World of Final Fantasy Maxima (Nintendo Switch) Review

Twin brother and sister Lann and Reynn awake in a strange world out of time, and they're guided by the god of this world into a grand adventure. They have a type of amnesia, and are tasked with heading from their chronologically frozen sanctuary into the world of Grymoire to collect "Mirages;" chibi-fied versions of hundreds of Final Fantasy creatures. In doing so, their memories begin to return and they find they are beings of prophecy, sent to either save the world or destroy it, depending on which version of the prophecy people are reading. To prove themselves as saviours, they have to collect an army and save the world; a world that is slowly, but surely being brought under the iron rule of the Kingdom of Bahamut, with its forces sinking its chains quite literally into every land in the world.

World of Final Fantasy Maxima takes a little inspiration from another huge gaming franchise: Pokémon. Just like it, players are going to want to catch them all. There are over 240 with this new addition, and they're made up of familiar faces from the series history. Variations of chocobos, ahriman, tonberries, iron giants, behemoths, malboro - all of these enemies can be collected, levelled up and stacked atop each other. Stacked? Yup, stacked. This uses the Disgaea style method of piling characters up atop each other.

The world of Grymoire is populated by two races. Jiants and Lilikin. Lilikin are the cute little chibi characters that are seen all over the game, while Jiants are normal sized and proportioned (though Lilikin would likely find such terminology offensive!). Luckily Lann and Reynn can freely switch between the two forms, giving them both the opportunity to form two different stacks. As a Jiant they take up the 'Large' slot and as a Lilikin they take up the 'Medium' one. There are also tiny, or baby versions of Lilikin to take up the small stack. A Lilikin Lann sitting in the palm of a huge King Tonberry with chocobo chick on his head, beside a Jiant Reynn with a Thunder Behemoth and topped off with a cactuar. Making stacks can be fun and there is a huge amount of customisation in it.

Every Mirage has its own 'Mirage Board;' something like the Sphere Grid from Final Fantasy X that is filled with stats and ability nodes, which can be unlocked with SP as the Mirages gain XP. Also hidden away on boards are nodes which unlock other Mirage Boards, unlocking new transformations. Collecting a chocobo chick is one of the first Mirage collections in game, but after investing enough XP in it, it can become a mechachobo with all new abilities. Levelling Mirages becomes addictive, storing up points to unlock new forms with different abilities. Not to mention special gems can be unlocked on the boards, which when equipped give Lann and Reynn abilities, such as Libra, Fira, Dispel, and all the other familiar Final Fantasy magic spells. Building the stacks is fun and doing so can give a big advantage in battles, using elemental resistances or debuffs to overcome enemies, though it's rarely needed. The difficulty is a little too easy across the board.

There's a new word tacked onto the end of the title, as remasters often are wont to do. Complete editions, ultimate editions, master editions. This Maxima edition is not unique to the Switch and Xbox One, though, with the PS4 version receiving a purchasable upgrade DLC for £12.99. Though, strangely, there are a few things missing from the upgrade… But what does Maxima actually bring? A lot - with features running the gambit from little enhancements to the core gameplay, to big new mechanics.

The amount of Mirages that can be carried is increased from 10 to 12, which is useful since there are new Mirages to capture. The Mirages aren't the only new enemies to take on either, as with most updates like this, there are some new big boss fights, these offering more of a challenge than anything in the original. These can be found in some new Ex Dungeons too. There's a new fishing mini-game with Prince Noctis. Most excitingly, there is a new system called "Champion Jewels" which can be used to transform the main characters into famous figures from the series long history. From the original Warrior of Light to Terra, from Cloud and Tifa, to Tidus and Yuna. Each of these characters all coming not just as a change of avatar and a cosmetic treat, but each also brings a special ability to unleash.

For those who overcome and complete the game, there is a new "True" Ending to the story to find, and after completing it there are even more extras waiting. There's now a New Game+ mode to unlock afterwards, with a Nightmare difficulty mode to offer up more of a challenge. There's even a new member of the party joining in New Game+ too, as "big sister" Hauyn can turn the duo into a trio.

Being a port of a two-year-old game, there's always the possibility of a bit of a graphical overhaul, but there's some bad news here, as this looks much more in line with the PS Vita version than the PlayStation 4. It's obviously not as noticeable in handheld mode on the go, with just some slight fuzziness to the whole affair, but when it moves onto the big screen, it becomes so much more evident. The crispness vanishes and it feels like a portable game blown up onto a TV.