| World of Final Fantasy | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Original North American cover art | |
| Developer(s) | Tose[a] |
| Publisher(s) | Square Enix |
| Director(s) |
|
| Producer(s) | Shinji Hashimoto |
| Artist(s) |
|
| Writer(s) |
|
| Composer(s) | Masashi Hamauzu |
| Series | Final Fantasy |
| Engine | Orochi |
| Platform(s) | |
| Release | PlayStation 4, PlayStation VitaWindows
|
| Genre(s) | Role-playing |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
World of Final Fantasy[b] is a role-playing video game developed by Tose and published by Square Enix. It is a spin-off of the Final Fantasy franchise, featuring characters from across its mainline and supplementary entries. Initially released for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita in 2016, it was later ported to Windows in 2017. An updated version, World of Final Fantasy Maxima, was released as a port for Nintendo Switch and Xbox One in 2018, with the PS4 and Windows versions receiving the Maxima update as downloadable content.
The game takes place in Grymoire, a world of coexisting Final Fantasy locations. The story follows siblings Lann and Reynn, who possess the power to tame monsters called Mirages, and are sent to Grymoire to reclaim their lost memories and thwart the plans of the Bahamutian Army. Returning to a more traditional gameplay style from earlier titles, it revolves around turn-based battles which utilize the series' recurring Active Time Battle system, augmented with a stacking mechanic where stacking allied characters and monsters affects statistics and abilities.
Development started around the concept of a Final Fantasy title aimed at a wider and younger audience, focusing on a light tone and stylized graphics compared to the mainline entries. It was directed and written by Hiroki Chiba, who had worked as a scenario writer and event planner for the series. The chibi character designs were created by Yasuhisa Izumisawa; the larger characters were designed by Tetsuya Nomura. The music was composed primarily by Masashi Hamauzu, who also included arranged versions of classic themes with Tose's sound team while aiming for the music to be lighter in tone than his previous work. The Maxima port was created in response to popular demand, though a limited budget meant there was relatively little added content. Both versions of the game run on Silicon Studio's Orochi engine.
First announced at the 2015 Electronic Entertainment Expo, World of Final Fantasy was intended as a celebratory title to commemorate the series' 30th anniversary. A worldwide release was planned from an early stage, with localization running parallel to the development and Japanese voice recording. In order to keep the characters true to their original appearances, the localization staff who first handled them were brought in to translate their dialogue. Reception of the game was generally positive, with many praising its aesthetics and stacking mechanic, but criticism focusing on its slow pace and storyline. Debuting to strong sales in Japan, the original version sold over 900,000 copies worldwide by 2018.
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