Final Fantasy Action Figures: A Guide

• Cloud Strife Action Figure: Final Fantasy VII Advent Children
• Sephiroth Action Figure: Final Fantasy VII Advent Children
• Tifa Lockart Action Figure: Final Fantasy VII Advent Children
• Reno the Turk Action Figure: Final Fantasy VII Advent Children
• Vincent Valentine Action Figure: Final Fantasy VII Advent Children

Cloud Strife Figure
w/ Fusion Sword

Photos: 1 2 3 | Video

Sephiroth Figure
w/ Masamune

Photo: 1 2 3 | Vid1 2

Tifa Figure
w/ Fighting Gloves

Photos: 1 2 3 | Video

Reno Figure
w/ Night Stick

Photos: 1 2 | Video

Vincent Figure
w/ Cerberus

Photos: 1 2 | Video

• Cloud Strife & Fenrir: FFVII Advent Children Deluxe Set
• Yuffie Kisaragi Action Figure: Final Fantasy VII Advent Children
• Kadaj Action Figure: Final Fantasy VII Advent Children

Cloud w/ Fenrir
Motorcycle

Photos: 1 2 3 | Video

Yuffie Figure
w/ Throwing Star

Photos: 1 2 | Video

Kadaj Figure
w/ Souba

Photos: 1 2 | Video

Final Fantasy VII Advent Children Play Arts Figures were redesigned from scratch to match the movie. As with all Play Arts figures, they come with stands and alternate hands, open and closed. They tend to be more realistic with more textures and detail than original-game figures.

Note: The 4" long "Mechanical Arts" models of Kadaj's bike and Cloud's Fenrir look great but are not to scale with Play Arts figures. The Play Arts Cloud & Fenrir set above is the one you want (watch the video and drool).

• Cloud Strife Action Figure: Final Fantasy VII (Original Game)
• Sephiroth Action Figure: Final Fantasy VII (Original)
• Tifa Lockhart Action Figure: Final Fantasy VII (Original)
• Aerith Gainsborough Action Figure: Final Fantasy VII (Original)
• Vincent Valentine Action Figure: Final Fantasy VII (Original)

Cloud Strife Figure
w/ Buster Sword

Photos: 1 2 | Video

Sephiroth Figure
w/ Masamune

Photos: 1 2 | Video

Tifa Figure
w/ Grand(?) Gloves

Photos: 1 2 | Video

Aerith Figure
w/ Guard Stick

Photos: 1 2 | Video

Vincent Figure
w/ Quicksilver Pistol

Photos: 1 2 | Video

• Cloud Strife & Hardy Daytona Motorcycle: Final Fantasy VII (Original)
• Yuffie Kisaragi Action Figure: Final Fantasy VII (Original)
• Red XIII & Cait Sith Action Figures: Final Fantasy VII (Original)
• Play Arts Arms Collection (Final Fantasy VII)

Cloud w/ Hardy
Daytona Bike

Photos: 1 2 | Video

Yuffie Figure
w/ Shuriken

Photos: 1 2 | Video

Red XIII & Cait Sith
w/ Megaphone

Photos: 1 2 | Video

Play Arts
Arms Collection

Photos: 1 2

Final Fantasy VII Play Arts Volume 1 and 2 Action Figures are based on the original game's artwork, so they're a little simpler and more cartoonish (or toylike) than later Play Arts action figures. However, they've got great faces and are fairly flexible (Aerith and Tifa, a little less so, with skirts restricting movement). They come with a stand and spare hands for gripping weapons, or in Tifa's case, bare open hands and fists with fighting gloves. Cloud has a fun feature: a removable back peg for hanging his sword when not in use. (Oh, so that's how it works).

The Cloud Strife & Hardy Daytona Deluxe Set comes with the regular Cloud figure and all his accessories -- spare hands, Buster Sword -- plus the motorbike. The FFVII Play Arts Arms Collection is an alternate set of weapons: Cloud's Hardedge, Tifa's Dragon Claws, Aerith's Fairy Tale, Vincent's Death Penalty, Yuffie's Conformer.

• Zack Fair Action Figure: Final Fantasy VII Crisis Core
• Young Cloud Action Figure: Final Fantasy VII Crisis Core
• Aerith Gainsborough Action Figure: Final Fantasy VII Crisis Core

Zack Fair Figure
Crisis Core

Photos: 1 2 3 | Video

Young Cloud
Crisis Core

Photos: 1 2 | Video

Young Aerith
w/ Flower Basket

Photos: 1 2 | Video

Crisis Core's Play Arts figures add a great Zack, as well as a younger Aerith and a young Cloud as infantryman.

Zack's Buster Sword is shinier and a little less beat up than the one for the Cloud Classsic (original game) model. The Crisis Core Cloud has a baton, rifle, extra hands, and an alternate head with a helmet so you can reenact puppy-Cloud's introduction scene.

Brace yourself! There's a TON of Final Fantasy VII collectibles. The other games don't have half as many figures combined. Skip to the funny videos section next, or, if you love FFVII, here's the whole shebang:

Final Fantasy VII Limited Edition POTION drink comes with a random Final Fantasy VII Trading Arts Mini (4") Figure, which may be recognized by a detailed base: Sephiroth, Vincent, Reno/Rude, Tifa, Cloud (Advent Children), Zack, Aerith (Crisis Core), and Cloud Classic.

Sephiroth [compare with Play Arts Sephiroth Classic and Advent Children action figures]: Recent collectibles include the Kingdom Hearts Play Arts Sephiroth and Dissidia Trading Arts Sephiroth. Older collectibles include: original gameTrading Arts Sephiroth, Bandai Extra Knights Sephiroth (see photo, very stubby), a Sephiroth Resin Statue, a Trading Arts Mini, and a Kingdom Hearts Sephiroth Phone Charm.

Cloud Strife [compare with Play Arts Cloud Classic, Advent Children and Crisis Core]: Recent Cloud collectibles include Kingdom Hearts Play Arts Cloud (batwinged!) and Dissidia Trading Arts Cloud figurine (non-posable). In September 2011, there will be a new 9" tall oversized Dissidia "Kai" Play Arts Cloud Action Figure (same scale as FFXIII "Kai" figures, larger than regular Play Arts). Older collectibles include a Trading Arts Cloud figurine, 1997 Bandai Extra Knights Cloud (slightly posable), an awesome Kingdom Hearts Formation Arts Cloud sculpture (left), and a Kingdom Hearts Cloud Mini. Finally, there are three good Cloud resin statues: Cloud Classic & Hardy Daytona Bike, a Cloud Classic, and a Masterpiece Arts Advent Children Cloud.

Tifa Lockhart [Compare with Play Arts Tifa Classic and Advent Children action figures]: 1997 Bandai Extra Knights Tifa figure (see photo) which comes with a frog to remind us of Final Fantasy's zaniest status effect, a couple Kotobukiya Tifa resin statues, a Trading Arts Tifa, Trading Arts Mini (safest buying it in a set), and an Advent Children Avatar Trading Arts mini.

Aerith Gainsborough [Compare with Play Arts Aerith Classic and Crisis Core action figures]: Bandai Extra Knights Aerith which comes with a chocobo, a Trading Arts Mini, and a Kingdom Hearts Aerith phone charm.

Everybody Else: There are Trading Arts figurines for Zack, Vincent and Vincent as a Turk. Bandai Extra Knights figures include Barrett, Vincent and Red XIII. Vincent has a Kotobukiya Resin Statue and a Final Fantasy Creatures Vincent/Chaos. Yuffie's got an old Kotobukiya resin statue and a Trading Arts Mini. I've seen what looks like Trading Arts Minis for Advent Children Cloud, Tifa, Kadaj, Loz, Yazoo as keychains.

Cute stuff that may not be officially Squeenix-licensed: FF7 Plush Toys (Cloud, Sephiroth, Vincent, Tifa).

• Squall Leonhart Action Figure: Final Fantasy VIII
• Rinoa Heartilly Action Figure: Final Fantasy VIII
• Selphie Tilmitt Action Figure: Final Fantasy VIII
• Play Arts Arms FFVIII alternate weapons

Squall Leonhart Figure

Photos: 1 2 3 | Video

Rinoa Heartilly Figure

Photos: 1 2 3 | Video

Selphie Tilmitt Figure

Photos: 1 2 | Video

Play Arts Arms VIII/X

Photos: 1 2

Poor Rinoa; she's got no doggie or weapon. Selphie's got her nunchuks, and Squall his original gunblade. Selphie's got green back pockets unlike her in-game model, which was boring.

Rarely on eBay, you will find the Final Fantasy VIII-X Play Arts Arms collection with Squall's Lionheart gunblade, Selphie's Strange Vision nunchuks, and ultimate weapons for Tidus, Yuna and Auron.

Other Figures: The non-posable Dissidia Trading Arts Squall figurine is common (note pose and belt buckle), and in September 2011 there's going to be a new 9" tall Dissidia Kai Play Arts Squall, larger scale than pre-FFXIII Play Arts figures. More rare are old, slightly posable but less detailed "Bandai Extra Soldier" figurines 6-7" tall (see photo): not only Squall, Rinoa, and Selphie, but also Irvine, Quistis, Seifer, Zell and Laguna (or, very rarely, Edea only in the Squall/Selphie/Zell boxed set, and Angelo and Moomba in the Seifer/Laguna/Rinoa boxed set). There's also rare Trading Arts Rinoa and Trading Arts Selphie figures. Lesser quality Banpresto FFVIII Figures (probably not sanctioned by Squeenix) include all the main party members, Seifer, Ward, Kiros and Laguna. On the high end are 1/6th scale Kotobukiya statues of Quistis, Laguna, Squall, Seifer and Rinoa. Minis include a Kingdom Hearts Avatar Squall Phone Charm and Trading Arts Minis of Squall and Rinoa.

• Zidane Tribal Action Figure: Final Fantasy IX
• Vivi Orunitia Action Figure: Final Fantasy IX
• Princess Garnet Action Figure: Final Fantasy IX

Zidane Tribal Figure

Photos: 1 2

Vivi Orunitia Figure

Photos: 1 2

Princess Garnet Figure

Photos: 1 2 3

Video Review of all 3 figures

Zidane's Play Arts figure comes with his Orichalcum and Mage Masher daggers; Vivi has his basic Mage Staff and Garnet her Rod plus a crystal necklace on a chain. See this excellent review on TomoPop.

Other Final Fantasy IX figures include a nice Dissidia Trading Arts Zidane figurine (photo), Trading Arts Minis of Zidane and Vivi, a Kingdom Hearts Vivi Phone Charm, and Final Fantasy IX keychains of Eiko, Amarant and Steiner.

• Yuna Action Figure: Final Fantasy X
• Tidus Action Figure: Final Fantasy X
• Auron Action Figure: Final Fantasy X
• Final Fantasy VIII/X Play Arts Arms

Yuna Figure
w/ Summoner Staff

Photos: 1 2 3

Tidus Figure
w/ Brotherhood

Photos: 1 2 3

Auron Figure
w/ Katana

Photos: 1 2

Play Arts Arms VIII/X

Photos: 1 2 3

Somebody needs to do video reviews of each, but here's a video review of all FFX and X-2 figures.

These figures reflect the improved details in the in-game models of FFX. Auron's model includes alternate left arms, one bare for casting breaks in battle, the other tucked in his sleeve. Alternate weapons are available in the Final Fantasy VIII/X Play Arts Arms Collection, including Tidus' Caladbolg, Yuna's Nirvana, Auron's Masamune (plus extra weapons for Selphie and Squall).

Other Figures: Tidus' Dissidia Trading Arts figure is easy to recognize with its winged collar. He's pretty good, but there's also older Trading Arts figures of Tidus (see photo), Lulu, Rikku and Yuna that aren't as high-quality (See photos of Vol. 1 and Vol. 2). These are only 4" tall, so no wonder the details are a little rough. Bandai has figures of Tidus and Yuna that I don't recommend; be careful when browsing eBay listings. There's also a bunch of 1/6 scale ArtFX statues which are rather good: Tidus, Yuna, Auron, Kimahri, and -- only in Japan, but they may appear on eBay -- Rikku and Lulu. Finally, there's the minis: Tidus in Vol. 3, Auron in Trading Arts Vol. 2.

• Yuna Action Figure: Final Fantasy X-2
• Rikku Action Figure: Final Fantasy X-2
• Paine Action Figure: Final Fantasy X-2

Yuna Figure

Photos: 1 2 ?

Rikku Figure

Photos: 1 2 3

Paine Figure

Photos: 1 2 3

The only video review I've found is this review of all FFX and X-2 figures (same as above).

YuRiPa are often found as a set on eBay. Yuna and Rikku each get extra hands plus hands pre-equipped with weapons; Paine gets an extra left hand and extra right equipped with a sword.

Other Figures: Yuna has a 1/6th scale (large) Kotobukiya resin statue and Floral Fallal special dressphere statue see photo,plus other awesome Final Fantasy figure photos in that photostream). Rikku and Yuna have Trading Arts Minis, and I've seen a Paine phone charm floating around. There's also a Banpresto Yuna plush (I think Banpresto is a Japanese company that makes toys of anime/game characters NOT endorsed by the original studio).

The internet is a wild and woolly place, and Amazon and eBay can't check third party sellers. Take a look at these Trading Arts Minis (click for full size). What's wrong with this picture?

Missing buckles, buttons, necklaces, tattoos, logos, stripes and zippers are clues, as are color mistakes like the yellow "Abes" logo on Tidus' pants leg.

To avoid disappointment, I suggest checking reviews, comparing seller photos with official promo photos (Google the figure's official name), and buying Trading Arts Minis in the original 4-5 figure boxed sets ("Vol. 1, Vol 2") rather than loose or in a "complete" set that must have been put together by the seller. Throughout this page I've linked to official boxed sets for Trading Arts Minis, although individual figures are cheaper. Luckily, Play Arts action figures are complicated enough that bootlegs are very rare (although they do exist).

Above: [Left] Counterfeit Minis on Amazon, [Right] Trading Arts Minis Vol. 1 [Top] and Vol. 3 [Bottom].

• Vaan Action Figure: Final Fantasy XII
• Princess Ashelia B'nargin Dalmasca Action Figure: Final Fantasy XII
• Balthier Bunansa Action Figure: Final Fantasy XII
• Judge Magister Gabranth Action Figure: Final Fantasy XI
• Play Arts Arms Collection Final Fantasy XII

Vaan Figure
w/ Sword of Kings

Photos: 1 2 3 | Video

Ashe Figure
w/ Treaty Blade

Photos: 1 2 3 | Video

Balthier Figure
w/ Betelguese

Photos: 1 2 3 | Video

Gabranth Figure
w/ double blades

Photos: 1 2 | Video

Play Arts Arms
Collection FFXII

Photos: 1 2

Final Fantasy XII Action Figures upped the ante: their details, accuracy and articulation are even better than previous Play Arts figures. Vaan's model actually looks better than in-game: he's got more natural-looking abs. Rarely, you will find the Final Fantasy XII Play Arts Arms Collection on eBay, a set of five great-looking alternate weapons: Fomalhaut for Balthier only; Golden Axe, Deathbringer, Crystal Shield, Demon Shield for anyone.

Other Figures: Expect Dissidia figures sooner or later, including a 9" tall Dissidia Gabranth "Kai" Play Arts action figure in September 2011 that's going to be confusing -- it's bigger than the regular Gabranth figure. You can tell them apart by the helm: the horns on the Dissidia helmet are more angular and zig-zaggy, nipping in close to the collar, and the face plate on the old FFXII Gabranth is punched in over the nose and mouth making a sort of keyhole. Besides Gabranth, there's Trading Arts Minis for Balthier and Fran, Vaan and Penelo, and Ashe and Basch.

• Lightning Farron Action Figure: Final Fantasy XIII
• Snow Villiers Action Figure: Final Fantasy XIII
• Oerba Yun Fang Action Figure: Final Fantasy XIII
• Hope Estheim Action Figure: Final Fantasy XIII
• Oerba Dia Vanille Action Figure: Final Fantasy XIII

Lightning Figure
w/ Blaze Edge

Photos: 1 2 3 | Video

Snow Figure
w/ extra hands

Photos: 1 2 3 | Video

Fang Figure
w/ Blade Lance

Photos: 1 2 3 | Video

Hope Figure
w/ Air Wing

Photos: 1 2 | Video

Vanille Figure
w/ Bind Rod

Photos: 1 2 3 | Video

• Sazh Katzroy Action Figure: Final Fantasy XIII
• Serah Farron Action Figure: Final Fantasy XIII
• Odin Eidolon Action Figure: Final Fantasy XIII
• Shiva Bike / Eidolons Action Figures: Final Fantasy XIII

Sazh Figure
w/ Vega 42s

Photos: 1 2 | Video

Serah Figure
w/ extra hands

Photos: 1 2 3 | Video

Odin Eidolon
(transforming)

Photos: 1 2 | Video

Shiva Eidolons
(transforming)

Photos: 1 2 | Video

At 9-10" tall, Final Fantasy XIII "Kai" Play Arts Action Figures are larger than previous figures, with more room for detail, articulation and accurate facial features. Lightning and Vanille have two versions of each weapon, open and closed so they can be holstered, and I think Hope's Air Wing folds. The highlights of the FFXIII "Kai" Play Arts series are the Odin and Shiva Eidolons which transform into their vehicle or humanoid forms (separate figures for Styria / Nyx). WATCH THE VIDEOS for both Eidolons. Wow.

Other Figures: There are 5" non-posable Final Fantasy XIII Trading Arts figures for party members plus Serah.