Square Enix makes new Final Fantasy games all the time, but the formula and presentation has changed from the Super Nintendo days. Final Fantasy IV: The After Years, a direct sequel to Final Fantasy IV starring Cecil’s oddly named son, was their first attempt at throwback Final Fantasy game. Final Fantasy Dimensions goes a step further with a brand new world and cast of characters.
"The theme was ‘what if we created a new Final Fantasy game on a SNES.’ The origin of the story is ‘Light and Darkness,’ which is also a part of the (Japanese) subtitle. The game is structured so that by playing through the two worlds back and forth using the separate parties, the player is able to see one big story," the Dimensions team explained to Siliconera over e-mail.
Final Fantasy Dimensions has a bunch of references to other games in the series. I asked the team which nods ones are their favorites.
"First and foremost is Sarah, who is one of the main characters; she is the first princess that appears in Final Fantasy, and the first-ever heroine (female protagonist). Next would probably be Matoya – this is the name of a witch that made an appearance in the original Final Fantasy who possessed the ‘Crystal Eye.’ Among the main characters are Dusk and Alba, who are very reminiscent of Palom and Porom from Final Fantasy IV. They were created with the intent of fighting in separate realms: one as a Warrior of Light and the other as a Warrior of Darkness."
While Final Fantasy Dimensions looks old, it’s a new game and priced as such. The first chapter is free, but the complete game is $19.99. It was originally $28.99. Just to put that in perspective, that’s more than buying Final Fantasy III and Final Fantasy II together. In Japan, the original mobile phone game (the feature phone version) cost even more when you factor the price of all chapters. We asked Square Enix why Final Fantasy Dimensions was priced so high in comparison to other games on iTunes and Google Play.
"We are aware of both the positive and negative opinions on this matter," the Dimensions team replied. "This title offers about 50 hours of gameplay, and we feel that our community can enjoy the contents of this game as much as they would a console title. Also, we have set the price where it is because this title was developed specifically for the mobile platform, as opposed to just being a port of an older console or handheld game. I hope our long-time fans will feel the nostalgia, while our younger fans will find this game to be refreshing and new. "
