This feels familiar…

World of Final Fantasy is a weird combination of the famed series mixed with plenty of fan service and a little Pokemon for good measure. It is great to see this title finally make its way onto new consoles, and fans of the series would be wise to check it out. Sure the stacking system is a little obscure and the story feels like a by-the-numbers spin-off, but the core game play still delivers a fun experience that is worth checking out.

The story follows the adventure of siblings Reyna and Lann. It kicks off with them in their normal lives, but somehow they wake up in a fantastical world without their memory; standard JRPG fare. This world is chock full of characters from the Final Fantasy world and you, get this, catch them in balls to add to your collection. Sound familiar? Yeah World of Final Fantasy is the Square-Enix version of Pokémon, and it works.

MSRP: $39.99
Platforms: XB1 (reviewed), PS4, Switch
Price I’d Pay: $34.99

The siblings are likeable but there is one hang-up and that is Tama. The fox companion is constantly explaining the world and game mechanics, and the dialogue is absolutely grating. The hook is that Tama adds the word ‘the’ constantly when it is not needed. I cannot describe how annoying this is, just watch one video of their dialogue and you will understand.

The core quest is fairly linear. The game moves from world to world with dungeons that involve a variety of enemies, nothing too outlandish or overly complicated. The combat system follows the same rule set. Much like the aforementioned Pokémon, players bring their characters into battle. The hook here is that instead of one-offs, I could create stacks. It is ridiculous because they are actually stacked on top of each other. These combinations give off various attacks and buffs for the combination.

The combat itself uses the active time battle mechanic, but I found myself putting it on auto-combat early and often as the battles felt far too simplistic at times. There is also a fast forward button which should now be standard in any JRPG that has drawn out battle mechanics.

World of Final Fantasy is a nice change of pace for the series’ formula, but it relies too much on simplistic tactics to be a standout. I love the two main characters and the ideas behind the combat, but the dungeons feel padded out and the combat is just not that interesting.

Review copy of game provided by publisher.

Good
  • Visual style
  • Interesting mechanics
Bad
  • Combat drags on at times
  • Linear dungeons
7
Good
Written by
Ken is the Editor-in-Chief of this hole in the wall and he loves to troll for the fun of it. He also enjoys long walks through Arkham Asylum and the cool air of Shadow Moses Island. His turn-ons include Mortal Kombat, Metal Gear Solid and StarCraft.