FANTASIAN Neo Dimension is a classic RPG game bought back to live in the new generation of gaming lineup.
Japanese video game publisher and entertainment conglomerate Square Enix is sure to be among the top names when it comes to publishing RPG titles. Their latest title, FANTASIAN Neo Dimension, is developed by Mistwalker for the current-gen consoles and PC. This RPG game was developed by the renowned Final Fantasy director Hironobu Sakaguchi, who is also the direct director of this role-playing game.
FANTASIAN Neo Dimension is a literal Final Fantasy game that comes as an enhanced version of FANTASIAN, which was initially released in 2021. It is the same except for the name. You needed an Apple device to play this game because it was first exclusive to Apple Arcade.
This made it seem like a smartphone game, but Fantasian is a full-length, console-quality role-playing game, and with the release of FANTASIAN Neo Dimension, it is finally available. Fantasian uses an interesting mix of CG and handmade dioramas. These handmade dioramas were then scanned into a 3D environment, and the effect is something similar to the PS1-style Final Fantasy games, except with way more detail.
As many successful games were under their name, the developers decided to push FANTASIAN Neo Dimension onto consoles such as Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and 5, Xbox X and S, and platforms like Steam.
FANTASIAN Neo Dimension begins with a boy named Leo losing his memory and waking up in a world of machines. A few moments later, he is being chased by mechanical attackers. Following his escape with the assistance of two amiable robots, he starts looking for hints to help him remember things.
He gets assistance from Cheryl, a princess he had once snubbed on a date, and Kina, an apprentice fate teller. The three face a hostile god named Vam and an odd mechanical plague he has placed upon the earth as they progressively learn more about Leo’s past and objectives.
The uncomplicated plot of Fantasian evokes nostalgia for equally simple earlier role-playing games. This is only fitting as Hironobu Sakaguchi, the creator of Final Fantasy, is also the game’s producer.
However, because of its simplicity and lack of focus, it is challenging to tell its story in a way that sounds original or captivating. During the first 10 hours of the game, Leo and his companions aimlessly search for methods to trigger his memory, only accidentally discovering the game’s larger plot.
It seems like significant questions remain unanswered once the reveals begin to come in, and the game’s responses are insufficiently thorough. Although it’s implied that Leo’s personality before amnesia differed significantly from his demeanor during the narrative, Leo is the least engaging character in an RPG group, which is not generally the case with non-silent main characters.
FANTASIAN Neo Dimension has two difficulty levels: normal and hard. It doesn’t matter which one you choose; the gameplay will stay the same. In essence, you only face enemies at random the first time you encounter them. It stacks inside the Dimension every time you encounter that opponent after that.
This implies that you can stack a great number of encounters on top of one another and then just press the square button once they are all gathered together. This enables you to use AoE skills to blast away several adversaries at once.
These little crystals that fall are also visible; they basically act as stat enhancements. You can eliminate these opponents even more quickly by hitting an attack-up or extra-turn bonus. This is fantastic since it lets you combine encounters into a single, large combat rather than just dodging them, and it’s a lot of fun to utilize your AoEs to blow up the trash mobs.
Battle music is another brand-new feature in FANTASIAN Neo Dimension. Final Fantasy VII Remake trilogy, Final Fantasy I-VI Pixel Remasters, Final Fantasy XVI, the Dawntrail addition, and Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker all feature fight music.
I think it would have fit in extremely well here, so as a fan of Lost Odyssey, I’m a little bummed to see it gone. I didn’t initially want to use this option because, generally speaking, I don’t enjoy the thought of switching out the music from one game for another.
Upon re-playing FANTASIAN Neo Dimension, I soon discovered that although the field BGM is typically very good, Fantasian lacks a variety of fight themes, and the standard battle theme is most likely not among Uematsu’s greatest. It surprised me, though, that other Final Fantasy combat music works so well here. Additionally, it reaffirms that Fantasian is a Final Fantasy in every way.
However, as the game progresses, too many of these epic battles become more about how I prepare my characters for the fight than how cunning I am in it. If I didn’t already have the appropriate equipment on my team, my only real choice would be to wait to die so I could tinker with everyone’s equipment after a reload.
Equipping the right kind of gems that boost elemental resistance or nullify status could mean the difference between suffering a painful blow and one that cannot be recovered. Certain foes are extremely vulnerable to a certain elemental attack that I may not have unlocked yet, and I am powerless to stop them until I have struggled, failed, and then returned to a previous checkpoint to retrieve a character’s vast skill tree and redistribute points to combat the most recent problem.
FANTASIAN Neo Dimension’s graphics are great. I even caught myself staring at the small details that were all over the place. However, as far as the character animation goes, there are a few things I would like to point out. When I was selecting a character, the animation could have been better, but it was shown in the corner, which seemed pretty unpleasant.
The finest music, in my opinion, is the pixel remaster, but I was also taken aback by how well Dawntrail fit into several encounters. Actually, you may alter this at any point during combat, so I suggest trying it out and seeing what suits you best.
FANTASIAN Neo Dimension is a true RPG, even if the original was released as a mobile game. The handcrafted look gives the game its character, even though the distinctive art style may not be to everyone’s taste. As an old RPG fan, I really enjoyed playing this, as it brought back a wave of nostalgic feelings.
