Remake of the original Final Fantasy hits Google Play for $6.99, sadly it’s an iOS port

The original Final Fantasy was published in December 1987 on the NES, at a time when it’s lead creator, Square’s Hironobu Sakaguchi, was about to give up on the game industry. It was success or bust. Fortunately, the title was a hit and went on to spawn an entire media franchise over the years, that currently includes 14 main titles and countless ports, spinoffs, anime series, and feature films.
Yesterday, Square Enix has quietly launched the legendary Final Fantasy to Android devices. The game follows Final Fantasy III, which made quite a splash a few weeks ago, when it was launched on Google Play for a hefty $15.99.  The original Final Fantasy for Android is just $6.99, but I am sure that fans of the series will be more than happy to pay to emerge themselves once more in the FF universe.
Final Fantasy for Android is a remake of the 1987 game, rather than a straight port, meaning that it features revamped graphics instead of the 8-bit sprites of the original title. But the story and the gameplay remain unchanged, so, if you ever played the original FF, you are in for some fond recollections.
Rather than developing the game from scratch, Square Enix ported the iOS version to Android, and sadly this mars the user experience. This is because the developer did not adapt the game to the screen formats of popular Android devices (usually 16:9) and kept the 4:3 format of the iPhone, with some fugly black borders around. It’s really a waste of potential, and lazy on Square Enix’ side.
Moreover, many reviewers report that the game frequently lags, which is another indication that Square Enix did not take the time to properly optimize the game for Android. Perhaps that explains the lower price of the game, compared to FF3 for Android.
Check out this review, courtesy of Pixel-Freak.com:

All gripes aside, it’s still good to see that 25-year old games still have life in them, in the age when hit series see new installments every six months or so. Head over to Google Play to check out Final Fantasy for Android and let us know your opinion.


Source:AndroidAuthority