While Final Fantasy titles are generally well known for featuring vibrant and lovable casts of characters swept up into intriguing plots across immersive fantasy worlds, experienced fans know to prepare their hearts for a beating before getting emotionally invested. After all, the games have also got a reputation for suddenly and unceremoniously skewering one of those characters with a katana of impossible length.

RELATED: Square Enix's Best RPGs That Aren't Final Fantasy

But what's a little emotional scarring, so long as it's endured for the sake of a great story? Here are the ten tastiest bits of emotional trauma the Final Fantasy series has seen fit to inflict upon its dedicated fandom over the past twenty-two years. It should probably go without saying, but this is a spoiler-rich environment. Proceed with caution.

Updated July 31, 2023 by Kendall Cunningham: The Final Fantasy series has never been known for holding back on the emotional gut-punches, and Final Fantasy 16 is no exception. With sixteen entries to date and plenty of history to reach back to, it feels like a great time to revisit this topic and add a few more heartbreaking moments in.

15 Final Fantasy 16: Finding Chloe

Final Fantasy 16 screenshot of Clive and a young girl standing near Chloe's corpse

Generally speaking, Final Fantasy 16 tells an overall somber story. The entire realm of Valisthea is plagued by bigotry and hatred throughout each of its different nations, with its magic-wielding citizens sporting a facial brand that designates them as worthless slaves. This status quo essentially serves as the backdrop of the game's entire plot, with the story revolving around liberating said Branded.

Of course, this is Final Fantasy, which means the game will take every opportunity it gets to hit you where it hurts emotionally, and the tragic lives of the Branded are no exception. About midway through the game, you'll encounter a small girl searching for her "pet," Chloe. After helping her out, you'll discover that Chloe isn't an animal, but a Branded woman who had died from mistreatment. It is arguably the side quest that best illustrates the status quo of Final Fantasy 16's world.

14 Final Fantasy 9: The Seige Of Burmecia

Final Fantasy 9 screenshot of Freya, Vivi and Zidane approaching Burmecia

Political turmoil runs rampant in Final Fantasy 9's world of Gaia, as the powerful kingdom of Alexandria runs amok all over the realm. Alexandria's political ambitions are often checked by its neighboring nations, such as Burmecia, the rainy city with whom Alexandria has waged many violent wars.

During the events of the game, the main character Zidane and one of your companions, a Burmecian warrior named Freya, learn that Alexandria has lain seige to Burmecia. Your party races back to Freya's hometown only to find it in ruins, with dead soldiers already littered across the land. Freya's heartbreak as she travels the ruins of her home is truly a devastating sight.

13 Final Fantasy 4: The Twins' Sacrifice

Palom and Porom from Final Fantasy 4 casting a spell together on the left, and turned to stone on the right

Quite early on in Final Fantasy 4, you meet two magical prodigies from Mysidia - a Black Mage named Palom and a White Mage named Porom. Together, they make for incredibly useful companions for Cecil on his quest to become a Paladin. After Cecil's success, the twins pledge themselves to him, joining him on his journey.

Only hours later, after beating the false king Cagnazzo in Baron, the party finds themselves trapped inside a room with the walls moving in on them. The twins, despite being so young, decide to sacrifice themselves by turning themselves into statues, halting the walls' progress. Interacting with them brings up a menu that implies there is some way to reverse the statue-ification, but nothing works. Their sacrifice was a big one.

12 Final Fantasy 14: Haurchefant's Death

A headshot of the character Haurchefant with a bit of fire in background

After a tricky and rather tedious first release, the first expansion for Final Fantasy 14, Heavensward, really upped the game in its narrative. It was more engaging and the characters were more interesting - the principal among these was Haurchefant Greystone, a noble from Ishgard who becomes not only your biggest cheerleader but a close friend over the course of the expansion.

RELATED: Final Fantasy Easter Eggs In Other Games

Near the climax of the expansion, you take on the Vault of Ishgard, the church's well-defended fortress. After beating the final boss of the dungeon, Haurchefant is struck down at a crucial moment, and no healing magic can save him. His final words are touching and heartbreaking.

A smile better suits a hero.

11 Final Fantasy 7 Remake: The Sector 7 Plate Collapse

Final Fantasy 7 remake screenshot of Barret standing in Sector 7 rubble

Final Fantasy 7 Remake may only contain the first portion of the original Final Fantasy 7's story, depicting the portion of the game that takes place in Midgar, but there is still plenty of content present to tug at your heart strings. No moment stands as tall as the ill-fated battle to keep Sector 7's plate from crashing down, destroying the city and it's inhabitants.

The original Final Fantasy 7's version of the Sector 7 disaster was heartbreaking enough, with characters you've grown to know and love falling victim to Shinra's nefarious attack. But the game's remake takes things to another level by having you play through some of the game's rescue efforts, witnessing the death and destruction raining around you. It all culminates in the gut-wrenching scene that takes place just beyond Sector 7's crumbled city limits, as Barret wails and curses fate, believing that all of his loved ones (and possibly his daughter) had just perished.

10 Final Fantasy 15: Lunafreya's Sacrifice

With a list like this, it's usually a lot more about the story and emotional impact than it is about the graphics. But a little bit of visual spectacle at the right time can magnify that impact ten times over, and that's precisely the case with Lunafreya's death in Final Fantasy 15.

The dream sequence that accompanies Lunafreya giving her life to protect Noctis is nothing short of spectacular, and Noctis' genuine distress as he struggles to reach her towards the end of it is uncomfortably memorable.

9 Final Fantasy 5: Galuf's Death

Some of the earlier Final Fantasy titles had difficulty conveying genuine distress through their characters' dialogue and actions earlier on in the series but really started to nail it around the fourth and fifth installments.

Galuf's passing after his bout with Exdeath in Final Fantasy 5 is a prime example, with his granddaughter, Krile, going into absolute hysterics as he shuffles his way off this mortal coil. It's touching (and a bit convenient) that she's able to inherit his stats afterward, just to ensure that the player isn't deprived of the time they'd sunk into him.

8 Final Fantasy 10: Tidus Fades Away

Final Fantasy 10's ending is the epitome of bittersweet, with Yuna having broken Spira's never-ending cycle of death and thus creating a brave new future for its people, while dream boy and key love interest Tidus fades away before the audience's very eyes.

RELATED: Final Fantasy 10: Should You Use The Standard Or Expert Sphere Grid?

Refusing to process the idea that he needs to fade away from existence, Yuna rushes towards him, only to find that she can't even hug him goodbye since he's practically incorporeal by then. To cap it all off, their budding romantic arc was one of the most sweetly written the series had ever produced up to that point.

7 Final Fantasy 8: Laguna Visits Raine's Grave

Final Fantasy 8 has what is probably the most surreal and interpretation-heavy ending in the entirety of the series' history, which is saying quite a bit. Even with the multitude of theories that have spawned from it, the inescapable fact is that it's all pretty sad.

While there's a silver lining in Ellone's appearance towards the end of Laguna's segment, the player is run through a beautifully rendered flashback of Laguna proposing to Raine as he visits her grave. After the jarring and cerebral sequence they'd gone through with Squall, a lot of players just weren't ready for such an emotional scene.

6 Final Fantasy 6: Celes' Attempted Suicide

Final Fantasy 6 definitely told one of the bleakest stories across the entirety of the series. The villain essentially achieves his goals, it's peppered with several momentous character deaths, and the entirety of the expansive cast experiences loss and the subsequent emotional turmoil very deeply.

The perfect example of this is given if Cid dies when he's marooned on the island with Celes after Kefka brings about the World of Ruin. Unable to cope with the apparent loss of everything she holds dear, Celes throws herself off of a cliff, shedding sparkling tears the entire way down.

5 Final Fantasy 9: The Black Mage Village

Final Fantasy IX Vivi Ornitier and Black Mage army

Arguably the most adorable depiction of a Black Mage yet, Vivi seemed built to win over fans' hearts with his powerful magic and affable, innocent demeanor. Unfortunately, that innocence is born from being a manufactured super-weapon, and Black Mages at large don't seem well equipped for actual lives.

RELATED: Final Fantasy 9: Ending, Explained

Vivi learning that he likely doesn't have long to live is sad enough, but it's made clear that most Black Mages don't even understand the concept of death. When Number 56 indicates his lack of understanding concerning why his friend had to be buried after he "stopped moving," he expresses a childlike innocence in saying that he'll wash him off in the nearby pond when he pops back out.

4 Final Fantasy Type-0: The Ending

Type-0's overarching themes are death, war, memories of the fallen, and more death, so it was likely made apparent that players would want to have a box of tissues at the ready for the finale.

Almost the entirety of the now-doomed Class Zero, wounded and confronting their imminent mortality, manage to ward off their fear and intensifying existential dread by making impossible plans for the future they won't have. While it manages to stave off the characters' tears, it prompts nothing short of ugly crying on the part of the audience.

3 Final Fantasy Tactics: Delita & Ovelia's Ending

Final Fantasy Tactics Cutscene Delita and Ovelia

The story of Final Fantasy Tactics is pretty tragic, all things considered. But even with the game being totally riddled with gut-wrenching plot twists, the crowning moment is easily the final scene between Delita and Ovelia.

Unable to reconcile the ultimate cost of Delita's Machiavellian machinations, the now-queen Ovelia stabs Delita, who kills her in turn. Though achieved for noble cause, his pursuit of power required so much sacrifice that his humanity seems to have slipped away, and he simply wonders if Ramza achieved his own ends as he bleeds and Ovelia dies behind him.

2 Final Fantasy 7: Aerith Dies

For a lot of gamers, this might have been the first time that a video game actually made them cry. If not for the emotional toll of Aerith's death, then for the fact that they'd been relying on her as the main healer and now needed to rope a different party member in for the job.

RELATED: Best Katanas In Video Games

It may not have been the first time they decided to kill off a central character as we looked on helplessly, but it's unlikely there's a Final Fantasy fan in existence that isn't familiar with the heartbreaking moment Sephiroth suddenly popped up and murdered our beloved Flower Girl. Reliving that trauma in the remake should be lovely.

1 Final Fantasy 6: Realizing You Could Save Shadow

Escaping the floating continent is a frantic affair. Kefka has ascended to power, the whole thing seems to be exploding, and just in case that wasn't enough, an ominous timer counts down toward oblivion from the corner of the screen. The player isn't made to feel like they've got time to wait once they finally make it to their airship, but they're nonetheless given the option to do so.

Seemingly losing the enigmatic ninja Shadow after he heroically saves the party would've been wounding enough, but a player realizing that they could have actually saved his life if they'd waited just a bit longer before jumping onto the airship is totally soul-crushing.

NEXT: Final Fantasy Villains That Are Overpowered