Final Fantasy II (Pixel Remaster) - Review
Final Playtime: 14 Hours
⚠️ Spoilers Ahead! This is a full review, so I’ll be talking about the story, gameplay, and the ending. If you’re planning on playing Final Fantasy II for the first time, consider this your heads-up!
Overall Experience
After finishing Final Fantasy I, I was really curious to see how much the series would evolve after just one sequel, and Final Fantasy II honestly surprised me more than I expected.
Instead of building directly on FF1, Square completely reworked how progression works. Stats, weapon proficiency, and magic all improve based on usage rather than levels, which was a bold experiment for the time. You can already see how much they were willing to shake things up this early in the series.
I definitely respect the ambition here. Not everything lands, and there are moments where the design can be frustrating, but I appreciate that they didn’t just play it safe. Even when the execution is messy, you can see ideas that would later evolve into core Final Fantasy systems.
That said, I never disliked my time with it, but there were enough friction points that I don’t think I’ll be revisiting it anytime soon (if ever). Still, I’m glad I played it just as a snapshot of how quickly the series was willing to experiment.
First Impressions
Right from the start, I liked how the game immediately leans into tutorials through NPCs explaining mechanics. Since FF2 completely changes progression, that helped ease me in a lot more than I expected.
The opening also doesn’t waste time. You’re quickly thrown into the conflict with the Empire, and the story has a much clearer direction compared to FF1 almost immediately.
Scott’s death… I get what it was going for, but it happens so suddenly that I actually laughed out loud. It completely caught me off guard.
I also didn’t expect Minwu to join right away, and getting the canoe so early made the world feel like it opened up way faster than I was expecting.
Story & Characters
Compared to FF1, this is a massive step up in almost every way.
Instead of a blank slate party, you follow Firion, Maria, and Guy throughout the entire journey, with rotating guest members who tie into different parts of the story. That alone makes everything feel more grounded and personal.
The narrative focuses on an ongoing war against the Palamecian Empire, and it actually feels like the world is changing as you progress. Towns fall, kingdoms get conquered, and the conflict escalates in a way that gives real weight to what you’re doing.
Maria’s connection to Leon gives the story its emotional backbone, even if I figured out pretty early that he was the Dark Knight. The reveal didn’t hit me, but I still liked how his arc played out and how it tied into the larger conflict.
The supporting cast also helps a lot. Characters like Hilda, Minwu, Josef, Gordon, Leila, Ricard, and Cid make the world feel way more alive than FF1 ever did. Even if some of them don’t stick around long, they add personality and context to each part of the journey.
Ricard, especially, ended up being my favorite. As the last Dragoon, he has one of the coolest moments in the game, and I really wish he had more time to shine.
The game also isn’t afraid to kill off important characters, which fits the tone of the war, but most of those moments didn’t land emotionally for me because the characters aren’t around long enough to build real attachment. They matter to the story more than they matter to the player experience.
Leon joining permanently at the very end also felt a bit too late. By that point, I didn’t really feel like leveling him up, so he mostly just sat on the sidelines during the finale.
Even so, the story itself kept me engaged the whole way through, especially the ending. The Emperor coming back after the final battle and the descent into Pandaemonium was way more over-the-top than I expected, but it worked. It turned the finale into something a little more memorable than FF1’s ending.
Overall, this is a huge improvement narratively. The world feels more active, the characters give the story weight, and the war-driven structure keeps things moving in a way FF1 never really attempted.
Gameplay & Progression
This is easily the most experimental part of FF2.
Instead of traditional leveling, everything improves through use—weapon skills, magic levels, and even stats depending on what happens in battle.
Conceptually, it’s really interesting, but the execution is uneven. Once you understand how it works, it’s easy to accidentally over-level certain things or break the difficulty curve. On the other hand, spell leveling especially becomes repetitive, and I often found myself using abilities just to “grind progress” rather than because I actually needed them.
There’s also a sense that the system rewards grinding in a way that feels a bit unintuitive compared to standard RPG progression. I respect what it’s trying to do, but it never fully clicked for me.
That said, I did like the keyword system (Ask / Learn / Key Items). Learning keywords from NPCs and reusing them in conversations was a clever way to make dialogue more interactive. It made NPCs feel more important instead of just one-and-done interactions.
The downside is that it made me constantly second-guess whether I had missed something, so I’d often double back through towns just to be safe. Still, I like the idea behind it, even if I wouldn’t want it in every Final Fantasy game.
Exploration & Dungeon Design
Exploration feels pretty similar to FF1.
The world feels larger, and unlocking new travel methods like the canoe, ships, and airship gives a steady sense of progression. Each one meaningfully expands how you move through the world, which I really liked once again.
Unfortunately, the dungeon design drags that momentum down.
There are a lot of empty rooms and dead ends that exist purely to waste time. Early on it’s manageable, but later it starts to seriously hurt pacing. By the end, I wasn’t excited to explore dungeons anymore—I was just bracing for filler paths before getting to anything important.
That ended up being one of my biggest frustrations with the entire game.
Music
The soundtrack is solid overall, but only a few tracks really stood out to me.
The dungeon theme was easily the highlight—really atmospheric and memorable, and it stuck with me long after playing.
The Chocobo Forest theme was another great moment. Seeing that series staple appear here for the first time in my Pixel Remaster run was genuinely cool.
I was a bit surprised there wasn’t unique music for the airship or boat, though. Those felt like missed opportunities for more memorable travel themes.
Bosses & Difficulty
Most early bosses weren’t too tough, but Hill Gigas was the first real wake-up call that forced me to actually slow down and think instead of brute forcing everything.
Seeing Behemoth for the first time in the Coliseum was also a great moment—especially since my first exposure to it was Monster Hunter: World, so it was cool finally seeing its origins.
The Emperor ended up being a really satisfying final boss. I wiped a couple times before adjusting my strategy, and it felt good to finally win through preparation instead of just raw damage.
…Then I learned about the Blood Sword afterward.
Even so, I still think it was one of the stronger final fights so far in the series. It actually felt like a proper climax.
Difficulty overall sits slightly above FF1, but mostly because of systems and dungeon structure rather than raw enemy strength. Once things click, the game becomes pretty manageable.
The “Final Fantasy” DNA
One of my favorite parts of these early games is seeing where so many series staples come from.
FF2 introduces things like Chocobos, Cid (which seems to be an ongoing joke as we'll see later on), Dragoons, and Behemoths—ideas that would go on to define the franchise later on.
Even when the gameplay experiments don’t fully land, moments like this are what make the Pixel Remaster journey so interesting. You really get to see the foundation of what Final Fantasy becomes.
Replayability
I don’t really see myself replaying FF2.
I respect what it’s doing, but the progression system and dungeon design make it harder to return to than FF1. It’s more of a “glad I experienced it once” kind of game for me.
Final Thoughts
Final Fantasy II deserves a lot of credit for taking risks.
Instead of iterating safely on FF1, Square experimented with almost everything—progression, storytelling, structure, and party design. Some of those experiments clearly shaped the direction of the series going forward.
Not all of them worked for me. The progression system never fully clicked, spell leveling got tedious, and dungeon design was easily the weakest part of the experience.
But I still respect it a lot for what it tried to do. It feels like an important stepping stone in the series’ identity, even if it’s a messy one.
Overall Rating: 6.4/10
I respect Final Fantasy II more than I would say I enjoyed it.
I’m glad I played it, even if I don’t see myself returning. It’s an important chapter in the series’ evolution, and it’s fascinating seeing how quickly Final Fantasy started experimenting right after the first game.
Next Up: Final Fantasy III (Pixel Remaster)
With the first two games done, it’s time for FF3.
From what I’ve heard, this is where the job system really starts to take shape, and I’m excited to see how that changes things. One of the best parts of this journey so far has been watching each game try something new, even when it doesn’t fully land.
Hopefully FF3 keeps that momentum going.
I'll be back with another review once the credits roll.
Image Credit: Promotional artwork © Square Enix. Image used for discussion/review purposes. All rights belong to Square Enix.