The first Final Fantasy game to show blood.
Two million copies were sold within the first three days of release.
Has sold 8.6 million copies worldwide.
The characters Biggs and Wedge are named after the Star Wars: Episódio IV - Uma Nova Esperança (1977) characters Biggs Darklighter and Wedge Antilles. This is a recurring joke in Final Fantasy games.
The word "Shinra" comes from Egyptian mythology, where a shinra is a minor vampire-bat type monster.