29 Years Later, The 1990s' Best Fantasy Is Everything Game of Thrones Should Have Been

Published Sep 16, 2026, 12:00 PM EDT

Evan Mullicane is the deputy editor of Screen Rant's comics and anime team. Having started as a writer for the comics team at the beginning of the Pandemic, Evan was swiftly promoted from writer to editor, and then from editor to lead of Screen Rant's newly established anime vertical.

Throughout his time with Screen Rant, Evan has made a handful of appearances at conventions such as Anime Expo and San Diego Comic-Con, and has interviewed some of the biggest names in Anime and Comics history.

In addition to editing anime and manga articles for Screen Rant, Evan is also a science fiction and fantasy author. In 2018 and 2019, his short story "The Demon's Mother" won honorable mentions from the Writers of the Future contest.

You can find Evan on Twitter @EvanDM and BlueSky @evandmu.bsky.socia

No TV series has shaped modern fantasy quite like Game of Thrones. HBO's adaptation of George R.R. Martin's seminal A Song of Ice and Fire novel series was such an overnight hit that it basically gave adult fantasy more mainstream relevance than it had in decades. For nearly a decade, Game of Thrones wasn't just a niche hit; it was a pop-culture juggernaut that was winning critic awards as often as it was breaking viewership records for HBO.

Unfortunately, that's hardly what Game of Thrones is remembered for in the modern day. After years of effusive praise, Game of Thrones' last few seasons were met with controversy after controversy. This all culminated in a finale that was poorly received at the time and has only been looked at more harshly as time passes.

Despite HBO's solid attempts at reviving the franchise with new prequels like House of the Dragon and A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, it's hard for many to shake the memory of the original series' disappointing ending.

Luckily for fans, there is another fantasy that effectively captures the magic of those early Game of Thrones seasons. The deep web of political intrigue, the morally complex characters, and the mountains of lore that come with a well-built fantasy world are all captured perfectly by the 1997 classic Final Fantasy Tactics. Though the game might not have as wide an appeal as Game of Thrones did in its prime, the story absolutely stands proud as a landmark achievement for the fantasy genre.

Final Fantasy Tactics' Story Is Truly Exemplary

Released on the original PlayStation in 1997 by RPG giant Square, Final Fantasy Tactics trades the franchise's typical character-based melodrama for something far more epic in scale. The game takes place in the medieval Europe-inspired kingdom of Ivalice and follows a young knight named Ramza, who is the illegitimate son of a prominent noble.

In the aftermath of a vicious war, Ivalice's king dies unexpectedly, leaving a power vacuum that throws the kingdom into the maelstrom of a vicious civil war known as the War of the Lions. However, as Ivalice plunges deeper and deeper into the conflict, Ramza uncovers hard truths that threaten to unravel the very foundations of Ivalice's society.

Running parallel to Ramza's story is that of his one-time best friend, Delita. Born a commoner and furious after the unjust death of his sister, Delita works behind the scenes to gain political favor and come out on top in a kingdom brought to its knees by seemingly endless fighting.

Final Fantasy Tactics Takes Everything Good About Game Of Thrones' Story And Amplifies It

If any of that sounds familiar to Game of Thrones fans, there's good reason for that. Though it would have been basically impossible for 1996's A Game of Thrones to influence a game that began development in 1995, both fantasy masterpieces take clear inspiration from the real-world War of the Roses. Martin and Tactics director Yasumi Matsuno use the base of a medieval war of succession as a springboard to tackle issues of class, power, religion, and gender.

Though Final Fantasy Tactics might not be nearly as transformational as either the A Game of Thrones book or HBO's adaptation, it's often hailed as the best video game story of all time for good reason.

While Game of Thrones the series is practically stuffed to bursting with character arcs and plotlines, Final Fantasy Tactics tells a much more compact story without sacrificing any of the nuance. All players need to understand Ivalice and its world are the perspectives of Ramza and Delita.

While a tighter story obviously helps the pacing of Final Fantasy Tactics immensely, it also notably helps the game's finale. Final Fantasy Tactics has a truly remarkable ending that quite neatly wraps up Ramza and Delita's stories in a way that feels inevitable, tragic, and wholly earned.

All of this is coated in an intensely political coating. There's a reason Final Fantasy Tactics' themes of inequality and political subjugation feel just as relevant in 2026 as they did in 1997. While Final Fantasy Tactics may not be for a general audience like Game of Thrones is, the game truly deserves to rank among the 1990s' best fantasy stories.

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