Final Fantasy 5 Cheats & Secrets for PlayStation

The fifth entry in the long-running Final Fantasy series, Final Fantasy 5 is Square’s 1992 JRPG masterpiece for the Super Famicom. Final Fantasy Anthology‘s release on the PS1 marks the first time that Final Fantasy 5 would be officially available in the West. However, fans had created a ROM translation years earlier that many would experience via emulation. Unlike future versions of Final Fantasy 5, which adhere closely to the original script for the game, the PS1 version of the game in the Final Fantasy Anthology contains several errors and inconsistencies (such as referring to the character Lenna as “Reina”).

Regardless, the version of Final Fantasy 5 that players experienced as part of the PS1’s Final Fantasy Anthology is a faithful port of the Super Famicom classic. Notably, FF5 is the last game in the series to feature direction from series creator Hironobu Sakaguchi, and the title would end up being hugely influential on Square’s next generation of creators. Final Fantasy 5‘s story is co-written by Sakaguchi and Yoshinori Kitase, the director of Final Fantasy 6 and current brand manager for the Final Fantasy series at Square Enix.

While the original versions of Final Fantasy 5 and Final Fantasy 6 would each sell millions of units, sales would prove to be far more modest for the Final Fantasy Anthology on PS1. Many reviews for the title note that the ports are lacking compared to their 16-bit originals. In particular, the PS1 version of Final Fantasy 5 is notorious for its long load times when entering and exiting battles.

Final Fantasy 5 Premise

Similar to most other games in the series, Final Fantasy 5 puts players in the shoes of a group of unlikely heroes who must rise to the occasion and save their planet. Centuries before the events of the game, an evil warlock named Exdeath is sealed away for attempting to destroy the world by harnessing the power of the Void — an all-encompassing darkness threatening to erase existence as we know it. The young explorer Bartz, wholly unaware that his father is one of the warriors who previously defeated Exdeath, agrees to help Lenna search for her father, getting wrapped up in a world-saving adventure along the way.

In terms of its gameplay, though, Final Fantasy 5 remains one of the most beloved entries in the series thanks to its incorporation and additions to the Job system that made its debut in Final Fantasy 3. Unlike the original version of the Job System, players can mix and match abilities from different Jobs in Final Fantasy 5, allowing players to create some game-breaking combinations that mix potent melee and magical abilities. Battles are still turn-based, but the Active-Time Battle (ATB) system introduced in Final Fantasy 4 also sees a return, with players needing to carefully consider the right Jobs and abilities as the situation calls for them.

Final Fantasy 5 Main Characters

Though it features one of the series’ more lighthearted tales, the narrative of Final Fantasy 5 still manages to introduce an extremely compelling cast of characters in both its protagonists and primary antagonist. Players are first introduced to the game’s main hero Bartz and then quickly acquire the other three members of their main adventuring party in rapid succession. Utilizing the classic “hero with amnesia” trope, we eventually discover the hidden past of one of the party members, Galuf, who shares an interesting connection to a group of heroes known as the Warriors of Dawn and their previous battle with the game’s antagonist, Exdeath. Main characters in FF5 include:

Heroes

• Bartz: The main hero of Final Fantasy 5, Bartz is a carefree adventurer. Having never known much about his father, he sets off to explore the world with his trusty Chocobo, Boko, after his mother’s death. A chance encounter with a young princess and a meteorite sends Bartz on an adventure of a lifetime.
• Lenna: The heir apparent to the kingdom of Tycoon, Princess Lenna sets off in search of her father when he doesn’t return from his investigation of the Wind Shrine where the Wind Crystal is located. She joins up with Bartz to find her father and figure out the mystery behind the Crystals’ destruction.
• Galuf: An older warrior that Bartz and Lenna discover at the site of a crashed meteorite, Galuf suffers from amnesia. He does not remember where he is from, only that he is on a mission to stop the Crystals from being destroyed. Players eventually learn he has a rich history with Exdeath and Bartz’s father.
• Faris: A young pirate captain and commander of one of the few remaining seafaring vessels, Faris is a brash but caring ally who willingly agrees to join up with the party after they try to steal their ship. Faris and Lenna share a strange connection that we eventually discover is the result of them being long-lost siblings.
• Krile: Krile is Galuf’s grandaughter and a powerful warrior in her own right. She joins up with the party (including having all of Galuf’s abilities) when Galuf dies at the hands of Exdeath.

Warriors of Dawn

• Dorgann: Dorgann is Bartz’s father and a member of the Warriors of Dawn. It is Dorgann who stays behind in the first world to keep an eye on Exdeath, starting a family and having a son in the process.
• Kelger: Kelger is the chieftain of the werewolf people of Galuf’s world and one of the Warriors of Dawn. He helps the party at great risk to his own safety and the safety of his people.
• Xezat: Xezat, like Galuf, becomes a king of his own kingdom in the Second World after the Warriors of Dawn’s victory over Exdeath. He willingly sacrifices himself to destroy the barrier surrounding Exdeath’s tower so that Galuf and his new allies can enter and stop the evil sorcerer once and for all.

Villains

• Enuo: An ancient warlock who attempted to use the Void to erase all existence. His sealing in the great Forest of Moore would eventually lead to his evil seeping into the trees. This evil would then coalesce into a singular vile existence powerful enough to manifest in physical form.
• Exdeath: The physical manifestation of Enuo’s evil, Exdeath is a sentient tree-turned-powerful warlock who seeks to control the Void and erase existence. He is almost successful but is stopped by the Warriors of Dawn, sealed once again in the Forest of Moore but working from the background to destroy the Crystals and merge two alternate worlds into one.
• Gilgamesh: Gilgamesh is Exdeath’s lieutenant and a powerful swordsman. He routinely challenges the party in feats of strength, only to retreat when faced with defeat. He eventually grows to respect Bartz and his allies, switching sides to help the heroes in their quest to defeat Exdeath.

Games in the Final Fantasy Series

The Final Fantasy series remains one of the most important and well-known RPG series of all time. Across 16 mainline entries, several remakes of beloved titles in the series, and a wide-ranging variety of spin-offs, Final Fantasy is also one of the most prolific series of all time and a pillar of Square Enix’s business. The PlayStation would end up being the de facto home for the franchise during the 5th console generation, with three mainline entries and three series compilations calling Sony’s console home. Final Fantasy Anthology marks the first time that Final Fantasy 5 would be officially available in the West, making its release something of a dream come true for fans who had not previously experienced the title through emulation. The main games in the Final Fantasy series include:

• Final Fantasy (1987)
• Final Fantasy II (1988)
• Final Fantasy III (1990)
• Final Fantasy IV (1991)
• Final Fantasy V (1992)
• Final Fantasy VI (1994)
• Final Fantasy VII (1997)
• Final Fantasy VIII (1999)
• Final Fantasy IX (2000)
• Final Fantasy X (2001)
• Final Fantasy XI (2002)
• Final Fantasy XII (2006)
• Final Fantasy III (DS) (2006)
• Final Fantasy IV (DS) (2007)
• Final Fantasy XIII (2009)
• Final Fantasy XIV (2013)
• Final Fantasy XV (2016)
• Final Fantasy VII Remake (2020)
• Final Fantasy XVI (2023)
• Final Fantasy VII Rebirth (2024)

Final Fantasy 5 Cheats & Secrets

While there are no official cheats for the Final Fantasy Anthology and its versions of Final Fantasy 5 and 6, there are several Game Shark codes available for the titles in the compilation. Additionally, there are a few secrets and exploits players can take advantage of in the PS1 version of FF5.

Final Fantasy 5 Secrets

255 Weapon Glitch

The weapon duplication glitch in FF5 is a great way to quickly get multiples of a particular weapon (and sell the extras for plenty of GP). This trick originates in the original Super Famicom version of the game but still works in the PS1 version included in Final Fantasy Anthology. In order for this trick to work, players must have both a Thief and a Ninja in their party. Additionally, this glitch only works with weapons that can be thrown using the !Throw command.

First, make sure that you find an enemy with a weapon or item you want to steal. Next, make sure you do not already have that item or weapon in your inventory. With none of the desired item in your inventory, make sure the first slot in your inventory is empty (simply swap the first item with a blank space in your inventory).

Equip and then Remove the Thief’s weapon, then walk around to initiate an encounter. The Thief will be the first to act. Select Item and then select Equip to equip the Thief’s weapon in their right hand. When the Ninja’s turn comes up, select !Throw and throw the blank slot in your inventory where the Thief’s weapon just was. This will do 0 damage. On the Thief’s next turn, select Steal to successfully steal the enemy’s weapon. This weapon will now be in the first slot in your inventory.

Have the Ninja !Throw the new weapon at the enemy on their next turn. If the weapon throw doesn’t kill the enemy, you can just kill them using normal means. After the battle, you can check your inventory to see that you now have 55 of the weapon the Thief stole from the enemy in your first inventory slot. There are actually 255.

Defeat Exdeath Without Facing NeoExdeath

If players have a party member who masters the Chemist Job, they will have the !Mix command at their disposal. Mixing a Maiden’s Kiss and a Holy Water results in the “Kiss of Blessing” item. This item causes a trio of unblockable status effects – Berserk, Haste, and Image. Interestingly, this concoction works on bosses as well. Use the “Kiss of Blessing” item on Exdeath during his first form and then kill him as normal. Under effect from the “Kiss of Blessing”, Exdeath will not disappear into the Void, instead dying as a normal boss would. After a few seconds, the ending to FF5 will begin to play out without ever needing to fight Exdeath’s final form.

Blue Magic

The Blue Mage is a Job type in Final Fantasy 5 that makes use of enemy abilities. In order to learn these Blue Magic spells, players must encounter specific enemies in battle with a Blue Mage in their party and have the enemy use the ability against them. The following table will help players trying to max out/”Master” the Blue Mage Job. Additionally, several Blue Mage abilities become incredibly useful in FF5‘s mid-to-late game sections when trying to max out party levels and abilities through grinding encounters.

Notably, players can speed up the process of learning Blue Magic spells by mastering the Mediator/Trainer Job. With the !Control ability, players can take over the actions of an enemy in battle. As such, you can simply select the Blue Magic spell the Blue Mage needs to learn and cast it on them. Having both a Blue Mage and a Mediator makes the process of learning every Blue Magic spell much easier.

List of Blue Magic

Final Fantasy 5 Game Shark Codes

Like most PS1 games, there are plenty of Game Shark codes available for Final Fantasy Anthology, including several for Final Fantasy 5. To use these codes, players must have a Game Shark device for their PlayStation. Alternatively, players can input these codes into an emulator’s “Cheat” menu.

General Cheats

Bartz Cheats

Lenna Cheats

Galuf Cheats

Faris Cheats

Final Fantasy 5 Cheat FAQs

How many different Jobs are there in Final Fantasy 5?

The PS1 version of FF5 contains 22 unique Jobs for players to learn and master. Interestingly, the later Game Boy Advance port (Final Fantasy 5 Advance) has 4 exclusive jobs for a grand total of 26.

Who is the main villain in Final Fantasy 5?

The primary villain of FF5 is the evil wizard Exdeath. When the ancient evil warlock Enuo tried to wield the power of the Void to erase all existence millennia prior, he was sealed inside the Forest of Moore along with other evil spirits. Eventually, these evil spirits would coalesce into a single malevolent intelligence, manifesting itself into physical form as the wizard Exdeath. Though Exdeath takes the form of a human, he is actually a sentient tree.

What is the best version of Final Fantasy 5?

The PlayStation version of FF5 included in the Final Fantasy Anthology compilation is generally regarded as one of the lesser versions of the game. Thanks to its longer load times and occasional translation errors, many fans prefer the original Super Famicom version (which fans would successfully translate for emulation years prior) or the Game Boy Advance version. That said, the newest official release of the game (the Final Fantasy Pixel Remasters version) is one of the best available thanks to it being playable on modern PCs and consoles.

The image featured at the top of this post is ©CheatCC/Matt Karoglou.