Theatrhythm: Final Bar Line is the epic compilation that Final Fantasy music aficionados have been waiting for. Including close to 400 tracks from across Square Enix’s RPG series and spin-offs, the game is the ultimate dose of Final Fantasy musical nostalgia and a fine rhythm game all on its own. Just don’t go into the experience looking for much more than that.

Theatrhythm: Final Bar Line separates its tracks into 29 different series according to which game they’re from. This includes the 15 mainline games, spin-offs of individual entries like Final Fantasy VII’s various sequels and prequels, and also spin-offs of the franchise as a whole such as Final Fantasy Tactics and Dissidia: Final Fantasy. As a series veteran, I found some of the deeper cuts into Final Fantasy history gratifying; I don’t know how many other people will know what Final Fantasy Mystic Quest is or care that it is represented, but it’s nice to see nonetheless.

Each character has different strengths, such as recovering HP, making it easier to unlock items, or dealing more damage. They also unlock new passive abilities as they level up, of which three can be assigned at one time. I eventually formed a dream team of Squall from FF8, Gabranth from FF12, Garnet from FF9 and The Emperor from FF2. I was a bit disappointed by some of the notable absences of potential party members; for instance, the majority of the expansive rosters of FF4, 6 and 10 are not playable. I guess the intention was to provide more-or-less equal representation per game, but many fans’ favourite characters remain unrepresented.

While it is tempting to just pick a party of your favourite characters without thought for composition, it becomes crucial to have an adequately high-levelled party with the right abilities if you want to tackle some of the game’s higher difficulties and tricky challenges. The melding of RPG and rhythm mechanics can feel a bit incongruous at times; if the challenge is defeating a boss but your characters are not high levelled enough, then even if you don’t miss a note, you may still fail the challenge. Fortunately, levelling up your party is not too hard, particularly with the aid of experience-multiplying items that the game generously provides.

The actual rhythm mechanics are very engaging and more complex than Theatrhythm’s 3DS forebears. The addition of a second analogue stick and more buttons increases the number of potential inputs, throwing in dual button and dual stick prompts and other combinations of holds, taps, and slides. The Beginner and Expert difficulties keep things manageable, but anyone seeking to attempt Ultimate or Supreme difficulty modes will need to master the controls and have lightning-fast reflexes to survive. For those less experienced with rhythm games or who want a more relaxed experience, there is a wide array of accessibility options, ranging from turning down the background animations to editing the timing for the triggers and background music.

In terms of the presentation, I liked the adorable 2D incarnations of classic Final Fantasy characters in Theatrhythm: Final Bar Line. The backdrops are also all pulled from classic Final Fantasy locations, from FF8’s Balamb GARDEN to the streets of Rabanstre from FF12. As an art style, it makes each character recognisable and appealing, without the characters or the little battles and animations being so intricate as to distract from the prompts that you need to pay attention to.

As far as the tracks that were picked, I don’t know what to think about the inclusion of the original OST from the classic games over more modern remixes and orchestrations from recent remakes. Particularly after the gorgeous orchestrated soundtracks of the recent Final Fantasy Pixel Remaster series, playing along to the original Final Fantasy 2 version of the Chocobo Theme, which on the NES was a mere 6-second loop, felt a bit jarring. While it is intended as part of the overall nostalgia package, it feels like an opportunity was missed to include the option to play along to those more modern arrangements of those classic tunes, rather than only having a somewhat limited selection of tracks to choose from as far as remixes go.