Highlights
- Chocobos are iconic in Final Fantasy, debuting in FF2 and becoming essential mascots.
- Some Chocobos, like Chobi from FF Unlimited, are central characters with unique roles.
- FF games feature different Chocobo uses, from companions in battles to racing and breeding mini-games.
Chocobos first appeared in Final Fantasy 2, which was a 1988 debut in Japan. They have basically been around as long as the entirety of Final Fantasy minus the first year, becoming essential to the brand as mascots.
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Equip Cloud, Aerith, Barrett, Tifa, and the rest of the party with the strongest and most useful weapons you can find in FFVII Rebirth.Chocobos are so widely adored that they even have their own spinoff games. It seemed too obvious for any of those to enter our considerations for best Chocobos, they're the stars of their own game after all. Instead, we focused on mainline games, with a few surprises thrown in for good measure.
Updated March 12, 2024, by Jon Eakin: Final Fantasy is a series that releases fantastic new games regularly, which means new Chocobos for us to marvel over. We decided our favourite feathered friends needed to be shown the love they deserve, so we've given this list some real polish and added new entries to reflect just how many Final Fantasy games provide us with amazing Chocobos.
12 Final Fantasy 2 (And Pixel Remaster)
The OC - Original Chocobo
Final Fantasy 2 was, obviously, the second game in the series. It does, however, hold the distinct honor of being the very first game to feature Chocobos, which you could argue makes it even more historically important than the first game, depending on how much you love Chocobos.
For the pixel remaster of the original Final Fantasy developers actually added in Chocobos for the animation of the Confuse spell.
Even though that means you can find Chocobos in the first game, it's a retroactive addition, Final Fantasy 2 still had them first.
11 Final Fantasy 13
A Bird In The Hand
The Chocobo chick in Sazh’s hair does not do much. In fact, it doesn’t do anything at all, but it is still useful in its own way. The bleak melodramatic story is a lot to take in, so getting interrupted by a cute little baby Chocobo from time to time can be a relaxing reprieve.
Fun fact, baby Chocobo like the one Sazh looks after are actually called Chicobo! This was first revealed in Final Fantasy 8 and has been a quiet part of series canon ever since.
10 Final Fantasy Unlimited
Chobi, Unsung Hero
Chobi, the Chocobo in this almost-forgotten anime, is actually a central character. He gets the gang out of danger on occasion and even transforms into a battle-ready bird as the show progresses.
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As well as Sephiroth, Jenova is one of Final Fantasy 7's biggest villains.Just like all Chocobo, Chobi is adorable and one of the main reasons to check out Final Fantasy Unlimited. You know you want more Chocobo in your life, and this way you can have it even outside of playing video games.
Most people haven't even heard of Final Fantasy Unlimited, but it's a fun anime. If you're a fan of the games then you'll probably enjoy the show, but it's worth being aware that it is mostly aimed at a younger audience.
9 Final Fantasy 5
A Best Friend
Boko fills a similar role as Chobi from Final Fantasy Unlimited. He is a central character as Bartz’s trusty companion, with his own involvement in the story. This was the first time in the main series a Chocobo would be more than just a mount.
Sadly, Boko didn't bring us any amazing mini-games like the Chocobos in other games, but he's still the first one in the series to be considered a character in his own right. That makes him stand out from the rest of the flock.
8 Final Fantasy Adventure
Enter The Chocoverse
For those unaware, Final Fantasy Adventure is actually the first game in the Mana series. Despite that fact, Chocobos are still in it. You're able to find an egg, which eventually hatches into a Chocobo.
This bird will accompany the hero for a short period of time, acting as a companion. It even helps with combat, and while it doesn't hang around for long, this battling bird is special for crossing over from one series to another.
7 Final Fantasy 10
Don't Make Us Do This Minigame Again, Please
Most frustrating Chocobo usage? Yes. The racing mini-game you have to do in order to get Tidus’ ultimate weapon is a real pain. You need a lot of luck and sheer willpower to get through those trials. That said acquiring his weapon is worth it if you want to take on the more challenging bosses the game has to offer.
Besides that quest, Tidus can also rent Chocobos to take him around the world, accessing areas only they can jump to. They’re basically tools to help get some of the best content in the game, including unlocking every Aeon.
6 Final Fantasy 15
Chocobos Are Better Than Cars
Most Final Fantasy games have Chocobos around as a means of traversal, it's a staple of the series. This is true for Final Fantasy 15 as well, but the size of the map in this game makes unlocking Chocobo riding a big deal.
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Final Fantasy has some truly epic bosses throughout the series, and these are the hardest to beat of them all.The obvious reason is that the world is huge and filled with monsters always on the prowl. Driving around in a car is luxurious, but it only helps on roads. Chocobos can get into the deepest and darkest of places. Final Fantasy 15 had a rocky development, but the Chocobos clearly got a lot of love from the devs. Plus they’re cute and players can drift with them as if they were in The Fast and the Furious. Or would it be more like The Fast and the Featheriest?
5 World Of Final Fantasy
Stack 'Em Up
Chocobos return once again as an aid in battle. Only this time they can be a permanent fixture rather than a temporary companion. World of Final Fantasy is, in a lot of ways, like a Pokemon game. Two teenage kids, that look straight out of Kingdom Hearts, are on a quest and are aided by the ability to capture monsters and stack them on their heads for battle.
One of the first monsters they can get is a Chocobo hatchling who wears a little egg on his head as a hat. Since it is so early on, it isn’t as powerful as later beasties. That said it is too cute not to appreciate, putting a hat on your series mascot is a surefire way to our hearts.
4 Final Fantasy Tactics
Fighting A Horse Would Be Easier
For many of you, the Chocobos in Final Fantasy Tactics redefined the species. They could be captured in the wild for party members, making seeking them out a worthwhile activity. There were a lot of varieties as well with colors denoting special abilities.
The first time you run into one, you probably felt awful about having to battle it. However, once that beak did some damage you might have a sudden change of heart. These things were fierce! They were like war horses, ready for battle, but better because they're Chocobos.
3 Final Fantasy 7
You Needed A Guide To Understand This Sidequest
Final Fantasy 7 evolved the role of Chocobos to the extreme. First of all, in order to make it across the marsh outside of Midgar you had to capture one to make the trek safely. If you talked to the birds at the nearby farm you would get the Summon, Choco/Mog, which either summoned a Mog riding a Chocobo stampeding into battle or if players were lucky, a giant, fat Chocobo would drop from the sky.
On top of that, the farm would later be used for an intricate breeding mini-game. The plan was simple. Mate Chocobos in order to yield special ones to then use to find some of the best stuff in the game, like the ultimate Summon, Knights of the Round. Oh, right, and you also had to race their birds in order to increase stats so that their babies could be better. Up to that point, it was the most intricate side quest along with being the first to majorly involve Chocobos.
2 Final Fantasy 9
"Kweh. Kweh!?"
You could first find Choco the Chocobo just outside of the city of Lindblum. You could not only use him for transportation, but Choco could also play Chocobo Hot and Cold wherein players pecked the ground, looking for treasure.
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While many summons can be found in multiple entries in the series, these ones had only one moment to shine.This would eventually yield treasure maps players would then have to locate on the world map. This, in turn, eventually led to opening up new locations for hunts along with evolving Choco. This implementation was like having Boko being bred with Final Fantasy 7's mini-game. The prizes were useful, but the bond was even better.
1 Final Fantasy 14
They Do It All
Final Fantasy 14 has an almost overwhelming number of features and systems for you to explore thanks to its continuing updates, but one of the most impressive is how important the developers have managed to make Chocobos. Naturally, they're available as a mount, allowing either manual or automatic travel, but they do so much more.
Your Chocobo can be used for battle, filling different roles selected by the player, making them perfect for solo play. Is your character a DPS? Set your feathery companion to be a healer so you no longer have to worry about your HP. You can customize your Chocobo with various barding, change their plumage colour, and there's, of course, Chocobo racing. If you're a Chocobo fanatic, there really is no game that treats them better than Final Fantasy 14.
