The Final Fantasy Tactics Refresh Gives Its Class-War Story New Relevance

Kazutoyo Maehiro is feeling the pressure. Nearly 30 years after working on the original version of Final Fantasy Tactics—one of the role-playing series’ most adored games—he’s returned to pilot a remake of the game, switching titles from events planner to director. Besides that, little has changed, including how Maehiro himself thinks about game design.

“Really, the approach that we wanted to take was modernizing [Final Fantasy Tactics],” he tells WIRED via a translator. “Players today expect a higher standard.”

When the game launches on Nintendo Switch systems, PlayStation 4/5, Steam, and Xbox Series X/S on September 30, players won’t notice a major overhaul. Instead, the $50 update will feature some tweaks to the game’s interface, plus some additional dialog and voice work.

By and large, Final Fantasy Tactics—The Ivalice Chronicles ...