10 Best Minigames in Final Fantasy

Final Fantasy doesn't feel right if there aren't minigames for you to enjoy as a break in the middle of your journey that usually includes saving the world. Of course, not all minigames are created equal, and some are much more enjoyable than others. There are even a few that are good enough they could be made into their own smaller games in a style like mobile games that would definitely kill productivity.

At the same time, a minigame that's not particularly enjoyable could still be considered among the best or simply among the tasks that you should do before reaching certain points just because they tend to reward you.

10 Triple Triad

A Collector's Dream Game

Triple Triad is a card game that appears in more than one game, but the version featured in Final Fantasy 14 is fleshed out and offers a few nice rewards on top of being a way to pass time between content updates. It's also a decent way to get MGP and Gil since you can sell duplicate cards.

Part of what keeps Triple Triad interesting is the regular addition of new cards and the way that different rules can be used to change which deck is strong for that game, as well as how you have to think about placing your cards. As a bonus, you can get a mount in FF14 for completing your Triple Triad card collection.

9 Queen's Blood

A Minigame That Deserves Its Own Spinoff

The remake trilogy, of which the first two games are available, of Final Fantasy 7 has been absolutely stacked with minigames, and a lot of them are incredibly enjoyable. Queen's Blood seems to be the most popular among the new minigames, getting enough love that players have called for it to be made into its own game.

Queen's Blood is another card game that is clearly inspired by other card games from the franchise, such as Triple Triad and Tetra Master. However, it also takes inspiration from other games, such as chess and Gwent from The Witcher franchise, to create an entirely unique experience that somehow feels familiar at the same time.

8 Chocobo Racing

A Staple of the Franchise

Chocobo Racing has appeared in multiple Final Fantasy games, and it even received a spinoff game of its own that was released in 1999. To an extent, it's what you might expect from a horse racing minigame, but there's usually quite a bit of depth to it in Final Fantasy, especially FF14.

When you play Chocobo Racing, you don't just pick a chocobo and watch for the results. You have to manage the chocobo's stamina and understand its limits, and that's on top of working to breed chocobos that are faster in order for you to improve your odds of winning.

7 Tetra Master

FF9's Card Game Like Triple Triad

After FF8 introduced Triple Triad, FF9 mixed it up a bit with another card game that's similar, called Tetra Master. It's a fun option to play when you're in FF9, but if you try out both Triple Triad and Tetra Master, then you'll notice that Tetra Master tried to be more complex with its design, and that led to some innate issues.

Tetra Master has more RNG, which is frustrating. It's a nice break from the main story in FF9, but its rules aren't the clearest, and that makes learning the game for the first time a challenge. At the same time, that added challenge makes succeeding in figuring out the game feel like an achievement.

6 Chocobo Hot and Cold

World Exploration Is Made Fun

Another minigame that you'll find in Final Fantasy 9, Chocobo Hot and Cold is similar to the Hot and Cold game that you might remember playing in your childhood in real life. It's technically a side quest and a minigame combined, but it spans across so many areas that you get to explore a lot of the in-game world at the same time.

Depending on the game, exploration can feel like a chore. So, it's fun that FF9 included Chocobo Hot and Cold as a way to give you purposeful exploration of the world, which almost feels more natural at the same time.

5 Fishing

Often the Most Relaxing Minigame When Done Well

It's fairly common for games to have a fishing minigame, and Final Fantasy is no exception. The fishing minigame in FF15 is particularly relaxing, and it's easy to end up delaying your journey because you've decided to spend hours fishing instead. Honestly, the side content of FF15 feels more fun in general, but its stint in development hell likely didn't help the primary storyline.

For an expanded fishing minigame instead of FF15's, you'll want to look at FF14, where fishing is one of the gathering jobs you can pick up, and it can be an excellent way to earn Gil as well as a way to supply yourself with buff food.

4 Fort Condor

A Minigame with a Great Reward

Fort Condor is a strategy minigame in Final Fantasy 7, which it seems is where the franchise picked up its inclusion of minigames given how many you find here. In the original game, this would be available starting on the second disc. In the remake trilogy, it's available starting with Rebirth.

Once you start this minigame, they go through a significant portion of the content. The game relies on you positioning your troops well in order to complete the mission, so it's more strategy-based than a lot of other minigames in FF7. For some players, strategy is the main draw, but others prefer to skip this game because of it, so whether you enjoy it or not depends on how much you enjoy strategy games in general.

3 Snow Game

A Delightful Break from Chasing Sephiroth

Snowboarding is in the original Final Fantasy 7 as the Snow Game minigame, but hasn't appeared in the remake trilogy yet. This is largely because the point at which you can access the minigame won't be included in the trilogy until the final game. So, if it appears in the remake, it'll be early in the final game.

The idea of the minigame is straightforward, and it's an unexpected delight that comes as a surprise when you first encounter the chance to play it. It's available at Icicle Inn and a version of it can be found at the Gold Saucer.

2 Run Wild

Rocket League Arrives in FF7 Rebirth

One of the many minigames in the FF7 remake trilogy is Run Wild, which appears in Rebirth when you reach Costa del Sol, and that's an entire part of the game that's as packed with activities as the Gold Saucer. When you try Run Wild, it's difficult not to feel like you're playing a variation of Rocket League.

Run Wild is a game that Red XIII wants to play, and that means you control him for the game against other creatures. The goal is to simply get the ball into your opponent's goal enough times to win, but it can be difficult with the physics and the way it's basically a free-for-all. Still, it's a lot of fun to try during this lighthearted section of the game.

1 Blitzball

Tidus' Passion in Life

As far as minigames go, Blitzball from Final Fantasy 10 is quite divisive among players. People either love it or hate it, and there doesn't seem to be any middle ground there. Luckily, it's not required to beat FF10, even if it's a big part of the in-game world and the main occupation for both Tidus and Wakka.

The game itself is easy once you figure out that you just need to get the ball to Tidus. However, it's the cinematic nature of how the minigame is shown that makes it feel more intense than it actually is, but that's one way that it draws in players to keep going into the minigame instead of continuing on their way to Zanarkand.

There's not a need for Final Fantasy to have so many minigames, but they tend to be a lot of fun and a great way to pass time when you aren't ready to move to the next section of the story. At this point, new releases in the franchise don't even feel like proper entries without minigames, as they've become a staple in Final Fantasy.