Final Fantasy Tactics

ファイナルファンタジータクティクス (Fainaru Fantajī Takutikusu)PlayStation, PSP, PlayStation 3, iOS +71997

  1. JP1997
  2. NA1998
  3. EU—
  4. RU—

Final Fantasy Tactics (ファイナルファンタジータクティクス in Japan, often shortened to FFT) never came out in Europe on PlayStation; it was later reworked as The War of the Lions for PSP and smartphones. The easiest legal way to play it today is Final Fantasy Tactics - The Ivalice Chronicles (2025), which includes a classic version of the 1997 game.

Final Fantasy Tactics is a tactical role-playing game that Square released in Japan on June 20, 1997; Sony Computer Entertainment published it in North America on January 28, 1998. Yasumi Matsuno directed and wrote it, Hironobu Sakaguchi produced it, and Hitoshi Sakimoto and Masaharu Iwata composed the music. The game introduced Ivalice, the world later used in Vagrant Story, Final Fantasy XII and Final Fantasy XIV. Its diorama-style battle maps were chosen so the game could run at 60 frames per second.

The PlayStation version was never released in Europe, and its first English script drew heavy criticism. In 2007 the enhanced port The War of the Lions arrived on PSP with a new translation, followed by iOS and Android versions.

On September 30, 2025, Square Enix released Final Fantasy Tactics - The Ivalice Chronicles. It contains the original game in a classic version, which the team had to rebuild because the master source code had not been preserved.12

Names and releases

RegionTitle on the boxPlatformDatePublisherSrc
NA Final Fantasy TacticsNever released in Europe on PlayStation. PlayStation Jan 28, 1998 Sony Computer Entertainment America 1
NA Final Fantasy TacticsGreatest Hits re-release. PlayStation 2001 — 1
JP ファイナルファンタジータクティクスFainaru Fantajī TakutikusuFirst edition included a SaGa Frontier trial disc. PlayStation Jun 20, 1997 Square 2
JP ファイナルファンタジータクティクスSquare Millennium Collection edition with clock and playing cards. PlayStation Jun 29, 2000 Square 2
JP Final Fantasy Tactics: The War of the LionsThe War of the Lions: enhanced port (Japanese subtitle not recorded here), later released in all regions. PSP May 10, 2007 Square Enix 2
JP ファイナルファンタジータクティクスGame Archives. PlayStation 3 May 13, 2009 — 2
JP Final Fantasy Tactics: The War of the LionsThe War of the Lions for iOS. iOS Aug 4, 2011 Square Enix 2
JP Final Fantasy Tactics: The War of the LionsThe War of the Lions for Android. Android Feb 14, 2013 Square Enix 2
WW Final Fantasy Tactics - The Ivalice ChroniclesSteam. Windows Sep 30, 2025 Square Enix 3
WW Final Fantasy Tactics - The Ivalice ChroniclesAlso on PS4, Switch, Switch 2 and Xbox Series X/S; includes the classic 1997 version. PlayStation 5 Sep 30, 2025 Square Enix 1

Also known as: ファイナルファンタジータクティクス JP2Fainaru Fantajī Takutikusu JP2FFT WW2Final Fantasy Tactics: The War of the Lions WW1Final Fantasy Tactics - The Ivalice Chronicles WW3

Box art by region

  • Final Fantasy Tactics box art, North America release
    NA Final Fantasy Tactics
  • ファイナルファンタジータクティクス box art, Japan release
    JP ファイナルファンタジータクティクス

Box art © its publishers, shown to identify each release. Scans: libretro-thumbnails.

Version differences

  • TextPS1 (NA)

    The original English localization was partly outsourced and widely criticized for grammatical errors; an "Olde English" style script by Michael Baskett was toned down because it was hard to understand.1

  • ContentThe War of the Lions (PSP)

    The War of the Lions added new jobs, characters, items and events, cel-shaded CG cutscenes, 16:9 support and multiplayer. Its cutscenes are fully voiced in English but not in Japanese.1

  • GameplayThe War of the Lions (iOS/Android)

    The smartphone versions dropped the PSP multiplayer and added mid-battle suspend saves with turn-based autosave.2

All differences (5)

Translations

  • English Official

    Sony Computer Entertainment America1998PlayStation · Japanese versionReleased · complete

    Sony Computer Entertainment America's original English translation for the North American PlayStation release was criticized for its errors.1

  • English Official

    Square Enix2007PSP · The War of the LionsReleased · complete

    Square Enix made a new English translation for The War of the Lions and later reused it in the classic version of The Ivalice Chronicles.1

  • French Official

    Square Enix2025Windows · The Ivalice ChroniclesReleased · complete

    The Ivalice Chronicles supports French and German text, as well as Chinese and Korean.3

Where to play legally today

  • Steam Purchase

    Final Fantasy Tactics - The Ivalice Chronicles

    2025 remaster with a classic (1997) mode

    Checked: 2026-10-133store.steampowered.com

Reception

Final Fantasy Tactics has a Metacritic score of 83/100. By 2007 it had sold about 1.35 million copies in Japan, a Japanese record for a simulation RPG, and the PS1 version passed 2.4 million worldwide by August 2011. Critics praised the strategic battles and story but criticized the English localization.1

Sources

  1. 1en.wikipedia.org
  2. 2ja.wikipedia.org
  3. 3store.steampowered.com
  4. 4store.steampowered.com
  5. 5ja.wikipedia.org
  6. 6ja.wikipedia.org
  7. 7ja.wikipedia.org

Checked: 2026-10-13Text reviewed: 2026-10-13

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