The global version of War of the Visions: Final Fantasy Brave Exvius just dropped for iOS and Android. The game is a streamlined, user-friendly version that draws inspiration from the Final Fantasy Tactics series. Rather than the turn-based approach of the traditional Final Fantasy games, including the mobile-only Brave Exvius, War of the Visions utilizes a tactical grid, similar to a chessboard, where units can move around the map to do battle rather than be confined to a singular location.

War of the Visions is a nice appetizer and all, but the world desperately needs a true, next-gen sequel to Final Fantasy Tactics. There's no better time than now.

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The History of Final Fantasy Tactics

The first Tactics game came out in 1997 on PlayStation 1 to rave reviews, eventually going from cult classic to fan favorite. But outside of the PSP remake Final Fantasy Tactics: The War of the Lions, the Game Boy Advance spin-off Final Fantasy Tactics Advance and its Nintendo DS sequel, Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift, Final Fantasy Tactics has remained regretfully dormant. Considering there have been a whopping fifteen Final Fantasy main series games, the lack of Tactics games seems like a missed opportunity for Square Enix, a company well-known for capitalizing on popular franchises.

It's not like Square Enix hasn't revisited Ivalice, the land where Tactics' story takes place. Final Fantasy XII is set in Ivalice and Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn uses Ivalice as a setting for the Stormblood expansion, where players can meet Tactics' main character Ramza, and the game's Viera race is playable in the Shadowbringers expansion. With so much Ivalice going around, it's only natural for a new Tactics game to be released.

For now, though, fans will find solace in the knowledge that War of the Visions itself is honestly pretty fun. Gameplay is very much streamlined and includes some excellent quality-of-life additions, such as the ability to target only enemy units with spells that have large areas of effect rather than hitting friendly units with splash damage. There's also an Auto mode, where your team can do all the work while you reap the rewards of completing a tedious, easy-to-complete stage.

The game does include a mechanic which may open the door for collaborations with future Final Fantasy entries. In War of the Visions, units are randomly "summoned" using in-game currency rather than unlocked through traditional means. While this system certainly has its downfalls, especially when real-world currency comes into play, it presents an opportunity for appearances from other Final Fantasy characters (or from other franchises, for that matter).

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Switch Up Final Fantasy

The Nintendo Switch would serve as a perfect home for a new Final Fantasy Tactics entry. All but one of the Tactics games were released on handheld systems, including two on Nintendo systems. The system's ability to transition from home console to portable gaming device would be perfect for a game with long-spanning fights like Tactics, where games can pick up and put down the game as needed. Nintendo could easily port the Tactics Advance games to the console as a way to drum up excitement.

However, Nintendo does own the Fire Emblem series, an increasingly popular tactical JRPG, which may make Nintendo sheepish about introducing a beloved series like this to compete with a first-party product directly. It also may bring on more direct competition from Sony. After all, the most recent Final Fantasy games have all been released on Sony systems, along with Final Fantasy VII Remake. But Final Fantasy I-VI were all released on Nintendo systems, so is it really that far-fetched to see the series return to its original home?

It's been long enough. Final Fantasy Tactics deserves a real, next-gen sequel or, at the very least, a remake. Newer gamers deserve to play this classic the way it was meant to be enjoyed - not a watered-down mobile game. If early download numbers on War of the Visions are any indication, there's a demand for tactics-based RPGs, so why not resurrect the original king of all tactical RPGs?

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