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==Concept and creation==
==Concept and creation==
Vivi, along with other characters, were created after the creation of ''[[Final Fantasy IX]]''{{'}}s plot, unlike its predecessor, ''[[Final Fantasy VII]]'' and ''[[Final Fantasy VIII]]'', which had its protagonists designed before the story.<ref>http://squarehaven.com/news/2000/08/15/Final-Fantasy-IX-Interview</ref> Because Vivi was a key character to ''Final Fantasy IX'', part of the world design was centered on him.<ref>http://www.ffshrine.org/ff9/ff9_interview_developers.php</ref> His surname in English has lent to some confusion since it also appears as ''Ornitier'' in the original English instruction booklet included with the game, but was later changed to ''Orunitia'' in the Greatest Hits version and other English publications (this does not include the European Platinum versions).<ref>As demonstrated by the [http://na.square-enix.com/games/FFIX-gamesite/ North American Square Enix website] and the official [[strategy guide]] from [[Brady Games]]</ref> He was redesigned by [[Tetsuya Nomura]] for the [[PlayStation 2]] video game ''[[Kingdom Hearts II]]''. In this game, he is voiced by [[Melissa Disney]] in the English version and by [[Ikue Otani]] in the Japanese version. Being a [[Black Mage]], he appears human - however, no facial features beyond glowing yellow eyes are visible - and possesses the ability to cast powerful black magic. Vivi appears as a nine year old boy who is mature for his age. He is extremely shy and has little belief in his self-worth.
Vivi, along with other characters, were created after the creation of ''[[Final Fantasy IX]]''{{'}}s plot, unlike its predecessors, ''[[Final Fantasy VII]]'' and ''[[Final Fantasy VIII]]'', which had their protagonists designed before the story.<ref>http://squarehaven.com/news/2000/08/15/Final-Fantasy-IX-Interview</ref> Because Vivi was a key character to ''Final Fantasy IX'', part of the world design was centered on him.<ref>http://www.ffshrine.org/ff9/ff9_interview_developers.php</ref> His surname in English has lent to some confusion since it also appears as ''Ornitier'' in the original English instruction booklet included with the game, but was later changed to ''Orunitia'' in the Greatest Hits version and other English publications (this does not include the European Platinum versions).<ref>As demonstrated by the [http://na.square-enix.com/games/FFIX-gamesite/ North American Square Enix website] and the official [[strategy guide]] from [[Brady Games]]</ref> He was redesigned by [[Tetsuya Nomura]] for the [[PlayStation 2]] video game ''[[Kingdom Hearts II]]''. In this game, he is voiced by [[Melissa Disney]] in the English version and by [[Ikue Otani]] in the Japanese version. Being a [[Black Mage]], he appears human - however, no facial features beyond glowing yellow eyes are visible - and possesses the ability to cast powerful black magic. Vivi appears as a nine year old boy who is mature for his age. He is extremely shy and has little belief in his self-worth.


==Appearances==
==Appearances==

Revision as of 15:11, 23 November 2009

Vivi Orunitia
'Final Fantasy' character
File:9-vivi-c.png
Vivi as he appears in Final Fantasy IX.
First gameFinal Fantasy IX

Vivi Orunitia (ビビ・オルニティア, Bibi Orunitia), is a fictional user of black magic in the Final Fantasy series, and a main protagonist of Final Fantasy IX.

Concept and creation

Vivi, along with other characters, were created after the creation of Final Fantasy IX's plot, unlike its predecessors, Final Fantasy VII and Final Fantasy VIII, which had their protagonists designed before the story.[1] Because Vivi was a key character to Final Fantasy IX, part of the world design was centered on him.[2] His surname in English has lent to some confusion since it also appears as Ornitier in the original English instruction booklet included with the game, but was later changed to Orunitia in the Greatest Hits version and other English publications (this does not include the European Platinum versions).[3] He was redesigned by Tetsuya Nomura for the PlayStation 2 video game Kingdom Hearts II. In this game, he is voiced by Melissa Disney in the English version and by Ikue Otani in the Japanese version. Being a Black Mage, he appears human - however, no facial features beyond glowing yellow eyes are visible - and possesses the ability to cast powerful black magic. Vivi appears as a nine year old boy who is mature for his age. He is extremely shy and has little belief in his self-worth.

Appearances

Vivi Orunitia first appears at the beginning of the game, and becomes embroiled in Tantalus's plan to kidnap Princess Garnet when he travels to Alexandria to attend a performance of the play I Want to be Your Canary.[4] With some encouragement from Zidane and Adelbert Steiner (who calls him 'Master Vivi' out of respect for his magical prowess[5]), he starts to believe in his abilities and initially joins the group to save Garnet from the depths of the Evil Forest. After they find Queen Brahne's Black Mage factory in Dali, he remains with the group to search for the truth about his origins.

It is later revealed that Black Mages are mindless footsoldiers, produced by Queen Brahne to help her conquer the Mist Continent. The Black Mages are larger than Vivi and wear purple jackets instead of blue ones like his. Vivi desperately wishes to find out the truth about his origins and the reason for his existence, fearing his purpose is nothing more than to be a soulless killing machine. He also does not understand why he is different from the rest of the Black Mages.[6] The truth is revealed to him by Kuja and the Black Mages in the Black Mage Village later on in the game. He learns that most Black Mages "stop" after one year, equivalent to death in humans.[7] A conversation with the Black Mage leader suggests that Vivi was the black mage prototype built to "last longer." [8]

Vivi himself does not appear in the epilogue cutscenes. Instead, five other black mages who look exactly like him appear at the celebration in Alexandria, one of whom identifies himself to Puck as "Vivi's son", suggesting he did eventually "stop". Vivi does, however, have a monologue between each character scene stating his thoughts before he expires.

Other appearances

Vivi makes an appearance in the Disney/Square Enix crossover Kingdom Hearts II. However, the Vivi in Kingdom Hearts II does not seem to show any of the magical abilities of his FFIX counterpart, nor is referred to as a Black Mage. Vivi is apparently a member of the Twilight Town Disciplinary Committee led by Seifer Almasy, though it is said that he is not so much a member as someone who ends up doing Seifer's biddings due to his meekness. The virtual simulation of Vivi's was briefly used on occasion by several Nobodies in order to do battle with Roxas.[9] He is also a notable playable character in Itadaki Street Special. He makes minor appearances in manuals for both Dissidia Final Fantasy and Final Fantasy Origins.

Reception and promotion

During the 2006 Edinburgh Interactive Entertainment Festival, Edge Magazine editor Margaret Robertson used Vivi as an example of an emotionally engaging character in the Final Fantasy series, stating that gamers knew that something tragic would happen with Vivi in the end.[10] IGN editor David Smith called Vivi a welcome change from previous Black Mage characters, who before Vivi, were usually generic. He added that he enjoyed finding a "charming personality underneath that floppy hat", and while his evolution is a little predictable, he enjoys rooting for the underdogs.[11] Game Critics editor Erin Bell described the cast of Final Fantasy IX as being largely uneven, though praising Vivi as feeling real to players due to his large portions of the game's plot devoted to him.[12] Gaming Age editor Jim Cordeira stated that he loved Vivi, and wanted to uncover as much as he could about his life and story.[13] GameSpot editor Andrew Vestal described Vivi's personality as clumsy and angsty.[14] He ranked second on IGN's top 25 best Final Fantasy characters list, saying he has the best of both the old and the new, praising him for having the depth and conflict found in recent Final Fantasy titles, but also having the simple charm and adventurous spirit of the original titles. They described him as endearing, due in part to Yoshitaka Amano's Black Mage design, as well as sympathetic due to his search for his purpose in the world.[15]

Vivi has had multiple figurines.[16]

References

  1. ^ http://squarehaven.com/news/2000/08/15/Final-Fantasy-IX-Interview
  2. ^ http://www.ffshrine.org/ff9/ff9_interview_developers.php
  3. ^ As demonstrated by the North American Square Enix website and the official strategy guide from Brady Games
  4. ^ Vivi: Leave me alone! / Knight 1: Stop! / Knight 2: Come back here! / Vivi: Don't come any closer! / Garnet: Ow! That's hot! / Baku: Zidane! It's time! / Zidane: Princess Garnet! Let's get outta here! (Final Fantasy IX)
  5. ^ Zidane: Why are you calling him 'Master'? Steiner: You fool. That black mage has unimaginable powers... (Final Fantasy IX)
  6. ^ Vivi: ...Zidane. Those...black mages and I... Are we...the same...? (Final Fantasy IX)
  7. ^ Black Mage No. 288: Seven of our friends stopped functioning recently... I think our life span is limited... I've suspected this ever since the first one came to a stop. It varies a little, but most of us stop moving one year after production. (Final Fantasy IX)
  8. ^ Vivi: A-Am I gonna stop pretty soon, too? / Zidane: ! / Black Mage No. 288: I don't know... Kuja said the prototype built before us would last longer. / Vivi: But...I am gonna stop eventually. / Black Mage No. 288: ...... (Final Fantasy IX)
  9. ^ Vivi: "...How did I get...here?" (Kingdom Hearts II)
  10. ^ http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=10561
  11. ^ http://psx.ign.com/articles/162/162190p1.html
  12. ^ http://www.gamecritics.com/review/ff9/main.php
  13. ^ http://www.gaming-age.com/cgi-bin/reviews/review.pl?sys=psx&game=ffix-us
  14. ^ http://www.gamespot.com/ps/rpg/finalfantasy9/review.html
  15. ^ http://stars.ign.com/articles/874/874708p4.html
  16. ^ http://www.kidnemo.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=377_1_1022&products_id=6632
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