The Grand Final Fantasy 10 Unification Theory, or How FF7, FF10 and The Spirits Within Could Be The Same Universe

While admitting this is an awkward confession about my advanced age that I'd rather not admit, I find the fact that each generation of gamers grows up with its own unique Final Fantasy era to be endlessly charming. I grew up during the fifth and sixth-generation eras of Final Fantasy, with the PS1 trilogy being my trial by fire with the series. These days, of course, the young gamers of today are growing up with Final Fantasy 13 or even the latest iteration with Final Fantasy 16.

As this era of Final Fantasy bled into the early 2000s, two very important pieces of the franchise came out. The first was Final Fantasy 10, the next-generation evolution of the series that made owning a PS2 worth every penny. The second was the franchise's big screen debut, Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within.

The reason I bring all this up is that growing up during that particular era of Final Fantasy meant growing up during the earliest days of the internet. It was a time when rumors about getting the Triforce in Ocarina of Time and a military-operated arcade machine bent on world domination known as Polybius were the norm. That same sense of outrageous rumor mongering also found its way to Final Fantasy.

In the decades that have passed since the emergence of this new, more science fiction-themed era of Final Fantasy, the hunger for rumors and speculation has become intrinsically intertwined with another of the internet's favorite activities. That is the advent of the fan theory.

While many a fan theory surrounding potential connections between Final Fantasy games, a series well regarded for its disconnected, almost anthology-like format, none are as interesting or fascinating as the one I'm about to talk about. As hard as it is to believe, there's more than just circumstantial evidence to support the idea that Final Fantasy 7, Final Fantasy 10 and The Spirits Within are all part of the same universe.

Spira to Gaia

The Striking Similarities Between Spira and Gaia

Aside from how similar the names are pronounced, Spira and Gaia share some surface level similarities, but more than a few direct connections. These are hard to ignore, especially when looking at them within the context of trying to connect the games together. In turn, that also affects how this world becomes the post-apocalyptic nightmare seen in The Spirits Within.

To start with, one look at the two world maps side by side reveals something rather puzzling. The entirety of Spira looks strikingly similar to the northern continent of Gaia in Final Fantasy 7. As a civilization, Spira was deeply and intimately connected to the will and majesty of the planet. Or the Farplane, as they called it in these ancient times. How Spira became Gaia is perhaps best described by the text and story of Final Fantasy 7 itself.

Two-thousand years prior to Final Fantasy 7, the Cetra witnessed the arrival of Jenova in the form of a meteor crashing down. The Cetra were a race of summoners and mages with a strong, mythical connection to what they called the Lifestream. It's not uncommon for different religions to refer to the same thing with unique names,

The Farplane and the Lifestream are inherently connected, as even writer and producer Kazuhige Nojima has stated as much. The Farplane, the Lifestream, whatever you want to call it, the point is that they are ultimately one and the same. And as we know, the concept of fate and repeated cycles of destiny is big in the Final Fantasy universe.

Sin, the world-devouring representation of humanity's darkest misdeeds, is a remarkable contrast to Jenova in many ways. They are both signals of an apocalyptic ending, with Jenova coming from above and Sin emerging from the ether below. If we are to go along that train of thought, it's entirely possible that Jenova was a Sin Spawn, and her coming was just the latest in a cycle created to punish humanity for their mistreatment of Gaia.

During her pilgrimage to stop Sin, Yuna is well on her way to becoming a High Summoner, which is a title bestowed upon past warriors who have defeated the ancient creature. Among the many places that she and the party visit is Kilika, a town destroyed by Sin. Seeking to help the dead reach the Farplane, Yuna performs what is called a Sending, a ritual dance that helps the souls of the deceased find peace.

In Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, a game that has numerous references to FF10, Aerith performs a dance inside the Temple of the Ancients that is strikingly similar to the one Yuna does. It's all connected to the same spiritual center of life that powers both games.

The Secret Origin of the Shinra Electric Power Company

How Shinra Got Their Mako Back

In Final Fantasy 10-2, which is set two years after the events of FF10, Yuna and Rikku have formed the Gullwings alongside Paine. As they travel Spira searching for spheres, they do so aboard an airship known as the Celsius. A young Al Bhed boy with a very familiar name, Shinra, speaks of his intention to harvest powerful energy from the Farplane.

For a while, this was just seen as a funny little reference. That all changed when Nojima straight up confirmed that his descendants would create the Shinra Electric Power Company, but this connection was further solidified by the events of Final Fantasy 7 Remake. When the party storms Shinra HQ, a group employee photo shows the young boy all grown up.

It often feels less like similar themes, which FF is definitely known for, and more like Square leaning into something that they themselves have already confirmed. I'm not telling you anything you don't already know. Final Fantasy 7 and Final Fantasy 10 are connected. Square and Nojima have told us as such for years.

The desire to control the Farplane or the Lifestream is a tale as old as time. Elements of that date all the way back to Final Fantasy 10, and in FF7, what we see is a world that still hasn't learned from its mistakes. Jenova's arrival feels eerily similar to that of Sin's, as Shinra's murdering of the planet led to it being punished with a cataclysmic end.

In the closing hours of Final Fantasy 7, the apocalyptic ending that was promised multiple times in FF10 comes to fruition. Meteor is summoned, and even though the party does succeed in killing Sephiroth, which allows Aerith's casting of Holy to succeed, it leaves the world of FF7 in a near extinct state.

The End of the World

How The Spirits Within is the Dark Final Chapter of FF10 and FF7

Following the end of Final Fantasy 7, there are two feature films that seem to spell out the harrowing last days of humanity. The Spirits Within and Advent Children share a lot of common themes, and it's fairly easy to see how these two films are the concluding chapter of this long, complex tale.

Aki Ross, the brilliant scientist and lead of The Spirits Within, gets infected by an alien virus from what the film calls Phantoms. It is incredibly similar to the Geostigma virus from Advent Children.

Both of them are caused by exposure to the Lifestream, and in Dr. Ross' case, the Phantoms were the deceased souls of travelers that landed on Gaia in a meteor. As you'll remember, Jenova arrived on Gaia inside a meteor, and was believed to have been an Ancient by Dr. Gast. Apocalyptic, life-ending disasters that threaten to destroy humanity for their sins are the common, consistently reoccurring threads throughout this entire narrative.

If that's a bit difficult to wrap your head around, the simplified timeline may go something like this.

The events of Final Fantasy 10 and 10-2 unfold as expected, with Tidus accompanying Yuna on her pilgrimage to stop Sin. She succeeds, becoming the first person to become High Summoner and stop Sin without dying, thus altering the chains of fate forever. Yuna leaves her summoning life behind to join the Gullwings. This culture changes and evolves, becoming the Cetra as we know them in Final Fantasy 7.

Jenova, a Sin Spawn, arrives, as humanity still has not learned from its past mistakes. The events of Final Fantasy 7 begin, and despite their best efforts, Meteor leaves Gaia in a state of apocalyptic ruin. This leads to the natural conclusion, as Advent Children and The Spirits Within happen simultaneously.

As far as video game fan theories go, there's none that have this level of insane commitment and tinfoil hat energy. It has been a consistent theory among the FF faithful for years, and while it's unlikely that the third part of the Final Fantasy 7 remake trilogy will explore any aspect of this, it's fun to pass the time unitl then.