ABSTRACT
Due to its linear plot structure, deep psychological characterization, focus on disaster, and sheer length of text, the Japanese role-playing game may be readily analyzed as a narrative genre that engages with contemporary social issues from a certain ideological standpoint. Like film, literature, and other narrative forms, video games express ideas of the Japanese “self,” including the sense of national identity as well as challenges to it. This chapter examines the issue of nuclear power and anti-nuclear discourse in one of the bestselling video game franchises of all time—Square Enix’s Final Fantasy series. Examples are provided from Final Fantasy VII and Final Fantasy X to show how the anti-nuclear message is conveyed through scripted dialogue, visual cues, cinematic sequence, and overarching narrative themes.
