You Can Visit Link From The Legend Of Zelda's Grave In The Original Final Fantasy
Easter eggs in "Final Fantasy" games have abounded over the years for fans to discover and dissect, with famous examples including the appearance of Aerith's ghost in "Final Fantasy 7" and the inclusion of super bosses — optional and super-powered foes — across every game in the series. Other easter eggs have taken to breaking the fourth wall in hilarious ways. For example, players in "Final Fantasy 4" can find a hidden location named the "Developer's Room," containing NPCs named after the dev team who will accuse the player of thieving, restore their MP, and battle them (via BitBytBoy). Other easter eggs even referenced games from outside the mainline "Final Fantasy" cannon, and a specific instance can be seen in the original "Final Fantasy" from 1987.
"The Legend of Zelda" debuted in Japan for the Famicom only 11 months before "Final Fantasy." And both would go on to encapsulate players and kick off a series that has remained popular to this day. Square evidently kept "The Legend of Zelda" on its radar when developing the original "Final Fantasy," as the developers called attention to Link through a small easter egg in the debut "Final Fantasy" game. In the first half of the title, when the party arrives at Elfheim, players can encounter "Link's" gravestone in the northeastern portion of the settlement.
Rest in peace: Link and Erdrick
All but one of the gravestones in Elfheim reads "You see a gravestone." But when players interact with the left-most grave, it reads "Here lies Link." Square planted this easter egg in the Japanese release of "Final Fantasy" and reincorporated it in all remakes to follow: "Final Fantasy Origins" for PlayStation 1, "Final Fantasy 1 & 2: Dawn of Souls" for Game Boy Advance, and so on.
As for the 1990 English release of "Final Fantasy" on the NES, DidYouKnowGaming showed that Square changed the gravestone to read "Here lies Erdrick." Erdrick, of course, starred as the main protagonist in "Dragon Quest 3." Funnily enough, "Zelda 2: The Adventure of Link" featured that same gravestone (per WhatCulture).
However, the reference to Link may have more going for it than the "Dragon Quest" reference. Cloud 9 on Amino noted how Link, as a Hylian, has pointed, elf-like ears — quite befitting a town named for its elves. Any gamer and their grandmother can also point out the unsubtle resemblance between many of the NPCs in Elfheim and Link (via DeltaShinyZeta).
"Final Fantasy" has undergone stunning transformations in its 30 plus year history, but the original and all of its remakes still hold a lot of charm, especially concerning easter eggs like this.