The Cid Archetype In Final Fantasy and Other JRPGs

CJRPGs change, more so than any other genre, JRPGs can change in terms of gameplay, story, characters, and even the universe itself. As one of the biggest JRPGs out there, Final Fantasy has changed a lot, going from four dudes standing in a line to FFXVI bringing in full-on kaiju battles, but there are a few things each game keeps in common: monsters, summons, and Cid.

No matter what happens in each Final Fantasy game, there will always be a Cid. They’re not the same character in each game but every mainline Final Fantasy features a character named Cid, all of whom have some similar characteristics. They’re generally an older man (if you consider 32 old in VII’s case) who are experts in technology, usually airships, and act as allies of the main party. This isn’t always the case like FFXII giving us a villainous Cid or XIII having a younger, more bishie Cid but still, if you’re playing Final Fantasy there’ll always be Cid somewhere in the game.

What’s more interesting though is how many JRPGs, have their own ‘Cid Archetype’ which I can best define as a character that appears in each new series entry who, while not the same person, shares a name, and certain personality traits with prior incarnations of the character from previous titles. So with Final Fantasy XVI, Octopath Traveler II, and a bunch of other JRPGs coming out, let’s look at some of the more famous Cid characters.

Biggs and Wedge in Final Fantasy

To start, Cid isn’t even the only Cid character in Final Fantasy. Somewhere in each game, you may also catch a glimpse of the dynamic duo of Biggs and Wedge. First appearing in Final Fantasy VI, Biggs, and Wedge regularly appear as minor characters throughout many of the FF games, usually as soldiers or lackeys of some sort. They often act as comic relief although a few of them do get involved in the more series parts of the story.

Probably the most well-known Biggs and Wedge are those of Final Fantasy VII who appear as members of Avalanche working under Barrett.

Biggs and Wedge have even appeared outside of the Final Fantasy series as they can be found at the Millenial Fair at the start of Chrono Trigger. According to the Japanese Magazine V-Jump, these are actually the same Biggs and Wedge from FF6, transported to a new dimension by the Esper Valigarmanda. The two don’t show up in Final Fantasy as consistently as Cid does but it’s always a pleasure when they do.

Anna In Fire Emblem

Anyone who’s played a Fire Emblem game knows who Anna is. Everyone’s favorite red-haired capitalist has appeared in almost every game in the series. In the older games, she usually ran a secret shop or hosted the tutorial for the game all while keeping her index finger glued to her face.

With the launch of Fire Emblem Awakening, Anna got a major promotion which saw her becoming a playable unit (and love interest) for the first time. She’s since been playable in both Fates games, Fire Emblem Warriors and she’ll be returning in Fire Emblem Engage. Her most major role however is in the mobile game Fire Emblem Heroes where she acts as a commander of the Order of Heroes, playing a vital role in the game’s story.

Anna is also one of the few Cid characters whose multiple appearances are somewhat explained. Apparently, each of the Annas are sisters who are part of a larger Anna family, all with the same name and appearance similar to Nurse Joy and Officer Jenny in Pokemon. How exactly they came to expand across the multiverse we’ll never know but where there is war and tactics, there’ll be an Anna trying to sell you something.

Vandham In The Xeno Series

Throughout the Xeno franchise, even as it passed into new series published by different companies, there is always a character whose name starts with ‘Van’. Xenogears and Xenosaga had different characters named Vanderkam who both have giant cross-shaped tattoos on their faces. Xenoblade had Vangarre (Vandham in the Japanese version) and finally, Xenoblade Chronicles X, 2, and 3 had characters named Vandham in all regions.

The Van characters are all attached to a military group of some sort. In Xenogears, Saga, and Blade 1 they are military leaders known for bullying their underlings, hitting them, and calling them ‘slackers’. The Xenoblade X, 2, and 3’s Vandhams are a little nicer but still with a more gruff attitude.

A recurring feature of the Vans is the marking on their face. The Vanderkams had a distinct cross tattoo printed on their heads, while Vangarre and X’s Vandham had an exaggerated mustache. Xenoblade 2’s Vandam has an X-shaped scar over his face calling back to the Gear and Saga iterations. Finally, Xenoblade 3 brought them all together with the Vandham of that game having both an X scar and facial hair.

If you want to know more about the many Vans throughout the Xeno Series, I’d highly recommend Good Vibes Gaming’s excellent video on these many cross-faced men. 

Lucifer In Shin Megami Tensei

Shin Megami Tensei’s world of occultic horror wouldn’t be complete without the devil himself showing up as the Cid character. While many demons appear in each SMT game, Lucifer is the only one to reappear as a major character in each new mainline installment.

Lucifer’s Cidness is further emphasized by them taking many different human disguises throughout the games, often as a Blond human with some variation of the name “Louis Cyphre” from a handsome David Bowie impersonator, to a child, to a high school girl.

In each game, Lucifer is a major player in the Chaos faction believing in freedom at the cost of safety. Whether he represents the more positive or negative sides of the alignment however changes depending on each game. In some, he’s a malevolent demon lord, little better than the God he’s supposedly fighting against, in others he’s a rebel who wishes to bring freedom for the benefit of both man and demonkind. Regardless, he’s consistently portrayed as a cunning manipulator willing to bend any rule to get what he wants.

Good Old Cid

I think the fun of Cid characters in JRPGs is that they offer a sense of familiarity. Even with a new world and new cast, their appearance is almost like a piece of extra insurance that this is still the same series with the soul as the past entries.

At the same time, however, they’re also fun because of how different they can be. The Cids themselves have gone from being a wild engineer to a banana-dressed geneticist to a bad-tempered pilot. It’s always interesting to see where these guys will pop up next and in what form, what will they maintain from past incarnations, and what will be unique to this version.

Who’s your favorite Cid character, who’s your favorite version of that Cid character and can you think of any others we didn’t include in this article, if so let us know.

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