Final Fantasy Pixel Remaster

The biggest impediment to recommending these games to others is just the fact that, well… in many ways they are slight things. None of these games are terribly long if you know what you’re doing, nor are they tremendously difficult. The stories are not super compelling on their own. They are little games in a way, and they are definitely aged. But if you loved these games before, these remasters are perfect for what they’re trying to do. They’re charming. They feel like a sudden rush of nostalgia not because they’re exactly the games you remember, but the rare form of remaster that does add some stuff on top while still preserving all of the spirit and intent perfectly. And if you’ve never played these games but want to understand why people loved them so much, these are the perfect way to try them out.

Overall, between the game’s story and gameplay, nothing sticks out as individually exceptional. Still, Final Fantasy comes together as an experience that is better than the sum of its parts. The Pixel Remaster does an excellent job of keeping the surprisingly well-aged gameplay that started the series intact while updating it with more modern pixel art and a beautiful soundtrack. Outside of a few confusing moments and poorly balanced bosses, Final Fantasy is a game I would readily recommend to modern RPG fans, and it’s a great introduction to the genre’s classics.

The first three Final Fantasy Pixel Remasters deftly walk the line between old and new, but might not convert anyone without the stomach for old JRPGs.

While the Final Fantasy Pixel Remasters aren’t perfect, they’re certainly the best and most convenient ways to play these classic games. The soundtracks are lovingly orchestrated and the pixel art is gorgeous, though the latter does lose some detail in the translation. Each game feels great to play, but I do wish extra content from previous releases or remakes had been included.

So what we're left with is a slightly uneven collection. The core material is still brilliant, made exponentially more so with the stellar soundtracks and built-in music player, but you'll be a bit disappointed if you were hoping for anything other than the core material.

For fans of the classic series, or newcomers looking for a quality introduction into the older games, Final Fantasy Pixel Remaster is a great way to experience the series. Then, of course, there are the hours and hours of content across all games in the collection to consider. It isn't perfect, but players can easily get lost in the same stories and endless combat that Square Enix first introduced with the original launch on NES.

The bottom line is Final Fantasy is simply a fun game, and Final Fantasy Pixel Remaster is a remake worthy of the title’s legacy.

Overall, Final Fantasy: Pixel Remaster is a slight disappointment. It isn't a terrible port, but it feels half-hearted. For a game remade and remastered as often as Final Fantasy, it's easy to compare this release to the others and realize that it doesn't have a ton going for it. The updated visuals are nice, and the remastered music is excellent, but otherwise, it's a slightly easier and slightly more user-friendly version of the original NES game. Choose Final Fantasy: Pixel Remaster if you can't play one of the many other versions that have more content.

The first three Final Fantasy Pixel Remasters are a somewhat solid remastering effort that could have been so much better with a few tweaks. While the amazing rearranged soundtracks sound great and the balancing tweaks make the three games still feel great to play, the divisive overhauled visuals reminiscent of the 16-bit entries, technical issues like the lack of a V-Sync toggle and display settings not saving and lack of additional content found in prior remakes make these remasters a truly worthy purchase only for those who live and breathe Final Fantasy.

The reinvigorated editions of the first three Final Fantasy games look great, run smoothly and offer some very welcome new features that modern audience expects (e.g. the auto-battle mode and auto-save). The new music arrangements done by Nobuo Uematsu himself are marvelous and the redrawn visuals are vibrant and full of details. Of course, these games are heavily outdated in terms of gameplay and storytelling, so their simplicity might discourage newcomers, but they are still a lot of fun and a great opportunity to experience the revered classics. [10/2021, p.50]