Square Enix has released new Stranger of Paradise Final Fantasy Origin screenshots, which show several classic Final Fantasy characters in their updated forms. Stranger of Paradise is an upcoming action RPG that acts as a dark retelling of the story of the original Final Fantasy game, with the title suggesting the new protagonists might not be the true Warriors of Light.
The initial public demo for Stranger of Paradise was set within the Chaos Shrine, which is the first dungeon from the first Final Fantasy. The epic scope of the Chaos Shrine (at least compared to its original incarnation) led some to believe the entirety of Stranger of Paradise would be set there. However, it has since been revealed the game will bring back a larger portion of Final Fantasy’s original elements, including its towns and NPCs. The story will reach the battle with the last of the Four Fiends at the very least, as a Tiamat Stranger of Paradise boss encounter was shown in a trailer.
The official Square Enix website has revealed new Stranger of Paradise screenshots, giving a closer look at the fully 3D incarnations of classic Final Fantasy NPCs. Princess Sarah playing the lute for her younger sister, Princess Mia, can be seen in one image. The very first Final Fantasy quest involves saving the kidnapped Princess Sarah from Garland, which is why she has made cameo appearances in different Final Fantasy crossover games over the years. Another shows the King of Cornelia, who rewards the Warriors of Light by building a drawbridge to let them continue on their quest. His wife, Queen Jayne, is pictured in a separate screenshot. She had a minor role in the original game as one of the NPCs awaiting her daughter’s return in Castle Cornelia.
In a major shift of tone, another Stranger of Paradise screenshot includes Pirate Bikke, who was first fought in Pravoka. Bikke’s pirate gang is the second boss encounter in the original Final Fantasy, but with Stranger of Paradise‘s Soulslike focus on bosses (as elemental bosses were faced in the second Stranger of Paradise demo), the order might be shuffled around in the new game.
Stranger of Paradise appears to be going all-in with its retelling of the original Final Fantasy. It would have been easy to scrap all of these characters and focus on the action, but it seems players will be able to experience the very first story in the series told in a manner that somewhat evokes the style of FF7 Remake.
Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin will be released for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S on March 18, 2022.
