Final Fantasy Lost Stranger[a] is a Japanesemanga series written by Hazuki Minase and illustrated by Itsuki Kameya. It began serialization inSquare Enix'sshōnen manga magazineMonthly Shōnen Gangan in July 2017. The series features an original story set in the world ofFinal Fantasy.
The series focuses onSquare Enix employee Shogo Sasaki, who has been a fan ofFinal Fantasy since his childhood and dreams of one day making his own game in the franchise. One day, he and his sister Yuko were killed in a collision with a truck. They later woke up in another world reminiscent of that ofFinal Fantasy.
Final Fantasy Lost Stranger is written by Hazuki Minase and illustrated by Itsuki Kameya and is based on theFinal Fantasy video game franchise fromSquare Enix. The manga was announced during the 30th anniversary of the series as an original story combining elements from theFinal Fantasy universe with the popularisekai genre.[4] Minase previously wrote thelight novel seriesC³ and penned scripts for theFate/kaleid liner Prisma Illya television adaptations.[5] Kameya previously authored the mangaKaidan Tochuu no Big Noise and was an illustrator on the mobile gameStar Ocean: Anamnesis, also published by Square Enix.[6] She was told about her formermanaging editor about a contest held by Square Enix to illustrate for the new manga. Kameya is large fan of the games with her favorites beingFinal Fantasy V,VII andX.[4][6][7] Kameya entered the competition and won first place.[4][6]
The monthly production ofLost Stranger involves Minase and Kameya working remotely from one another with their managing editor acting as a liaison.[7]Dropbox andSkype are used for their communication.[8] Minase sends the script to the editor who next forwards it to Kameya. The artist then drafts storyboards and adds its manga elements for about ten days. After ensuring the story looks proper in manga format, Kameya corresponds with the editor until it is delivered back to Minase. If the writers agrees, the work is put through a validation process byNaoki Yoshida and other staff at Square Enix for about five days before Kameya then finalizes it at the end of the month.[4][6]
According to Kameya, most of her storyboards are accepted by Yoshida, but he will sometimes ask her to specify certain elements for readers who may be unfamiliar with the games. Kameya largely has free rein on the character designs, although the publisher has requested she revise some of them.[6] She largely completes the designs herself and delegates the drawing toassistants.[8] She referencesFinal Fantasy XIV for monster designs and to ensurecharacter jobs have the appropriate equipment and costumes.[6][7] Kameya stated that the manga's protagonist Shogo is based on the default male Hyur avatar fromFinal Fantasy XIV to make him more identifiable to readers.[4] She has used the mangaFullmetal Alchemist as a reference for both character and set designs as well as for alternating between serious and comedic tones inLost Stranger.[4][6] Other sources of inspiration outside the franchise include Czech artistAlphonse Mucha, natural landscapes, and European cities such asParis.[6] She exclusively utilizesdigital tools, notablyClip Studio Paint, for both black-and-white and color illustrations.[7][8]
Final Fantasy Lost Stranger was first announced during the 30th anniversary event of theFinal Fantasy franchise on January 31, 2017. The series was announced to be the first manga of the franchise to have an original story not connected to previous games.[5] It began serialization inSquare Enix'sshōnen manga magazineMonthly Shōnen Gangan on July 12, 2017.[9] Its chapters have been compiled into thirteentankōbon volumes as of August 2025.[10]
DuringAnime Expo 2017,Yen Press announced at their panel that they would begin simultaneously publishing its chapters in English.[11]Crunchyroll later announced at their panel that they would also begin simultaneously publishing its chapters in English.[12]
