Recent reviews by platomaker

So, let me start by saying I skipped the other two re-releases because I played the 3DS versions. I had originally expected this to be of the same quality of the 3DS version- it is not, a fully faithful re-release of the DS version.

With that out of the way, I won't hold that against this game for this review. How the game functions, it's still great. Beyond the obvious graphical upgrades that would have been amazing, honestly only the dungeon crawling would need the updates. The town sections could have remained unchanged even from the DS resolutions. The game play and the music are what you're playing this for, and it does that very well.

It is a very challenging game where every encounter requires you to use your party's talents. That or just turn on the fail-safe mode to enjoy the story.

-The good: music and "game" aspects
-The bad: we've seen examples of them doing things better but again, can't knock them for this release. It won't matter as much to newer players anyway.

-The ugly: The drawing maps on a touchscreen to help navigate the maze/dungeon is a unique experience you will not find on any other modern game. Doesn't translate so well on a computer but would be amazing for those with dual screen setups. The dual screens are a significant part of this game, I'm unsure if any mods exist that could facilitate this experience.

Updated review:

Initially the recommended specs were lower, as of October 2025 they read as GPU 16 GB required for minimum specs. There's a lot new in this game and a lot they get right. So as a piece of software, this is an okay game that pushes the boundaries of player experiences- even if most won't notice. There is a lot of stuff going on that the player can, and probably won't, interact with on each play session. Credit where credit is due.

With that said, as a player of the franchise, does this meet the hype? The expectations that fans were clamouring for? The story is what most non-players cite as a barrier, which this game delivers on. If it was to bring in new players then this game met that expectation. Great, they company has new fans. Much like what was introduced in Rise, the conveniences, it carries forward in this game where you are now delivered to each fight. So the aspects outside of combat are tuned down and there's no real reason to ask another player for anything or communicate. But to bring home the point, I'll say it succinctly:

This started as a console game and slowly became more mobile device oriented. The environments they give are vibrant but you don't get to explore it without "wasting time". Unless you're soloing and specifically choose not to use the mount- which then feels like a different game. Why is this important? In World (two or three games ago) you were rewarded for going off the beaten path to find rare materials of that area. In Wilds, you may get kicked for goofing off or not constantly putting DPS.

This isn't a bad game, and honestly I think mobile games being so dominant is what helped create this- not to say phones games are directly the reason but that this game feels like certain parts of it's creation were outsourced to companies making apps instead of programs. Different expectations.

This game was remade twice and every version is better than the last. I have not improved at all over the last decade but its still fun.

I played the 3DS version and was expecting those graphics and better music. I might try this game again the future, or maybe after mods but as it is now- I just cannot recommend this title anywhere near full or half price.

1.8 hours in, had to restart three times. This is definitely not optimized for the steam deck but it appears that the issues are mostly with the animated cutscenes and immediately after. Its a slow-paced game, no real action yet but had to stop and load past certain segments of the game on my PC. For most people this won't be an issue but it just seems like there was more of a focus for the theatrics than the gameplay.

I'd recommend the game, the quality does show but if you were expecting to play it on the steam deck then just stick to your PC or console instead.

Some minor nitpicks but the game play is alright. If I could improve this game in anyway it'd be being more lenient in selecting units: as it stands now you need to be more precise when clicking an individual unit and there are times when you'll think a task is assigned when it really isn't due to this issue (think quick walling under pressure and simply missing the unit by a hair).

Overall the game is good even as is. Not a lot of options to talk to opponents, not so much a problem or priority to fix out of the gate with this game's launch. The player base seems more serious than AOE2 for it.

It won't even load. No information on what's really wrong either. Paid ten dollars for it and I keep hearing the online doesn't function either. I can't recommend this game on this platform no matter how "good" the game may become, try it on other platforms and offline to get the most out of it.

The best action multiplayer pseudo RPG money can buy with an interest curve that comes in waves.

There's only one early chapter that acts as a gatekeeper to keep the game from becoming a visual novel, as in, the answer to the puzzle is so arbitrary you wouldn't know to look for it unless you came across it by chance or watched a guide. The rest of the game is pretty "easy" but that's not the point. This is a really good puzzle with great reward that definitely merits it's price point.

If you want a puzzle game and this is on sale, use your credit card to solve that problem. This is definitely worth it.

Cons: replay value depends on if you want to share this experience with anyone.

It simply doesn't work, I am stuck at the main menu- the cursor keeps pulling down regardless of input. So I thought using a controller would solve the problem but steam link states this game relies heavily on mouse and keyboard. How could such an experience make me hate something I used to love so much. This is a remake of a game that didn't use keyboard controls and now relying heavily on them makes navigating the system a chore.

I bought this game when it first came out and it had these same issues. Returned the game and rebought it on winter sale of the same year to find NOTHING was FIXED.

Perhaps there's a file I'm missing? Or some configuration that's needs tweaking?

In short: do not buy unless you're ready to invest time to immediately start troubleshooting. Forum fantasy 9 more like it.