Moogles are one of the recurring creatures to appear inFinal Fantasygames and made their first appearance inFinal Fantasy 3. Like the chocobo, moogles were a creation of game designer, producer, and director, Koichi Ishii. Also in similarity with the chocobo, moogles became known as a mascot ofFinal Fantasywith several pieces of merchandise released and many appearances made since their debut. While their design through the various games have subtle differences,moogles are known for their head-pom, white furry bodies, small wings, and pink noses.
In terms of their roles in the games, they have had all kinds of jobs. Moogles have been shopkeepers, enemies, bodyguards, playable characters, toys, summons, save points, sky pirates, ridable mounts, advisors, record-keepers, assistants, and so much more. As moreFinal Fantasygames come out, there is no doubt that even more moogles will become part of this legacy of furry fantasy creatures. In terms of how their legacy began, their concept was created in the 80s by Ishii when he had an idea for cave-dwellering creatures inFinal Fantasy 3.
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What Inspired Moogles
Ishii was a designer that created chocobos based on his elementary school memories, and the story behind moogles was similar. They were based on an idea he drew back in elementary school of a koala-like creature.Square Enixpublished an interview with Ishii forFinal Fantasy 3’s30th anniversary, and he explained all about how he created moogles in the interview. Apparently, he really liked koalas and often drew fantasy creatures similar to them as a kid.
The first concept of moogles actually put them in a very specific role, to be a cave-dwelling race. This actually makes sense when their names are examined, asmoogles are a blend of the words “mole” and “bat” in Japanese, both being animals associated with dark places. According to the producer ofFinal Fantasy 3, Hiromichi Tanaka, moogles were never expected to become mascots. They were also partly inspired by the infravision ability inDungeons and Dragons, which is the superhuman ability to see in the dark.
Moogles are known for saying “kupo” all the time, but that was not until the 3D release ofFinal Fantasy 3. In the original, the moogles actually said “nyaa,” like a Japanese cat. According to Ishii, he never imagined them to be talkative. As for why it was decided for moogles to say “kupo,” that is a detail still unknown. In early games, “kupo” would be all moogles would say, but that slowly developed into kupo being a verbal tic they used while speaking human language. It was inFinal Fantasy 7that kupo nuts were introduced, which are a moogles' favorite food.
How Moogles Developed Throughout The Series
Moogles were actually almost inFinal Fantasy 2, but that idea was scrapped and their first appearance was as bodyguards for a sage inFinal Fantasy 3. They did not appear inFinal Fantasy 4, but got an entire Moogle Village inFinal Fantasy 5. In both the fourth and fifth numbered games, moogles were known as a magical race that keep themselves distant from most humans. This idea of them as magical and often avoiding humans became traits often used in future games.
The first playable moogle, one named Mog, was seen inFinal Fantasy 6. In some games after, though, moogles sometimes only appears as toys and also were sometimes just called “Mogs.” The first time this happened was in the originalFinal Fantasy 7, where Mogs mostly were just toys and mascots with the small occasion of also being a summon. Their popularity with fans also made moogles have minor appearances in games outside ofFinal Fantasy,such asKingdom Hearts, Assassin’s Creed: Origins,Dragon Quest, Mario Sports Mix,and theManaseries.
In most games, moogles looked similar, but sometimes they had unique looks. They had rabbit-like designs inFinal Fantasy 12andFinal Fantasy Tactics, and theyalso deviated from the normal design inFinal Fantasy Crystal Chronicles,where they have no arms and their ears are larger, giving them almost a chinchilla-like look. InDissidia, their noses and pom-poms are enormous and exaggerated.
With so many variations ofmoogles since their first creation by Ishii, every player has different favorite depictions. While mostFinal Fantasygames are not connected to each other by world and story, there is comfort in seeing the familiar moogles play a part in each title. Their conception is also an inspiring story of how an elementary school kid’s imagined fantasy creature went on to become one of the most recognizable fantasy races in gaming.
Final Fantasy 3is available to play on Android, iOS, Steam, and Windows.
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