Final Fantasy Resonance released

Final Fantasy Resonance was released on PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and both Nintendo Switch consoles on 22 October 2026. The single-player RPG is developed by Lancarse and Square Enix Creative Studio 5, with Square Enix publishing.

Rather than bringing the mobile game across unchanged, Resonance reimagines the first story arc of Final Fantasy Brave Exvius. GamesRadar+ reports that the presentation and overall experience have been substantially rebuilt, with the gacha elements removed.[1] It is also the first Final Fantasy presented in HD-2D, combining pixel art with three-dimensional environments and dynamic camera angles.[2]

Crystals, Visions and turn-based battles

The story begins in Grandshelt, where airship commander Rain and his childhood friend Lasswell investigate a weakening barrier at the Earth Shrine. There, a warrior in black armour defeats them and destroys the Earth Crystal. Their subsequent journey through Lapis brings them together with the mysterious Fina as they try to protect the remaining crystals from the Sworn Six.[3]

Combat is turn-based, with enemy weaknesses feeding into a stagger system. Breaking an enemy’s defences creates extra turns, while Resonance attacks provide follow-up attacks. Visions, echoes of characters from earlier Final Fantasy games, supply skills and options for customising the party.[2]

Exploration takes players through an overworld, towns and dungeons, with random encounters and four-character battle parties. Optional challenges include Gilgamesh, a Colosseum, the Chamber of Arms and Ultima Weapon.[1]

Reception since launch

GameDaily’s 23 October roundup reported a Metacritic score of 86/100 for PlayStation 5 and an OpenCritic average of 85/100, with 90% of critics recommending the game.[4] Steam’s store page, checked on 25 October, displayed an “Overwhelmingly Positive” rating for English-language reviews, with 97% positive from 1,385 reviews; these figures cover that language sample rather than all Steam reviews.[2]

Push Square awarded the PlayStation 5 version 8/10. Reviewer Robert Ramsey praised the turn-based combat, Visions system, pacing, art direction and music, but criticised the predictable plot, clichéd characters and dull user interface.[5] Windows Central awarded the Xbox Series X version 4.5/5, praising its character-building systems, combat and optional content while finding fault with story-pacing interruptions and short dungeons, as reported by Pure Xbox.[6]

RPGFan praised the presentation and felt the adaptation worked as a complete standalone RPG rather than a repurposed gacha game. Its main reservation was exhausting late-game combat, particularly on Expert difficulty, where slowly depleting boss stagger gauges led to lengthy encounters and encouraged narrow builds or overlevelling.[7]

Demo and version differences

A free demo covers Chapter 1 and allows saved progress to carry over to the full release, subject to some level restrictions. Steam lists full audio support in English and Japanese, alongside Windows 11, 8GB of RAM and 15GB of storage in its requirements. The PC release also uses Denuvo Anti-tamper.[2]

Players choosing between Nintendo versions should note the performance differences. RPG Site’s full-game testing found that the original Switch version is capped at 30fps, even when played on Switch 2. The native Switch 2 release targets 60fps, runs at a higher resolution and loads areas faster, although the outlet also noted blurry floor-texture filtering.[8]

For Steam Deck players, RPG Site observed occasional drops below 60fps at the default high settings and reported that reducing shadows to medium addressed them.[8]