While the February 9 Nintendo Direct didn’t drop any hints about the next installment in the Mario Kart series, fans of chibi racing still have Chocobo GP to look forward to. Square Enix’s cute racing game makes no illusions about its influences, adapting many of Mario Kart’s fun design choices and pairing them with a cast of recognizable Final Fantasy characters. Here are all the Chocobo GP characters confirmed so far.
Asura, Terra, and Maduin
Final Fantasy VI has a very eclectic selection of characters, and Chocobo GP opens with at least three of them on the roster. Asura’s ability lets her temporarily summon a powerful tidal wave and ride it forward through the track, steering automatically and knocking other players out of the way. Her father, Maduin, has a similar ability called Chaos Wave, though he doesn’t go on auto-pilot when using it. For her part, Terra comes with the Magitek Missile ability, which summons homing rockets in front of her to target and knock out up to five other players.
Atla and Racing Hero X
There are at least two Moogles on the cast of Chocobo GP. While Racing Hero X is a new addition made specifically for this game, Atla was a minor character in Final Fantasy IX.
Cid
Cid is in basically every Final Fantasy entry in the series in some form, and he is also playable in Chocobo GP. His ability, Three-shot Burst, can target other cars to spin them out, and can be manually aimed.
Clair, Chocobo, Mecha-Chocobo, Camilla, and Camilla’s Pa
Naturally, Chocobo GP’s cast is packed with big chickens. Clair, Camilla, Camilla’s Pa, and the titular Chocobo are all playable characters. The most unique Chocobo in the group is the robot Mecha-Chocobo. When using its Berserk ability, Mecha-Chocobo unleashes its artillery, blasting all cars directly ahead for a short duration and knocking out any players unfortunate enough to be caught in the barrage.
Gilgamesh
The recurring Final Fantasy boss Gilgamesh is in Chocobo GP, and can throw swords at other drivers to root them in place and potentially knock them out.
Sylph
Sylphs are a mainstay in Final Fantasy games, and one of them makes an appearance as a playable character in Chocobo GP. This cute yet dangerous forest faerie can summon a torrent of Whispering Wind, slowing down nearby vehicles and making them difficult to control.
Shirma and Irma
Shirma and Irma from Chocobo Tales fittingly make a return in Chocobo GP, the former having one of the very few defensive abilities in the game. When Shirma is using her Kurukuru Counter shield, any items thrown at her car will be deflected and cause the attacking driver to be knocked out instead.
Ramuh and Shiva
Shiva and her grandpa Ramuh are also playable in Chocobo GP, and they come with powerful elemental abilities. Ramuh can summon homing thunderbolts which knock out other cars, and Shiva can cover them in frost, preventing them from drifting or using abilities or items for a short while.
Titan, Ifrit, and Ben
The imposing earth elemental Titan will be familiar to Final Fantasy players across many titles, though he is a lot softer and more chill in Chocobo GP. His ability summons rock pillars in front of cars ahead of Titan on the track, forcing other drivers to swerve or crash. Ben is a chibi Behemoth, and his ability is simpler: he just balloons up in size and projects an aura that will knock out any cars that come into contact with it.
Vivi and Steiner
These two Final Fantasy IX characters share an origin but play quite differently. The black mage Vivi is unique in that he is the only known Chocobo GP character to have access to two separate abilities. Depending on which ability he uses, he can summon the effects of different items picked up from the track. Conversely, the stern knight Steiner has a simple ability called Moonlight Slash, which knocks out any cars directly in front of him.
Cloud Strife and Squall Leonhart
These two Final Fantasy characters will be available at the in-game shop at the start of Season 1. Not much is known about them or their abilities just yet. This guide will be updated with more confirmed Chocobo GP characters as they are announced.
Published: Feb 10, 2022 12:53 pm