List of bugs and glitches

Various bugs and glitches appear in the Final Fantasy series, referring to a programming error, which results in behavior not intended by the programmers. Glitches can be harmless and only manifest as incorrectly displayed graphics, or they can be hazardous and game-breaking, effectively ruining the player's save file. "Glitching" is the practice of a player exploiting faults in a video game's programming to achieve tasks normally impossible if the game's script runs as intended, such as running through walls. Glitching can be used to gain an unfair advantage over other players in multiplayer games.

Final Fantasy
The Intelligence Bug and the Critical Hit Bug are the most game-changing bugs in the original Final Fantasy; as a result, physical attacks are substantially more powerful on average than they would have been had the correct critical rates been used, and the Intelligence stat is broken, meaning Red Mage's are just as powerful spell-casters as White and Black Mages. The Critical Hit bug has been retained through-out versions, but the Intelligence bug has been fixed to the most recent versions.

The spells intended to raise effectiveness of physical attacks and evasion are glitched in the NES version, as is the item House that doesn't recharge the player's spells as it's supposed to. Several weapons are also bugged in the NES version, in which the weapons' intended special effects do not take effect at all.

Most of the glitches have been fixed to later remakes, apart from the Critical Hit Bug, leading to the assumption it is likely a conscious choice by the programmers, and thus can no longer be viewed as a "glitch."


 * Critical Hit Bug
 * Equipment Bugs
 * Intelligence Bug
 * Invisible Woman of Cornelia
 * Magic Bugs
 * Peninsula of Power
 * Running Glitch
 * Weapon Bugs

Final Fantasy II
The Target-Cancel Bug is the most game-changing bug and is only fixed in the most recent releases of the game. The bug would allow the player to level up their weapons and magic effortlessly by simply choosing a command and then cancelling it straight away. A similar exploit is to purposefully finish battles with low HP and MP to gain more of these stats; this isn't really a glitch, as much as it's an exploit of the game's character development system. Most other bugs are only present in the original NES version, which had bugs related to equipment and spells and the dual wielding system with weapons didn't work as intended.


 * Dual Wield Bug
 * Equipment Bugs
 * Magic Bugs
 * Middle Character Target Bug
 * Party Magic Target Bug
 * Target-Cancel Bug

Final Fantasy III
Various equipment and spell bugs were still present in the original NES release of Final Fantasy III, where certain spells and weapons don't behave as intended, and the player being able to duplicate spells. The biggest exploit in the original NES version is the Item Upgrade Glitch, that potentially would let players get access to the game's most powerful equipment right at the start of the game.

The DS version is an entire remake and thus doesn't suffer from the glitches present in the original version, but it has a whole new glitch of its own, the Item Duplication Glitch.


 * Equipment Bugs
 * Item Duplication Glitch
 * Item Upgrade Glitch
 * Magic Bugs
 * Magic Duplication Glitch

Final Fantasy IV
Final Fantasy IV has been released multiple times on different platforms, and smaller and bigger glitches can be found across versions. Final Fantasy IV was the first Final Fantasy game to feature the Active Time Battle system, but in the original SNES version it didn't have the time bar indicating the characters' turn order. When this feature was added in the Game Boy Advance version, the system was bugged.

In the original SNES version, there are various bugs concerning equipment, ranging from weapon effects that never take effect, and Avenger weapon that, among many other glitches, fails to update the character's attack stats to those in the Avenger weapon, retaining the whatever stats the character had in the previously equipped weapon, to weapon duplication glitches.

An especially hazardous glitch is the possibility of completely losing the Lunar Whale airship on the moon. Another fatal glitch is the Save Glitch, which erases all save files on a cartridge.


 * ATB Glitch
 * Avenger Bugs
 * Equipment Bugs
 * Item Duplication Bug
 * Lunar Whale Glitch
 * Psycho Edward Bug
 * Reviving Enemies Glitch
 * Save Glitch
 * Sealed Cave Glitch
 * Second Form Glitch
 * Sneak Glitch

Final Fantasy V
Final Fantasy V doesn't have glitches that largely affect gameplay like in previous Final Fantasy games, but it does have its fair share of oversights. The most hazardous glitches are the ones where the player may permanently lose their airship, wind drake or black chocobo. If the player loses their airship, they are unable to finish the game. The encounter glitch lets the player completely avoid random encounters, and berserking Exdeath with the Kiss of Blessing Bug, lets the player completely skip fighting the game's true final boss, Neo Exdeath. Most of the glitches have been fixed in the GBA remake.


 * Airship and Hiryuu Glitch
 * Ancient Library Glitch
 * Berserker Class Glitch
 * Black Chocobo Glitch
 * Catch Bug
 * Encounter Glitch
 * Equipment Bugs
 * Faris in Tule Glitch
 * Hidden Zombies Bug
 * Hide Glitch
 * Infinite Items Glitch
 * Item Transformation Bug
 * Kiss of Blessing Bug
 * Mix and X-Magic Glitch
 * Mute Glitch
 * Optimize Glitch
 * Power Drink Bug
 * View Bug
 * Walking Through Walls Glitch
 * Walking in Air Glitch

Final Fantasy VI
Final Fantasy VI had a few major bugs that were not fixed until the Advance port: the Evade Bug that makes the units' regular evasion stat do nothing, and the Vanish-Doom Bug where the invisibility status would override any unit's instant death immunity, making all enemies in the game easily defeatable by this method. One of the most notorious bugs in the whole Final Fantasy series is the Sketch Bug, with various unpredictable results that render the use of the whole command risky until it was fixed in the Advance version. While the GBA port fixes most of the bugs, it introduces some of its own to the mix, such as the Level Reset Glitch.


 * 0 HP Character Bug
 * Capture Glitch
 * Dream Stooges Bug
 * Duncan Bug
 * Empty Party Glitch
 * Encounter Glitch
 * Equipment Bugs
 * Evade Bug
 * Genji Glove Bug
 * Jump Glitch
 * Kaiser Dragon Glitch
 * Kutan Glitch
 * Level Reset Glitch
 * Mantra Glitch
 * Master's Scroll Bug
 * Mimic Glitch
 * Opera House Glitch
 * Optimize Glitch
 * Overflow Glitch
 * Pincer Attack Glitch
 * Psycho Cyan Bug
 * Rippler Bug
 * Save Point Glitch
 * Sketch Bug
 * Slot Bug
 * Snort Bug
 * Trance Glitch
 * Ultima Weapon and Petrify Glitch
 * Umaro Unequip Glitch
 * Vanish-Doom Bug
 * Walking Through Walls Glitch

Final Fantasy VII
Final Fantasy VII has various glitches, ranging from harmless graphics glitches to beneficial to hazardous.

The W-Item Duplication Bug and its many forms and uses is one of the most known beneficial bugs in the Final Fantasy series. It allows the player to infinitely duplicate virtually any item in the game, apart from key items. Final Fantasy VII also has a notable instance of the overflow glitch, where Barret and Vincent are capable of overflowing damage with their ultimate weapons, killing anything in the game in a single hit. Another beneficial glitch comes with the use of the Gil Plus Materia: The player will always get twice as much gil from battles, even if the Materia only has one star.

The Magic Defense bug renders all Magic Defense values in all armor useless, as the stat is never used when calculating damage on a target. Another glitch occurs when a character uses an Elixir in battle, which triggers the Cover ability, where the character with the Cover Materia steps in to receive the Elixir instead of the intended person. The status Darkness halves the physical accuracy of weapon-based attacks, but due to a bug, the status only affects the commands Attack, Morph, Deathblow, Mug, Slash-All, Flash, 2x Cut, and 4x Cut. Because enemies do not use the above commands they are unaffected by it, making inflicting opponents with the status pointless.

A potentially hazardous glitch is the Save Crystal Glitch, which may permanently ruin a player's save. Another dangerous glitch lets the player avoid fighting Diamond Weapon, but it will ruin the player's save file. If the player enters the menu and saves their game exactly when the battle against Diamond Weapon is going to start, and then loads their game normally, the Diamond Weapon has vanished. This leads the player unable to finish the game as the barrier over the crater is still intact.

The phenomenon of seeing Aeris's "ghost" in the Sector 5 Church is possibly a glitch, as the ghost can be seen even when she is still alive on the first disc.

All glitches present in the PS version are also in the PC version of the game. The PC version has a humorous graphics glitch that occurs if Vincent is in the party at Aeris's death, where his character model is stuck with one leg extended out into the air.


 * Adamantaimai Cure Glitch
 * Back Attack Glitch
 * Blackout World Glitch
 * Gelnika Rude AI Glitch
 * Infinite Elixir Glitch
 * Knights of the Round Glitch
 * Magic Defense Bug
 * Master Command and Support Materia Glitch
 * Midgar Zolom Save Glitch
 * Overflow Glitch
 * Pyramid Encounter Glitch
 * Quadra Magic Cave Glitch
 * Quadra Magic Ultima Glitch
 * Regen Bug
 * Save Crystal Glitch
 * Save Point Glitch
 * Inescapable Battles Glitch
 * Vehicles Glitch
 * Vincent Mug Glitch
 * W-Item Duplication Bug

Final Fantasy VIII
The PC-version of Final Fantasy VIII has many glitches not present in the PS version, ranging from the game crashing easily to minor graphical errors. A patch was released to fix the surfaced issues. Without the patch, when the player would cast Double or Triple, the game would say "Doppel" and "Trippel" during the spell animation, instead of the spells' proper names; also the animations displayed for the Devour command would be in German. There were also issues of certain cards mysteriously disappearing from the card inventory, and the automatic scenes not starting; for example, when the player approaches Galbadia Garden stationed near Edea's Orphanage, the Battle of the Gardens is supposed to ensue; some players found that the scene triggering the war never begins, thus leaving them stranded.

Another known oddity is the Dummy enemy, leftover test enemy in the game's data. Another thing that is rather more of an exploit than a glitch is the chance to duplicate items in Chocobo World. In general, Final Fantasy VIII has fewer glitches than most of its predecessors, and the only big glitch, the Junction Glitch, was fixed for the western releases.


 * Balamb Garden Balcony Glitch
 * Junction Glitch

Final Fantasy IX
The most known glitch in Final Fantasy IX is the Gold Chocobo Bug that happens if the player obtains the flying chocobo before they get an airship. This lets the player skip portions of the game, but also has downsides, such as missed items that can never be retrieved and Garnet being stuck in her mute state during battle, unable to enter Trance and her commands often failing.

Another glitch is the Thunder Slash Glitch that renders the attack mostly useless, as it will never connect.

These glitches have been fixed to the most recent PAL-versions, but at least the Thunder Slash Glitch is still present in the game's most recent release in North America via the PSN.


 * Gold Chocobo Bug
 * Optimize Glitch
 * Thunder Slash Glitch

Final Fantasy X
Final Fantasy X doesn't have many glitches compared to the previous games. The only big glitch is the Home Glitch or "New Game Plus Glitch" it is sometimes referred as, which lets the player jump back in time and play portions of the game again, by going back to Home at a time it shouldn't be possible any more. This glitch was fixed to the PAL release, and only works in the Japanese International version.

Other than that, the game has some minor graphical glitches. For example, if Wakka is petrified by his own attack via the Stonestrike ability, his ball is stuck petrified high above his head, hovering mid-air. Wakka's ball stays up in the air even after he is healed from petrification, although it doesn't hinder his ability to attack with it. Some players find the Abyss Worm monster's Regurgitate attack is glitched and may end up in making party members invisible, although it doesn't affect gameplay. If a person with Auto-Potion in their armor is KO'ed, they will still lose the item even if it isn't ever actually used. If the player has 8,000 gil or more they can fight Fenrir for free; no matter what the result is the player won't lose any money.


 * Home Glitch

Final Fantasy X-2
The most notable bug in Final Fantasy X-2 is the Episode Complete Bug, that if the player gets Episode Complete in Zanarkand Ruins they are not transported back to the Celsius, meaning if Zanarkand is the last location the player goes to get Episode Complete, the scene where the Gullwings are given the ultimate Dressphere never triggers, and the player misses out on it even if they fill the requirements.

Also, due to a bug, the Dark Knight can avoid damage from the Darkness command by equipping the accessory Ragnarok.


 * Episode Complete Bug

Final Fantasy XII
The Immobilize Glitch can cause enemies to disappear in the field, and also allow characters to "teleport" within large zones. This is useful especially when wanting to fight Zodiark in Henne Mines without having to fight other enemies on the way. Another useful glitch is the Zone Out Glitch, which tricks the game into thinking a dead monster has not been spawned yet, and thus respawns it. This glitch is used most commonly to chain together rare game without having to zone away twice between each kill. Exploitation of this glitch can also cause a high battle chain, resulting in a larger amount, and increased frequency, of drops.

If a player is riding a chocobo and the time is running out, they can get more time in the timer by quickly going to the menu at when the timer has 0.0 seconds left, enter the Equip menu and change equipment (it's easy to just use the remove all equipment command and then immediately choose the optimize option), come back to the field, and the chocobo timer has gained 1.8 more seconds. The player can do the trick again and again to basically ride a chocobo for as long as they like if they are patient enough.

Another notable thing that may be a glitch is that petrified enemies don't break the battle chain, but their loot drops are still calculated by the current battle chain. This means the player can rake a high battle chain with common enemies, and then go and petrify some rarer enemies and still collect their improved loot drops, without the chain breaking.

There is a glitch that occurs in the NTSC version of Final Fantasy XII, but seems to have been fixed by the PAL release, where the player may get stuck behind a standing Garif Herder in the Lull of the Land area of Jahara.

An example of a purely cosmetic glitch is the "flapping hair woman" in Rabanastre, close to the bridge near the Sandsea, wherein a NPC, when spoken to, will have wildly flapping hair for no apparent reason. One also exists in the Rabanastre Aerodome, but will only rarely be activated. Something that is more of a mistake than a glitch, is Dyce in the Nam-Yensa Sandsea. Before defeating the Garuda Dyce looks completely different than how he appears afterward.


 * Immobilize Glitch
 * Zone Out Glitch

Final Fantasy Tactics

 * Dragqueen
 * JP Scroll Glitch
 * Jump Glitch
 * Poach Bug
 * Quickening Glitch
 * Weapon Duplication Bug

Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift

 * Double KO Bug

Dissidia Final Fantasy

 * 0 HP EX Burst Glitch
 * Ability Sort Bug
 * Chaos Intro Glitch
 * Double KO Bug
 * Holy Glitch
 * Invisibility Glitch
 * Jumping Capsule Top Glitch
 * Walking in Air Glitch