FINAL FANTASY RESONANCE Review Summary

Stunning HD-2D visuals, classic Final Fantasy charm, praised turn-based combat, and an incredible soundtrack are undercut by weak story and writing plus poorly balanced Expert difficulty.

Stunning HD-2D visuals: The HD-2D art style is highly praised for its beauty and polish, blending 2D pixel art with 3D environments. Many describe it as the best HD-2D has ever looked.

Classic Final Fantasy feel: Many players feel the game captures the essence of classic Final Fantasy titles, reminiscent of early entries. It successfully delivers a nostalgic experience that stays true to the series' roots.

Turn-based combat praised: The turn-based combat system is well-implemented, engaging, and refreshing. It brings back old-school strategic pacing and is considered a highlight of the game.

Incredible soundtrack: The music is consistently described as amazing, exceptional, and top-notch. The soundtrack is a major highlight, with some saying it's worth the price alone.

Overall masterpiece: Many players consider the game a masterpiece and fantastic overall. It is described as amazing and excellent, with high praise for its overall quality.

Story and writing weak: The story is described as basic, generic, predictable, and cliché, with excessive dialogue and poor writing that feels like pure JRPG cheese.

Visual style and graphics criticism: The mix of 2D and 3D visuals is jarring, pixel art may look low-quality, background textures are flat, and there is a disconnect between painted portraits and HD backgrounds.

Expert difficulty poorly balanced: Expert difficulty is criticized for being both too easy in some aspects and making enemies excessively tanky, with bosses having too much HP and mobs being either too strong or too weak.

Game too easy: Many find the game too easy even on Expert difficulty, with early customization and hand-holding making it unchallenging.

Missing controller vibration: Players report no controller vibration or haptic feedback in the demo and full game, making combat feel less impactful.

Turn-based combat system: The game features traditional turn-based combat with distinct turns, modern innovations, and resource management. It is a proper turn-based system similar to classic Final Fantasy.

Visions system with legacy characters: The Visions system allows players to use characters from previous Final Fantasy games, similar to espers in Final Fantasy VI. Visions can be equipped to customize party composition and abilities.

HD-2D visual style: The game uses an HD-2D visual style combining 3D environments with pixel-art characters, creating a distinctive aesthetic.

Classic Final Fantasy style: The game follows an old-school JRPG style reminiscent of classic Final Fantasy titles before ATB, with a traditional role-playing experience.

Expert difficulty mode: An expert difficulty setting is available, providing a demanding but fair challenge. It increases enemy HP and damage while decreasing player damage dealt.

Excellent Steam Deck performance: Multiple users report the game runs perfectly on Steam Deck, including in dock mode, and on Steam Frame. Performance is described as smooth and flawless.

Frequent crashes reported: Some users experience frequent crashes, which can severely impact gameplay and enjoyment.

Good ROG Ally performance: The game runs very well on ROG Ally Z1E and ROG Ally X, indicating good compatibility with handheld PCs beyond Steam Deck.

Steam Deck controls not working: On Steam Deck, the game opens but controls do not work, which is a significant issue for handheld players.

No sound issue: A user reports no sound after spending an evening trying to fix it, indicating a potential audio bug that may require troubleshooting.

Recommended for Final Fantasy fans: Many reviewers strongly recommend the game to Final Fantasy fans, especially those nostalgic for classic titles. It is described as a return to form for the series and a must-buy for fans of the franchise.

Appeals to classic turn-based RPG fans: The game is highly recommended for players who enjoy old-school turn-based RPGs and classic Final Fantasy combat. Fans of turn-based systems will find it particularly enjoyable.

Generally recommended as a good game: Many reviewers give the game a strong recommendation, describing it as a very good game worth playing. The overall sentiment is highly positive.

Great for fans of retro JRPGs: Reviewers recommend it to JRPG enthusiasts, especially those who love classic and 2D RPGs. It captures the feel of older games while offering modern improvements.

Try the demo if unsure: Several reviewers suggest trying the demo to help decide whether to purchase. This is especially useful for those who are on the fence or hesitant about buying.

Community fair range: $40.00 - $60.00.

Game completion: 45.0h.

Story completion: 40.0h.

Most reports describe immediate enjoyment from the opening, tutorial, and demo, driven by turn-based combat, HD-2D presentation, and party customization. Early Expert-mode encounters and Vision grinding are recurring friction points, but they do not outweigh the immediate-hook reports.

Friction: Expert mode has frequent random encounters and tanky mobs; Early Expert-mode bosses have too much HP before buffs/debuffs; Vision grinding can take a while; Opening story may feel standard for some players; Early difficulty curve on Expert.

Unlock drivers: Unlocking the Vision system opens up combat and progression; Access to buffs/debuffs eases early Expert-mode boss fights; Completing the tutorial improves the Expert difficulty curve.

Nostalgic Old-School FF Veteran: Plays turn-based battles on Expert, grinds levels and abilities, explores an old-school world map, and seeks secrets and boss fights. Motivation: Returning to classic turn-based Final Fantasy with pixel art, world exploration, and grind-friendly progression. Stance: buy.

Final Fantasy Newcomer: Learns the turn-based systems, explores the world and cast, and plays at an approachable pace while becoming more interested in the series. Motivation: Finding an accessible entry point into Final Fantasy and being intrigued by the crossover cast and Visions. Stance: buy.

Turn-Based Combat Strategist: Exploits enemy weaknesses, breaks foes, swaps Visions, equips learned passives, and seeks strategic high-difficulty encounters. Motivation: Mastering layered turn-based combat, weakness-break mechanics, Vision/passive builds, and Expert difficulty. Stance: buy.

Windows systems with 12-15GB VRAM and the handheld cohort mostly report smooth performance, while the 16GB+ VRAM cohort is dominated by crashes and optimization complaints; the <8GB VRAM cohort has only limited positive evidence.

Windows 12-15GB VRAM: positive. Most included reports describe smooth, bug-free performance and high frame rates, with one isolated crash complaint.

Windows 16GB+ VRAM: negative. Most included reports complain of poor PC optimization, crashes, and launch or frame-rate problems, despite one smooth-performance report.

Windows <8GB VRAM: positive. The included report is positive and no negative performance reports were supplied, though it gives little concrete performance detail.

Steam Deck: Steam Deck feedback is mixed. Several users praise smooth performance and successful compatibility through Proton Experimental, but the audit found high-friction issues: small, uncomfortable text; inconsistent controller support; a report that the game opens without playing properly; and a crash complaint. Because crash and playability evidence reaches the broken tier, the friction score is 70.

Linux and Proton: Linux/Proton evidence is entirely positive: a CachyOS user reports success with default Proton Experimental, and multiple users report perfect or smooth Steam Deck performance, including docked mode. No Linux-specific launch failures, anti-cheat issues, required tweaks, or stability problems appear in the filtered reviews.

Connections to Brave Exvius: The game is frequently compared to or identified as an adaptation of the mobile game Brave Exvius. Reviewers note it is a single-player remake of the first season's story.

Favorable comparisons to classic Final Fantasy: Reviewers compare the game to older Final Fantasy titles, including the SFC era and classic turn-based entries. Some say it combines the best elements of Final Fantasy 6 through 10.

Frequent Octopath Traveler comparisons: Many reviewers compare the game to Octopath Traveler, often favorably, citing better immersion and replayability. Some call it Octopath 3 or Octopath Traveler Pro Max.

Demo availability highlighted: Reviewers mention a demo is available, with playtimes ranging from 5 to 7 hours. Some say the demo led them to pre-purchase the game.

HD-2D visual style praised: The game features HD-2D visuals reminiscent of Octopath Traveler, with a retro-inspired aesthetic and AAA polish. Reviewers compare it to other Square Enix HD-2D titles.