Echo. Although that probably should have been obvious after Fordola in _Stormblood_ shows off her artificial Echo.

[@tonyscoggs1255]

I always thought that the closest version of Kefka was Simon Phoenix from Demolition Man. The character played by Wesley Snipes was amazing.

[@kubon1]

Kefka didn't predict vanish + doom combo I used on him defeating him in one turn.

[@detroitdetroit8026]

The dragoon boots and the dragon horn. He died in three character attacks before I could even get a spell off in round one. Only 20k hp, he should have had 50k to be a real challenge

[@lightbulbwizard2456]

sitting here listening to this while doing other projects but kept finding myself completely enthralled in the writing and delivery of the whole video. guess i gotta listen (and end up watching) even more now!

[@michaelk9080]

Bro, with all that Golden Sun music you HAVE to do Alex next.

[@AshleyKitsune]

I'm in my early '40s. I've been playing games since I was a little kid and to this day final fantasy 6 is still my number one. Watching videos like this. Bring a tear to my eye and really helped to remind me and others on why it is such a great game. Well done

[@connormorgan6884]

You may or may not agree. In Final Fantasy Dissidia, when you defeat Kefka. Terra makes a interesting statement after Kefka self destructs, she says. "It was because of your broken heart. You had to fill it with destruction." I don't know if you guys consider Dissidia canon, but this statement by Terra got me thinking. Could it be Kefka may have once genuinely cared about the empire he once served, but after the experiment, he felt betrayed? I think it's very possible Because when you go through a bad heartbreak, it changes you forever, for better or worse, it truly affects you in the long run. I have a friend who once dated this seemingly very sweet, humbl woman, they were together for 3 years but knew each other 4 years prior as friends before they dated, so they knew each other for 7 years, that's a long time to know someone, after the break up my best friend was depressed for an entire year, his sorrow eventually turned into anger and years later his anger turned into pure hatred for this woman. I mean, just the other day, I asked him if his ex-girlfriend passed away today. "Would you mourn her?" You know what he did? He laughed just like the joker, his laugh was so sadistic I could've sworn he was possessed by a demon. Whatever love he once had for her was replaced by pure hatred. When I think about Terra's statement I sometimes wonder if Kefka had a similar albeit very different experience from my friend, because if being betrayed by a loved one can damage you mentally to that extreme, I hate to imagine what being betrayed by your country can do to you. In the case of Kefka, I think we have an answer...

[@usuario-e3y]

Good people suffer until they become bad... "joker"

[@connormorgan6884]

​@@usuario-e3y Yep

[@Mister-Sinner0]

I didnt play ff6 til 2020, my god i was in absolute AWE at the final boss rush, its so metal, the music. the pixel art. the epicness and...the feels.

[@aresgodofwar7401]

Kefka is the real goat of any final fantasy game, square has never made a better and more chaotic big bad.

[@77wolfblade]

I still think Square could play around with the idea of a character looking weak but turning out to be vicious, cruel or strong.

[@aresgodofwar7401]

@77wolfblade Only other character I can think of is from 15 and even then still didn't hit quite like Kefka

[@techdeth]

12:25 DUDE the way he slaps the knife on his leg .. ive seen that in chrono cross or something i swear ... how wild

[@SpitDragon]

OMG THAT LAUGH! From Norstein Bekkler's Tent of Horrors! - Of Course! lol

[@mrsnatural2368]

I love this guy. I once described him to my friends as "What if the one guy you've been clowning on half the game, in the final leg of the race, suddenly shoots the guy in feont in the head, tears into the front of the pack from behind, and sets the entire racetrack on fire."

[@somerandomguy9058]

Cool merch and nice video. Edit: I feel like an Amazon review bot. ,,Great product, very good" but hey, nothing else needs to be said. It’s just a good video, and merch I'd like to own

[@CthulhuTheory]

Kefka's even more fascinating as a villain when you realize Celes is his narrative foil. Both had the same origin, and yet wildly different outcomes, which was largely in part due to Celes maintaining her humanity and meeting Locke who showed her that even enemies can find a way to work together. In the end, Kefka wanted the world to be punished because he never experienced hope or compassion.

[@bluecanine3374]

Yeah, I like the interpretation of Kefka less as a schemer or vengeful person, and more of a warped child. Feom his childish speech and early action to his breakdown at seeing his own blood, it gives the sense that it is all a game to him and he didn't have to face consequences or reality because he was powerful. But the moment he is hurt and feels pain or in danger, his delusion is broken and he panicks like a frightened child. Of course that changes after he ascends to godhood

[@jojitorod4621]

Kefka is one of my favorite villains of all time. My best friend and I would race to beat games that we’ve never played before back in middle/high school, and I lost every one except for two, one being this one. I love this game and its story, and knowing Ghostcharm, this video is going to be great.

[@josecuestas7246]

"Some men just want to watch the world burn."

[@TeflonTrout]

And some like their own fires best

[@Steven-jj4oo]

Kefka's laugh is so phenomenal. Still considering him as the most evil and deranged villain 😂

[@lanereynolds4567]

One minor note. Nihilism isn't "you shouldn't live, just die already" it is "you have no destiny, no preordained path, no unchanging fate. What is your future is up to you to forge and whether for ill or weal, you will have only yourself to blame."

[@neotower420]

no one knows the grand scale especially the one you weave

[@Frendlu]

I think that you nailed at 15:15. Kefka always was a Joke (nearly literal). Everyone knew that Kefka was freaking nuts, but also, that he wans't one of the main danger, if not "Emperor Gestahl". Until he becomes crazy, kills his employer, destroy the world and becomes God. (And maybe that's why he is so famous, because nobody expected when they played for the first time, that a clown gonna become the main villain. Many kids and young adults where fooled by him) They are many people how speak about Kefka, but I don't see many how speaks about Gestahl. He was literally the guy how created Kefka, he was also, the guy that put the world in war, a heartless man, that didn't care about another lives and just use them and then, toss them like broken toys. And also, he was te only one that trusted Kefka, until the end.

[@RX782GP03]

remember, kefka achieved his goal. he won. And at the very end when we defeat him, we didn't win. we just just got by. the world is still messed up, people still dead, and once more kefka got what he wanted. He desired destruction and the end, even of himself.

[@vincenthammons-kd9du]

the world prob eventually healed so it was all pointless

[@RX782GP03]

yeah the world would of healed like how it did after the dinosaurs got wiped out

[@TazzyChannel]

The Golden Sun music that started at 7:00 unlocked a core memory from my youth

[@RMWestcott]

Thanks for the video. Going through a lot right now but being reminded to fight the nihilism was weirdly topical. ❤

[@TheBanditKingKir]

Happy New Year Ghostcharm, Another villain, Kefka Palazzo, It wouldn't do any harm, Requesting Sarah Kerrigan, no?

[@Cavendish_pirate_prince]

Was she really a villain tho? She was under the control of the overmind, and when she was finally freed, she helped with the xel'naga. Arcturus Mengsk for sure was a villain tho

[@ellisnorn259]

Kerrigan yes please

[@Morec0]

​@@Cavendish_pirate_princeIn this house we denounce the SC2 expanded lore and praise the Overmind.

[@Morec0]

@@Cavendish_pirate_prince I pay no mind to bad, retcon laden storytelling. Kerrigan is the Queen Bitch of the Universe. Simple as.

[@ellisnorn259]

@@Morec0 O Ver Mind. Live 4 The Swarm.

[@BloodDripss]

incredible video man. every single video you make hits so hard. ive never sat down to really understand this game as ive never played it before, and the length of the game has always felt daunting. what a truly insane story.

[@thenpcnextdoor105]

I never realized that Cid and Kefka discover the concept of Magicite because we show it to them accidentally in the Magitek Factory.

[@boobah5643]

It's rather impressive that Kefka somehow took that one observation and crafted a spell that forces the transformation on Espers. It's more fuel for the idea that there were other Espers we never see in the Magitek Factory.

[@almightytallestvoldy]

Hey, this is my first video of yours. A friend linked it to me, because they know how much Kefka means to me. I’ve always wanted to make a video like this myself, because as much as I search, I can’t find a video essay or any talk about the things I believe are absolute fact. The first time I played this game, it was at the suggestion of my partner. I was in my 20’s and I think part of that experience (instead of growing up with it and taking some facts for granted since young people aren’t as emotionally developed) has allowed me a very unique, but I don’t think incorrect perspective. I probably never WILL get around to that video, especially since making videos isn’t my focus right now, and because videos like this excellent one cover about 95% of the content I think is necessary to a character profile for Kefka, so I will just bequeath you my insight. One quick note, the zz’s in Palazzo are said like pizza, as it’s Italian, but that is a minor thing. Then to address the video in the order you present it, when it comes to Kefka’s background, I agree completely. I think there is strong profiling evidence that before the magitek soldier experiments, he was weak, probably timid, and possibly looked down on (more on that later).

[@almightytallestvoldy]

As to where he came from and why he was enlisted in the army, a magazine that was published near the time of the game’s release featured profiles for each of the characters. This magazine (while I don’t think 100% accurate as far as the timeline goes, as there is no possible way that Terra and Celes are 18, since that would make Terra -4 at the time of her kidnapping, judging by the length of Gestahl’s campaign) has Kefka as about 35 years old. This would place his birth around the time that Gestahl was making a name for himself in the army. HIS profile states that he was a general in Vector’s army that was winning himself a lot of fame and popularity, and made a lot of changes when he assumed total control of that military and industrial country. I believe that Kefka is Gestahl’s warring and whorring era bastard. I have a lot of circumstantial evidence to support this as well. I think that would explain his selection as the first magitek soldier, especially if he used to be disappointing as far as a man/soldier goes. I think it also explains his preferential treatment, despite his brattish, irrational, and violent behavior (and honestly may be the cause of it in part). My strongest piece of evidence for this is, though, is that in the re-translation for the GameBoy Advance release onward, one of the details that they bothered to change was that was during the confrontation with the party, Gestahl, Kefka, Celes, and the Warring Triad, Gestahl states outright that he wishes, essentially, to officially name Kefka his heir, and that it is his hope that he and Celes go on together to be the proginators of the magic, Gestahlian empire. I find it shocking that people don’t talk more about this detail. We’ll circle back to more on this, but first I have to cover my next big detail. For some context, the FFVI devs have stated that they are big STAR WARS fans, and that FFVI mirrors the story very closely in many respects. One little known detail about the STAR WARS fandom at this time is that book versions of the prequels were already written and in circulation at the point of FFVI’s development, and at least some of the devs had said they had read them. This is important for two details.

[@almightytallestvoldy]

The first pertains to the topic I’ve already covered. It is heavily implied that Sheev Palpatine influenced the flow of the Force and essentially brought about Anikin Skywalker’s birth. I think this further supports the idea that Gestahl is Kefka’s father. It probably isn’t the mystical affair that Anikin’s conception was, just standard “the army is stationed in this town, there’s women here and nothing to do,” but we honestly don’t know either way! The second topic is about how Palpatine manipulated both sides of some major warring bodies to place himself in the best position to assume the most power. I so firmly believe that Gestahl did this, I thought there was going to be a big reveal proving my prediction correct, and as shocked when it was never even addressed. What is that prediction? Banon is Emperor Gestahl in disguise. Let me defend this.

[@almightytallestvoldy]

1)We NEVER see them in the same room at the same time. The Returners are invited to a political peace dinner, the party is there, Banon, the leader of the Returners is glaringly absent. 2)To contradict one detail you made about the expansion of the Gestahlian army, Kefka was the first magitek soldier that lived (they probably were confident it wouldn’t kill him before testing on him) and Celes was the only other successfully made magitek soldier. Magic was fused successfully to the machinery, but no other people in the world (that we knew of) could use magic of any kind. We now that Gestahl wears an armored, magitek suit that allows him to use magic, but he cannot naturally use magic. However, Banon has an ability called “Pray” that essentially allows him to use a kind of magic. I immediately was puzzled since they were adamant in setting up the story that magic was such a foreign concept to most people, and it was why Terra was so special, but then the leader of the Returners, the man most adamant about that detail, can turn around and use magic? How? Why? 3)If Banon is killed in the escape from the Returners base (which, by the way, was conveniently never found until it was necessary to move Gestahl’s plan forwards and right after meeting up with Terra) this results in a Game Over. This is the only character in the game where this happens. Why would this be? Well if the main antagonist is dead, there isn’t exactly a story, now is there? Especially since killing him was PROBABLY not the actual goal of the pursuers. 4)Every. Single. One. Of Banon’s suggestions and goals actually furthers Gestahl’s plans. The Espers have been safe and secluded away from humanity for 1000 years. Eventually Gestahl was going to tap out his magic resources, and it would only be a matter of time before his expansion ended without more power. If Banon really wanted to keep Gestahl from getting the power of the Espers, the best thing to do would be to just leave them alone, as usual, but instead, he pressures Terra into joining them and helping them find their to the rest of the Espers. He was extremely pushy, and guilt tripped Terra, and I immediately disliked and mistrusted him. And who did any of that serve other than Gestahl? You said yourself that Gestahl and Kefka let Terra go on purpose, knowing that she would lead them to the Espers. How could they know that someone that they raised in captivity, who had no memories of her own, would even know to do that? Well, because they planted the idea themselves in the form of Banon, and the planted scenario of Celes’ torture for insubordination. 5)After Gestahl is thrown from the floating continent, Banon is never seen nor mentioned again. Of course, one could assume he was one of the many killed in the formation of the World of Ruin, or even one of those that didn’t escape the double cross by the empire that the bar wench/inn worker lady warned Edgar about in time to get the party out harm’s way, but if the whole party made it out, I think there is a good chance he would have been one of those warned in time. 6)In the magazine, Banon is listed as 54 years old, birthdate October 23rd, 5’8”, weighing 154 pounds (Asian measurements lol, probably inaccurate for a European coded man), and he looks VERY similar to Gestahl. Gestahl’s age has been under some debate and was retconned eventually, but it is said that his father was part of a military coup when he was 13, and he himself became the emperor when he was about 50. The magazine had his age AS 50, but his conquest campaign went on for at least 22-25 years, placing him in his 70’s at the time of the game. The magazine stated that he is 5’8” also, weighs 156 lbs (which is close to Banon, and could be because of his additional magitek armor), and his birthdate was October 26th. It isn’t a stretch to think someone making a secret identity would not be so creative as to give themselves a drastically different birthday, and it might even be considered strategic from the perspective of a culture that puts so much stock into zodiac personalities. Perhaps he thought if he tried to pass himself off as a Cancer people would call “shenanigans!” It certainly is a remarkable coincidence. 7)We know that the ability to use magic to disguise yourself exists, as Kefka assumed the identity of the emperor to torment Leo. I don’t think it would be unreasonable to believe that Gestahl could use his magitek suit to power a disguise spell. I would like to think that Banon is a reflection of Gestahl’s vanity, and likely what he looked like around the age of 50 himself. This would also support him as Kefka’s father, Banon and Kefka both being blonde haired. Both Banon and Gestahl wear capes and a huge belt, which is a popular choice for Amano, but also could be concealing the magical devices. 8)Another parallel I noticed and thought would be addressed was a similar motif. I by no means claim to know anything about music, but I have a pretty good ear for patterns and recognition, and Kefka’s theme (which I thought paralleled the Imperial March, which came to be thought of as the theme of Darth Vader) opens very similarly to a line of melody that is included in the Returners theme. The second I heard the Returners theme, I remember thinking “Ah, they are tipping us off that things are not what they seem here and we shouldn’t be trusting this bunch.” And as time went on I was like “Well no wonder! Banon is an asshole!” And then “Well he is DEFINITELY Gestahl!” Like….. I thought it was totally obvious??? But this was apparently a big revelation to my partner???? And no one else thought that????????? But like…. That makes sense, right? I remember reading that in subsequent interviews that while they originally had MORE development time and resources than they needed, as it got a bit closer to its completion, that several key members of the Chrono Trigger team fell ill, so they started pulling people (including Uematsu) from VI to work on CT, and some of the ideas they were planning to implement, that were apparently very lore heavy, were not completed. They have even now remained very tight lipped on these details, giving me hope that it will one day be revisited in the form of a remake. (Side note, I personally think the PERFECT style for a FFVI remake would resemble Honkai Star Rail more than FFVII-R)

[@almightytallestvoldy]

Finally, I want to build on what you said about Kefka’s motivation. BIG. AGREE. That was NOT a man with a plan. He didn’t want revenge on humanity or who was upset by what had happened to him. He embraced his new identity, and part of that was the makeup. His profile states that he loves, fine food, collecting and playing with dolls, and mirrors and looking at “himself” in them, but also that he always has the happy facade on. I think the only thing he really WANTS is more power, and he only wants that to furnish his own comfort (sand on his boots, fine things) and to prove his points that nothing anyone does counts for anything no matter what. Especially in Japanese, he refers to others as dolls and toys, and events are games for winning, further emphasizing how nihilistic he is in thinking other people’s lives and feelings aren’t real/something for him to play with. He hates to be reminded of his former self, in my opinion, and harbors bitterness about how highly valued “muscle-heads” and soldiers are, as shown in his dislike for Leo in addition to his being a goody-two-shoes. I think this further supports him being weak and scrawny, and therefore probably undervalued and ridiculed, and the only form of “revenge” he harbors is wanting to lord the fact that he was able to rise to power without being a good soldier, but though magic, and tenacity, and ferocity. Oh, if I hadn’t made it clear before, I don’t think Kefka necessarily knows he’s Gestahl’s son. But that said, I do think he came to expect the preferential treatment, and I think he planned to remain loyal to Gestahl as long as Gestahl kept with the plan of “more power.” I think he was honestly really excited by the idea of inheriting the Empire and ruling it with Celes, as he actually seemed pretty eager for her to rejoin their side. I do think that Celes joining the party was a trick. I was personally unsure if she KNEW she was part of the trick, though. The whole thing might have been staged, but I believed it was equally plausible that Kefka and Gestahl ordered the troops to lock her up and beat her etc. to get her to honestly join the Returners, play her part, and then would see the ingenious of the plan and come loyally straight back. Based on his reaction, I really think Kefka was shocked and as hurt as he could be. Anyway, there is probably more, I spend a lot of time thinking about this and how much I wish there was more VI content than there is. I hope this read was an intriguing as your video is, and that the prospects excite you as much as it does me and not just some tiresome thing. It’s a very important topic to me. My heart breaks for Kefka (and I revel in his fun wickedness), and I hope to honor him with full understanding of his character. Hopefully I’ll have enough money to buy some merch and support you later this month, and looking forward to more lore videos.

[@boobah5643]

@@almightytallestvoldy Well, you're just wrong here. In 1994 _Star Wars_ fandom still believed that the clones were the people the Jedi fought against in the Clone Wars. Heck, the entire Expanded Universe wasn't much more than Zahn's Thrawn trilogy (which had concluded the year before.) Heck, the story of the prequel trilogy wasn't finished when it entered production, and Lucas claims to have started writing the prequels in November, 1994... six months *after* _Final Fantasy VI's_ April release.

[@and_also_aaron3372]

Hi! Excellent work on the video. A correction you might want to consider: In the actual game of Final Fantasy 6, the only information given about his backstory (and this is a rumor presented in the game) is that he was the first person who went through the process to become a Magitek Knight by being experimented on by Cid and lost his mind because the process wasn't perfect. Everything outside of that bit of information is conjecture and fan fiction. There is a little bit more that can be inferred in-game based on his dialogue, the story's theme of loss, and the Kefka's tower fight, but again at best, this is fan theory only.

[@Arutima]

27:00 Of course, most people at that time thought that it was nearing the end of the game, since most all Final Fantasy games before VI were no longer than 20 hours long.

[@tpolutts3309]

Funnily enough not for anyone playing it back when it released. The two-sided map kinda spoiled that.

[@Blasharga]

Maybe someone with a litteratur background can help, but I always figured kefka as a reference to Franz Kafka.

[@Daniel-j1f8d]

Literature👈

[@jrasealexander5480]

Beautifully done. An essay worthy of the greatest RPG ever made. But bro. . . you didn’t wait for Shadow?!🥺

[@history272915]

Yo I'm broke rn but you did a great job with this merch drop! Shit is clean clean

[@cheekym8init]

That you for covering this gem. It does not get nearly enough attention. It really is the GOAT for at least final fantasy

[@indigopandora1829]

The jester covering an evil jester?

[@goreobsessed2308]

Just remember kefka actually pulled off his plan unlike many villains

[@BoneShoulderBro]

THE BIGGEST BAD OF ALL TIME IN FF, NO DOUBT LETS GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

[@oberondargos5465]

I remember playing this as a kid and finding Kefka so obnoxious and couldn't wait for his downfall, like it always happens to the main villain's goofy, treasonous henchman. BOY! What a twist. Wish I could replay without memory, so to relive the shock.

[@edluke3415]

I remember seeing this game for sale in Sear's when I was a kid. It was the first I saw a game being incredibly overpriced at $150. Obviously it was called Final Fantasy Three because I'm in the US, but it was insane seeing a price that high. Flash forward to 1999 and I have a computer and my friends tells me about emulators and ROMS, and I immediately spent hours on different sites collecting all the games I never got to play on the NES, SNES, and Sega Genesis. Playing this game for the first time, even on an emulator, was like two months of playing just this game. After I beat it, I went back to my PlayStation and started playing Vagrant Story, which I ended up never beating because my friend accidentally damaged the disc. Great video, it brought back all those memories of not only playing this game but what was going on in my life at that time.

[@Egryn]

Millennial kids: Omg sephiroth is the baddest villain ever Xennials: You mean that guy with mommy issues? Let me show you a God of villainy.

[@Bruced82]

They are in many aspects quite similar: same sort of origin (exposure to magic/alien force), go mad, kill their "boss", want to destroy everything, and become a god...

[@snotsbuttwax]

Lol those games were released 3 years apart. Millennials also grew up on ffiv and ffvi.

[@alchemispark7751]

Really annoying youre still being shafted by the algorithm, but im really happy youre still making your stuff. its lovely to have on in the background and its really entertaining when you talk about something you really care about

[@BananaBanditos]

I'm a big fan of the FF games where the Espers/Eidolons are actual characters and not just objects to be used as a battle command. IV, VI, and IX are my three favorite in part due to that.

[@ellisnorn259]

@@BananaBanditos FF9 is my favorite ❤

[@richritter3437]

Missed that little tidbit about the discount code! Consider my full price purchase as a tip for all these great videos! Keep up the great work. I wouldn't know half the lore to my favorite games without you.

[@TeflonTrout]

"The bad guy has won...and now the world is fundamentally changed." Welcome to 2025, ladies, gentlemen, and enbies. Look out for each other.

[@charlesrainey1076]

Not all heros wear capes. And some immature and emotionally vulnerable clowns are spray tan orange.

[@joshportie]

It's tanning beds that make you orange actually. ​@@charlesrainey1076

[@Peter-h6n1b]

You made orange man possible. You want to know what creates evil? We de do. We allow it. But you're too dumb and lazy to see. To cowardly to do anything. It's just a president, the real evil is those telling you to think about stuff. Those that fill your minds to overflowing with thoughts and feelings that weren't originally your own.