# Active Time Battle

- Term: Digital term
- Date: 1991
- Canonical: https://www.lanternhall.org/lexicon/active-time-battle/

> Square's hybrid combat system in which each character's gauge fills in real time, and the player must choose actions as turns come up while enemies keep acting. It added urgency to menu-based JRPG battles.

Square's hybrid combat system in which each character's gauge fills in real time, and the player must choose actions as turns come up while enemies keep acting. It added urgency to menu-based JRPG battles.

**Origin:** Designed by Hiroyuki Ito, reportedly inspired by watching cars of different speeds pass one another in a Formula One race; introduced in Final Fantasy IV (1991).

## Quick answers

**What does "Active Time Battle" mean?**
Square's hybrid combat system in which each character's gauge fills in real time, and the player must choose actions as turns come up while enemies keep acting. It added urgency to menu-based JRPG battles.

**Where does the term "Active Time Battle" come from?**
Designed by Hiroyuki Ito, reportedly inspired by watching cars of different speeds pass one another in a Formula One race; introduced in Final Fantasy IV (1991).

---
From The Lantern Hall (https://www.lanternhall.org/), a museum of fantasy literature and roleplaying games.