Review: Fantasian Neo Dimension

In 2021, developer Mistwalker self-published an RPG titled Fantasian, helmed by fabled studio head and founder Hironobu Sakaguchi.

According to Sakaguchi, development on Fantasian began in 2018 after the developer had recently replayed Final Fantasy VI, one of the popular RPGs from the series that he had worked on. While the idea of a Sakaguchi-led and Mistalker-developed RPG piqued the interest of many RPG enjoyers—myself included—the RPG was released as an Apple Arcade exclusive, playable only on Apple devices.

Now, three and a half years later, those like myself who don’t have an Apple device finally have the opportunity to check out the RPG on consoles and PC. Mistwalker and Final Fantasy developer and publisher Square Enix have worked together on Fantasian Neo Dimension, an HD version of the RPG with upgraded graphics, English and Japanese voiceovers, as well as various gameplay adjustments and enhancements.

Despite the upgrades, I had fears going into Fantasian Neo Dimension that the transition from being built purely for iOS to consoles and PC could be a rough one. But while there are some noticeable signs and reminders throughout Fantasian that the RPG was clearly originally developed for mobile devices, such as simplistic yet big blocky UI and some limited mobility on certain maps, overall, the Neo Dimension version plays well and does a great job of hiding the fact that this was originally a mobile game.

Fantasian: Neo Dimension (PC, PS5 [Reviewed], PS4, Xbox Series X|S, Switch)
Developer: Mistwalker
Publisher: Square Enix
Released: December 5, 2024
MSRP: $49.99

If you’re a fan of previous Mistwalker RPG gems like Blue Dragon, Lost Odyssey, and The Last Story, you’ll know that creative storytelling and unique gameplay features to the genre are the developer’s strong suits. Fantasian Neo Dimension starts off with the main character, Leo, finding himself suffering from amnesia in a strange machine-inhabited world—properly named the Machine Realm—that serves as the tutorial and introduction to the game. Accompanied by two peculiar machines that are helping him, Leo manages to use a strange portal device to return to his own world, the Human Realm.

As the story progresses you’ll learn more about the strange and fantastical world Leo lives in, where the people who live there reside alongside a strange Mecha Infestation that has started to plague it. Along the way. You’ll meet new characters that join Leo in his journey as well as learn about Leo’s past and exactly what he was doing that resulted in him ending up with amnesia and in the Machine Realm.

The story of Fantasian Neo Dimension is a unique and worthwhile journey that fans of classic Final Fantasy titles like FF6 will enjoy. There are even segments where various characters’ backstories and pasts are explored in artistic scenes overlaid with full voiceovers where the character relives memories from their past, which, if you have ever played Lost Odyssey, will feel quite familiar.

Speaking of art, Fantasian utilizes stylized dioramas that look very crisp and detailed with the 4k upgrades of the Neo Dimension version. Paired with the epic score by legendary composer Nobuo Uematsu, the world of Fantasian Neo Dimension is an immersive and fantastical one that’s reminiscent of JRPGs with massive creative worlds to explore. And for Final Fantasy fans, one of the additions to the Neo Dimension version is that players can swap out the background music for battles with the battle music from various Final Fantasy games, including FFXIV, FFXVI, and FF7 Remake/Rebirth. The battle music in Fantasian is great, but it’s nice to have the option when you want to change things up!

In terms of gameplay, Fantasian is a turn-based RPG similar to what you’d find in Final Fantasy 1-10. However, each character has skills and attacks with varying trajectories that you can manipulate to hit multiple enemies and really change the tide of battle. For example, the main character Leo has a skill that shoots in a straight line, so if you can line it up just right you can hit multiple enemies. Another character, Kinacan bends her trajectory in a curved line. It’s an added element to the typically straightforward combat system of turn-based RPGs that added some extra nuance and strategy that really innovates the system. It’s like Super Mario RPG where you can do a little more to make the combat more engaging and fun.

Another effort to shake up the traditional turn-based RPG trope is a system called Dimengeon. Early on in Fantasian, you unlock this system, which allows you to essentially “skip” any random battles you would otherwise encounter randomly while traversing the world. Instead, the enemies you would have fought are placed in your Dimengeon Machine. Once the machine is full or if you choose to manually activate it before then, you will engage in battle against all the enemies stored inside. Special gimmicks can appear inside the Dimgengon battles that give you various buffs when attacked. Pairing this with the trajectory system allows you to store up a bunch of enemies in your Dimengeon Machine before wiping them out in mass. It’s a convenient system for skipping battles when you just want to quickly get from point A to point B as well as to more easily kill hordes of enemies at once.

My only issues with Fantasian Neo Dimension are quite paltry and mostly stem from the RPG originally being made for mobile devices. As I said before, the UI, and therefore menus, dialogue, and world map still shows the foundation of being on a mobile device. Things are blocky and clearly made with the ability to tap on things easily in mind. Neo Dimension all obviously works with a controller, but I do feel like an updated UI that looks less blocky and simplistic would have gone a long way for a world that is otherwise rather detailed and beautiful.

Fantasian Neo Dimension takes all the great things about classic JRPGs and finds ways to innovate on them while still keeping the innate charm and feel the genre is known for. And while there have been plenty of great RPG releases in recent years, there’s something special about Fantasian Neo Dimension that melds the old with the new to create an enthralling and nostalgic journey in a unique high-fantasy world that’s simply a ton of fun to play.

_{[This review is based on a retail build of the game provided by the publisher.]}