Final Fantasy Tactics Writer Yasumi Matsuno Just Found Out About The Game's Most Famous False Quote 1
Image: Square Enix / Leftist Gamer Memes

The internet is supposed to be the font of all knowledge and a tremendous educator for mankind, but it's also responsible for many incorrect memories and outright falsehoods, as Final Fantasy Tactics' most quotable piece of dialogue attests.

Many people on the internet would have you believe that the line, "If the penalty for a crime is a fine, then that law only exists for the lower class," is taken directly from the game. However, as this excellent piece of reporting by Aftermath proves, the quotation is an invention (albeit one that is perfectly in keeping with the game's tone and narrative).

It turns out Leftist Gamer Memes circulated the false quote around 2020, and it has become so connected with Final Fantasy Tactics that even Google itself considers it to be legit (not that Google believing things is any indication of truth these days, of course).

Amusingly, the writer of Final Fantasy Tactics has only just found out about this meme:

If Matsuno feels that the line is close to something he would write, it's not all that surprising. There's a line in the game which he did create which reads:

"What purpose do laws serve when even those who would enforce them choose not to pay them heed?"

That's pretty close to the meme quote, to be fair.

Final Fantasy Tactics launched on PS1 back in 1997 and was remastered for PSP in 2007. It's getting a new update this September—subtitled The Ivalice Chroniclesfor modern systems.

[source x.com]