FINAL FANTASY RESONANCE is a Pleasant Return to the Collection’ Basic Roots

It’s 1996. I’m fortunately traversing by way of chocobo and airship a magical world stuffed with moogles, espers, crystals and magitek. I’m dazzled by the colourful pixel artwork.

It’s 2026. I’m fortunately traversing by way of chocobo and airship a magical world stuffed with moogles, espers, crystals and magitek. I’m dazzled by the colourful pixel artwork.

FINAL FANTASY RESONANCE is the primary time that Sq. Enix has utilized its trademarked “HD-2D” type to its flagship franchise. Like in Triangle Technique and the Octopath Traveler video games, it combines expressive 2D pixel artwork sprites with 3D environments, cinematic cameras, dynamic lighting, particle results, and depth of area right into a compelling, hybrid aesthetic.

A number of RPGs experimented with the same look again on the PS1 (together with Sq.’s personal Xenogears), and the HD-2D video games aren’t a lot a throwback as they’re emissaries from a parallel universe the place pixel artwork was by no means supplanted by full 3D and as an alternative advanced. With almost a decade of follow within the type, FINAL FANTASY RESONANCE is perhaps the perfect and most pushed it’s appeared but.

The story is an adaptation of FINAL FANTASY BRAVE EXVIUS, a free-to-play cell gacha RPG that ran from 2015 to 2025, however that is no easy port or visible improve. Builders Sq. Enix and LANCARSE have constructed and balanced the fight/development methods and world anew on high of that authentic story into a totally featured, single-player, single-purchase RPG. It’s a love letter to the sequence and a nostalgic return to its foundational roots with a contemporary improve, very similar to FINAL FANTASY IX did over 26 years in the past.

First Fantasy

FINAL FANTASY RESONANCE follows childhood associates Rain and Lasswell, knights for the idyllic Kingdom of Grandshelt. That idyll is shattered when a mysterious, highly effective, armored man assaults the fort, steals a magical relic, and destroys the sacred Earth Crystal below the dominion’s safety, throwing every part into chaos. Joined ultimately by Fina, an amnesiac spellcaster with some connection to all of this,  and a celebration of distinctive people every with their very own cause to cease the upcoming chaos, they got down to cease the Sworn Six from destroying the world’s different elemental Crystals, every protected in numerous lands.

Past being a visible throwback, this back-to-roots story is a direct return to the unique type of archetypal fantasy narrative that dominated the primary 5 entries within the sequence earlier than FINAL FANTASY VI (my first and nonetheless private favourite) began to actually widen the dramatic and narrative scope of their storytelling ambitions. A celebration of 4 or extra heroes endeavors to save lots of the world-infrastructural elemental Crystals from some nice peril. It’s a snug mythopoetic house that’s nonetheless very open-ended and straightforward to iterate for a classic-style RPG.

Like within the traditional video games, the high-fantasy melodrama of the overarching plot is balanced out by a brighter tone that’s usually fairly lighthearted from scene to scene. This levity retains it enjoyable and straightforward to play via but in addition helps land the heavier emotional beats in contrast.

Everybody Line Up

Along with returning to the sequence’ aesthetic and narrative roots, FINAL FANTASY RESONANCE can also be going again to traditional, menu-driven fight. It’s not even Energetic-Time Battles, just like the sequence iterated from FINAL FANTASY IV on, however totally turn-based, with a timeline on high of the display screen displaying the upcoming motion order of allies and enemies. This provides a satisfyingly strategic layer to fight as you’ll be able to preemptively react to the enemy, prioritizing targets and minimizing incoming hurt.

A central new fight mechanic is that each enemy has a stagger meter. Each assault out there to you signifies proportionally how a lot injury it does to each well being and stagger. Whenever you deplete an enemy’s stagger meter, they’re shocked, dropping their motion for the spherical and taking extra injury. The character that staggers an enemy will get a bonus motion on the finish of the spherical, and for those who stagger each surviving enemy, you set off a “sweeping stagger,” which provides your complete staff a bonus end-of-round motion.

Mixed with a traditional framework of elemental weak point/resistance and standing results (poison, blind, silence, appeal, and so on.), with focusing on weaknesses doing extra well being and stagger injury, this creates a really satisfying old-school fight circulate. Characters additionally progress in a really conventional style, gaining predetermined stats and a set, distinctive checklist of abilities and spells as they degree up.

Visions of the Previous

Lest you are worried a couple of lack of customization, nevertheless, FINAL FANTASY RESONANCE has it within the type of Visions. These are the echoes of previous FINAL FANTASY characters who lend Rain and his allies their powers in battle. Up to now, I’ve seen the Warrior of Gentle (I), Cloud (VII), Terra (VI) and Zidane (IX), with many extra left to seek out scattered all over the world in shrines. Every of your get together members can have one Imaginative and prescient assigned at a time, getting access to their skills. Triggering a sweeping stagger additionally means that you can unleash its particular Resonance assault, full with a full 3D summon-style cutscene.

Preventing alongside Visions will increase that character’s mastery degree with them, unlocking extra skills, which might then be geared up as much as a set level restrict even with a special imaginative and prescient geared up. The mix of a personality’s base abilities and their Imaginative and prescient’s plus any others you’ve unlocked and geared up, provides fairly a little bit of latitude in the way you assemble every character’s package, which I discovered myself situationally altering as I went to match the calls for of no matter dungeon I used to be in.

It’s the obvious echo of the sport’s gacha roots in FINAL FANTASY BRAVE EXVIUS, however stripped of all randomness and monetization. What’s left is simply the compelling hook of wanting to seek out extra cool characters to play with, particularly if, like me, you’ve gotten a longstanding historical past with the video games. FINAL FANTASY RESONANCE could be very rewarding to followers on the whole, at each degree chock-full of intelligent little nods and references to throughout the sequence’ complete historical past, like a bard you meet off-handedly describing himself as “spoony.”

Conveniences of the Future

Like so lots of the greatest remakes and nostalgic media, FINAL FANTASY RESONANCE succeeds by capturing your reminiscence of the originals, rose-tinted glasses and all. All kinds of considerate little modernizations shave off these corners and bits of friction that may make the sooner video games a little bit little bit of a slog to replay. Enemy weaknesses and resistances are proven perpetually when you’ve discovered them, making it a lot simpler to blaze via repeat combats, that are additionally accelerated by variable velocity and skippable summon cutscenes. You may as well keep away from pointless random battles totally by quick touring to any beforehand visited location from outdoors of dungeons.

All these touches add as much as make a clean expertise that respects my time. It’s an enthralling throwback, with a satisfying and considerate rhythm of play that I’ve missed in trendy RPGs, however in a smooth and trendy bundle. Throw in a little bit of nostalgic fan service for good measure, and I anticipate to be having fun with this for fairly some time.

FINAL FANTASY RESONANCE is accessible now on XBOX Collection X|S and XBOX on PC. Play it on each console and PC at no further price with XBOX Play Anyplace. Attempt it totally free with a demo of the total first chapter, which carries over on buy.

FINAL FANTASY RESONANCE Digital Deluxe Version

SQUARE ENIX CO., LTD.

☆☆☆☆☆
1

★★★★★

Pre-order Bonus: Magitek Airship & Squire Starter Pack
This set incorporates an merchandise that transforms your airship’s look right into a magitek vessel, together with helpful objects to help you in the beginning of your journey.

Pack Contents:
• Magitek Airship Passkey x1
• Knight’s Greatsword x1
• Chestplate of Preparation x1 (Will increase EXP gained in battle by a specific amount)
• Magicite Shard x1
• Tent x3
• Mist Potion x3

*These bonuses can be found solely to clients who pre-order the product and aren’t out there to clients who buy the product after launch.
*After progressing previous a sure level within the sport, you could declare the objects from the postbox in entrance of the inn within the City of Mitra.
*The airship’s look could be modified by turning the Magitek Airship Passkey “ON” below the Gadgets part of the principle menu.

———————
This product is a bundle that features the FINAL FANTASY RESONANCE base sport together with the Magitek & Grimoire Deluxe Pack, which incorporates an merchandise that transforms your chocobo’s look into magitek armor, an merchandise unique to this pack that unlocks a sure character’s Fel Meteor Restrict Burst, and helpful objects to help you in the beginning of your journey.

Digital Deluxe Version Contents:
▼ FINAL FANTASY RESONANCE Base Recreation
▼ Magitek & Grimoire Deluxe Pack
　 Pack Contents:
　 • Magitek Armor Key x1
　 • Archwitch’s Grimoire x1
　 • Mastery Ring x1
　 • Tent x5
　 • Mist Potion x5
　 • Mist Ether x5
　 • Phoenix Down x5
　 • Treatment x3

*After progressing previous a sure level within the sport, you could declare the objects from the postbox in entrance of the inn within the City of Mitra.
*The chocobo’s look could be modified by turning the Magitek Armor Key “ON” below the Gadgets part of the principle menu.
*The content material included on this bundle can also be offered individually. Please watch out to keep away from making duplicate purchases.

———————
Early Buy Bonus: Squire Kickstart Pack
This set incorporates helpful objects to help you in the beginning of your journey.

Pack Contents:
• Blessed Cuirass x1 (Enhance gil obtained by a specific amount)
• Mist Ether x1

*These bonuses can be found solely to clients who buy the product by November 5, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. native time.
*After progressing previous a sure level within the sport, you could declare the objects from the postbox in entrance of the inn within the City of Mitra.

FINAL FANTASY RESONANCE

SQUARE ENIX CO., LTD.

☆☆☆☆☆

★★★★★

Pre-order Bonus: Magitek Airship & Squire Starter Pack
This set incorporates an merchandise that transforms your airship’s look right into a magitek vessel, together with helpful objects to help you in the beginning of your journey.

Pack Contents:
• Magitek Airship Passkey x1
• Knight’s Greatsword x1
• Chestplate of Preparation x1 (Will increase EXP gained in battle by a specific amount)
• Magicite Shard x1
• Tent x3
• Mist Potion x3

*These bonuses can be found solely to clients who pre-order the product and aren’t out there to clients who buy the product after launch.
*After progressing previous a sure level within the sport, you could declare the objects from the postbox in entrance of the inn within the City of Mitra.
*The airship’s look could be modified by turning the Magitek Airship Passkey “ON” below the Gadgets part of the principle menu.

———————
Return to the pixel‑artwork world of FINAL FANTASY, advanced from its traditional roots. Journey with companions certain by destiny and name on Visions to help you in battle to uncover the reality behind a pressure that threatens to convey every part to spoil.

◆ Cinematic pixel artwork
What if FINAL FANTASY had continued to push the bounds of pixel artwork? The primary FINAL FANTASY to affix the HD‑2D lineup, FINAL FANTASY RESONANCE delivers a visually putting expertise that feels each nostalgic and new, enhanced by dynamic digital camera angles and pixelized 3D fashions that make each second extra dramatic and immersive.

◆ A return to the acquainted
A traditional RPG journey unfolds in a world crammed with beloved FINAL FANTASY parts—airships, crystals, espers and moogles woven into the material of the story, and a lot extra.

◆ Strategic turn-based battles
Exploit enemy weaknesses to stagger them—breaking their defenses to grab further turns and achieve the higher hand with highly effective Resonance assaults in cinematic battles formed by sensible decisions.

◆ FINAL FANTASY legends
Bolster your staff with Visions, echoes of beloved FINAL FANTASY characters, who battle alongside you with distinctive abilities and skills for deep get together customization.

◆ Hours of aspect content material to find
The world is stuffed with secrets and techniques, together with the wandering swordmaster Gilgamesh, a Colosseum with lethal monsters and rewards to match, the Chamber of Arms with formidable foes sealed inside legendary weapons, and a showdown with Ultima Weapon.
———————
Early Buy Bonus: Squire Kickstart Pack
This set incorporates helpful objects to help you in the beginning of your journey.

Pack Contents:
• Blessed Cuirass x1 (Enhance gil obtained by a specific amount)
• Mist Ether x1

*These bonuses can be found solely to clients who buy the product by November 5, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. native time.
*After progressing previous a sure level within the sport, you could declare the objects from the postbox in entrance of the inn within the City of Mitra.