Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin sets out to take the original game and build on its lore, worldbuilding, and more.Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Originreviewspaint a fair almost-Soulslike action RPG experience, with some shortcomings in areas like storytelling and characters. However, perhaps the most picked-apart aspect of the game is its protagonist, Jack Garland.
In the originalFinal Fantasy,Garland is a former Knight of Cornelia who has kidnapped Princess Sarah. The main characters, the Warriors of Light, pursue him and face his alter-ego, Chaos. In a hilarious twist,Jack Garland inStranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Originis the same Garlandfrom the first game, but his goal is to kill Chaos. His goal is to really, REALLY kill Chaos. While he has his flaws, Garland does prove to be a major departure for the franchise and one that should be embraced more.
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Jack Garland in Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin
First, it’s worth talking about who Jack Garland is. This is his backstory heading into the original game and starts off as someone who knows little of his past aside from a desire to find and kill Chaos.Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Originhas produced a ton of memes, ever since the first major trailer, playing on how much Garland wants to kill Chaos—saying it over and over again.
Garland is singleminded, rude, dismissive, angry, and doesn’t get along well with others. Square Enix devs have describedStranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Originas the story of an angry man. This reflects, likely unintentionally, in dialogue that has been shared for how badly hilarious it is, but it adds a certain lowbrow charm to it that others are enjoying too. However, this undercuts some of the relationships and more emotional beats of the game.
Before this, Jack Garland is described as more caring, friendly, and trusting—and so his fall from grace is a little undercut by his character. All of this said,Jack Garland’s character stands out from other protagonistsin the franchise. Indeed, the franchise has a reputation for “broody” protagonists, and in this way, Garland is a breath of fresh air.
Other Final Fantasy Protagonists: Cloud, Clive, Noctis, and More
Garland may be angry, he may not have the best dialogue, and the emotion may be lost, but he’s not a mid-to-long hair “brooding” protagonist. ManyFinal Fantasygamesfollow this trend, protagonist after protagonist, as pointed out in the community. Even looking at some recent releases, although one is a remake, it’s pretty obvious.
Noctis has long, spiky black hair and is the definition of a brooding protagonist.Final Fantasy 16’s protagonist Clivefalls into the same trap, and Cloud makes himself more distinct but is still part of this “Brooding trend.” It’s too late for Clive, but here’s hoping that the next game breaks away from this brooding trend—if in a different way than Jack Garland.
Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Originis available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
