Cecil was listed as the best hero in the "Final Fantasy" franchise by GamesRadar as well as one of the top 10 franchise characters by GameZone, owing to his heroic traits and character arc. Both GameSpot and IGN stated that the cast was interesting and avoided common cliches. On the other hand, while RPGamer's Michael Beckett found the main characters likable, he felt that some of the most important ones "have been copied by so many other titles in the genre that they have been rendered cliche," specifically pointing to Cecil and Rosa's personalities.