Need help trying to source something

[DrakeClawfang]

From FFWiki on Ultros' page

The Orthros of Final Fantasy has no connection with the mythical Orthros, save for their link to Typhon, which in the Greek myth was the father of Orthros and Cerberus. The likely reason Orthros is an octopus is given in the book for Final Fantasy Origins: Final Fantasy VI. An octopus was the main character in the first game Square ever made, and during the production of Final Fantasy VI, a programmer told illustrator Yoshitaka Amano and producer Hironobu Sakaguchi that the octopus they were designing reminded him of a purple octopus toy he had as a child named Orthros. The Orthrus spelling is also the name of a genus of jumping spider, another eight-limbed creature.

I've never heard of any sort of guidebook or anything called "Final Fantasy Origins: Final Fantasy VI". Can someone verify if it even exists, or provide some other direct source for this story?

 

[JBedford]

I don't know what book that could possibly be referring to.

It sounds like it could be an unofficial game development essay book, but... in what Square game do you play as an octopus? I'd assume it's talking about a never published game but I can't find anything about that. Also googling doesn't return anything for the book besides the wiki's Ultros bit.

It's probably not info from one of the old NTT books because ffdic knows nothing of it.

 

[DrakeClawfang]

Yeah, I tried to figure out which game it was talking about too and I couldn't find any with an octopus. And yup, same issue, any googling of the book title or the story mostly takes me to the Wiki or places quoting the Wiki (or the Wiki is quoting from someplace else)

 

[The Twilight Mexican]

I feel like this story is probably bunk. I tried googling for the subject while using the katakana for Ultros's name and the Japanese words for "octopus" and "toy." Got absolutely nothing. It seems like a rumor that only appears in English, with no specified sources that actually exist.

 

[DrakeClawfang]

Yeah, what I figured too. Thanks.

 

[DrakeClawfang]

Additional question on this - does anyone understand spoken Japanese?

I ask because a couple years ago, Hironobu Sakaguchi basically gave developer's commentary on a playthrough of FF6. I figure if this Ultros story is true, he'd probably mention it or allude to it during the streams. But they're not subtitled so, yeah.

 

[The Twilight Mexican]

Lay it on us. @Strangelove is better with spoken (and written, for that matter) Japanese than I am, but a few of us are at least more than useless.

 

[DrakeClawfang]

Okey doke, I'll link and give timestamps for when Ultros shows up (Sakaguchi was not present for the fight in the Esper Caves).

- 18:00 (the river)

- 1:31:45 (the opera)

- 1:15:45 (the air force)

I personally wish I could understand it because I would be fascinated to just hear everything Sakaguchi has to say here.