Square Enix has announced Nintendo Switch 2 Edition versions of two of its beloved RPGs, and it still refuses to offer upgrade paths or cross save.

Square Enix has been one of the best supporters of the Switch 2 so far, with ports of the likes of Final Fantasy 7 Remake and Rebirth – not to mention Final Fantasy 7 Revelation will be the first mainline title to release on a Nintendo platform on day one since the original Final Fantasy 7 jumped ship to PlayStation. But unfortunately, when it comes to the games that were already on Nintendo Switch, Square Enix really hasn't been the best at treating original users to the cross-generation benefits that have mostly become commonplace in the industry.

Octopath Traveller 1 and 2 are next to receive the upgrade, with Square Enix announcing the titles' new editions to celebrate the eighth anniversary of the eight-protagonist RPG series. The Nintendo Switch 2 Editions of Octopath Traveller 1 and 2 release on October 1 – unless you're in Japan that is, where both have released today – with Square Enix promising improved resolution and frame rates.

Unfortunately however, just like with the announcement of Dragon Quest 11's Nintendo Switch 2 Edition, Square Enix isn't offering an upgrade path for existing Switch 2 owners, and on top of that, there won't be save transfer available for anyone who wants to continue their playthrough on Switch 2. The games will cost the same as their Switch 1 counterparts at $60 (making the eight-year-old game more expensive at launch on Switch 2 than Final Fantasy 7 Remake and Rebirth are).

Naturally, the comments on the announcement trailer are unhappy with this, with one user saying "thanks for telling your consumers that buying a game early isn't a good thing after all, very disappointing," while another adds, "If your goal for this announcement was to make your most dedicated fans – the fans who are the reason HD2D thrives in the first place – feel like they’ve been spat on the face. Then congratulations. You’ve succeeded!" Meanwhile, someone else puts it pretty simply: "no upgrade path, no save data transfer, no buy."

Dragon Quest 12 Beyond Dreams announced, replacing the previous version of the JRPG as Square Enix hits the reset button.

Modders have been reanimating classic games inside of other classic games for almost as long as reanimation has been a thing (200 years or so; thanks, Mary Shelley) - from a Morrowind remake built within Elden Ring to, now, a Final Fantasy Tactics mod that plops the strategy game's combat onto Final Fantasy 6's scenarios.

Over the last three years, a modder known as Conman on the FFHacktics forum has been hard at work on a mod called FF6: Tactics, alongside a group of other contributors.

Rather than remaking the entirety of Final Fantasy 6 in Tactics' style, which would probably take much longer than three years, the goal was to "avoid any world map/randoms/stores and just jump from one battle to another."

Conman called this a "battle rush style" with the mod assuming "the player already knows the story." Final Fantasy 6's biggest battles, but in a strategy format, then.

That includes having most of Final Fantasy 6's main cast playable with their own quirks along for the ride: Terra's a scarily powerful magic user, Locke can steal, Cyan can pull off fancy sword moves... You get the idea.

New stages, reworked sprites, and that banger soundtrack filtered through FFT's sound font. After all that hard work, the mod is finally done and out now - you can find it here.

As you might be able to tell from the adorably chunky assets on show and the project's development timeline, the mod is built off the back of the original PS1 version of Final Fantasy Tactics, not the more recently modernized The Ivalice Chronicles remaster, so don't expect its quality-of-life improvements or cleaner graphics to show up in the mod.

And elsewhere in the realm of remakes, Square Enix recently said more traditional and official Final Fantasy remakes could be in the pipeline depending on what "resonates" with fans the most.

Perhaps that sparks hope for that long-rumored Final Fantasy 6 remake, but even if that's a far-flung dream at this point, at least we have the above gorgeous mod that's halfway there.

Final Fantasy 7 Revelation lead thinks a potential Final Fantasy 6 remake would "be in better hands if it went to another creator in Square Enix"

Persona 4 Revival might just be one of the most exciting new JRPGs underway – aside from Atlus' Persona 6, that is – and yes, its menus look just as stunning as the studio's past games.

In case you missed the likes of Persona 3 Reload and Metaphor: ReFantazio in the past couple of years, Atlus' JRPGs have featured some of the most stunning menus I've seen in any game.

With vibrant visuals, eye-catching fonts, and fluid movement between selections, they're simply to die for – heck, it's one of the most notable features Metaphor: ReFantazio fans pointed out before the fantasy gem even launched in 2024.

It appears that Persona 4 Revival will join the studio's lineup of beautiful in-game menus, with new screenshots of its own UI drawing attention from series stans online.

In one post over on Twitter, we see bright turquoise shades and yellows showcased with various fonts, reflections, and shadowy backgrounds. It's a graphic designer's dream come true, and fans can't help but praise Atlus for the jaw-dropping menus.

"I think this might be the cleanest and best graphical presentation from an Atlus game ever, my God," writes one fan. Another adds, "These look sooo good." Elsewhere, someone jokes, "I hope they spent some of the budget fleshing out the characters" – because, you know, it feels like a lot of money went into the menu designs.

There's also a clip of the menus in action floating about, and yep… they're brilliant.

As one poster exclaims, "HOLY SHIT, THIS MENU IS SO RAD!" And, I have to include my favorite comment: "I FUCKING LOVE ATLUS MENU SCREENS!" Me, too, anon. Me, too.

That's not to say that Persona 4 Golden had bad menus or anything – but Revival is an upgrade, after all, and the menu redesigns certainly prove it. Personally, I can't wait to experience them in real-time.

Thankfully, I won't have to wait too long – Persona 4 Revival is releasing on February 18, 2027, which is mere months away at this point.

Searching for more to look forward to? Browse through our roundup of the best new games coming this year and beyond to add to your wishlist.

New Persona 4 Revival footage has shown a new scene with Marie, leading to hopes that she'll be integrated better into the story than she was in Persona 4 Golden.

It's a trend in Persona games that when the updated version of it comes out, there's a new character integrated into the story who becomes a vital part of the new content – and by a trend, I mean it's happened twice. Persona 4 Golden introduced Marie to the story, a Velvet Room attendant who is a bit abrasive before opening up to the investigation team and protagonist. But she's a bit awkward in her integration, with many in the fandom dubbing her Poochie (in reference to a top five Simpsons episode).

However, Kasumi, introduced in Persona 5 Royal, has conversely become one of the most beloved characters in that game, and was overall integrated far better than Marie was for Persona 4 Golden, as if Atlus took the feedback about Poochie to heart. And from the looks of things, there may be some more Marie in Persona 4 Revival.

In the Persona 4 Revival character overview trailer, fans noticed that the scene shown alongside Marie is on the night of April 17, which would be after beating one of the game's first major bosses. The thing is, this scene doesn't exist in the original Persona 4 Golden, with Twitter user MeovvCAT speculating that this scene will play after the protagonist gets a tracksuit from Morooka.

And despite the mixed reception to Marie, response to the idea of more of the character is generally hopeful. Replies to the post include one user saying, "Hopefully learning from Kasumi and how to better integrate Marie into the overall story." Another adds: "What the remake needs to do, and I hope it succeeds, is to better integrate Marie into the story. If they do that, the remake will have fulfilled its purpose."

Persona 4 Revival changes some of Yosuke's controversial scenes: "We wanted to lighten that up and make it a little bit more fitting for the world we live in now."

Persona 4 Revival producer Kazuhisa Wada has revealed that Yosuke will be subject to changes to make him a "bit more fitting for the world we live in now."

Speaking to Anime Corner, Wada explains that the team hasn't made many changes "about the story," how characters think, "or how they act or anything" in Persona 4 Revival, but that the changes are "mostly with Yosuke."

He adds that Yosuke is "a little bit insensitive in terms of how he treats outsiders sometimes. So we wanted to lighten that up and make it a little bit more fitting for the world we live in now."

Persona 5 may be the biggest game in the series, but Persona 4 is that guy. Almost 20 years down the line and the game everyone used to complain was being oversaturated during the wait for Persona 5 is coming back, with 18 years of discourse backing it up. Some story elements of Persona 4 are a bit controversial to this day, so many have been curious as to how the remake would handle some of these elements.

One of the elements of Persona 4 that is perhaps aged in the eyes of many is pretty much everything to do with Yosuke. As a character, Yosuke embodies the "bro" archetype and – as someone who was a teen when Persona 4 came out – was a pretty accurate portrayal of your average edgy teenage boy in the era.

Yosuke is a very insecure character deep down, but it manifests with him being a bit of an asshole to his friends, playing on their insecurities, and by-extension being homophobic, misogynist, and just a bit of a creep. Most infamously, he asks Kanji – who was having doubts about his own sexuality – if he and the protagonist are going to be "safe alone" with him.

We've already seen that the game has removed a fan-favorite line that shows how awkward Yosuke could be (as well as a change to the pageant scene). Some are also wondering if the seemingly cut romance option with Yosuke will be restored in the upcoming remake, with some feeling that his homophobia and creepy lines could be symptomatic of a closeted person projecting their own insecurities. However, given the word that the team hasn't made major changes to the story, I have my doubts this will be included.

Persona 4 Golden Chie actor is "deeply grieving" being recast in Revival: "Thank you for sharing the journey with me."

You may or may not be aware that we got a new Final Fantasy 7 spin-off a few years ago. Yes, in addition to Rebirth and Remake. It's called Ever Crisis, and it's a gacha game retelling the whole franchise from the ground up, and if you haven't looked into it yet, you only have a limited window since it's now being shut down.

Square Enix has announced that Ever Crisis will cease operations on October 6, 2026, implying that maintaining the game has become untenable for one reason or another. "Since the launch of the App Store and Google Play versions on September 7, 2023, and the Steam version on December 6, 2023, we have worked to provide the best possible experience for our players," a statement from the company reads.

"After careful consideration, however, we have determined that it will be difficult to continue doing so and have made the decision to end service," the post finishes. We don't have hard data across all platforms, but on Steam, Ever Crisis peaked at 4,756 concurrent players, and now averages around 500, according to SteamCharts.

Unless the mobile playerbase was remarkably different, that's low by any standards, never mind for something tied to one of the most beloved games of all time. Red Crystals, the in-game currency, are now already off sale, but you're free to use any you already have until October 6. Story events will remain until the whole thing goes dark as well, giving players a few months to experience anything they haven't already.

Besides retelling the compilation of Final Fantasy 7, there is some original material in the narrative. Sephiroth's backstory gets more fleshed out, thanks to a plotline set 15 years before the original JRPG.

This is frustratingly common practice for Square Enix – see the nebulous lore of Kingdom Hearts – and it's irritating no method of preservation has been forthcoming. The publisher commented recently that it will look at ways of keeping releases 'enjoyable' on a case-by-case basis, which may mean the best we get are official uploads of the cutscenes on YouTube.

In an added wrinkle of irony, a redo of Final Fantasy 7: Before Crisis kicked off in the latest update. Before Crisis is another mobile game, from 2004, which never released outside Japan before it was discontinued in 2018. It focused on the Turks, and it looks like it'll become lost media for the second time. Reno, Rude and the boys just can't catch a break!

You have until October to enjoy this slice of Final Fantasy 7. Then, we go back to waiting for Final Fantasy 7 Revelation.

Final Fantasy 7 Revelation "payoff" will leave you "sobbing," Cloud actor guarantees, even "if you haven't cried in the first two yet."

Remember Project Phoenix? No? I can't blame you. The project, a real-time strategy game with "strong" JRPG influences, was announced way back in 2013 on Kickstarter, where it very quickly racked up $1 million in crowdfunds. These days, the campaign page looks like a graveyard, with PlayStation Vita and PlayStation 4 proudly listed as supported platforms and a "mid 2015" estimated release window.

In those early days, Project Phoenix held a lot of promise. The art was beautiful and painterly, like a concept for what Octopath Traveler would eventually bring to life. The Kickstarter had earned more than 10 times its initial funding goal, and the team of developers included genuine industry veterans with credits on The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim, Final Fantasy, Diablo, LA Noire, and more. So what went wrong? Well, no one was really sure until now.

After missing several release dates, updates on Project Phoenix, which would typically come from game director Hiroaki Yura, gradually slowed to a halt until 2019 when the whole thing went completely dark without reason. Naturally, the seven years of total silence between then and now have thoroughly eroded public trust in the project, but Yura has now released a lengthy Kickstarter update (via Resetera) explaining what went wrong, what's being done with the money from the campaign, and what's next for the game.

"It has been seven years since my last update. I'm not going to soften that or bury it further down the page," says Yura. "You backed this project, you trusted me with it, and then you heard nothing for a very long time. That silence is mine to answer for. I owe you a full explanation, and more than that, I owe you proof that Project Phoenix is still alive. Both are in this update.

"Years ago, I made myself a rule that I stuck to even when it cost me. I wouldn't post an update unless I had something worth showing," he adds. "For a long stretch I didn't, and instead of filling the gap with mock-ups and promises, I went silent. That was the wrong call. A plain 'we're still working, slowly' would have been far better than nothing, and I'm sorry I didn't give you that."

Yura says Project Phoenix went silent for a number of reasons, one of which being personal issues that "took a lot out of" him. Meanwhile, one of the key programmers "the whole technical side of the game depended on" departed the project at some point, and "rebuilding around that hole took years and money I did not have sitting in an account.

"Rather than burn through what remained and come back to you with nothing, I chose to step back and build a proper business first. One that could pay for this game the way it deserved, instead of running it into the ground. I built that business with my own means, not with what you had pledged, and its work is what funds Phoenix now," Yura says.

One of the biggest pain points around Project Phoenix was that, in the years Kickstarter backers went without any updates, Yura was off forming other studios and releasing other games, letting the perception that the project had been abandoned stand without explanation.

"The reason it happened is that those projects are how I earn the money to pay for this one," explains Yura. "The money has only ever moved in one direction, from that work into Phoenix, never the other way. We did not get rich off them. We are not anywhere close to rich. Whatever room those projects create goes straight back into being able to finish Phoenix the way it should be finished."

Yura also freely admits to having previously lacked a thorough understanding of the needs and demands inherent to a game of Project Phoenix's scale. Those other games and studios Yura was involved with were the stepping stones that would eventually lead him back to making Project Phoenix, now equipped with the required experience.

"It means the Phoenix you eventually play will be made by someone who has actually done this, not by the version of me who started it without knowing what he was taking on. That is a better game than the one that would have limped out years ago, even if it has cost us the time to get here."

As far as the $1 million, Yura says the "plain talk" explanation is pretty straightforward. "A good part of that paid for the work we did in the early years: character and creature designs, base models, the scenario and the world, and a large amount of Uematsu's music," Yura says, adding that a portion of it went into a widely criticized early gameplay demo from way back in 2014. Still, he admits:

"Not every dollar was spent as well as it could have been, and I am not going to tell you otherwise. But all of it went into this game and its production, never anywhere else. Since then, I have made sure the rest is funded properly, so that your contribution is not the thing holding it up."

While backers and fans generally are right to be skeptical, Yura says Project Phoenix is still in the works and is bigger in scope than originally planned, which is saying something. He hopes production will wrap by the end of 2031, which is sure to sting for people who've been waiting for this thing since 2013 (The Elder Scrolls 6 hopefuls can relate). " I would still choose a target I can stand behind over a comfortable one," Yura says. "As we lock down things I can actually promise, you will hear them, and you will hear them far more often than you have.

"I am not going to hand you a release date I can't keep. Dates I couldn't keep are a big part of how we ended up here."

In the interest of transparency, Yura says there will soon be a Project Phoenix Discord where you'll be able to follow along development, reach out to the developers, Yura included, and "hold me to a steadier rhythm than I have kept." Whether that's enough to win back your goodwill is your call, but Yura pledges to put in the work.

"To everyone still here after all this time, thank you. I don't take it lightly, and I intend to earn back the trust you put in me."

In the meantime, here are the best JRPGs to play right now.

As if Persona 4 Revival couldn't get any more exciting, it's now been confirmed that anime powerhouse MAPPA – the studio behind Jujutsu Kaisen, Chainsaw Man, Attack on Titan's final season, and more – is producing all of the JRPG remake's animated cutscenes.

That's right, from the animators who brought you Satoru Gojo's ethereal blue eyes and many of Attack on Titan's most explosive scenes, we can now get ready for Persona 4 Golden's cutscenes to be brought to life in a new way.

We've already seen some of these in action from the remake's trailers and promotional videos – like the snippet of protagonist Yu Narukami awakening to his first Persona, Izanagi, in the game's pre-order trailer.

From what's been shown so far, they look incredible.

MAPPA's involvement in Persona 4 Revival was announced during Anime Expo 2026 over the weekend, where it was also revealed that Rise (the game's navigator, like Persona 5's Futaba and Persona 3's Fuuka) will be voiced by Abby Trott in the English dub, replacing The Last of Us Part 2's Abby actor, Laura Bailey. This isn't Trott's first Persona role, as she also voiced Tae Takemi in 5 Royal.

The new cast might take some getting used to for veteran fans, but it'd be hard to fault the new performances, from what we've heard.

I always thought that Persona 3 Reload looked great, but I've got to say that Persona 4 Revival is already looking like an even more impressive remake from what we've seen. MAPPA is only handling those anime-style cutscenes, but even the regular in-game cutscenes look super expressive, too.

There's still quite a wait before Persona 4 Revival's February 17, 2027, launch, but at least we'll have something to tide us over until Persona 6 eventually releases.

It's real, it's green, and it's looking a bit sinister, but that's about all we know about that one right now.

One Persona 4 Revival actor shared her "hardcore manifestation" to get into the JRPG remake over 2 years ago, and it clearly worked: "Dreams really do come true."

There are a few moments strewn across Final Fantasy 7 that seem expressly made to engineer a lump in your throat. So far, the remake trilogy has delivered several of its own, and one of the main voice actors believes that the third part will be the most emotional of the lot.

At KawaCon, Cody Christian, the voice of Cloud Strife for the Final Fantasy 7 redux, gives a little hint of what's to come in the climactic finale of the blockbuster RPG. "There's so much emotionality, there's so much vulnerability," he tells Ally B.

"There are moments in this that if you haven't cried in the first two yet, I guarantee you'll be sobbing in this third one," he adds. That's a rather large claim to make, but then, I'm not expecting much less.

Final Fantasy 7 Revelation will cap off almost a decade's worth of storytelling, after Square Enix took the original JRPG and expanded it in just about every way imaginable. There have been many narrative alterations too, making what happens difficult to predict, leaving those of us who know the source material well vulnerable to having our heartstrings played just like anyone else.

Christian finishes by saying, "It's a payoff," and it truly will be. Development on this project has been going on for well over a decade by now, and it'll be a seven-year journey once Revelation lands on shelves. Even just having Cloud and Sephiroth face off for the last time is going to feel like the end of an era.

For me, at least, the most bittersweet part will be the epilogue. Nanaki and his cubs looking at an overgrown Midgar hundreds of years later is just such a poetic climax. All things fade, and all things heal, given enough time and energy. It's beautiful. Is it 2027, yet?

Final Fantasy 7 Revelation DLC includes "Story Expansion Pass," according to Epic Games Store database listings

Director of the award-winning Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 has once again showered praise onto Hironobu Sakaguchi's Lost Odyssey, an overlooked classic made by the father of Final Fantasy.

Sandfall Interactive's Guillaume Broche recently appeared on an episode of Jeux Vidéo Club, which is kind of like the Criterion Closet for video games, where the director picked a few classic games from the archives and discussed how they influenced his own work.

The Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 director has many times cited old-school JRPGs as huge inspirations, but he dived deeper than ever into Lost Odyssey, a stone-cold Xbox 360 classic that came out after Sakaguchi's departure from Square Enix. It was essentially a Final Fantasy game in all but its name, and it didn't quite get the attention it deserved as a genre masterpiece at the time.

"It really was an exceptional game," Broche says. "It's a bit of an old-school game, very linear. There were random battles too, just like in the old Final Fantasy games. Everyone said, 'What is this game from another era?'... So it got torn apart even though the game is exceptional."

"The story is amazing. It's the last game that made me cry. The villain isn't that great. That's the only downside for me. But overall, I highly recommend it to anyone who loves Final Fantasy. It's one of those games that really left a mark on me - not just because it was fun, but emotionally. Every now and then, I think back on it, I listen to the music and immerse myself in it all over again. It's truly one of the most powerful, emotional experiences of my life as a gamer," he adds.

"Something that really stood out to me was that it was one of the last somewhat ambitious turn-based games with realistic graphics. Since then, we've had a lot of turn-based games - there are still plenty, like Octopath Traveler, Persona, even Yakuza - but turn-based games with dramatic, ambitious stories and realistic graphics haven't been around since Lost Odyssey. It was the last one."

It was the last one... until Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, that is. "It holds a special place in my heart because, for me, Clair Obscur is sort of the successor to that in a way - it was my favorite kind of game, and nobody was making them anymore," Broche continues. "So I said to myself, "Let's go." It's one of the best games in the world."

Lost Odyssey discs are still going for pretty cheap, though it's also available digitally on Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S.

"They're usually just really boring" - Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 lead says "perfect" games are like people with "no personality"

A Nintendo Switch 2 port of Final Fantasy 15 isn't totally off the table, according to publisher Square Enix. Squeezing the massive, open-world, boys-on-the-road game onto the handheld console might be tricky, sure, but it's not impossible.

Square Enix has been one of the most active publishers since the Switch 2's launch last summer, with everything from its Dragon Quest remakes to The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales hitting the console. More notably, the company's also ported a number of Final Fantasy games onto the system between Final Fantasy 7 Remake, a native version of Final Fantasy 10/10-2, and the upcoming Final Fantasy 7 Revelation.

In a recent shareholder's meeting, questions naturally came up about other Final Fantasies potentially getting on-the-go Switch 2 versions as well. If a game as ambitious and scarily big as Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth can fit, why not others?

Asked specifically about a Final Fantasy 15 port, Square Enix says "while there are certain hardware constraints when it comes to faithfully replicating the exact experience of Final Fantasy 15, we can say that it is not entirely impossible."

As for whether the company will actually take the time to make a Final Fantasy 15 Switch 2 version, "we will pass along your input to the development team as a valuable perspective on marketing and future platform options," Square Enix slyly leaves. Alright, then, keep your secrets.

Final Fantasy 15 first came out in 2016 (20 years ago!) and quickly became one of the best-selling games in the entire series, even if it was clear the endearing RPG needed a little more time in the oven. Square Enix has since beefed the game up with various DLC packs and a Royal Edition that added new content, features, and tech improvements to the already handsome world.

More traditional Final Fantasy remakes could happen, as Square Enix says it'll follow what "truly resonates" with fans, even if that's not open-world action

As soon as I saw Final Fantasy Resonance sporting a 2.5D pixel art aesthetic, it instantly shot up in my most-anticipated list for this year. The new spin-off, a sort-of remake of a mobile game, is delivering on the retro-inspired ideals I've been hoping to see from the franchise for some time, and it appears the response to this may decide how quickly we see more of them.

During a question-and-answer section of a recent shareholders meeting, Square Enix responds to an inquiry over the scale of its remakes and remasters. Essentially, could we expect more smaller projects like Resonance, with games that update an older title's visuals but retain traditional combat systems, unlike the huge open-world, action-driven Final Fantasy 7 Remake trilogy? The answer isn't fully committal in either direction.

"As part of our market-in approach, we engage in trial and error to establish what is best for contemporary customers based on current market needs and trends," the company says, per a transcript. "In doing so, it is extremely important to us that we strike the right balance between our approach and the expectations of players who loved the original works."

This all makes sense – the higher-ups are watching what sells, and what kind of feedback any given release garners. "While specific titles may call for specific mechanics, we will continue our development efforts by assessing what truly resonates within the current market environment for both original titles and new remakes," the answer finishes.

If something is popular, they'll make more of it, seems to be the gist here. Resonance isn't the only game to test the market here, we also had Final Fantasy Tactics – The Ivalice Chronicles last year, which maintained the isometric visuals of the original.

Square Enix has already embraced the beauty of 2.5D with Dragon Quest, where we've seen several of the early entries be remade in this style. They are gorgeous looking, and seem to have successfully allowed the property to find multiple generations of new fans.

The same could be true for the early Final Fantasy games, while the 17th mainline game and whatever other remakes forge forward in terms of triple-A development. Wouldn't that be nice? I know I'll be picking up Resonance to do my part. Will you?

Square Enix doesn't promise to keep games playable forever, but it will "continue to create pathways" for fans to enjoy them "even after service has ended."

As beloved as the MMO is itself, the Final Fantasy 14 community is certainly no stranger to controversy… especially when it comes to in-game stalking, sadly.

If you've been playing the Square Enix gem for a while, you'll probably recall some of the conversations surrounding stalking over the years. From issues with the built-in blacklist system and complaints about it not being protective enough of users to contention stemming from some, erm, questionable mods that enable harassment, it's not as though there's exactly a shortage of discussion about it – and this continues to be the case.

Most recently, a plug-in (yes, the ever-eternal third-party tool controversy and what have you) known as "Memoria" has taken the limelight as the latest Final Fantasy 14 mod to essentially allow for… well, in-game stalking.

In case you haven't seen ads – or, more likely, posts about the add-on – Memoria's creator described it as a "free" plug-in that "tracks every player you encounter automatically and builds a history over time" on GitHub.

As for what it "remembers," they said, "Memoria captures what the game already exposes to nearby players, then adds public Lodestone data on top." So, think everything from a player's name and world history to their appearance changes and progression.

It's not hard to see why this wouldn't be welcomed by most Warriors of Light, as it tracks everything and lets others see it. Should you want to get away from someone, it becomes virtually impossible.

Players immediately took note of Memoria and shared it on forums like Reddit, calling for the takedown of the mod and attention from Square Enix.

A new stalking plugin emerges, post everywhere to get the devs attention. from r/ffxiv

As one user's post reads, "Plug-in developers will continue to push the line further and further with the development team's lack of action against them. Cheating, botting, harassment, and stalking continue to be amplified with the continued advancement of plug-in development."

The conversations over on Twitter showcased similar worries, with one fan asking, "Why is no one talking about the new stalking plug-in? That thing shows your frequent areas, your character models, and they have now just disabled the fact that they can see your alts?"

They clarify that, as per Memoria's creator, people would have to contact them via Discord to remove their data – not that the modder was very receptive to those requests, either, it's alleged.

Well, thankfully, Memoria is no longer up for download (although it was available for a good few months, seeing as it first went live in April) – but its creator's farewell message isn't any less controversial than the plug-in itself.

"Memoria set out to remember the people you crossed paths with in Eorzea: every sprout you helped, every static that drifted apart, every stranger you could swear you had partied with before," it begins.

"The service is now closed, and all collected player data has been permanently deleted," the takedown notice continues, assuring fans their data isn't up anymore. "To everyone who installed it, tested it, and helped make it better: thank you. You made a solo project feel like a team."

Admittedly, it leaves a bit of a sour taste in my mouth, too – as much as I'd like to think the mod came about with good intentions, the implications are hard to ignore here, regardless of what its creator had in mind.

As the player sharing the post from Memoria's creator puts it, the add-on "infringed on people's privacy and could've caused a lot of potential harm with its location tracker."

It's a tale as old as time with Final Fantasy 14 at this point, sadly, and I'm sure it'll continue to be so long as plug-ins exist. It'd be nice for Square Enix to crack down on problematic mods like Memoria more hastily in the future.

With new Final Fantasy 14 expansion Evercold also approaching, the topic of stalking and blacklist functions is sure to come up again – here's hoping the devs are prepared.

Final Fantasy 14 devs pulled off the best relaunch "in the history of video games," Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 lead says.

Although Atlus didn't bring female protagonist Kotone Shiomi back from Persona 3 Portable in Persona 3 Reload, she is making a comeback now – albeit not in a mainline game.

She'll be returning to Persona, but she's not joining her male counterpart Makoto Yuki in Reload – instead, she's part of a new Persona 3 Portable crossover event in Persona 5 gacha spin-off The Phantom X.

It's a strictly mobile and PC game, but it is free to play, so fans of Kotone will finally be able to play as her should they please. Atlus confirms as much in a teaser for the event, showing Kotone in action.

The description of the video details that more information is coming soon, which will likely include the event's release date – but it doesn't provide any other word on what players can expect to see in the crossover aside from Kotone herself.

Regardless, it's a pretty big reveal for folks who've missed one of the Persona series' only female protagonists… and trust me, there are plenty of them to go around.

Heck, Persona 3 Reload fans have been redoing every cutscene in the JRPG to add Kotone in – the dedication is unparalleled, y'all. There's even a mod out there that attempts to bring her into the 2024 remake as seamlessly as possible.

The Persona 3 Reload FEMC Mod Version 1.1.0 has been released (The Biggest Update Yet!) from r/PERSoNA

In other words, there's no shortage of Kotone truthers to be found in the wild, and I've got a good feeling this crossover event might spur a rise in Persona 5: The Phantom X players thanks to that.

As for why Atlus didn't choose to include Kotone in Persona 3 Reload a couple of years ago, it all boils down to difficulty and expenses. General producer Kazuhisa Wada previously stated (in machine-translated comments) that even though adding the female character was considered during Reload's development, "the hurdles were too high" ultimately. It's certainly sad, but at least we can play as her in the Persona 5 spin-off.

Here's hoping we learn more about the crossover event from Atlus soon – and perhaps see what else the developers have in store for Persona 5: The Phantom X.

While you wait for the big event, why not read through everything we know about Persona 4 Revival and Persona 6 so far, or browse some other exciting new games underway?

Final Fantasy 7 Revelation is the third and final game in Square Enix's ambitious remake trilogy, but it might not be the true end of the saga. New listings on the Epic Games Store database suggest multiple DLCs are planned for the upcoming game.

Those listings include the pre-order bonuses and Premium Edition goodies you'd expect, plus nine DLCs and an entire "Story Expansion Pass," according to third-party tool EpicDB, a site that tracks everything that happens on The Epic Games Store's backend, similarly to how SteamDB works.

Square Enix has yet to officially share anything about Final Fantasy 7 Revelation's DLC plans, so take these sightings with a fist full of salt. All of these listings could be placeholders, they could simply be item packs or cosmetics, they could be subject to change, or they could be complete bogus.

After EpicDB seemingly leaked a bunch of codenames that weren't supposed to see the light of day two years ago, Epic Games said it "released an update so third-party tools can't surface any new unpublished product titles." That update would theoretically make these listings impossible to view, so make of that what you will.

Final Fantasy 7 Remake series director Naoki Hamaguchi has hinted at the possibility of post-launch content before, for what it's worth. As long as fans want it loudly enough, he's said that he's open to making expansions focused on extended universe content.

Square Enix has already set a precedent for such a thing, too. Final Fantasy 7 Remake, the first game in the kind of remade trilogy, enjoyed an Intergrade DLC that focused exclusively on loveable ninja Yuffie for a few hours. Perhaps Final Fantasy 7 Revelation could welcome its own Intergrade-sized expansions in the months or years following its own launch next year.

The Final Fantasy 7 universe certainly doesn't stop at the base game - spin-offs such as Advent Children and Dirge of Cerberus continued to milk that cow, and fans have come around to those projects in the years since, as well.

"This Final Fantasy 7 Remake series is not simply a recreation of the original work, but rather, our goal is to create a single, new Final Fantasy 7 that incorporates the settings and concepts of all the previous spin-off titles such as Advent Children, Dirge of Cerberus, and Crisis Core," Hamaguchi explained last month.

Final Fantasy 7 Revelation is due out next year on PC, Xbox, PS5, and Switch 2.

Final Fantasy 7 Revelation lead says "the way we design games also needs to evolve" as streaming over buying becomes more common, even if he does "fully support" content creators

It's no secret that Final Fantasy 14 had one of the biggest comebacks of any MMO (heck, any game) when director Naoki "Yoshi-P" Yoshida stepped in for A Realm Reborn – even Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 lead Guillaume Broche thinks so.

The RPG's creative director says as much in a new episode of Video Game Club via Konbini on YouTube (below), first saying that Final Fantasy 14 is "in the top three games I've played the most in my life."

He then recalls A Realm Reborn, and how "Square Enix pulled off the best thing in the history of video games when it comes to relaunching a game." Broche explains why he thinks so, going over how the MMO's developers did it.

"Basically, they released a first version, and it was a disaster. Everyone was playing it, and it was terrible. And what they did was, after a year, they released an in-game cutscene showing the end of the world. An eight-minute cutscene with Bahamut arriving and blowing up the world."

Indeed, they did – I still go back and watch that scene online myself. The public chat was filled with countdowns and excitement… there's nothing quite like it.

Broche agrees, saying "everyone had seen that cutscene" – even folks who had never actually played the game. That didn't stop them from asking, "'What's going on at Square Enix?'" Then came A Realm Reborn.

"They relaunched it a year later," as the Clair: Obscur Expedition 33 lead puts it. "They reworked everything, relaunched the game, and it was truly exceptional. So it's still a huge hit today." That it is.

I'm a hardened Warrior of Light myself, and I'm still not done with the MMO after pouring in thousands of hours – nor will I be any time soon, with new expansion Evercold underway.

"Rebuilding an MMO in one year – I don't know how they did it. It's impossible," Broche continues. "To do that, and then, after a year, relaunch it and have it work. I think that's just too good to be true."

Perhaps my affinity for the game has to do with how Square Enix takes "more creative risks," in the words of Broche, but he's certainly right about one thing: "The game is exceptional. It still has its expansions, and there's still a super active community."

He praises everything from its music (massive shoutout to Masayoshi Soken) to its bosses, amusingly even admitting he played as a Lalafell – which I can't get over, honestly.

Should you be a Final Fantasy 14 fan yourself, I'd genuinely suggest giving the interview with the Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 director a deeper watch for more.

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 lead says Zelda: Breath of the Wild was "the first open-world game that actually delivered on the promise of an open world."

Fans have taken one of the biggest missed opportunities of the late 2000s into their own hands and are porting Persona 3 to the Nintendo DS.

I don't know about you, but I'm of the opinion that RPGs are best experienced on handheld consoles. Being able to chip away at a massive game in bed, on the bus, or wherever else you fancy (the bath? I don't know) is always a pleasure, and beats locking yourself to a console on the big TV. Before Persona 5, I spent most of my RPG time on the likes of the GBA, DS, and PS Vita, which did mean I missed out on some all-timers.

While Persona 3 Portable does exist, it was exclusive to the PSP, and it's a shame Atlus didn't share the love of the mainline Persona series to Nintendo until well after Joker appeared in Super Smash Bros Ultimate. However, a group of fans collectively named the P3D Project are aiming to right this wrong by porting Persona 3 to the DS, under the name Persona 3 Dual.

The game's 1.0 version released earlier this week, with the devs calling this "Milestone #1" with a new trailer showing off the port. And yes, it sure is Persona 3.

In fact – despite being substantially stripped back in comparison to the PS2 original – it does feature some things that never made it into the Portable edition on PSP. Namely, you're able to walk the streets of Iwatodai and the Paulownia Mall areas. In Persona 3 Portable, the overworld was made into a pseudo visual novel experience, whereas this DS port brings it more in line with the original game.

You can play this fan project now with a download available on the game's Github, but the developers have also shown what will be in the next version of the game, with the continued development of Persona 3 FES's female protagonist and updated versions of the UI to match. Will it be the most optimal or best way to play Persona 3? Probably not. But it's a really cool project regardless for those looking for a different way to experience one of their favorite RPGs.

Persona 4 Revival makes changes to fan-favorite scene from the OG JRPG, and veteran players aren't sure how to feel: "I'm sure people will be normal about this."

Persona 4 Revival is still underway as a remake of one of the best JRPGs to date (no, I'm not biased at all) – but just how true it is to Persona 4 Golden remains a bit of a mystery.

Although we do know that Atlus is remaking Golden specifically, there have been a few signs here and there pointing to differences between the 2012 banger I spent way too much time playing on the PlayStation Vita and Persona 4 Revival. For instance, we've previously seen cut dialogue lines come to light – and, of course, changes in characters' voices, like Yukiko's and, perhaps most notably, Chie's actor, too.

The discussion dominating the community right now has to do with yet another supposed step away from Persona 4 Golden: the Beauty Pageant and swimsuit contest.

If you've played the original revamp from Atlus, you might recall that October 30 – in-game, that is – is the date of the Beauty Pageant event. There are two phases, casual and swimwear. Now, the change in Revival, as per new screenshots from Atlus, has to do with Rise's outfit.

Persona 4 dancing outfits confirmed for P4R through a new screenshot atlus posted from r/PERSoNA

As pointed out over on Reddit, she appears to be wearing her Persona 4: Dancing All Night idol outfit during the Beauty Pageant. This would likely be a replacement for her "casual" wear – unless the swimsuit portion is different as well – in which she usually wears a simple dress in Persona 4 Golden. As you can imagine, the community has thoughts on this… to say the least.

"What if they make Persona 4 Revival an all-in-one," reads one comment. I'm not so sure they'd include its spin-offs instead of references like the outfit, but as a fan responds, that would be "cool as hell."

Another person writes, "Given there is a sprite, I'm thinking this is canon in game, and they are reworking that whole segment. Just a thought, though, who knows. It also could be an additional part of the school festival. I'm sure people will be normal about this." So am I, anon. So am I.

Somebody else says, "Looks like they're changing the swimsuit contest from the school festival event into maybe a dance contest, which is honestly probably for the best imo." I wouldn't be so quick to suggest that.

Over on Twitter, an eagle-eyed Persona modder instead shares in my own sentiment here: "It's likely Rise wears her P4D outfit in the Casualwear portion of the event." Honestly, I really think this is the most probable case.

I can't see Atlus changing it entirely, and we do see Rise's swimsuit in other new pictures. Fans are also sharing those – although it does seem like her beach-ready outfit has a new pattern.

As far as I'm concerned, though, I'll be happy with whatever ends up truly ringing true here. While I don't believe the Beauty Pageant will see drastic changes or that we'll see spin-off games integrated into Revival, I'd be thrilled either way.

Here's hoping we learn more about Persona 4 Revival as we near its February 18, 2027, release date… or, you know, Persona 6 while we're at it.

Searching for more to look forward to? Browse through our roundup of the best new games coming this year and beyond to wishlist.

Persona is the latest video game making the leap to live-action, with Netflix on board to adapt the beloved RPG series. And fans already have the perfect Joker in mind.

According to a report from Variety, Star Trek: Picard's Christopher Monfette is attached to write. Monfette has worked on a variety of genre shows and is a credited writer and co-producer on Marvel's upcoming VisionQuest. Stranger Things' Shawn Levy is also on board as a producer as part of his production company, 21 Laps. On the Sega side, Sonic the Hedgehog's Toru Nakahara is reportedly attached to produce.

Details beyond that are thin on the ground as, per Variety, Netflix declined to comment or confirm the veracity of the news. We don't even have a sense of which entry in the long-running series this show is likely to adapt. But it's further evidence of how much Netflix values video game adaptations in the wake of The Witcher, Castlevania, Cyberpunk: Edgerunners season 2, Arcane, Splinter Cell: Deathwatch, Devil May Cry, and many more.

While each mainline Persona entry deals with a new set of characters, there are some throughlines across the series – most notably, each stars a set of Japanese high school students who navigate the minutiae of school life by day, and fight their way through deadly dungeons by night, adopting a range of colorful personas to do battle.

The next game in the series, Persona 6, was announced only last month at Summer Game Fest, but with little more than a teaser to go off, it's unlikely Netflix's adaptation will be drawing from that. Far more likely is that Netflix's live-action Persona will take its cues from Persona 5 – as it features a number of the most beloved characters across any Shin Megami Tensei game. It's also the most successful entry in the series to date, with almost 14 million copies sold when Persona 5 Royal and the 2022 remaster are taken into account.

Naturally, Persona fans have plenty of thoughts about the news, not all of them positive. While some point to Netflix's track record of live-action adaptations as an ill omen for Persona, plenty are excited about the proposition of Joker and co. making the transition to live action. One common bit of fan-casting: Tom Holland as Joker. Though given the Spider-Man star has recently graduated to working with the likes of Christopher Nolan on The Odyssey, and that he has a long-gestating Fred Astaire biopic coming up, the chances of him starring in a Netflix video game adaptation seem relatively slim.

Whoever eventually signs up, it's certainly an exciting time to be a Persona fan, as Persona 6 seems to have some unexpected horror vibes. A Sega leaker has also hinted that the highly anticipated game could be released as early as next year.

Netflix's live-action Persona series does not currently have a release date. For more, dive into our list of upcoming video game movies and shows, or fill out your watchlist with our ranking of the best shows on Netflix.

Final Fantasy 14 heads to the new Evercold expansion having walked a bumpy road. Things like story and content rollout have needed some improvements on the fly, though plenty of the combat encounters have felt like the MMO at its best.

As such, given the opportunity to ask assistant director Tsuyoshi Yokozawa a few questions about The Arcadian series over email ahead of Final Fantasy 14's Anaheim edition of Fan Fest, how could we refuse?

We put forward questions about how the eight-player raid series for Dawntrail came to be, what surprised them most when it landed, and what lessons the team is taking on board and into the future. Given the expectation of a new expansion at Fan Fest, we thought the last point to be especially pertinent. You can find the answers below in their entirety, as we received them.

How would you say previous raid tiers and feedback surrounding them influenced the development of the Arcadion series?

Tsuyoshi Yokozawa: Thank you for your question.

Our experience from previous raid series, along with feedback from players, played a very important role in the design philosophy of the Arcadion.

In previous series, especially at the time of Pandæmonium, our emphasis was on a policy of comprehensively ensuring player comfort and stress reduction.

This approach did help make content more accessible, but at the same time, by pursuing that philosophy so rigorously, there were moments where it unintentionally limited our ability to explore more creative ideas when planning mechanics and theatrics. We also moved towards designs that reduced the possibility of mistakes – for example, by increasing hitbox sizes. However, as that approach continued, we began to see a new challenge emerge; there was less room for individual players to demonstrate their true abilities, resulting in a heightened sensation of "going through the motions" when tackling the fight. To break through these challenges, we decided that with the Arcadion, we would return to the mindset we had during the Heavensward era.

This entailed not being bound by convenience alone, but rather focused first and foremost on "novel experiences and surprises", approaching encounter design with a freer, more flexible perspective. At the same time, we placed importance on striking a balance, where overcoming moderate challenges would deliver a strong sense of achievement. As a result, I believe we were able to create exciting battles filled with new surprises, and that led to positive feedback from many players.

How did the team find balancing mechanics between the Normal tier and the Savage tier of Arcadion, to meet the expectations of both casual players and fans looking forward to each new set of hardcore raids?

Yokozawa: Adjusting the difficulty level so that a wide range of players can enjoy the raid is always a great challenge for us.

The basic idea is to meet the expectations of different target groups at the same time, so right from the design stage – serving as the foundation of the battle – we intentionally incorporate some mechanics that can be expanded on with additional elements, with the Savage tier in mind.

The Normal raid allows players to experience the basic movements of the encounter. Then in Savage, we build on that foundation by layering in more complex decision-making and stricter, more demanding reactions, allowing us to deliver a level of challenge that feels appropriate for each group of players.

That said, because this series was designed with novelty and surprise as the top priority, there were many instances where we could not significantly change the core flow between the Normal and Savage encounters.

Finding the right way to clearly differentiate the difficulty—while still maintaining consistency in the core presentation and overall experience—was one of the most challenging aspects for the team.

This was especially true for AAC Cruiserweight M3.

In any raid series, across the series as a whole, we believe it's important for the third encounter to serve as a major "wall" for players to overcome. Therefore, we designed the raid not only in terms of the difficulty of individual mechanics, but also as a "flow of battles" including numerical aspects such as damage values and endurance values, so that players could feel a solid sense of challenge and accomplishment.

The Arcadion is pretty widely praised by the community as one of the best raid tiers to date – why do you think that is, and what sets it apart?

Yokozawa: I believe there are three main reasons why the Arcadion is so highly regarded.

The essence of the Heavensward era and a more free-spirited approach

As I mentioned earlier, a major factor was a return to the design philosophy that prioritized "surprise and novelty", which we pursued at the time of Heavensward.

By building mechanics with a more open, unrestricted mindset, we feel that this approach resonated well with the expectations of today's players.

Cultivation of characters players can grow attached to over time

Rather than treating the bosses simply as one‑off enemies to be defeated, we placed strong emphasis on each character's unique personalities with the goal of creating characters that players could continue to enjoy and appreciate over the long term.

By conveying the backgrounds and appeal of the characters through the battles, I hope the players have developed a deeper attachment to them compared with any bosses from previous raid series.

Unparalleled immersion through live commentary

Another key feature of this series was the introduction of live match commentary, which we feel worked extremely well. The commentary adds a real sense of being part of a live event, as if the players themselves are participating in the match. From a presentation standpoint as well, we're proud to have delivered an experience that stands apart from previous raid series, offering a distinctly heightened level of immersion.

Is there anything the team tried that didn't work in the end?

Yokozawa: With over a decade of experience in battle content development, we have built up a rich array of knowledge about system constraints and what's realistically achievable within the game.

Therefore, we are able to determine to some extent what is feasible and what isn't in the early stages of planning.

Thanks to this accumulated know‑how, it's very rare for us to run into major issues after production has already started that would force us to abandon a plan altogether.

That said, there were a few ideas we explored during the concept phase that ultimately didn't make it into the game. For example, we had several stage transformation ideas for AAC Cruiserweight M2; visually dynamic ideas such as a transition to a fantasy-style sea of trees with fairies and mysterious mushrooms or shifting to night and a meteor shower falling across the arena.

Additionally, for the Neo Bombarian Special in AAC Cruiserweight M3, we had considered different theatrics in the early drafts of the plan. Specifically, buildings collapsing on impact would get hooked onto other structures like bridges, and the players would actually cross over them as pathways.

However, this brought up a number of game design challenges, such as making movement across those structures feel enjoyable as a gameplay element, and the difficulty of arranging the buildings in a way that wouldn't feel unnatural as actual architectural structures, which ultimately led us to settle on the current form.

In Final Fantasy 14, there are also inherent system limitations when it comes to dynamically moving collision elements, so we look for ways to maximize what we can achieve within those constraints.

What have you learned from the Arcadion and feedback from fans for the series that you think you might potentially carry over to the next tier?

Yokozawa: Our experience with the Arcadion has served as a firm guideline for our future battle content development.

Although some of the points below overlap with what I mentioned before, we would like to strongly carry over the following three points in particular into the next raid series:

Pursuit of unique experiences without fear of risk

What this series has reaffirmed for me is that surprise and novelty are at the very heart of what makes content truly entertaining.

Rather than taking a more conservative approach by prioritizing convenience and efficiency, I would like us to continue to challenge ourselves with free thinking, prioritizing "unprecedented experiences", even if it entails some degree of risk and resources.

Creation of boss characters that players can genuinely connect with

One of the great responses we got with the Arcadion was the very enthusiastic support from the community for the boss characters.

Instead of having them exist purely as enemies to defeat, we want to further emphasize portraying their individuality, background, and personality through the battles themselves—so that they can be appreciated and loved as characters over the long term. This is something we plan to place even greater importance on in the next series.

Designing gameplay that allows for flexible problem-solving

Rather than forcing players to utilize a specific strategy, we value leaving in room for players to approach situations in their own way, using their creativity and judgment to overcome challenges.

At the same time, while we will continue to include mechanics where mistakes can lead directly to a full wipe, we want to be more deliberate about where those moments occur. By expanding the opportunities for recovery—through tools like healing, resurrection, and limit breaks—we aim to enhance both the excitement of progression and the sense of accomplishment that comes from overcoming difficult situations through players' own resourcefulness.

Just for fun, which boss was your favorite to design (and see fans go up against)?

Yokozawa: When it comes to my favorite boss, this does lean quite a bit into my personal preference, but I would have to say Honey B. Lovely! She has a profound sense of professionalism as an idol, and I respect that unwavering professionalism first of all.

Naturally, as a professional, she should be able to play the role of a cute idol, but in the middle of a battle, she'd inevitably end up showing her true colours, no longer being able to contain the boiling rage that bursts out... It's that intense contrast that I find so compelling. It feels like her inescapable "human side" really comes through in those moments, and that gap between her composed persona and her true emotions is what makes her so memorable for me.

In addition, all the elements, such as the mechanics and music tied to the character design, are perfectly matched, and I feel that the raid was completed to a very high level of polish as a single duty.

The most memorable part about the raids was when I saw the players take on the Lindwurm in the latter half of AAC Heavyweight M4 (Savage). The Development team was thrilled to see how the community would figure out the mechanic, which was difficult to grasp from the setting.

In the end, players were able to come up with efficient solutions far earlier than we had anticipated, and we were once again impressed by just how adaptable and resourceful the community can be.

Also, although not a boss, it is yan who is strongly etched in my personal memory.

I designed the framework of the battle myself in AAC Cruiserweight M2 (Savage), and the trial and error involved in its creation made yan very memorable, for better or worse.

One final fun one – as the Arcadion series is wrestling themed, which wrestler in real life do you think would make a good raid boss?

Yokozawa: It's precisely because the raid series deals with a very passionate theme of wrestling that my imagination runs wild thinking about the answer to this.

I'm a little afraid to mention real-life wrestlers, because I'm worried I might come across as rude...

That said, looking at types we didn't feature in the Arcadion, wrestlers like 'The Fiend' Bray Wyatt and The Great Muta, who have a very clear duality as characters, are very appealing to me.

As a designer, being able to dramatically shift the atmosphere and even the "feel" of the gameplay within a single fight has a lot of creative potential, and I'm confident we could create something really engaging and rewarding with that kind of concept.

Next, as a baby-faced female wrestler, Bianca Belair would also make an interesting design.

In particular, the attack of using her hair as a whip can very easily be imagined as a battle mechanic for the raid.

(Truth be told though, it is very difficult to actually reproduce the smooth movement of a whip in FF14, but allow me to answer without feasibility factored into the equation!)

Anything else to add?

Yokozawa: Thank you so much for enjoying the Arcadion and for sharing so much warm and thoughtful feedback with us.

We always take our players' voices seriously, and we're committed to creating battles that deliver both excitement and a strong sense of accomplishment.

Of course, we have much to learn from missteps and areas where we reflect and

Improve – but we take all of that forward as motivation to keep delivering experiences that can only be found in FF14.

I look forward to seeing you all on the battlefield in the next challenge. We hope you will continue to look forward to FF14's battle content in the future!

What's the best MMO for you? If it isn't Final Fantasy 14, chances are you'll find it on this list. Maybe.

With Final Fantasy 14 expansion Evercold underway, it's hard for us raiders not to consider what the 8.0 tier might look like – after all, Dawntrail's own Arcadion arguably stands as one of the best the MMO has seen to date.

Just why is it so good, though? Dawntrail as a whole left many players disappointed, after all, teetering back and forth from "Mostly Negative" reviews on Steam since its release – but its raid series, the Arcadion, never met that sort of poor reception itself.

I got to ask assistant director Tsuyoshi Yokozawa about this, questioning what Square Enix had learned from its past tiers… and how it implemented this knowledge into the Arcadion.

"Our experience from previous raid series, along with feedback from players, played a very important role in the design philosophy of the Arcadion," he tells me. "In previous series, especially at the time of Pandæmonium, our emphasis was on a policy of comprehensively ensuring player comfort and stress reduction. This approach did help make content more accessible," but it also limited developers' ability to "explore more creative ideas."

They saw another problem there, too. As Yokozawa says, "There was less room for individual players to demonstrate their true abilities, resulting in a heightened sensation of 'going through the motions' when tackling the fight. To break through these challenges, we decided that with the Arcadion, we would return to the mindset we had during the Heavensward era."

That's right – the Alexander era. I love it, you probably love it, many fans love it. I've even got a soft spot in my heart for the more recent Ultimate.

If you're newer to the MMO, you might be wondering what he means here, however. He explains: "This entailed not being bound by convenience alone, but rather focused first and foremost on 'novel experiences and surprises,' approaching encounter design with a freer, more flexible perspective."

Square Enix also "placed importance on striking a balance, where overcoming moderate challenges would deliver a strong sense of achievement."

That's why the lead thinks the team was "able to create exciting battles filled with new surprises" out of the Arcadion – "and that led to positive feedback from many players."

It certainly did. I, for one, see it as one of the best Savage (and Normal, honestly) tiers. The Arcadion is up there with the Alexander raids in terms of novelty, coming as a much-needed breath of fresh air amid Dawntrail's other content.

Yokozawa stresses this once more, describing the Arcadion as "a return to the design philosophy that prioritized 'surprise and novelty,' which we pursued at the time of Heavensward."

He concludes that, "By building mechanics with a more open, unrestricted mindset, we feel that this approach resonated well with the expectations of today's players." I'd say he's most definitely not wrong here.

Across discussions on forums online, you'll see people praising the Arcadion as a top-tier… well, tier. Heck, you'll even find folks noting that it's as boundary-pushing as Heavensward's raid series was. I'm just hopeful Evercold's will prove similarly brilliant.

Final Fantasy 14 Evercold raids follow The Arcadion's lead as the MMO's assistant director teases they'll value "surprise and novelty" over "convenience and efficiency."

Final Fantasy 14 expansion Evercold is on its way, so it's a great time to take a step back and look at what might just be one of the best raid tiers the MMO has seen to date: the Arcadion.

It's no secret that Dawntrail, as an expansion, left many of us a bit disappointed – I mean, they can't all be Shadowbringers, am I right? It has dipped in and out of a "Mostly Negative" rating on Steam (now sitting at "Mixed" reviews overall). But, still, it didn't go wrong in every delivery.

In fact, its raid series, the Arcadion, is widely regarded as one of the greatest… both for casual players and hardcore fans tackling the Savages.

As a dedicated raider myself, I'm interested to see what Evercold's own raids might bring – and what Square Enix learned from the Arcadion's solid reception. So I ask assistant director Tsuyoshi Yokozawa during a recent interview what the developers are considering carrying over into the next tier.

"Our experience with the Arcadion has served as a firm guideline for our future battle content development," he tells me… which, yeah, makes a lot of sense.

"We would like to strongly carry over the following three points in particular into the next raid series." The first is the "pursuit of unique experiences without fear of risk" – something I'm certainly a fan of.

"What this series has reaffirmed for me is that surprise and novelty are at the very heart of what makes content truly entertaining," Yokozawa explains. This means risk-taking while battle planning and "'prioritizing unprecedented experiences.'"

This might cost more resources, but it's clearly worked with the Arcadion. I don't think I'll soon forget the fight designs from Dawntrail's high-tier raiding, and I'm ready for more of that. I'm also ready for more of the lead's next point – the "creation of boss characters that players can genuinely connect with."

Is he low-key talking about Honey B. Lovely here and how she became a community icon? I'd like to think so.

"Instead of having them exist purely as enemies to defeat, we want to further emphasize portraying their individuality, background, and personality through the battles themselves," continues Yokozawa on raid bosses, "so that they can be appreciated and loved as characters over the long term." This approach is something Square Enix plans "to place even greater importance on" in Evercold.

The third point the assistant director brings up might have a greater effect on us hardcore raiders than anyone else: "designing gameplay that allows for flexible problem-solving."

According to Yokozawa, "Rather than forcing players to utilize a specific strategy, we value leaving in room for players to approach situations in their own way, using their creativity and judgment to overcome challenges." Comparing different statics' clears proves his point, honestly.

Square Enix "will continue to include mechanics where mistakes can lead directly to a full wipe," but the devs "want to be more deliberate about where those moments occur."

They'll do this "by expanding the opportunities for recovery" – think limit breaks, healing, and rezzes. It's all about the feeling "overcoming difficult situations through players' own resourcefulness" gives us as raiders, and I get it.

Just think about how much better a kill feels when you think you've truly contributed to the static's overall ability to get it – it's a feeling I know well as a healer main. It's nice to see devs acknowledge its power.

As Yokozawa concludes, they "always take our players' voices seriously" and are "committed to creating battles that deliver both excitement and a strong sense of accomplishment." The Arcadion serves as proof.

"Of course, we have much to learn from missteps and areas where we reflect and improve – but we take all of that forward as motivation to keep delivering experiences that can only be found in FF14," he admits, before signing off with a heartfelt message: "I look forward to seeing you all on the battlefield in the next challenge. We hope you will continue to look forward to FF14's battle content in the future!"

I know I already am – my fellow static members definitely are, too. All of these points, along with the upcoming job changes, have me at the edge of my seat.

Final Fantasy 14 fans make their own in-game Tinder, with gil-hungry bunny boys and modded cat girls galore.

Have you heard of the critically acclaimed MMORPG Final Fantasy 14? Well, Deltarune Chapter 5 is trying to spread the word.

Deltarune Chapter 5 continued the game's story with another new and bonkers episode yesterday, but hidden in between its vibrant pixels is an Easter egg with the subtlety of a sledgehammer smashing eggs. Spotted by Redditor MaximumCompany8921, there are some lines in the new chapter that not-so-quietly nod at Square Enix's evergreen hit.

FFXIV nod in Deltarune Ch5 from r/ffxiv

"There's some drawing by Temmi of her with an additional set of ears)", a text bubble reads. "(Seems to be motivating you to play a certain MMORPG...)" - perhaps one with an expanded free trial...

For those who don't know, Temmie is a cat-like character in the shared Undertale/Deltarune universe who's based on one of the real-world artists behind the game, Temmie Chang. Both share a name, and both evidently love Final Fantasy 14.

Real-world Temmie Chang has notably created tons of really cool Final Fantasy 14 fan art over the years - like the one below - primarily of her Miqo'te character who belongs to the feline-humanoid-hybrid race. So, the reference to in-game Temmie's extra pair of ears likely implies that she, too, loves the Miqo'te (unless, I don't know, she bought a pair of bunny ears from the Gold Saucer or something). Very meta.

sketch request thread (ffxiv WoLs only ver)

— @tuyoki.bsky.social (@tuyoki.bsky.social.bsky.social) 2026-06-25T16:25:58.226Z

Will we ever see what Deltarune Temmie's Miqo'te looks like? Is she excited for Evercold? What class does she main? Our best bet for answers is probably in Deltarune Chapter 6, which is aiming to launch sometime next year according to lead dev Toby Fox.

Deltarune Chapter 5 update stops flirting from freezing the game and makes the final boss easier if you suck

The Final Fantasy 7 Remake trilogy intends to pull the entire FF7 story into its gravitational orbit, series director Naoki Hamaguchi says, so expect even more extended universe references and characters and concepts to show up in Final Fantasy 7 Revelation.

"Well, at this time it's best not to say whether Cissnei will appear or not," Naoki Hamaguchi teases at a recent Q&A event in Shanghai when asked about the side character who first appeared in the PSP prequel, Final Fantasy 7: Crisis Core, and then made a surprise reappearance in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth. "But there is one thing I can tell you." (Thanks for the translation, Genki.)

"This Final Fantasy 7 Remake series is not simply a recreation of the original work, but rather, our goal is to create a single, new Final Fantasy 7 that incorporates the settings and concepts of all the previous spin-off titles such as Advent Children, Dirge of Cerberus, and Crisis Core," he adds, also pointing to the Dirge of Cerberus characters who pop up in the Intergrade DLC.

"So, since that concept will of course carry over into Revelation as well, not limited to Cissnei, for the last entry, there will be characters that have appeared in the various FF7 compilation games that I think will be there," Hamaguchi says, "and each of these characters has a large and dedicated fanbase, so we want to create a work that can satisfy the feelings of those people."

There you have it – Hamaguchi has previously been a little coy about how heavily Revelation will touch on compilation games, but it's now as good as confirmed.

Cloud and his party's world has expanded greatly in the three decades since their original clash with Sephiroth, as Square Enix has bolted on prequels and sequels and everything in-between to keep its cash cow milking. What's interesting is that Hamaguchi is potentially walking on thorny territory by folding slightly divisive projects into the ongoing remake.

Take PS2 shooter Dirge of Cerberus, a game most people agreed was middling when it came out 20 years ago and a game that hasn't received a big re-evaluation since. Animated sequel film Advent Children didn't fare much better, though it definitely has its fans nowadays.

The Final Fantasy 7 Remake games haven't exactly been strict when (kind of) retelling the original story, however. At least, so far, it seems like the Remake series is more a very liberal, alternate universe sequel to the original game rather than a straight one-to-one copy of it. Hamaguchi's also teased that any potential DLC could involve certain spin-offs, too.

We'll see how deep the references go when Final Fantasy 7 Revelation comes out on PC, PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and Switch 2 sometime next year.

Final Fantasy 7 Revelation's portrayal of an "essential" scene from the OG JRPG made game director Naoki Hamaguchi cry in each of his 40 playthroughs.

Final Fantasy 7 Revelation, the third part of the JRPG remake from Square Enix, is sure to be part of many content creators' streams when it releases – but that doesn't mean it'll take away from viewers' own gameplay experiences, according to director Naoki Hamaguchi.

The lead explains as much in a recent interview with 4Gamer, stating that developers need to be careful with RPGs like Final Fantasy so that folks aren't satisfied by merely watching videos or streams – but that's not to say he doesn't approve of streamers and the like.

He's simply taken this into account while designing Final Fantasy 7 Revelation, ensuring it's a unique experience for everyone… every time. When the world is "changing," as Hamaguchi says, devs need to, too – and that means making sure a new title like the third part of the Final Fantasy 7 Remake trilogy is suited for both playing and streaming.

He clarifies his take in a follow-up post online, writing, "I fully support streaming culture," stressing once again that he's not opposed to content creation. "But as times change, I believe the way we design games also needs to evolve."

Hamaguchi concludes, "I'm looking forward to seeing how Final Fantasy 7 Revelation is received."

I'm personally excited to see how it goes as well – not only because I can't wait for the game itself, but because I want to see how Square Enix has managed to strike a balance between content creators' ability to host a fun stream or record an immersive video and players' capacity to enjoy the game firsthand themselves.

I don't often watch streams myself, but I do like gameplay videos here and there – and I see where the director is coming from here, honestly.

It's evident that most games weren't exactly designed with content creation or streaming in mind, even if there's been a rise in watching them rather than purchasing them for convenience, so it's intriguing to hear that some devs are taking this into account during production.

I don't think Final Fantasy 7 Revelation would have an issue with sales either way, though – sure, people will watch it… but it's also the third part of a remake trilogy of one of the best JRPGs to date. Something tells me lots of fans will be lining up to buy it.

Final Fantasy 7 Revelation's portrayal of an "essential" scene from the OG JRPG made game director Naoki Hamaguchi cry in each of his 40 playthroughs.

There's a point in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth where rookie Turks operative Elena takes a break from being a whiny firestarter and cools off with a stick of sea salt ice cream – a custardy, aquamarine treat featured throughout the Kingdom Hearts series also made by Square Enix. Reasonable fans therefore assumed Elena's frozen dessert was a sweet self-reference, but Final Fantasy 7 remake trilogy director Naoki Hamaguchi says no. Not at all.

Hamaguchi tells The Gamer in a new interview, "It might be disappointing to hear this, but Elena's ice cream isn't a homage to Kingdom Hearts."

Now, if you've suddenly started to hear a thousand distant howls, know that it isn't the wind. It's the lonely cries of Kingdom Hearts fans around the world realizing the franchise they constantly fret about being dead is more comatose than they first assumed.

Still, Kingdom Hearts is not dead dead. Sure, it would have been lovely to live in the world where Elena's salty ice cream is a sign that Square Enix loves Kingdom Hearts – in which Cloud-like champion Sora gets to shake hands with Donald Duck – just as much as its other children. However, Square Enix has devoted itself to something better than a measly sign. Kingdom Hearts 4 is definitely in production, the developer confirmed earlier this month, seven years after Kingdom Hearts 3 launched.

I understand, though, that it's hard for some people to feel soothed by that fact when there's still no release date for the action RPG in sight. That's too bad, Hamaguchi suggests. He continues to tell The Gamer that Elena's ice cream simply introduces audiences to the popular Japanese "soda-flavored popsicle called Garigari-kun, which we've actually referenced quite a bit during development." This pop has a mascot that's a hungry schoolboy with a concerningly red mouth, and he shoves Gargari-kun's blue, shaved ice filling into the gaping hole.

"As such, it's closer to say we were envisioning a slightly nostalgic popsicle, reminiscent of the summer," Hamaguchi concludes. Right. Well, now that I've stopped looking at the Gargari-kun mascot's gigantic, hypnotic mouth, I'm thinking you could also say that Kingdom Hearts – whose first installment released in 2002 – is also a slightly nostalgic confection, right?

Final Fantasy 14 boss Yoshi-P has "many game ideas" tucked away that he'd like to do something with, one being a "game design that combines AI and servers."

As the wait for new Final Fantasy 14 expansion Evercold drags on, the MMO's community is finding fresh ways to spice its time in Eorzea up… including via a Tinder-like add-on.

Yes, you read that correctly. We can all try and score our very own Limsa baddies in-game (a girl can dream, right?) thanks to AetherLove – a Dalamud plug-in that adds matchmaking to Final Fantasy 14.

I'm not promoting third-party tools or anything here, but should you be intrigued by the concept, AetherLove apparently functions much like Tinder does… albeit in-game, of course. It's all contained within a convenient mobile (tomestone) window.

All you need to do is set up your profile – you know, include all of the essentials like your favorite music and Final Fantasy character – and et voilà! You can swipe left or right on fellow Warriors of Light, depending on how you feel about their Miqo'tes and what have you.

Do be warned, you'll see a lot of modded outfits (and perhaps more NSFW gpose pictures than you've bargained for). In other words, AetherLove is exactly what it sounds like.

As one might expect, fans are already going wild over the unofficial Final Fantasy 14 Tinder equivalent. It's Lovebringer all over again, except now as a handy add-on – and I can't get enough of the chatter online (and admittedly, in my own Free Company chat) about it.

Heck, just take a peek over at X for AetherLove profile screenshots, ratings, and, of course, drama. It wouldn't be Final Fantasy 14 without some drama, eh?

From the bunny boys looking for sugar mommas to the cat girls seeking their one true love, it's all certainly something to behold. Just how long will it last before Square Enix cracks down on it, Mare Synchronos-style, though?

I do hope it stays up at least a bit longer so that I can continue browsing through the chaos on social media, if I'm honest… but I'm not brave enough to dip my toes into AetherLove's digital dating myself.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I have amusing screenshots to share among my FC pals – and various new AetherLove profiles to judge.

Final Fantasy 14 boss Yoshi-P has "many game ideas" tucked away that he'd like to do something with, one being a "game design that combines AI and servers"

Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth director Naoki Hamaguchi says that "the presence of diverse, authentic relationships" like the JRPG's same-sex couples help enhance the "realism" of the game's world, and he and the other devs at Square Enix were "incredibly happy" to see fans "paying close attention even to these subtle interactions."

If you watch and listen to the NPCs populating Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth's world, you'll have no doubt noticed that there are multiple references to queer romance and relationships – whether it's a man talking about his "dashing" new partner as a friend congratulates him for finding "the one," or a woman asking a female friend if she'd consider dating her after she declares that she's "over men in general."

In an interview with TheGamer, Hamaguchi is asked about one specific pair of women whose relationship evolves throughout the JRPG – the one that starts with a slap fight in Kalm. "To us, what matters is the feeling of a diverse group of people inhabiting this world in an authentic manner," he says. "Rebirth is a game where you encounter many towns, cultures, and relationships throughout your journey. In my view, the presence of diverse, authentic relationships within that journey also enhances the world's realism.

"As such, it feels closer to say that even for these two characters, our goal wasn't to add a same-sex couple just for the sake of adding it, but to portray the stories of those inhabiting this world with sincerity and care," he continues. "In truth, it made us incredibly happy as the development team to see players paying close attention even to these subtle interactions and shifts in relationships."

It's nice to hear, and Hamaguchi has clearly been watching fan reaction closely, as he adds: "My impression is that players also pay close attention to not only whether these depictions are there, but also their detailed nuances, like the emotional distance and conversational tone between characters."

He reiterates Square Enix's aim to create a diverse, realistic world, and notes that "the presence of these relationships didn't feel like a distinct depiction for us, but rather a result of building FF7's world in an authentic way."

With that in mind, it sounds like we can probably expect more cute queer references like this in Final Fantasy 7 Revelation when it launches next year. We already know that it's going to have a "far bigger" open-world map than Rebirth, after all, so it'll be able to house plenty of NPCs for us to meet.

Final Fantasy 7 Revelation's portrayal of an "essential" scene from the OG JRPG made game director Naoki Hamaguchi cry in each of his 40 playthroughs.

People looking for any morsel of info about Persona 6 will be happy to know that the director and series producer Kazuhisha Wada is happy to oblige.

Speaking to Famitsu (and reported by TheGamer), Wada explained some of his philosophy when it comes to making games. Specifically, he was asked about what challenges he wants to take on in the future and what he would tell other game developers.

"Fundamentally, as a creator, I'm not very interested in things that are neither good nor bad," he said. "That's why, while facing various risks and constraints, we've tried to deliver something like a poison that leaves a strong impression. Of course, this isn't just about sensationalism or extremism, but something that shakes people's values or gives them something to think about."

Even though Wada doesn't directly connect this to Persona 6, he's described the Persona games as a form of "poison" before. In 2024, he talked about trying to make games widely appealing but still distinct and compared it to "serving players deadly poison wrapped in sweet coating."

Wada routinely makes games that surprise people and I doubt Persona 6 will be any different. The hardest part will be waiting to see what kind of poison he's slipped into it. Persona 6 doesn't currently have a release date. All we know is that it will be rated M and seems to have some horror vibes.

Persona 4 Revival removes fan-favorite line, leaving fans hoping for a certain new love interest in shambles: "We definitely aren't getting that romance"

Naoki 'Yoshi-P' Yoshida has been making games for almost 30 years, more than a decade of which has been spent turning Final Fantasy 14 into one of the world's most beloved MMOs, but the iconic game dev doesn't plan on retiring anytime soon. In fact, he apparently has a bunch of game ideas still tucked away in his back pocket, including one that confusingly "combines AI and servers."

When asked by Famitsu about his future plans in a chat translated by TheGamer, Yoshida says, "There are still many things I want to try," alongside ongoing updates and expansions to Final Fantasy 14. "So I have no intention of retiring any time soon, and will continue to run at full speed."

The 52-year-old's last project unrelated to the adamantoise-sized MMO was Final Fantasy 16, for which he served as a producer, but other ideas orbit his brain as well. "There are still many game ideas that are stored away as project proposals, and I would like them to see the light of day someday," he adds.

And one of the proposals he details concerns "a game design that combines AI and servers." What that looks like isn't entirely clear, since Yoshi-P doesn't specify generative AI, and even if he did, I don't think I'd have a better understanding of what he was getting at.

Although he does attempt to explain that the idea could somewhat help to alleviate the game industry's worsening problems. "It's a tough world out there," he says. "With soaring development costs, accelerating technological advancements, decreasing consumer disposable time, and rapid market changes. Though that's precisely why I feel like it's one of the most exciting times for the industry."

Square Enix is no stranger to the worlds of AI and MMOs colliding. The Japan-exclusive MMO Dragon Quest 10 recently welcomed a character called Oshaberi Slimey, a chirpy little creature that's powered by Google's Gemini AI model and comments on player activity with AI-generated text. Needless to say, it didn't go down well with players.

As for Final Fantasy 14, the all-encompassing digital world isn't succumbing to similar tools for now. It's actually just as jolly as ever. The MMO recently patted Japanese taxpayers on the head with an in-game Shiba Inu mount - now who's a good boy? - as it gears up for its next expansion, Evercold.

Yoshi-P himself recently said he can't see an end in sight for Final Fantasy 14, either. That doesn't exactly close the door to other projects set in its world since Yoshi-P also revealed he's considered making a single-player Final Fantasy 14 project, as well, due to some fans' aversion to online games.

Another Final Fantasy 14 Ultimate raid, another controversy – the MMO's fans once again allege world first winners are a "cheater team"

Persona 6 breadcrumbs continue to drop, this time with a Mature age rating courtesy of the Australian government.

The upcoming Atlus JRPG has been a very long time coming, but Persona 6's reveal trailer didn't divulge much information about the game at all. That's now changing with the speed of a dripping tap, and it's all thanks to the Australian Classification Board.

The ACB recently slapped Persona 6 with an M rating (for Mature), recommending it stay in the hands of gamers over the age of 15 due to "coarse language," nudity, and violence supposedly depicted in the game.

While age ratings don't provide concrete confirmation that games are nearing release, they do normally serve as good indicators since it suggests publishers are already doing certification prep. After all, classification boards can't recommend an appropriate age rating without seeing content used in the final game and publishers don't usually start the process for games early on in development with content that's likely to change substantially.

Essentially, if you're feeling optimistic, this could be a clue that Persona 6 is further along than its brief, shadowy reveal trailer implies. Look no further than Splatoon Raiders and Star Wars: Zero Company's age ratings, which were both submitted shortly before their release dates were made official.

Still, I'd recommend pumping the breaks on any hopium-fuelled dreams that involve Persona 6 getting a full gameplay blowout and a release date anytime soon. It's entirely possible the new age rating is based on content disclosures seen on Steam's Persona 6 storefront description: "This Game may contain content not appropriate for all ages, or may not be appropriate for viewing at work: Some Nudity or Sexual Content, Frequent Violence or Gore, General Mature Content".

Also keep in mind Atlus has other priorities to keep track of. Persona 4 Revival, a remake of the classic RPG, is coming out on February 18, 2027 - and Atlus has said we can look forward to more Persona 6 information after the remake releases.

For now, we know Persona 6 seems to be following in the footsteps of its high-schooling, demon-punching predecessors. "Live a Double Life in Modern-Day Japan," the game's Steam page reads, while hinting at another year-long in-game calendar and "contemporary Japanese cities."

Persona 4 Revival fans hope Atlus is teasing a male romance option thought to have been cut from the original JRPG, and as Persona 6 approaches I think it's about time

Atlus has changed a specific line of dialogue in Persona 4 Revival, leading some to wonder if they got their hopes up for the rumored cut Yosuke romance option returning a bit too early.

Persona 4 is one of those games where there's a lot of curiosity about how Atlus would go about remaking it. Despite Persona 5 eclipsing it in popularity, the discourse around Persona 4 has persisted for decades, and one of the big reasons why people are curious about how it will be remade is Yosuke Hanamura. Yosuke takes on the "bro" archetype that Persona 3's Junpei and Persona 5's Ryuji exist in, and is your protagonist's right-hand man throughout the adventure.

But Yosuke is awkward – especially in the English localization. He creeps on the litany of women throughout the game, plays on insecurities of the party members, and most notably, constantly makes homophobic comments – especially towards Kanji. And while from my perspective of growing up in the era, he's almost a perfect representation of a teenage boy in a world where Family Guy, South Park, and any number of sitcoms were appointment viewing, and giving your friends abuse for the love of the game was a common activity, it's led to him being a disliked character for a portion of the fanbase.

One thing that many point to with Yosuke in regards to his homophobia is an apparently cut romance option with the character where he seemingly confesses his love to the protagonist – as if his comments are a manifestation of his own feelings in a society where people as homophobic as Yosuke exist. And with it becoming more common in games – like Fire Emblem, Hades, and Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 – to offer same-sex romance options, many were wondering if this scene will be restored in the upcoming remake.

Atlus released a deep dive video for Persona 4 Revival revealing that a line – in which Yosuke awkwardly tells the protagonist that "you do seem to be great with your hands," before catching himself and quickly retracting it – has been changed. In Revival, the line is changed to, "Woah, you can cook? Actually, you do strike me as someone who'd be good at that," which is a pretty straight-forward compliment, and not nearly as debatably flirtatious as the original.

Fans have been quick to react, with one user lamenting: "We definitely aren't getting that romance," while another adds, "Only way the scales balance from this is if they add the Yosuke romance."

However, it's been pointed out that the Revival version of the line is actually more accurate to the original Japanese version, which others do celebrate, hoping it'll make Teddie's character a bit more obviously an oblivious kid than he was in the English version, where many just viewed him as a total creep.

Persona 4 Golden Chie actor is "deeply grieving" being recast in Revival: "Thank you for sharing the journey with me."

Persona 6 is now on Steam, ready to wishlist as we wait who knows how long for the next big JRPG from Atlus.

As expected, the Persona 6 Steam page closely mirrors the existing pages on the PlayStation and Xbox stores. However, Atlus and publisher Sega have also shared a few moderately interesting breadcrumbs.

With just a short and vague reveal trailer to go on, we've had to resort to these store pages for any information sturdier than bread. Most of the details around Persona 6 have served only to confirm what hasn't changed since Persona 5, which is by far the most popular entry in the series. Today hasn't yielded any bombshells either, but sometimes no change is interesting news in its own right.

One thing that has changed a tiny bit is Persona 6's mature content description. This is unique to the Steam listing, at least for now, and reads: "This Game may contain content not appropriate for all ages, or may not be appropriate for viewing at work: Some Nudity or Sexual Content, Frequent Violence or Gore, General Mature Content".

For comparison, here's what Persona 5 Royal's Steam page says: "This game includes content such as blood, drug reference, partial nudity, sexual themes, strong language, and violence."

I'm really only pointing this out because, while Persona 6 shows very slight differences to Persona 5 Royal's mature content Steam description, it's identical to Persona 4 Revival's disclosure. This suggests Atlus or Sega have simply updated their boilerplate verbiage, so we shouldn't read it as a unique reflection of the tone or content of Persona 6, which, based on that graveyard reveal trailer, is currently suspected to be a bit darker than the more pop-flavored Persona 4 and 5 (though both of those also feature some grim scenes and subjects).

If nothing else, this does indicate that Persona 6 won't be a step back in terms of mature content or themes. Previously, we only had pending ESRB ratings, with the Xbox page predicting "likely mature 17+".

We can also look at the SteamDB page update history and find "content descriptors" which include "some nudity or sexual content," "frequent violence or gore," and "general mature content".

Speaking of Steam tags: separate from user-determined tags, Persona 6 has categories that include "single-player," "Steam Achievements," "Steam Cloud," and "Family Sharing". I look forward to seeing what tags Steam users brute force into the store page.

Another Steam update log matches a blurb on the live page: "Added 3rd-Party DRM – Denuvo Anti-tamper". This also comes as no surprise, as Persona 4 Revival uses the same tech.

Somewhat more interesting is clear confirmation that the Persona series' calendar structure hasn't changed. In store page descriptions, Atlus explains that we will "Live a Double Life in Modern-Day Japan". The Steam post co-published by Atlus and Sega notes that Persona 6 will see us "Live a Year Alongside Unforgettable Companions in Modern-Day Japan," recentering the calendar and putting us on a course for a year in "contemporary Japanese cities".

Additionally, Atlus and Sega continue to emphasize that Persona 6 is a completely standalone game, seemingly looking to avoid any confusion or fear around playing this as your first Persona. Atlus knows Persona 5 got a lot more attention than previous entries, and it obviously wants those people, and others, to play Persona 6. I've scoured every crumb of Persona 6 information, and I can't stress enough just how heavily this newcomer-friendly sentiment has been pushed.

That new Steam post reads: "While staying true to the distinctive atmosphere and innovative gameplay experience that have made the series beloved for years, Persona 6 introduces an entirely new setting and story. Each mainline title features a self-contained narrative with no story ties to previous games — so if this is your first Persona experience, jump right in!"

Persona 6 could release next year, Sega leaker hints, telling JRPG fans not to "read too much" into the teaser's lack of release window.

Final Fantasy 7 Revelation director Naoki Hamaguchi may have beaten the upcoming RPG around 40 times already, but there's one scene that still manages to make him cry each time.

Following the long-awaited reveal of the Final Fantasy 7 Remake trilogy's third part, Hamaguchi has been doing the media rounds to keep up the excitement ahead of its launch next spring.

He's not been shy in flexing how many times he's been able to finish the RPG before we even knew what it's called, but now he's revealed that there's one scene that still brings him to tears each time he watches it. Naturally, he can't wait for everyone to see it.

"There's this scene that's quite essential to the story of Final Fantasy 7 where Cloud goes into a moment of introspection and discovers his identity, and how it fits with Zack and Aerith," he says to Omlette. "I think the way we portrayed that in Revelation turned out very well, and we're eager for fans to see it.

"I've finished Revelation about 40 times, and every time that introspective scene with Cloud made me cry."

Adding to this on Twitter, Hamaguchi says that it's a "key scene from the original" that's "related to Cloud's identity." He also calls it "one of the most memorable experiences in FF7 Revelation."

Thinking it over myself, I wonder if he's referring to a scene at Fort Condor where Tifa and Cloud fall into the Lifestream, leading to the former piecing together the latter's memories. It's a big moment for Cloud in remembering who he is, though, naturally, I'm sure Final Fantasy 7 Revelation will add some extra bits – Hamaguchi talking about Aerith and Zack implies as much.

But anyway, that's just a theory. We will, of course, have to wait until next Spring to find out. Thankfully, that's not too far away.

Final Fantasy 7 Revelation director says streamers have caused "a bit of a crisis" for RPGs, and it's up to devs to make sure fans actually want to play a game themselves.

Square Enix is incentivizing Final Fantasy 14 players to pay their taxes promptly by offering in-game cosmetics for the MMO.

As reported by Famitsu (translated and reported by Automaton), Tokyo's Shibuya Ward is offering in-game items to Japanese Final Fantasy 14 players for doing their taxes. Japan's "Furusato Nozei" system allows citizens to donate a portion of income tax to a specific city, as opposed to it all being funneled in the one place, with chosen areas offering incentives to donate to them. This year, Tokyo's Shibuya Ward is teaming up with Square Enix to offer items in Final Fantasy 14.

Through donations, players can choose a number of items, such as a five pack of Fantasia Potions (which allow you to edit your character) for 17,000 Yen, a Megashiba Inu mount for 9,000 Yen, and a Magitek Costume set for 7,000 Yen.

To get all six gift packs you'd need to donate 58,000 Yen (roughly $362). As Automaton points out, the actual in-game price of the same items is estimated around $88, so they're really more of a bonus for your donation to the cause. That's a pretty steep jump for the cosmetics alone, so maybe don't plan on moving to Japan just for them.

But if you're already there and paying your taxes anyway, then there's a way to get some 'free' stuff in the critically acclaimed MMORPG with a free trial that now runs through– alright, I'll stop. Thankfully, these items don't seem to be tied to this incentive. Let's hope it stays that way and we don't see a world with tax exclusives

"Kefka is the ultimate troll": Final Fantasy 14's top raiders are being hoodwinked by a returning JRPG icon proving to be the most annoying Ultimate boss yet

I already own the Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD Remaster on the PS Vita, the PS3, the PS4, and of course, both original games on the PS2, so you'd assume that I've had my fill of Spira. However, this new Switch 2 release launching on July 27 for $43 at Amazon Japan is calling my name, as it includes a unique slipcover featuring new 25th Anniversary commemorative artwork. The catch? I'm going to have to import it to add it to my collection.

I've done that before and managed to miraculously spare myself from any hidden customs fees. However, that was the exception and not the rule, and I'll need to come to terms with the fact that adding this version to my Switch 2 game shelf, as it's not available yet in the US or UK physically, will likely require parting with some more of my hard-earned Gil. However, I'm prepared to do just that to add the stunning and unique artwork to my collection.

The stunning artwork in question isn't just found on this unique Switch 2 release alone, as the official Final Fantasy X 25th Anniversary website showcases the gorgeous illustration of Tidus and Yuna on a range of new merch, including a set of Final Fantasy TCG Card Sleeves, and I have my eyes on those, too. It's just nice to see new depictions of my favorite Final Fantasy couple besides the blue-toned art that was used when the Final Fantasy X / X-2 HD Remasters were originally released in 2014. Though that art does appear to be used on one slide of the special included sleeve.

Sure, the new 25th depiction of Tidus and Yuna is just printed on what appears to be a cardboard sleeve for a game I already own, and the game itself is a game-key card release and is not fully available on the cartridge provided. According to the official producer page, I'll still need 30GB of space on my handheld to actually download and replay the two games again. However, that hasn't stopped my collecting mindset from wanting to grab this version while I can, and fortunately, I already have an Amazon Japan account to do just that.

If you want to do the same, be aware that shipping and customs fees may be a factor. You're also very unlikely to get your copy on the August 27 release day, as it'll need time to ship from Japan to the US (or the UK). Yet, having an Amazon Japan account, particularly if you're a Final Fantasy fan, can be pretty handy as it's regularly one of the first places where a ton of collectibles, like the Final Fantasy Ultimania books, are printed.

It can also be one of the rare places where some merch and limited game versions are available at all. For example, besides this limited version of Final Fantasy X / X-2 HD Remaster on the Switch 2, the Final Fantasy X 25th Anniversary Visual Art Book is available to pre-order for $17.56 (Amazon), which I have yet to find at US or UK retailers.

If you're on the hunt to add more physical Switch 2 games to your shelf, do remember that Nintendo Switch Prime Day deals are on their way. Bezos HQ has already dropped the prices of both full-on-cart and game-key card releases, so there's bound to be plenty more where that came from once Amazon Prime Day officially kicks off on July 23.

• View all Switch 2 gaming deals at Amazon

Check out our guides to the best Nintendo Switch 2 cases, the best Nintendo Switch headsets, and the best Nintendo Switch 2 controllers if you're looking to create the ultimate Ninty gaming setup.

One Persona 4 Revival actor shared her dream to be cast in the JRPG remake over two years ago, well before Atlus's next game was even announced, and now she says "dreams really do come true."

Ari Thrash, who also voiced Yao Guang in Honkai: Star Rail, has now been announced as the new English voice of Marie in Revival – a Persona 4 Golden-exclusive character who was previously voiced by Eden Riegel. "I'm so ecstatic to say dreams really do come true as I announce I had the incredible honor of voicing Marie in P4R," Thrash writes following the news – and looking at her old posts, you can tell she's really not exaggerating.

Back in April 2024, Thrash took to Twitter with a dream. "If P4 gets another remaster with like P5 graphics and they give the characters other VA's I would love the chance to try out of Rise or Nanako," she wrote. "This is hardcore manifestation. Even if I didn't get one of them just to be able to try is a dream."

She reiterated this point in December of the same year, sharing a fan-made Persona 4 and Dandadan crossover animation and proclaiming: "Mark my words I will be in the remake of this at any cost. I'm manifesting it rn."

Well… here we are! While Thrash didn't end up being the voice of Rise or Nanako like she initially suggested – in fact, she now admits that at the time of that post, "I had never played Golden so I didn't know who Marie was" – she's clearly over the moon.

"Being a part of this game is a HUGE dream come true for me," she says in her announcement. "I'm still in awe and I'll be forever grateful.

"Persona 4 was my first introduction to the franchise and I've been a huge Persona fan since," she continues. "It's always been a bucket list series for me to book and working with the localization team brought me so much joy and is such an unforgettable experience.

"Every one of my cast mates is someone I look up to. To be able to be a part of this cast is surreal beyond belief."

Thrash acknowledges that many veteran fans will likely "miss the OG Marie's voice and I can't/won't blame you for that (she slays), the OGs are iconic!!" Even so, she's hopeful that folks will enjoy her take on the character.

"When I recorded Marie I had no idea what her previous voice was like, my version of her is just based on her design and her sides and learning with her as she learns about herself," she explains in a separate post. "I wanted to keep myself from doing an impression – but I wonder if me and Eden will have very similar performances. That'll be a fun comparison when I get to play both the og and Revival side by side."

Thrash promises that she gave the role her all, noting that "I cried once my last session finished," and her enthusiasm is contagious. We've not heard too much of her as Marie just yet, but I can't wait to hear her in action once Revival launches next February.

Persona 4 Yukiko actor passes the torch to her replacement as Atlus reveals Revival cast: "I know she will rock this role."

Seemingly out of nowhere, Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles has received a new update that brings New Game+ and more. Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in.

The news was revealed by the OG game creator, Yasumi Matsuno, on Twitter, who simply says, "To provide a more enjoyable gameplay experience, we have released a new update."

So, what are you getting? The headline feature is New Game+, which allows you to start a fresh save with unit levels, item data, and "more" carried over from a completed playthrough.

Aside from that, there are other neat quality-of-life features, like the Zodiac Compatibility function, which lets you view a unit's zodiac sign and compatibility on its status screen. It's all in the same, I suppose.

Aside from that, you're looking at adjustments that make it easier to remove all of a unit's equipment or check an enemy's status mid-battle. One neat change is that the unlock conditions for classes you haven't got yet are more clearly laid out, which may mean less time putting the game down and heading to Google – or whatever search platform you prefer.

You can read the patch notes in full over on Steam. All in all, though, a neat offering that's tempting me back for another run. It isn't immediately clear if New Game+ will scale enemies to your level or allow you to one-shot them like the all-powerful kupo that you are. Either way, it looks like I'll be returning to one of the best Final Fantasy games once more.

Final Fantasy Tactics beat Pokemon when the Mewgenics creators were trying to figure out how combat should work: "One has depth, and the other has the illusion of depth."

Atlus has unveiled several of the new actors who'll provide the English voices of Persona 4 Revival's iconic characters, and the cast seems to know exactly how big the shoes they're stepping into are. The new actors have taken to social media to celebrate the news and pay tribute to the OGs, and at least one of the original actors is happily passing the torch to her replacement.

Brianna Knickerbocker will take on the role of Yukiko Amagi in Persona 4 Revival. She describes this as an "absolute bucket list dream role" on Twitter, promising fans that "we all poured so much love into this story/game. You all are going to LOVE it."

Among the people already certain to love it? Amanda Winn Lee, who voiced Yukiko in the original game. "This is fantastic news," Lee exclaims in her own tweet. "Brianna is an absolute doll and I know she will rock this role and it's ridiculous laugh! Have fun, gorgeous!!"

The Persona 4 characters are uniquely beloved, even among the intense world of JRPG fandom, and for many players in the West these personalities are inseparable from the English voices who previously brought them to life.

"I know how much this series and specifically this title means to Persona fans, so I just want you all to know the immeasurable amount of care and consideration that went into the recording of this game," says Paul Castro Jr, who's taking over the role of Yosuke Hanamura. "I can only hope to capture some of what made Yosuke so special to so many people, while bringing my own voice to the role."

As for Ari Thrash, who's taking over Marie from Eden Riegel, she says "I know most of you will miss the OG Marie’s voice and I can’t/won’t blame you for that (she slays), the OGs are iconic!! But– for every new persona fan and old, I sincerely hope you’ll enjoy my interpretation of her."

Funnily enough, Thrash tweeted way back in 2024 that if Persona 4 were to ever get a full remake with a new cast "and they give the characters other VA’s I would love the chance to try out [for] Rise or Nanako. This is hardcore manifestation." That manifestation did end up working, in a way, though Marie wasn't on her radar at the time. "I had never played Golden so I didn’t know who Marie was," she explains.

"My cast and I stand on the shoulders of giants," according to Nazeeh Tarsha, who's taking over the role of the protagonist from Johnny Yong Bosch. "We all grew up on monumental and iconic performances and the amount of respect we have toward our predecessors cannot be overstated. Truthfully I know that this news comes to the chagrin of many and I would be lying if I said I haven't been nervous about this reveal. I want to make it clear that I see myself solely as an iteration. Johnny will forever be my and many people's GOAT and I can only hope to aspire to his greatness. I did my best to do right by both him as well as the fandom."

These roles have clearly meant a lot to the actors who've taken them on over the years. Chie actor Erin Fitzgerald, who herself replaced OG actor Tracey Rooney for Persona 4 Golden, said she was "deeply grieving" losing the role for Revival. Here's hoping the new cast can live up to the precedent set by those who've come before.

You can't make a list of the best JRPGs without at least one Persona game.

As Atlus shows off Persona 4 Revival's fully voiced Social Links, some fans are convinced that the devs are also teasing the addition of a male romance option thought to have been cut from the original JRPG.

The character in question is Yosuke Hanamura – protagonist Yu's first friend and party member, and one half of a non-canon pairing that's been popular for the best part of two decades now. In Persona 4 and its Golden re-release, Yosuke and Yu become very close over the course of the story and their strictly platonic Social Link, but some datamined cut voice lines previously led fans to believe that the devs may have planned for it to be possible for the two to have become more than just friends.

As showcased by Persona content creator Faz in the video below, the unused (but fully voiced) dialogue goes as follows: "I focused all my attention on the murders to avoid having to confront myself. So long as I don't try, nothing will change, even if we catch the killer. Right now, I'm just plain old me, and I want to do what I can with everything I got, with you guys. I never knew I had such heat inside, so I… I want to become someone who can proudly stand shoulder to shoulder with you. Don't go. I like you. … Don't make me say stuff like that."

While it's up to interpretation, the delivery of those lines definitely implies there could have been a romantic connotation, and many are hopeful that this could surface properly in the upcoming remake – something some believe Atlus is now teasing. Over the last couple of days, Atlus posted a selection of Social Link clips from Revival in a video shared across its social media accounts, leading the post with the caption: "'If someone had to see that, I'm glad it was you.'"

That's a line from one of the conversations with Yosuke – you can hear Revival's voiced version in the video itself – and while it might not mean much on its own, some are intrigued that Atlus is pushing that particular Social Link into the spotlight. "COME ON ATLUS THIS HAS TO MEAN SOUYO. RIGHT. RIGHT," one fan questions, referencing the pair's common ship name.

"They used Yosuke's line on the caption. They are hinting a Yosuke romance route," another speculates, while another asks, "WHY HIS QUOTE HMMMMM." Meanwhile, another simply declares: "ATLUS! MAKE YOSUKE ROMANCE ROUTE REAL AND MY LIFE IS YOURS!"

And, as fans have previously pointed out, if Atlus were to add a romance route for Yosuke, it could theoretically add new context to some dialogue that's aged very poorly in 4 and Golden. As one puts it, "Atlus has a once in a lifetime chance to completely recontextualize and VASTLY improve Yosuke's character by confirming his homophobia to be a projection of his insecurity and internalized homophobia."

It's dialogue like this that I've been wondering how Atlus will handle when it comes to the remake – I've personally been speculating that it'll likely just be cut entirely, even if a Yosuke romance route is added, but we'll have to wait and see.

As for our chances of a Yu and Yosuke romance, I don't think this specific Atlus post is the hint some want it to be, but given the old cut content, I'd like to think there's still a possibility. We don't yet know how Persona 6 is going to shake out in any capacity, but we do know it'll feature romance, and locking players down to purely heterosexual relationship options like we've seen in Personas 3 through 5 would certainly feel like a dated decision, despite the fact that it wouldn't be a first for the series (just look at Persona 2: Innocent Sin).

With that in mind, it'd also be a good opportunity before then with Revival to update one of the older games with something many felt it was missing, and, let's face it, after years of shipping, Atlus is definitely aware of the demand.

Persona 4 Golden Chie actor is "deeply grieving" being recast in Revival: "Thank you for sharing the journey with me."

The director of Final Fantasy Resonance says that turn-based RPGs are hitting the mainstream once more because that's the sort of combat the people making games these days grew up with, and you only need to look as far as Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 for proof.

Following Final Fantasy Resonance's big reveal at last week's Nintendo Direct, some of the game's developers are doing the media rounds to keep the excitement coming. Naturally, as the JRPG is quite the throwback, some of the conversations center on what's old becoming new again. One half of that is how an HD-2D art style puts a modern shine on a nostalgic art style, though the other half comes down to turn-based combat.

Speaking to IGN about the latter, Final Fantasy Resonance director Hiroto Furuya is asked about the resurgence of turn-based combat in RPGs. Atlus has long been holding the fort with the likes of Persona, sure, but Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 and Baldur's Gate 3 have swept enough awards between them to make turn-based feel trendier from a triple-A perspective than it has been in a hot minute.

For Furuya, the reason we're seeing more turn-based goodness isn't mere development trends, but because developers are putting a spin on what they grew up with.

"I feel like a lot of us creators who had grown up playing turn-based games are now creating games ourselves," he explains. "It feels like there's this general movement towards revisiting and potentially reassessing or reworking some of the experiences we personally had when we were younger."

He adds: "When we're talking about Clair Obscur, I believe they are creators who grew up playing JRPGs."

Furuya then says that this kind of relationship with your inspirations isn't unique to games, and is the sort of thing we're also seeing in anime, manga, and beyond.

"Creators are now revisiting past projects, remaking them, and reimagining them," he says. "That's also potentially a factor that contributes to this kind of resurgence that we're seeing right now."

While it's important to say upfront that turn-based combat never went anywhere – Persona continues to do just fine – some of the triple-A developers you see at places like Square Enix have gradually shifted to real-time under the idea of 'modernizing' what they offer in flagship titles to reach a broader audience.

Obviously, the recent success of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 and Baldur's Gate 3 shows you don't have to emulate the likes of The Witcher 3. It's also worth shouting out the many excellent indies like Deltarune and Sea of Stars, also finding success. Heck, Team Asano – the developers behind Octopath Traveler and most things you see that are HD-2D – are doing just that under Square Enix's very roof.

What Furuya touches on, though, is why I'm so intrigued by Final Fantasy Resonance. It's by no means a mainline, triple-A Final Fantasy, no, but it does imagine what a mainline Final Fantasy might look like if Square Enix stuck closer to its roots. I have little doubt we're years away from seeing what Final Fantasy 17 will look like, but as Furuya mentions, the ongoing resurgence of turn-based combat and fans of old-school JRPGs now creating games paint an interesting picture of where things might go. Let a man dream.

"Too good to become unplayable": Final Fantasy Resonance exists because a JRPG veteran was "frustrated" players ignored their game the first time.

Persona is one of the most iconic RPG franchises for a reason. Since Atlus released the first game in the series, Revelations: Persona in 1996, the series has been a critical darling and fan-favorite for years. We've had countless spinoffs and remakes over the years, but there have only been six main entries in the Persona series, with the last, the phenomenal Persona 5, releasing back in 2016. Ten years later, we’ve finally got a teaser trailer for Persona 6. It’s extremely dark – so much so that it looks like Persona is finally ready to take a surprising leap into horror. And I, for one, couldn’t be happier.

The teaser gives virtually nothing away, but it’s got a seriously sinister energy. There’s a green tint over the proceedings, as we're taken to a shadowy graveyard. Ominous music builds as eerie discordant sounds flood our ears. The camera moves slowly, lurking in menace towards a large, ornate gravestone in the middle of the cemetery. The shadow of a hand is seen outstretched towards it. Before the hand can make contact with the grave, the teaser cuts to a rapid montage of footage and cutouts of body parts that wouldn’t feel out of place in the Resident Evil franchise. Then, in bright, toxic green, “P6” flashes on the screen before the title “Persona 6” appears below. This may not be the Persona we've come to expect.

Reach out to the truth

The teaser's description makes vague but unsurprising promises: Persona 6 is a “new standalone story blending heartfelt daily life and new characters with pulse-pounding, supernatural adventure. Whether it's your first Persona game or you’ve been here since the beginning, this one's for you." “Heartfelt” is the only word that suggests this might not be horror, but plenty of great horror has heart. And “pulse-pounding” certainly suggests things are gonna get intense. I don’t know a genre more pulse-pounding and nerve-shredding than horror.

Now, I know what you’re thinking: Persona has never done horror before. It's had plenty of spinoffs, including two fighting games, Persona 4 Arena and Persona 4 Arena Ultimax as well as three rhythm games, Dancing All Night, Dancing in Moonlight, and Dancing in Starlight. But no horror. But Atlus’ fascination with taking these characters into different genres is all the evidence I need to know it's capable of diving into the deep end of horror.

For those quick to say that Persona would never take the jump into horror, there’s something important to address here: Persona has always been a degree or two away from being a true horror game. Throughout the main series, you battle with twisted manifestations of your own psyche called shadows at night. Persona 3, arguably the darkest game of the series, is about coming to terms with the inevitability of death. Every Persona game has enemies that look like they’ve come straight out of Silent Hill, with plenty of murder to boot.

The farthest Persona has strayed from horror was Persona 5, with its infectious upbeat jazz soundtrack, but even that game dealt with heavy topics. Atlus has steadily pushed the boundaries with what we can expect from turn-based RPGs, and I seriously doubt Persona 6 would be an exception to that rule. Horror is precisely what Persona needs to take things to new heights. With a few tweaks, the dungeons we’ve come to know and love could become dense, relentless nightmares, while the daytimes at school could be used to grapple with the psychological impact of the horrors that await at night.

Now, Atlus is no stranger to delivering a creepy teaser trailer for a new Persona game. For Persona 5, the all-red trailer showcased five chairs with shackles on them. On screen text reads “You are a slave. Want emancipation?” before revealing the title Persona 5. It was undeniably sinister. Yet when you compare the two, the Persona 5 teaser comes off looking like an episode of Peppa Pig. If the Persona 5 teaser promised the chance for freedom, the Persona 6 teaser offers a full descent into darkness. And I can only hope Persona 6 delivers on this promise of a full-blown horror game. It’s been a long time coming.

With Atlus keeping quiet on Persona 6, we've ranked the best Persona games you can actually play

Final Fantasy 7 Revelation game director Naoki Hamaguchi wants to encourage challenge seekers to brave the JRPG's endgame content rather than tackle something like a New Game+ with added difficulty.

Following the reveal of part three of the Final Fantasy 7 Remake trilogy as part of Summer Game Fest, Hamaguchi has been doing the media rounds to drum up some excitement while trying not to give too much away.

As part of that, we've got some idea what Final Fantasy 7 Revelation's endgame might look like. Talking to Italian outlet Everyeye.it, Hamaguchi reveals that you will face some of the JRPG's infamous Weapons during the game.

Much like the original JRPG, though, there will be a few more to face as optional encounters unrelated to the main story, and they'll be among the hardest fights you can subject yourself to in the upcoming game.

"I think one of the differences between Revelation and Remake/Rebirth is that the first two were designed to encourage players to replay the entire adventure on hard mode after completing it," Hamaguchi says (thanks, WCCFTech). "In Revelation, it will be different. There will be several endgame contents here, unlike Remake and Rebirth."

If you need a quick refresher of the OG JRPG, narratively speaking, Weapons are produced and unleashed when the Planet senses a threat to its existence – Sephiroth, basically.

You see plenty of them in the main story, but there are two optional superbosses if you crave the punishment – Ruby and Emerald Weapon. They appear on the open-world map when certain criteria have been met, and are typically best faced when you have really maxed your characters out.

Considering how Square Enix has approached the Remake series so far, I can't see things being too different here. There will likely be more layers, sure, but the bones of the fights will likely stay the same.

What I wouldn't read this as, however, is any confirmation that Final Fantasy 7 Revelation won't include New Game+. Rather, it sounds like Hamaguchi and the game want to give challenger seekers a way to challenge themselves that doesn't mean restarting the game.

Final Fantasy 7 Revelation lead thinks a potential Final Fantasy 6 remake would "be in better hands if it went to another creator in Square Enix."

Final Fantasy Resonance makes a striking impression. While Square Enix, and specifically the internal division Team Asano, have been making some excellently modernized takes on retro-styled RPGs for some time across the likes of Octopath Traveler and Dragon Quest, the publisher's premier series, Final Fantasy, has always been left out. Until now. That immediately puts a whole lot of weight behind Final Fantasy Resonance as a project, and as a huge fan of the classics – Final Fantasy 4 'til I die – it was an electric reveal at the recent Nintendo Direct.

That is, until the trailer revealed it'd play host to a litany of returning characters from previous Final Fantasy games, which sounds an awful lot like the grindy, gacha-hungry Final Fantasy Brave Exvius. That makes sense because, well, it is. Looking more closely, Final Fantasy Resonance adapts that mobile game's first story arc. Ah. Generally, I'm happy for mobile games to shed their on-the-go, often-money-hungry trappings, but it's deflating that the RPG series' first true foray into the HD-2D treatment, from Team Asano no less, has to work within the confines of Brave Exvius rather than being an original undertaking.

Swipe left, or right?

As a series fan, I've put my fair share of time into some of the franchise's many mobile games – in particular Final Fantasy Brave Exvius, Final Fantasy 7 Ever Crisis, and the long-defunct Mobius Final Fantasy. I've never come out of the end feeling particularly good about myself, suffering through long, drawn out storylines with staccato, weightless gameplay, juggling the pros and cons of a multitude of live service, lootbox-esque, gacha spins. Yes, I did have Ariana Grande in my party. No, I'm not proud of it.

OK, fair complaints. We've all slipped into live service stupor at one time or another. At any moment, I'm primed to slip back into something like Honkai Star Rail. But then, surely Final Fantasy Resonance, which is "far from just a direct port" and has "been refined and extensively rebuilt as a full-fledged console-quality RPG experience" should be exactly what I want to fix my problems with Brave Exvius, right? On paper, that's correct – I did spend a lot of time playing Brave Exvius wishing it would just let me get on with the story, and that it could have properly designed RPG battles that don't just lean on power scaling and flashy pixel effects.

The problem is that I still feel burned by the experience all this time later. And it's compounded across the other mobile games too. I feel a bit of a sting when I remember all the time I put into Mobius Final Fantasy is lost. When I remember that an interesting dive into the Final Fantasy 7 backstory is locked behind dull-as-a-badly-kept-Buster-Sword battles in Ever Crisis. My respect for a project that aims to salvage and reimagine Brave Exvius butts with my desire to simply see a brand new retro-styled Final Fantasy, and the bad memories have me wondering about the capacity Brave Exvius has to delight given how bogged down in being a mobile game I remember it being.

Don't get me wrong, I really like Final Fantasy's capacity to change and evolve as the RPG series has become more modern. But, as someone who also loves to dip back into old school RPGs to grind levels, weep against unfair bosses, and explore vast worlds that would simply be impractical to develop to a modern fidelity – there's something truly special about the first six Final Fantasy games. The idea of taking modern design principles back into that framework is tantalizing (and I'd say the same if they made one in PS1 style too). I worry Final Fantasy Resonance's big first swing into FF doing something legacy facing that isn't a simple spin-off could be wasted on adapting Brave Exvius.

Yes, I am a bit grumpy. My time with Square Enix's mobile games have given me reason to be. Except… There is one glimmer of hope left, and it comes from another RPG series: Octopath Traveler 0. Released just last year, this is another HD-2D RPG that Team Asono worked on, and it's phenomenal. I've still not finished it, but I've been treasuring melting into its world when I get the time, and I can see why we called it "the strongest entry in this retro-styled JRPG series yet" in our Octopath Traveler 0 review.

Like Final Fantasy Resonance, it's also an adaptation of a mobile game – Octopath Traveler: Champions of the Continent. That mobile game got a middling reception. I didn't even know it existed until the redo was announced. While I'd still prefer a fresh take on a retro-styte Final Fantasy, maybe a part of me is just too close to Brave Exvius to feel completely at ease with the idea of Final Fantasy Resonance until I see more. But, thanks to Octopath Traveler 0, I'm willing to give it a chance – maybe it'll resonate with me after all.

Check out our best Final Fantasy games list for more adventures while you wait!

Remaking a game as iconic and beloved as Final Fantasy 7 was quite the undertaking - Square Enix even had to split the mammoth game into three parts to get it done - so it doesn't surprise me to hear Final Fantasy 7 Revelation lead Naoki Hamaguchi pass on bringing back another classic game in the franchise.

The Final Fantasy 7 Remake trilogy is quickly approaching its conclusion with the finale coming sometime in Spring 2027, so what comes next for Hamaguchi and his team is apparently front of mind for many players.

"I do see a lot of fans and community asking me to take on the helm for a FF6 remake," Hamaguchi says of a hypothetical Final Fantasy 6 retelling, in an interview with Game Informer - with Square Enix PR apparently emphasizing the hypothetical part. "So, I'm seeing a lot of that floating online, but, you know, a Final Fantasy 6 Remake or any other remake, it could be me, or it could be someone else. Personally, I think that it might be in better hands if it went to another creator in Square Enix."

As Game Informer notes, the director also reiterated the point to Bloomberg: "It’s not going to be a remake!"

While the Final Fantasy 7 Remake trilogy has come out pretty quickly relative to other AAA projects, it's still an endeavour that's taken Hamaguchi more than a decade to realize and, thus, I don't begrudge him for wanting to do something totally new. Not to mention, Final Fantasy 6's huge cast and ever-changing overworld would likely make it an even more ambitious venture than FF7.

"Right in this moment, I'm fully focused on completing FF7 Revelation and ensuring we're delivering the FF7 Remake series in a perfect state, so that's where I'm right now," he adds.

Whether his next game is a remake or not, a Final Fantasy or otherwise, Hamaguchi seemed pretty confident he'd still be making a JRPG.

Final Fantasy 7 Revelation devs were "able to remain true" to the original 1997 JRPG, lead says, even if the story order "might be shifted up a bit"

After pumping out two incredible games in the subgenre with a third on the way, Final Fantasy 7 Revelation game director Naoki Hamaguchi thinks his next project will more than likely be another JRPG. Whether that ends up being a new Final Fantasy game or a totally different franchise is still up in the air, though.

Naoki Hamaguchi has served as the director on the entire Final Fantasy 7 Remake trilogy, which finally comes to a close and concludes a bonkers retelling of the 1997 classic in Final Fantasy 7 Revelation, coming next year. But what happens after? Hamaguchi's toyed with the idea of DLC, though surely he must move on from Cloud and Tifa eventually...

"In terms of what I personally want to do, obviously, I think my next creative work is also going to be a JRPG," he tells Game Informer when asked about what comes next. "When you look at all the other titles that we have released at Square Enix, not just the FF7 Remake series, I think Square Enix, as a brand, as a company, is more than capable of delivering this grand-scale RPG that could resonate to gamers across the world."

Square Enix built its foundations on massive RPGs and JRPGs. Look no further than some of this past month's biggest reveals from FF7 Revelation to Kingdom Hearts 4 and Dragon Quest 12 - so, it's no surprise that Hamaguchi wants to remain working in a genre he's already deeply embedded in.

"Fans might have a lot of different expectations, but for me personally, I do want to take on this new challenge with another RPG title after this, whether it be Final Fantasy or a different IP," he adds. "Again, we don't know. But personally, if it's not Final Fantasy, that's also exciting, because that could be a challenge for me. So, whatever it is, I hope fans look forward to it."

By the sounds of it, Hamaguchi's not too keen on taking on yet another remake project. But Final Fantasy is such a flexible series, anything's possible.

Final Fantasy 7 Revelation director says streamers have caused "a bit of a crisis" for RPGs, and it's up to devs to make sure fans actually want to play a game themselves

One of the biggest highlights of this year's Summer Game Fest was none other than the reveal of Final Fantasy 7 Revelation, the third part of the JRPG remake from Square Enix – a part that'll apparently stay as true "as possible" to its 1997 predecessor.

Or, at least, it sounds that way. Director Naoki Hamaguchi tells tells VGC as much in a recent interview, confirming that Square Enix is pressing on with its philosophy to live up to the PlayStation original's memory – even if the developers themselves feel as though axing a certain cutscene or two might work as they're "less important." After all, they might not be interpreted as less important by the fans… and they're who matter to the devs.

"Even for me personally, I might consider some things as less important, but fans might not think that way. So the goal is to keep as much as possible from the original," as Hamaguchi says – but that doesn't mean Square Enix isn't shaking things up at all.

Much like it did with Remake and Rebirth, the studio is altering some of the story timeline so that the order better fits the new trilogy rather than the old PlayStation game.

"That being said," Hamaguchi explains, "there might be some changes that we apply, an example being the sequence of the story beats." He cites the Rocket Town story as an example here, stating that it should've been a sequence in Rebirth instead of Revelation… had the devs chosen to stick to the original's timeline.

Instead, in the remake, it doesn't – or, perhaps more accurately, won't – happen until "the second half of Revelation."

The lead concludes: "We did make some adjustments in terms of the sequence, and the order of how one of these story beats would happen in the game, but again, the general idea is not to make any changes or omit anything. The orders might be shifted up a bit, but in that sense, I think we were able to keep everything as close as we can, so I think the team and I did a pretty good job at that."

That's reassuring to hear. Seeing as Hamaguchi himself is "pretty confident that we were able to remain true to the original," I have a feeling we might see many of the pieces missing from the first two halves of the remake… but I suppose we won't know until 2027.

Searching for something else to wishlist? Here are the best new games coming this year and beyond to look forward to.

A new nationwide survey in Japanese magazine Famitsu shows that Final Fantasy 7 is still as popular as ever almost 30 years later.

Famitsu – one of Japan's biggest gaming publications – published the results of a poll of the nation's favorite video game characters (via Genki_JPN on Twitter). From the responses of 5,400 participants, unsurprisingly topping the poll is Mario, gaming's number one guy, and second place goes to Cloud Strife from Final Fantasy 7, which also isn't hugely surprising given the popularity of the game to this very day, as well as its beloved remake trilogy currently ongoing.

However, Final Fantasy 7 fans came out in full force, as in third place isn't Sonic, Pikachu, Lara Croft, or any of the other faces of massive franchises – it's Tifa Lockhart from Final Fantasy 7. Tifa is already having a great month with the announcement of Final Fantasy 7 Revelation, but alongside that, Capcom announced she'll be joining Street Fighter 6 as a DLC fighter for the game's fourth season, after about a decade of Tekken fans begging for her to be added to the series.

The rest of the list isn't exactly full of many shockers, mind you. Kirby comes in fourth, with Link, Leon Kennedy, and Pikachu following. And, with the poll taking place in Japan, you know Dragon Quest has to feature in some form, so as funny as it is, it's not exactly a shock that the Slime would be the most popular character in the series as opposed to any of its protagonists.

Rounding out the top 10 are Sega's first entries on the list, Kazuma Kiryu from the Like a Dragon series and Joker from Persona 5.

At the very least, that should tell you who is winning the eternal Tifa vs Aerith shipping war among Final Fantasy 7 fans…

Final Fantasy 7 Revelation won't pump the brakes on mini-games, including the original's Tifa slap fight.

This year's big Final Fantasy release comes in the form of Final Fantasy Resonance, a complete, HD-2D reimagining of the 2019 mobile game Brave Exvius. Where the original had you select your battles through menus and dailies, for what's known as symbol fights, Resonance goes back to random encounters with more exploration, because the devs believe this is in line with the property's roots.

"Symbol encounters allow players to engage in battle whenever they want," Keisuke Nakashima, producer on Final Fantasy Resonance, tells tells Automaton. "In that sense, symbol encounters are there to accommodate the players' freedom of playstyle. On the other hand, they could also end up resulting in less battles that are truly memorable."

He agrees that RNG can make battles feel tedious, but the uncertainty makes survival more rewarding. "I do think that random encounters can feel like a hassle at times, but they also allow you to make memories," he explains, "like remembering the time you struggled against a really tough enemy or felt the joy of getting lucky with battle rewards. I think those are the kind of moments that actually stick with you."

He's got a point. Some of my most striking memories from playing RPGs involve the sudden terror of being faced with what's apparently a normal adversary in whatever area I've stumbled into. The first time I faced a Grand Dragon in Final Fantasy 9 is one such example. Nakashima mentions the team's tinkering with how the encounters work, to minimize annoyances.

"We've made sure that encounter rates for enemies are lower in dungeons that feature a lot of puzzles," he says. "This is because we concluded that having fewer mob battles while solving puzzles allows for a less frustrating gaming experience."

Resonance director Hiroto Furuya adds that this is all part of their "pursuit of the classic Final Fantasy experience," since this is the first purely turn-based new RPG from the franchise in a number of years. Newer entries are more action RPGs, and in the advent of the remasters of the first six mainline games, there's a desire for this kind of throwback.

"In Final Fantasy 13, all of your HP recovers after each battle. In that sense, I believe FF1 was designed so that each individual battle is entertaining," Furuya tells Automaton. "In contrast, Final Fantasy Resonance tasks you with the problem of how to conquer each dungeon. We came up with an experience where you will have to decide how to allocate MP and other resources, or make sure there are recovery points nearby as you progress through the dungeon."

This, he believes, fits better with random fights. We don't have long to wait to see how it all sits together, as Final Fantasy Resonance arrives on October 22, 2026.

Potential Final Fantasy 7 Revelation DLC could focus on spin-offs like Dirge of Cerberus or Advent Children, director hints, as long as fans want it.

One of the lead developers on Final Fantasy Resonance says we're getting the throwback JRPG because the now-decreased mobile game it's based on is "too good to become unplayable."

Following Final Fantasy Resonance's big reveal, producer Keisuke Nakashima has been doing the media rounds to share more details about the upcoming JRPG. What I've found most interesting is how it's all come about.

Nakashima explains that the game proposal was first shared at the end of 2020, and the pitch was quite simple. Final Fantasy Brave Exvius – a game he previously worked on – wasn't getting the respect it deserved.

"There are a couple of reasons why I decided to create Final Fantasy Resonance," he tells Automaton. "I've previously worked on FFBE as an assistant producer, and I wanted to show all the things that make the game so great to an even wider audience.

"FFBE is packed with entertaining features from each of the numbered entries in the main Final Fantasy series. Airships and Chocobos appear, and there are secret treasure chests lying in the hidden parts of dungeons – it's filled with stuff that screams 'Final Fantasy.'

"I thought it would be a shame for such a wonderful game to become unplayable via mobile, and that's one of the reasons I decided to create Final Fantasy Resonance for consoles."

What's interesting to me is that his desire has only become more relevant with time. It was just last year that Square Enix ended service for Final Fantasy Brave Exvius, so it's no longer just the case that you only play it on mobile – you can't play it at all.

Regardless, people's hesitancy to try Final Fantasy Brave Exvius has clearly stuck with Nakashima to this day.

"Back when we initially released FFBE, we got a lot of feedback from users saying that they want to play the game as a console title," he says. "Of course, we were confident about expanding FFBE as a mobile app.

"However, there were a lot of people who told us that they wouldn't play the game simply because it wasn't available on console. I was so frustrated about it. Or maybe I should say, I felt like it was such a shame that they wouldn't give it a try. It's such a fun game, but they didn't even want to have a go at it just because it was a mobile app."

While things have, perhaps, not played out as Nakashima might have expected, it appears he's going to get his wish. Final Fantasy Resonance is due to release later this year, and for many, it will show off what FF Brave Exvius no longer can.

To be fair, it makes for an alluring package. Fans have been crying out for an old-school, turn-based JRPG in the Final Fantasy series that looks more like Octopath Traveler than the current trends of AAA RPGs. It makes for a fitting bonus, though, that Final Fantasy Resonance might also preserve an experience that others can no longer enjoy.

In a big win for JRPG sickos, Square Enix confirms Final Fantasy Resonance is being made by the team behind Octopath Traveler and more, if the HD-2D art style didn't already give it away.