On a stream yesterday to celebrate the birthday of the Final Fantasy series, upcoming action-RPG Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin had a few minutes of new gameplay shown off – as well as the game’s opening cutscene, which features a dramatic recreation of Final Fantasy I’s iconic beginning.
Yesterday marked the 34th anniversary of the original Japanese release of Final Fantasy I on the NES – and the entire Final Fantasy series – so to celebrate Square Enix Japan held a two-hour long stream where they discussed the beginnings of the franchise and how Final Fantasy I connects to the upcoming sort-of sequel/remake Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin.
This included how enemies and locations from Final Fantasy I were being recreated in 3D, but also the game’s full opening cutscene – complete with its epic recreation of the intro to Final Fantasy I, where the four warriors of light cross the bridge out of Cornelia and stare out at the castle in the distance. Cornelia Castle is a lot bigger and more imposing in the new version.
Beyond that, a few more minutes of CGI cutscene and gameplay for Stranger of Paradise was shown off in the stream – which you can check out below. The gameplay includes a good look at the inventory and customisation options, alongside a lot of the game’s Nioh-like combat.
Here’s what the original NES version looks like, for reference. That bridge was a little less impressive back then.
Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin will be out March 18, 2022, as an Epic Games Store exclusive – and will hopefully release in a better state than Final Fantasy VII Remake did last week.