Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles PAX West Impression

All in all, it feels like a game I would love to play for the story, even though I am inherently bad at the isometric 3D strategy combat style.

Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles is an expanded remaster of the original RPG Final Fantasy Tactics. Following the same plot as the original, Ivalice is recovering after the loss of the fifty-year war with Ordallia. The Black Lion and White Lion are vying for the throne of Ivalice, known as the War of the Lions, which also pits nobles and commoners against each other. We follow the two main characters, Ramza, a noble, and Delita, his childhood best friend, who is a commoner through this tumultuous age.

The demo starts off with a new, beautiful cutscene of the knights riding their chocobos. I am new to Final Fantasy Tactics, but not a stranger. I always knew of it, but never played it. I was in awe watching the opening cutscene and loved the canvas-looking art style, not to mention the music. The opening cutscene ends with what looks like a princess praying by the window of a castle. This remaster still gives the option to play classic Final Fantasy Tactics, which I’ve not heard of in other remakes. They are different save files, so you can play both if you want.

The next menu has you choosing which mode of game you would like to play, with a newly added “Squire” option for newer players. It’s for easier battles so the player can focus on the story. The “Knight” selection is like medium, equally balanced. Then there’s “Tactician,” which is more of a challenge, with more demanding battles. The cool thing is that this does not affect the story and can be changed later, in case you decide one is too easy or hard. Then I got to pick a birthday corresponding to a zodiac sign. If you never played the original, the demo in the fully voice acted remaster gives a quick rundown of what happened to Ivalice and where our heroes are today.

The combat sees Ramza and his team using a turn-based system in the isometric 3D view. Navigating the square tiles for each player shows where they can move for that turn. I found this a little clunky, as in my previous experiences with this combat style, the game would not allow me to move beyond the highlighted maneuverable squares. Maybe it’s just my brain, but it was very confusing to figure out how to move to the square I wanted. The battle also seemed to go by very quickly, and whilst there was a pause button that I saw later, I found myself saying, “Wait. Wait, hold on. What happened?”

All in all, it feels like a game I would love to play for the story, even though I am inherently bad at the isometric 3D strategy combat style. I love the added “Squire” setting for us newcomers, which is a more enticing way to expand to a new player base. Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles comes out September 30, 2025, on PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch 2, and Xbox Series X|S.