And what has your public broadcaster done for you lately?

We here at SoraNews24 often like to poke fun at Japan’s public broadcaster NHK, by playfully calling them a societal scourge and perpetrators of car-sex-adultery. It’s all in good fun, but the fact is they do provide a valuable public service in their content.

And perhaps their greatest benefit to Japan is the upcoming All Final Fantasy Election.

NHK is currently accepting votes from the public, to decide once and for all which is the best game in the ironically long-running series. This includes all major titles from Final Fantasy to Final Fantasy XV, as well as off-shoots such as Final Fantasy Tactics, Dissidia, Crisis Core, and much more. A whopping 57 candidates to be exact.

And that’s the easy vote. The election also has a category for the best character, and let me tell you, this is one hell of a comprehensive list. Even really minor NPCs are eligible to be voted for, resulting in a total of roughly 3,300 characters.

▼ So all you “Old Fishing Guy from FFVIII” fans out there can finally let your voices be heard.

Not big enough for you? Okay, there’s also the Boss/Summon category which lets anyone chose their favorite boss or summoned monster from a list of about 4,400. Bear in mind this is for each game, so rather than simply voting for Bahamut or Odin you’d have to vote for a particular game’s depiction of said monster.

If you’re like me, you’re probably thinking that final Kefka fight from FFVI is the one to beat. But actually NHK split the vote between all his different body parts which complicates things.

Finally for the more subtle attribute of Final Fantasy, we can also choose from 2,900 of the game series’ themes and scores.

If I were a Vegas bookie, I’d probably put the prelude from the original game or the chocobo theme as odds-on favorites.

Voting will continue until midnight on 11 February, 2020, and the results will be broadcast on NHK’s satellite channel on the evening of 29 February. Already, it has already sparked discussion online as to who everyone’s voting for in Japan.

“It’s pretty exhausting going through all that.”

“NHK really did their homework. They even have minor smartphone games.”

“Geez, I can’t decide!”

“I only played FFVI, FFVII, and FFVIII but I still remember them fondly.”

“Personally I think FFV is the best, but I love FFVI too! And FFX made me cry. I can’t choose!”

“Cactuar has my vote.”

“FFVIII sucks.”

“I think either FFIV, FFVII, or FFX.”

“Cloud or Sephiroth.”

“Final Fantasy Tactics for sure.”

“Final Fantasy III is the best. It really went downhill after FFVIII.”

Well, there certainly doesn’t seem to be a clear-cut consensus, so let me settle the matter:

Final Fantasy IV is the best game and has the best character in Edward Chris von Muir, also known as “You spoony bard!”

Best summoned monster is Tonberry from FFVIII. It’s a little fish ghoul that shanks foes with a butcher’s knife. What’s not to love?

▼ “Doink!”

And the best song is the opera from Final Fantasy VI. I don’t care if they sound like Charlie Brown’s teacher, I still get chills at the climax.

There. Now that that’s all sorted, I’m shall now put my fingers in my ears and shout “LALALA-I-CAN’T-HEAR-YOU-LALALA” from now until the Emperor’s Birthday.

Source: NHK All Final Fantasy Election, My Game News Flash

Featured image: Twitter/nhk_animeworld

Photos: SoraNews24

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