Right now, the fate of the Dissidia Final Fantasy series is up in the air. Including several fighting games, rhythm games, and mobile RPGs, these crossover Final Fantasy titles have stuck around due to both the strength of their core premise and how popular the original Dissidia games on the PlayStation Portable were. It shouldn't be that surprising, then, that fans and developers have continued discussing Dissidia Final Fantasy as recently as 2024. With potential new story threads hidden deep in Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin’s DLC, the series could return once more, but it might need a push to reach its destination.
A Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy remake or remaster would be more than enough, given that, even after the age of mobile and arcade entries, it remains many fans' favorite title. Dissidia 012, also called Dissidia Duodecim, contains a complete remake of the original Dissidia within itself, on top of a prequel story campaign, multiple side stories, a new postgame campaign, a roguelike mode, and even a custom story editor over a decade before Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero introduced its own. Modernized online play, new textures, and balance adjustments will do a lot to help a contemporary Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy stand tall once again, but there's one character that needs special attention.
Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy Hides One Lingering Disappointment
In Dissidia's story, the heroes and villains of numbered Final Fantasy titles are led by Cosmos, the goddess of harmony, and Chaos, the god of discord. Cosmos is strictly a story NPC, but Chaos is the final boss of both Dissidia and Dissidia 012. Players were surprised to find out that Dissidia 012 also included a playable version of Chaos, rendered as a distinct character called Feral Chaos. Fans loved the idea and got to see it early as a joke fight in the tutorial, but the hype didn't last.
Feral Chaos Isn't The Great Reward It Should Be
Feral Chaos must be unlocked by completing the postgame, which is a long, endgame-oriented scenario that is itself unlocked after beating Dissidia 012’s new prequel campaign. This is a grueling process, and while it arguably isn't the hardest thing in Dissidia Final Fantasy, needing to defeat two Feral Chaos with increasingly impossible stats along the way will test any player. All of this effort almost guarantees disappointment once Feral Chaos is bought from Dissidia's in-game shop at level 1, with restrictions on its use of basic mechanics. For what was designed as an exciting bonus, Feral Chaos is a major letdown.
How Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy Can Fix Feral Chaos
A refreshed release of Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy will have to take several steps to fix Feral Chaos. First, there should be a small microtransaction that immediately places Feral Chaos' in Dissidia 012’s in-game store. It's been done before in fighting games with long story modes like BlazBlue, though adding a prohibitively expensive Feral Chaos to the store after the initial campaign is another option. Second, Feral Chaos’ restrictions of having no Assists, no EX build-up, and constantly draining Bravery should be removed. Gaining skills to lift them requires excessive grinding, and unnecessarily limits what else Feral Chaos can equip.
Dissidia 012’s Balance Changes Should Hit Feral Chaos Hard
Offsetting that major buff will be a host of balance changes, which Feral Chaos needs anyway. When Dissidia is played as a competitive Final Fantasy fighting game, a ban on Feral Chaos is typically upheld due to an unblockable projectile HP Attack that can be made impossible to dodge. Even if that move is banned, Feral Chaos suffers from inconsistent performance due to having large, hard-hitting attacks, but also a massive hitbox that certain stages and characters exploit. After fixing the offending HP Attack, a hypothetical Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy remake would need to take special care in rebalancing its playable secret boss.
- Released
- March 22, 2011
- ESRB
- t
- Developer(s)
- Square Enix
- Publisher(s)
- Square Enix
THE DIVINE CONFLICT BETWEEN HARMONY AND DISCORD RAGES ON,
the fate of the world its promised prize. Fighting to secure it are brave souls summoned for that solitary purpose. Champions, cut from a cloth different from those which form the fabric of our world. Relying on what fragments of their shattered memories remain, they fight to end the conflict, and for a chance to return home to the worlds they each once knew.
Navigate through a world map in true RPG fashion as you encounter enemies and discover treasures!
New characters, including Lightning from FINAL FANTASY XIII and Tifa Lockhart from FINAL FANTASY VII, join the robust roster!
New gameplay features like the Assist system add a new level of depth and strategy to the unique combat system!
