Editing Final Fantasy VI (section)

===Contemporary===
''Final Fantasy VI'' received critical acclaim and was commercially successful in Japan upon release. In mid-1994, Square's publicity department reported that the game had sold {{nowrap|2.55 million}} copies in Japan,<ref name="EGM63"/> where it became the best-selling [[1994 in video games|video game of 1994]].<ref>{{cite magazine |title=1994年のコンシューマーゲームソフトの売上 |trans-title=1994 Consumer Game Software Sales |magazine=[[Dengeki Oh]] |publisher=[[MediaWorks (publisher)|MediaWorks]] |lang=ja |url=http://www.rnac.ne.jp/~zangel/1994.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010920123100/http://www.rnac.ne.jp/~zangel/1994.htm |archive-date=September 20, 2001 |access-date=16 September 2021}}</ref> In the United States, where it went on sale in the last quarter of 1994, it was the top-selling Super NES game in October<ref name="EGMDec1994">{{cite magazine|date=December 1994|title=EGM's Hot Top Tens|url=https://retrocdn.net/images/2/2d/EGM_US_065.pdf|magazine=[[Electronic Gaming Monthly]]|pages=52|access-date=October 19, 2021|archive-date=October 7, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181007040340/https://retrocdn.net/images/2/2d/EGM_US_065.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> and became the year's eighth best-selling Super NES cartridge.<ref>''[[Next Generation (magazine)|Next Generation]]'', issue 8, August 1995, page 40</ref> Despite this, it was not a commercial success in that region, according to Sakaguchi.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.usgamer.net/articles/hironobu-sakaguchi-clears-the-air-on-final-fantasy-vi |title=Hironobu Sakaguchi Clears the Air on Final Fantasy VI |last=Mackey |first=Bob |date=2015-09-04 |website=[[USgamer]] |access-date=2015-09-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150905081921/http://www.usgamer.net/articles/hironobu-sakaguchi-clears-the-air-on-final-fantasy-vi |archive-date=2015-09-05 |url-status=live}}</ref> As of March 2003, the game had shipped 3.48 million copies worldwide, with 2.62 million of those copies being shipped in Japan and 860,000 abroad.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.jp.square-enix.com/ir/e/explanatory/download/0404-200402090000-01.pdf#page=27 |title=Titles of game software with worldwide shipments exceeding 1 million copies |date=2004-02-09 |access-date=2008-03-01 |publisher=Square Enix |page=27 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131109063558/http://www.jp.square-enix.com/ir/e/explanatory/download/0404-200402090000-01.pdf |archive-date=2013-11-09}}</ref> ''Final Fantasy Collection'' sold over 400,000 copies in 1999, making it the 31st-best-selling release of that year in Japan.<ref name="magicbox">{{cite web|title=1999 Top 100 Best Selling Japanese Console Games |url=http://www.the-magicbox.com/Chart-BestSell1999.shtml |work=The Magic Box |access-date=16 August 2007 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141215082832/http://the-magicbox.com/Chart-BestSell1999.shtml |archive-date=15 December 2014}}</ref> ''Final Fantasy Anthology'' has sold approximately 364,000 copies in North America.<ref name=autogenerated2>{{cite web|title=US Platinum Videogame Chart |url=http://www.the-magicbox.com/Chart-USPlatinum.shtml |publisher=The Magic Box |access-date=2005-08-13 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070421003854/http://www.the-magicbox.com/Chart-USPlatinum.shtml |archive-date=2007-04-21}}</ref> ''Final Fantasy VI Advance'' sold over 223,000 copies in Japan by the end of 2006, one month after release.<ref name="EBsales">{{Cite book|title=Famitsū Gēmu Hakusho 2007 |publisher=[[Enterbrain]] |year=2007 |isbn=978-4-7577-3577-4 |location=Tokyo |page=387 |id={{JPNO|21240454}} |language=ja |script-title=ja:ファミ通ゲーム白書2007 |trans-title=Famitsu Game Whitebook 2007 |chapter=2006年ゲームソフト年間売上TOP500 |trans-chapter=2006 Game Software Annual Sales Top 500 |url=http://geimin.net/da/db/2006_ne_fa/index.php |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150626214525/http://geimin.net/da/db/2006_ne_fa/index.php |archive-date=2015-06-26}}</ref>

''[[GamePro]]'' rated it 4.5 out of 5 in graphics and a perfect 5.0 in sound, control, and fun factor, stating that "characters, plotlines, and multiple-choice scenarios all combine to form one fantastic game!"<ref name="GP">{{cite magazine |author=Scary Larry |date=November 1994 |title=Final Fantasy III |magazine=GamePro |volume=74 |issue=11 |pages=192–194 |publisher=IDG Communications}}</ref> The four reviewers of ''[[Electronic Gaming Monthly]]'' each granted it a unanimous score of 9 out of 10 (36 out of 40) and their "Game of the Month" award, commenting that it had set the new standard for excellence in RPGs. They particularly praised the graphics, music, and the strong emotional involvement of the story.<ref name="EGM63"/> It won several awards from ''Electronic Gaming Monthly'' in their 1994 video game awards, including [[List of Game of the Year awards|Best Role-Playing Game]], [[History of Eastern role-playing video games|Best Japanese Role-Playing Game]], and [[Video game music|Best Music for a Cartridge-Based Game]].<ref name="egmbuyersguide1995">''Electronic Gaming Monthly's Buyer's Guide'', 1995.</ref> Additionally, they ranked the game ninth in their 1997 list of the 100 greatest console games of all time.<ref>{{cite magazine |title=100 Best Games of All Time |magazine=[[Electronic Gaming Monthly]]|issue=100 |publisher=[[Ziff Davis]] |date=November 1997|page=154}} Note: Contrary to the title, the intro to the article (on page 100) explicitly states that the list covers console video games only, meaning PC games and arcade games were not eligible.</ref> ''[[Famitsu]]'' scored it 37 out of 40, making it one of their two highest-rated games of 1994 (along with ''[[Ridge Racer (video game)|Ridge Racer]]'').<ref name="geimin"/> For their part, ''[[Nintendo Power]]'' declared the game "the RPG hit of the decade", noting its improved sound and graphics over its predecessors, and the game's broadened thematic scope.<ref name="nintendopower2">{{cite book | title=Final Fantasy III | publisher=[[Nintendo Power]] 65, page 27 | date=October 1994}}</ref> Moreover, they suggested that "with so much story and variation of play ... fans may become lost in the world for months at a time".<ref name="nintendopower3">{{cite magazine | title=Now Playing | magazine=[[Nintendo Power]] | issue=65 | pages=103, 107 | date=October 1994 | url=https://archive.org/details/NintendoPower1988-2004/Nintendo%20Power%20Issue%20065%20%28October%201994%29/page/n110}}</ref> ''Nintendo Power'' also opined that the game plot was "not particularly inventive" and the "story is often sappy–not written for an American audience".<ref name=npscore>{{cite magazine |date=October 1994 |title=Now Playing |magazine=[[Nintendo Power]] |publisher=Nintendo of America Inc. |volume=65 |page=107 |quote=Graphics and Sound: 3.9 / 5, Play Control: 3.1 / 5, Challenge: 3.9/5, Theme and Fun: 4.0/5}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |date=October 1994 |title=Now Playing |magazine=[[Nintendo Power]] |publisher=Nintendo of America Inc. |volume=65 |page=103}}</ref>

In 1997, ''Nintendo Power'' ranked it as the eighth greatest Nintendo game, saying it "had everything you could want—heroes, world-shattering events, magic, mindless evil—plus Interceptor the wonder dog!"<ref name="nintendopower4">{{cite book | title=100 Best games of all time | publisher=[[Nintendo Power]] 100, page 89 | date=September 1997}}</ref> The same year, ''GamePro'' said it "still remains one of the most fun, innovative, and challenging RPGs to date".<ref>{{cite magazine |author=Scary Larry |title=Final Fantasy Forever!|magazine=[[GamePro]] |issue=109 |publisher=[[International Data Group|IDG]] |date=October 1997|page=51}}</ref> In 1996, ''[[Next Generation (magazine)|Next Generation]]'' said the scene in which Terra cares for a village of orphaned children "can perhaps be safely named as the series' finest hour... no other game series has tackled such big issues, or reached such a level of emotional depth and complexity".<ref>{{cite magazine|title=Top 100 Games of All Time |magazine=[[Next Generation (magazine)|Next Generation]]|issue=21 |publisher=[[Imagine Media]] |date=September 1996|page=64}}</ref>