# Final Fantasy Resonance brings back the SNES era

> Square Enix's new HD-2D game mixes retro gameplay with modern conveniences, adapting a mobile title into a console RPG that feels like classic Final Fantasy.
- Title: Final Fantasy Resonance brings back the SNES era · The Verge
- Summary: Square Enix's new HD-2D game mixes retro gameplay with modern conveniences, adapting a mobile title into a console RPG that feels like classic Final Fantasy…
- Keywords: final fantasy, square enix, resonance, hd-2d, rpg, nintendo switch, playstation 5, xbox series x, technology, culture, Final, Fantasy
- Source: The Verge — https://theverge.com/games/1013958/final-fantasy-resonance-review
- Author: Jay Peters
- Published: 2026-10-20T13:00:00+00:00
- Read time: 2 min
- Topics: final fantasy, square enix, resonance, hd-2d, rpg, nintendo switch, playstation 5, xbox series x, technology, culture
## Final Fantasy has changed
The series once played similarly across early titles but now spans blockbuster games like Final Fantasy XVI and the Final Fantasy VII Remake trilogy, which play nothing like the classics.
## Square Enix launches Resonance
Square Enix is releasing Final Fantasy Resonance, its first HD-2D Final Fantasy game. The HD-2D style mixes gorgeous pixel art with detailed three D graphics to great effect.
## Resonance plays old-school
Resonance feels old-school to play. You wander a big world map, tackle random battles, investigate sparkles for items, visit familiar towns with inns and shops, and fight traditional turn-based battles.
## The story follows a familiar path
You play as Rain, a plucky blonde hero who is morally pure and fights for those less fortunate.
## Modern touches improve the experience
Enemies have health bars and stagger bars, forcing strategy. You can speed up fights, skip animations, fast travel on the world map, and teleport from save points near bosses back to the entrance to resupply.
## Visions bring other Final Fantasy characters
Resonance lets you recruit Visions of characters like Final Fantasy VI's Terra Branford or Final Fantasy VII's Cloud Strife.
## Resonance adapts a mobile game
Resonance is an adaptation of the first story arc of Final Fantasy Brave Exvius, which was shut down in twenty twenty-four. The Vision system is a holdover from its roots as a mobile title.
## Old-school structure with modern polish
The game's old-school structure with modern improvements lets Square Enix have it both ways. The old-school approach sits comfortably alongside a big-budget game like Final Fantasy XVI, pulling in enough from newer titles to feel…
## Resonance launches October twenty-second
Final Fantasy Resonance launches on October twenty-second on Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch two, PC, PS five, and Xbox Series X and S.
## Key takeaway

Final Fantasy Resonance launches October twenty-second on Switch, Switch two, PC, PS five, and Xbox Series X and S, blending old-school RPG design with modern quality-of-life features.