Final Fantasy II

Final Fantasy II for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System is the original North American release of Final Fantasy IV, Square's 1991 role-playing game. It bears the II title because the Japanese second and third Final Fantasy games had not yet been released in North America; later localizations use the original Final Fantasy IV name.

The story follows Cecil Harvey, a dark knight and commander of Baron's Red Wings airship fleet. Troubled by the kingdom's attacks on neighboring nations and its pursuit of powerful crystals, Cecil breaks with Baron and begins a journey of atonement that reshapes both his role and his purpose.

Cecil is joined by a changing group of companions, including Kain, a dragoon; Rosa, a white mage; Rydia, a summoner; and others with distinct abilities. The party travels across the surface world and its underground realm in pursuit of the crystals, eventually extending the quest to the moon.

Battles use the Active Time Battle system, which lets characters and enemies act as their individual time gauges fill. Rather than waiting for every command in a conventional round, the system keeps pressure on decisions while the fight continues. Players can field up to five characters, choose front or back rows, and use physical attacks, items, magic, and character-specific commands.

Each playable character has a defined role instead of a freely interchangeable job. White magic focuses on recovery and support, black magic attacks enemies, and summon magic calls powerful creatures; other specialists contribute abilities such as Kain's Jump and Edge's ninjutsu. As the story advances, characters gain stronger spells and skills at set levels or key events.

The North American version retains the game's core story, graphics, and music but was adjusted for its original audience. Its difficulty and some mechanics were simplified, and the English text changed or removed certain religious references in line with Nintendo of America's policies at the time.