The 5 worst Final Fantasy couples

Final Fantasy might have given us some of the most memorable romances in videogame history - asyou can see in yesterday's Top 10 Square Enix Couples feature - but not all of them have been memorable for the right reasons. Whetherintentional or simply misguided, the series has always been host to some of the most awkward pairings imaginable.

Now that the dust has settled from another Valentine's Day and the annual bitterness has set in,it's time toshove aside the lovey-dovey pretense and cackle like vultures at the ones who never had a chance in hell.

5. Cloud Strife and Barret Wallace
Final Fantasy VII | 1997 | PSone, PC

Final Fantasy VII is fondly remembered by its fans as a love story - specifically, a love story between spiky-haired mercenary Cloud and dowdy flower girl Aerith. But as many of you probably already know, it doesn't have to be that way.

The pivotal moment in the game's romance subplot comes while the party is staying overnight at the Golden Saucer amusement park. Most players will see the following sequence unfold as a date between Cloud and Aerith, but if you play your cards a little differently, Cloud will ignore Aerith in favor of busty martial artist Tifa. And if you play your cards wrong, he'll end up going on a date with his hulking, gun-armed best friend, Barret. Hilarity, awkwardsilences and deep regret ensue. You can see it for yourself in the following video:

Mikel Reparaz
After graduating from college in 2000 with a BA in journalism, I worked for five years as a copy editor, page designer and videogame-review columnist at a couple of mid-sized newspapers you've never heard of. My column eventually got me a freelancing gig with GMR magazine, which folded a few months later. I was hired on full-time by GamesRadar in late 2005, and have since been paid actual money to write silly articles about lovable blobs.
Latest in Final Fantasy
Final Fantasy 14: Dawntrail cinematic screenshot showing Alphinaud Leveilleur, an Elezen boy with short white hair
Final Fantasy 14's funniest speedrunning beef continues as runner who lost a world record to its original champ in just 1 day returns, beats record, is promptly dethroned again
Final Fantasy 7
Sony finally managed to pry Final Fantasy 7 away from Nintendo thanks to a "schmoozer" of a former employee who hung out with Square Enix executives at his parties, according to one former PlayStation boss
Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles Remastered Edition
Square Enix kills Final Fantasy game's mobile version after being unable to "completely fix" a bug stopping fans from accessing their additional paid content
Final Fantasy Pixel Remaster
Final Fantasy creator says the original JRPG's programmer was "like a god" to him: "I still strongly feel that the core program itself is the ‘life’ of a game"
Final Fantasy 14 producer Yoshi-P interview's the series' founding father Hironobu Sakaguchi
After 3 years of playing Final Fantasy 14 "almost every single day," series creator Hironobu Sakaguchi reckons the MMO "might be the game that I've played the most in my life"
Final Fantasy 14 patch 6.4 The Dark Throne
As the Final Fantasy 14 devs "continue to take a firm stance" against mods that can enable harassment, Yoshi-P says improvements are starting in patch 7.2
Latest in Features
Monster Hunter Wilds characters share a meal
Oh no, Monster Hunter Wilds is so good that I'm already counting the days until its inevitable Master Rank expansion
Kai and Giatta battle Xaurip in Avowed
I get why Obsidian doesn't like The Elder Scrolls comparisons, but Avowed is the first RPG to have its hooks in me this deep since Skyrim took over my life 14 years ago
Photo taken by writer Rosalie Newcombe of the Tears of the Kingdom OLED Nintendo Switch handheld, with the Super Mario Nendoroid figure standing in front of it.
My PC is screaming for an update, but the Switch 2 will be taking all my money this year
GoDice in their RPG case beside Pixels dice
I put two electronic d20s head-to-head and the bad news for your wallet is the discount D&D dice failed its saving throw
Arydia: The Paths We Dare Tread in play
This board game TRPG hybrid delivers something D&D hasn't quite managed to capture for me
Daredevil: Born Again
Daredevil: Born Again killing off a fan-favorite character is controversial, but it might prove to be the right choice for the new Marvel show