Last year, we got a new Final Fantasy game. 2017 won’t give us the same treat, but we’ll still get to re-experience one of the franchise’s best entries.
Square Enix announced today in Tokyo during an event celebrating Final Fantasy’s 30th anniversary that Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age will release for the PlayStation 4 on July 11. The Zodiac Age is a remastered version of the Japanese role-playing game, which first came out for PlayStation 2 in 2006.
Final Fantasy XII was the first single-player game in the series to have real-time combat instead of random battles. It also features the Gambit system, which can program characters with specific behaviors. You could tell someone to use a healing spell on any ally whose health is below 30 percent. In GamesBeat’s ranking of the Final Fantasy series, Final Fantasy XII ranked at No. 4.
The Zodiac Age remasters the game with HD graphics and a re-recorded soundtrack. It also adds new features, including the ability to fast-forward the game’s speed when travelling. It also brings a Trial Mode, which pits players against a series of 100 difficult battles.
It will be the first time that the U.S. will get to see features added in the International version of the game released in Japan, specifically the Zodiac Job system. In the original game, all players progressed through the same License Board, which allowed them to unlock new abilities. The Zodiac Job system makes each heroes’ progression more unique.
Square Enix often remasters older Final Fantasy games. The other single-player entry for the PlayStation 2 in the series, Final Fantasy X, already had a similar HD remaster for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, and Vita.