Square Enix is kind enough to share more details of the next Pixel Final Fantasy experience, Final Fantasy Resonance. Final Fantasy Resonance, for those not familiar with the title, will be an HD-2D Final Fantasy experience based on the story of Final Fantasy Brave Exvius. Final Fantasy Brave Exvius was a mobile title that reached its end of service in 2024.
When thinking about the design for this title, Square Enix asked itself one question: “What if Final Fantasy had continued to push the limits of pixel art?” Thus, the current new style for Final Fantasy Resonance was born. Even though the story and narrative were based on the mobile game Final Fantasy Brave Exvius, the actual game Final Fantasy Resonance won’t be a direct translation. Final Fantasy Resonance “extensively rebuilds and reimagines” the mobile title so that the game will be a bigger experience.
Like every Final Fantasy experience, the crystals around the world are very important. Final Fantasy Resonance features significant world-building throughout the story.
The World Of Final Fantasy Resonance
There are two main factions we got to learn about from the information Square Enix gave us. Final Fantasy Resonance will feature the Zoldaad Empire and Mysidia, the Magiapolis. The Zoldaad Empire believes in advanced technology and will use that technology to try to conquer its neighbors. The Zoldaad Empire houses the fire crystal. Then there is Mysidia, a city only spoken of in myth or fairy tale. It is the city of mages who house the ice crystal. There is one more important faction that is in the world of Final Fantasy Resonance. That is the Sword Six. They are a faction focused specifically on destroying the crystals and want the balance of the world to reside in people instead of magical crystals.
Zoldaad, as an empire, is ruthless. It is dehumanizing and directly leads to a rebel army erupting from within that wants to tear down the rule of the empire. This rebel army is led by Jake, one of the playable protagonists from the game. In battle, he relies on Lady Luck to save the day and win his fights. He uses abilities such as Coin Toss and Gamble Shot.
There is also another character named Sakura who is from Mysidia. She has a youthful appearance but wisdom that makes you speculate about her true age. She uses her magical abilities in combat and is seen as a cut above the rest when compared to other mages in Mysidia.
Combat Systems
Combat is turn-based, which is a big win for older fans of the Final Fantasy series. Final Fantasy Resonance also brings in other gameplay systems to set it apart from other games too. One system that makes a return but in a different way is Limit Bursts. Every character has a gauge for their Limit Burst. As that character attacks, staggers enemies, and receives damage, that gauge goes up. Depending on the character, a Limit Burst can be a giant attack or a high-quality buff to your party.
A strong system that sets this apart from other Final Fantasy games is the Vision system. Visions are the abilities and presence of other characters from the Final Fantasy series. You can equip Vision crystals onto your characters to use their abilities. If you manage to stagger the entire enemy party within a turn, you unlock Resonance. Using Resonance deals significant damage to the enemy team. You can obtain more Visions in Final Fantasy Resonance by visiting Sanctums of Light throughout the world.
Visions aren’t limited to characters from other Final Fantasy series; there are also Visions of characters related to the world of Final Fantasy Resonance. You can find magicite to awaken these Visions. Awakening Visions enhances their stats as well as the abilities you receive from them. You can get magicite from treasure chests, fighting monsters, and diving into dungeons.
There are secret dungeons and tough bosses all throughout the world in case you were worried the story locations were too easy. These were added into the game so that it could feel satisfying to completionists. One of the fights that we get to see is Gilgamesh. There is also a boss fight with Ultima Weapon.
Final Fantasy Resonance is almost here, and there is a lot to look forward to. I am excited to see how well they manage to flesh out this reimagined story of Final Fantasy Brave Exvius. There is a lot more effort put into this game than I was expecting, but that is what makes it so exciting!
Final Fantasy Resonance will be released on October 22nd, 2026 for PlayStation 5, XBOX Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch 2, and PC.
