Commonly recurring features include: the series' 'mascot' creature, chocobos, that are often used as steeds a character named Cid who is usually associated with engineering moogles, cute, flying creatures that often aid the player by facilitating some manner of in-game mechanics the mythology-based summoned creatures that can be called forth to aid players in battle and are also commonly fought as bosses the job system, whereby playable characters are defined by their unique job classes and the active time battle system, an evolution of the classic turn-based system common in early JRPGs, where a unit's speed determines how many actions they can take. The series is defined by its recurring gameplay mechanics, themes and features. The majority of the games are stand-alone stories with unique characters, scenarios and settings, though several spin-offs and sequels to main series games continue stories within the same worlds. The series has also branched into other forms of media, particularly films, novels, and manga.

The series has been distributed on many platforms, beginning with the Nintendo Entertainment System, and including consoles, computers, mobile operating systems and game streaming services. Though the core series is a role-playing game franchise, it has branched into other genres, such as MMORPGs, tactical role-playing games, action role-playing games, and fighting games. It is a Japanese role-playing game series with varying gameplay, settings and stories between each installment, retaining plot and gameplay elements throughout, focusing on fantasy and science fantasy settings. Final Fantasy is a video game franchise developed and published by Square Enix.

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