New 'Final Fantasy Resonance' Gameplay Confirms Return of A Series Icon

Final Fantasy Resonance, the first HD-2D game in the series, was a surprise reveal at the Nintendo Direct last month as an adaptation of the recently shuttered Final Fantasy Brave Exvius mobile game. Now built as a standalone single-player game with no microtransactions or gacha elements, the game seems to be paying homage to the classic entries in the beloved series, and one of the series' icons has been confirmed to be in the game.

Revealed in a new gameplay clip posted to X by the official Final Fantasy Resonance Japanese account, it has been confirmed that the Cactuar enemy will appear in the game. "The beloved enemy that transcends the series' boundaries, the Cactuar, will liven up the HD-2D battles in this game too! It has a cute appearance, but its signature "1000 Needles" attack remains as deadly as ever-don't let your guard down," reads the post (roughly translated from Japanese to English).

The 1000 needles attack is an assault on one party member that guarantees 1000 points of damage to a party member. Historically, the Cactuar also had an even stronger version of that same attack called 10,000 Needles, which guaranteed a knockout of any party member if it was used and hit.

The Cactuars are also likely to flee, but if defeated, they usually reward good amounts of experience points and, occasionally, rare items.

The creature has become one of the most recognizable in all of Final Fantasy. A giant version, called the Jumbo Cactuar, appeared as an optional boss in Final Fantasy 8 and was then recruited as a summon.

Final Fantasy Resonance is the first true turn-based Final Fantasy game since Final Fantasy 10, which was released in 2001. After that, the series reinvented itself with almost every new entry, changing battle systems, mechanics, art styles, and more.

Final Fantasy Resonance releases on October 22, 2026, for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch 2, and PC.

This story was originally published by Men's Journal on Jul 10, 2026, where it first appeared in the Entertainment section. Add Men's Journal as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

2026 The Arena Group Holdings, Inc. All rights reserved.

This story was originally published July 10, 2026 at 12:17 PM.