FANTASIAN Neo Dimension
So it goes without sound out that I was always concerned inFantasian . Hironobu Sakaguchi , the Maker ofFinal Fantasy , is the founder of Mistwalker , the developer that madeFantasian . look at its esthetic , it ’s a beautiful portmanteau word of advanced ideas - cyclorama displays fueled by Sakaguchi ’s stake in minatures - and the traditional , with pixel - esque art for the characters that evokes some of the best design fromFinal Fantasy VIand other classic . automatically , it ’s a JRPG through - and - through , with none of the heavy conflict in gameplay that sometimes get fans of the musical genre to oppugn a game ’s place in the canon . Everyone politely waits their bout to attempt to obliterate the foe .
Fantasianencountered a barrier before it ever begin much of a chance to polish , though - it released solely on Apple Arcade . Nothing against that help , but it felt like an odd fit at the metre that has now been proven to be a petty too corner , reaching only a fraction of the hearing it had potential to ensnare . Now , withFantasian : Neo Dimension , the secret plan is come to Switch , PS4 , PS5 , Xbox Series X / S , and Windows . There will be no more excuses for its reception and staying power , but I do n’t think it ever needed them . In my hands - on at Gamescom 2024 , I chop-chop see thatNeo Dimensionis well deserving a playthrough , especially on Switch , and will engrave that traditional JRPG itch for anyone unforced to pick it up .
Fantasian: Neo Dimension Is All About Its Traditions, Even When It Does Something New
One of the economy state of grace for traditionalists look intoFantasian : Neo Dimensionwill be that its original nursing home in the iOS ecosystem gravely limit its potential to sway up its genre ’s most stout mechanically skillful housing . Neo Dimensionis aturn - based fantasy JRPGthat is complete with random engagement , strategic turn orders , and a tier up / skill system that does n’t necessitate too much of its players beyond familiarizing themselves with the implicit in combos build into character synergies .
All of that is great for its appearance now , when there are good deal of action - heavy RPGs challenge each other for the crown of the most involved or breathtaking combat . I wo n’t hazard likeNeo Dimensioncould compete with that , but it is n’t trying to , either . Does the Golem its company encounters threaten the same style even the most canonic giant in something likeDragon ’s Dogma 2does ? dead not . Nor does it need to , rather charming with its pixel art details and challenge player to strategize against its onrush patterns at their own tread .
On Switch especially , Fantasian : Neo Dimension feels like its found its perfect home .
On Switch particularly , Fantasian : Neo Dimensionfeels like its get its utter home . It ’s designed to be handheld , after all , but the Switch controls are much less cumbersome than a spot concealment focus , and the graphic overhaul , while not 4 kibibyte like on some of its other platforms , still looks pretty . I call up some of the control are still a bit janky , to be honest , as it was unmanageable to navigate the overworld map without running into wall , but that could be because I only bugger off a fortune to play for less than an 60 minutes and might just be something you peck up promptly if you ’re not drop into the secret plan mid - story and mid - mapping .
The rest is great , though . The Switch has been home to pot of remaking and remasters andNeo Dimensionslots powerful into that with ease , feeling more like areinvigorated adaptation of a PS1 classicthan a port of a more late Apple Arcade game - and I mean that as a compliment , not a negative .
Fantasian: Neo Dimension’s Combat Does Enough To Keep You Invested
Fantasian : Neo Dimension ’s gameplay mechanism are simple to translate but difficult to dominate . Tactically , the game is a JRPG with the slight winding of having attacks do area of effect hurt now and again , meaning monster positioning can alter your gameplan . Some attacks slice through enemies and can hit ones in the back pipeline if they ’re run along up well , but there are also freak with shell that inherently immobilize those attacks , changing your strategy even more . There ’s enough to keep rails of , and enough potent combinations , that combat never really hang back .
That said , Neo Dimensionis such a traditional JRPG that it does have some shortcomings . attainment trees are n’t the most interesting , with stock mage and cleric - style ability , right down to their names , like Ice and Holy . There is n’t that much player control over character material body in the fashion that many RPGs offer these day , which might turn off some , since even " quondam school " introduction JRPGs often offer a fair bite of customization . Battles do have the Dimengeon organization - essentially allowing player to skip over conflict against previously bump enemy , at the monetary value of eventually needing to battle them all at once , albeit with fillip spawning on the field of operation too . Otherwise , it ’s very vanilla for armed combat .
But excellent - if - familiar combat and then a great account and presentation that will stay with you well beyond your playthrough seem like a good enough reason to play . Fantasian : Neo Dimensionexcels with its characters , its news report , and most importantly , its rich , divers world of dioramas that makes its visuals unimaginable to forget or ignore . An amnesiac trying to recover his retention while struggle someone whose statute title is The Malevolent does n’t vocalize like much in run , but I promise the story is all the belovedFinal Fantasyof old with some nice short twists here and there .
Ultimately , Fantasian : Neo Dimensionis a game that wo n’t win everyone over . It ’s a little left and a lot old in spirit , and those things will mean its audience stay recession , evenonce it escapes from Apple Arcade . Still , it ’s perhaps Sakaguchi ’s most underrated , if not underplayed , entries in his long list of video game achievements , and for that cause alone you ’ll want to at least giveFantasian : Neo Dimensiona frivol away .
Screen Rant wait on a hands - on preview during Gamescom 2024 for the aim of this article .
Source : Nintendo of America / YouTube
