Final Fantasy Resonance Review

It’s been a while since I last played a Final Fantasy game; I played several in my youth, but my most recent experience with the series is FFVII Remake. However, the old aesthetic of the first six games has always stayed with me. In particular, the pixel design and the sense of adventure of travelling the map.

When I saw Final Fantasy Resonance combine classic pixel art with higher-definition environments, I was immediately keen to play and see what it had to offer. The game has a unique beauty, but the story soon became its biggest draw for me.

The story opens on a world ravaged by war, its surface scotched by countless battles. A lone woman works her way through the battlefield, defeating enemies with haste. Another warrior soon arrives, and after a brief battle, the woman is defeated and sealed away in a vast crystal. This crystal and several others then fly into the sky and seem to take off; the now six figures stand staring and cursing the crystals, and the story then shifts to the modern time.  

Rain is a young knight serving the Kingdom of Grandshelt alongside his friend and adoptive brother Laswell. The pair of knights are dispatched to investigate a disturbance surrounding the Earth Crystal. After the knights fight their way through the mountain shrine, they encounter a mysterious dark knight who destroys the crystal, leaving the pair unconscious.

When Rain and Laswell recover, they discover that their fellow soldiers and airship have been destroyed, prompting a quick return to the Kingdom. Once they arrive, they see the Castle and kingdom are ablaze. They hurry in and are soon confronted by the Mysterious Knight again. This time he has brought five allies; the pair try to take on this Knight for the second time, but when all seems lost, a glowing spectre appears and comes to their aid.  

With the assistance of the glowing figure, the group now known as the Sworn Six escapes with an artifact and the spectre’s glowing aura drops to reveal a young girl. The young lass cannot remember anything but her name: Fina. After a consult with the King, the three decide to try and figure out the Sworn Six’s plan, restore the memories of Fina and her mysterious origins, and save the world.

By this point, the story had drawn me in; I was keen to set out on the adventure with my companions. I now felt inherently familiar with the combat, with the turn-based system I remember from the older games. Final Fantasy Resonance builds on this familiar foundation through Visions and Espers, two systems that add further depth and strategy to the traditional party setup.

Visions are found through exploration and discovery of special caves containing crystals, and represent warriors drawn from across the Final Fantasy series. Each is in possession of unique abilities and can be equipped to party members. As these visions fight alongside the party member, they gain a bond that can be levelled up. Like levelling the party members, this makes them stronger; however, it has the unique ability that mastering them also allows for skills to be transferred to the bonded member. There is a select number of spots, but this can be done with multiple visions.

I found this of particular use with Rain. His elemental attacks initially focused on fire; I paired him with a vision that focused on lightning and stone, and later one that covered water and wind. After levelling these visions with him, I was able to transfer some of their abilities to him, making me a solid all-rounder for most element types. I followed a similar approach with a few of the other characters, especially once I began gaining more Visions. Rounding out my squad into different specialties, including defence, offence and strategists.

With my main party built with their supporting Visions, I later gained access to the Espers. These powerful, almost godlike beings were often associated with the elements; their abilities worked a bit differently. With them being summoned into battle with a heavy mana cost, they could take damage, and after a certain number of turns they could do different things such as attacks, defence or a signature move before they departed the battlefield.

Espers proved especially helpful during boss fights and other more difficult encounters. On several occasions, they were the deciding factor between winning and losing as I had miscalculated my character level advantage. They turned an impossible battle back in my favour.

The turn-based combat was enjoyable throughout my journey. A timeline is displayed at the top of the screen that shows the current order of actions, allowing me to plan and anticipate enemies’ attacks. Enemies have a stagger gauge, and one depleted it prevents them from attacking, lowering their defence and granting the character responsible an additional action during a bonus phase.

Staggering all enemies at once triggers a Sweeping Stagger; this gives the entire party an additional action before allowing one of the characters’ Visions to do a Resonance attack. These systems created opportunities for the team to do devastating amounts of damage; when done at the end of a battle, it would also improve points, currency and reward amounts. Watching the damage numbers pile up on a particularly annoying enemy was always immensely satisfying.

Outside of combat, there is a considerable amount of gear and accessories that can be applied to each of the members of the group. Equipping the right weapons, armour, and accessories made a noticeable difference to their performance in battle. A lot of different equipment can be purchased at the towns visited on the map, although just as much is found while exploring the world or dungeons. Shopkeepers are not very generous when buying unwanted gear, meaning I rarely got back much of what I originally paid. Shops are typically divided into three categories: weapons, armour, and items, the latter offering healing and recovery supplies.

The game’s visual presentation is stunning, to say the least. Rather than relying solely on the HD-2D aesthetic, it combines the pixel art with fully rendered 3D sequences during Resonances, Esper Summon attacks, as well as some other powerful abilities. Even if they sometimes cause the Steam Deck to stutter. I adored the pixelated appearance; however, watching a Vision turn 3D and unleash a power attack was something truly spectacular to behold. The character sprites are varied and display a decent amount of expression, while the ever-changing scenery and architecture give each town, region and country its own visual identity. The animation throughout this game has been equally impressive.

Much of this game is voice-acted, and the English cast does a fantastic job of capturing the spirit and personalities of the characters. Small conversations and spontaneous interactions can occur while travelling; these create the impression of a group growing closer on the adventure. The characters often have exchanges during and after battles that lead me to feel more connected with the party, while also putting a smile on my face.

The soundtrack draws from Final Fantasy’s musical history while also introducing lots of fresh compositions and sound effects that are unique to Resonance. The music does a wonderful job of following the shifting tone of the adventure; however, hearing the familiar victory fanfare after a battle always sparked a little joy in my heart.

As with most RPGs, there were several ways to approach the adventure. As something of a completionist, I often chose to investigate anything marked on the map as well as exploring anywhere and everywhere. There were countless side quests and minigames to discover beyond the main story. In one town, I found myself challenging one of the local kids in a jump rope contest. It was silly, but it was a welcome distraction from the more serious undertones of the main story and gave me some needed room to breathe.

The game ran well on my main machine; I did, however, have some stutters on the Steam Deck, mainly during the Resonance attacks where the screen showed some stuttering. I also had sometimes where the controls were nonresponsive and I had to exit the game and reload. This seems to be due to the handheld overheating slightly and causing the game to act strange.

Overall, Final Fantasy Resonance emerges as a compelling continuation of the beloved franchise. It beautifully blends the nostalgic charm of the older titles with its vibrant pixel art and engaging turn-based combat. At the same time, it introduces modern visual aesthetics, cinematic attack sequences, and a diverse cast of characters that lend the game its own distinct identity.

I was initially captivated by the enchanting story and the stunning pixel art, but it was the dynamic character interactions, the evocative soundtrack, and the exhilarating combat mechanics that transformed my time with the game into an unforgettable journey. This seamless fusion of nostalgia and innovative concepts rekindled my appreciation for why Final Fantasy has remained a cherished and enduring series throughout the years.

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