The global version of War of the Visions: Final Fantasy Brave Exvius will be shutting down after a five-year run. The free-to-play turn-based tactical mobile game, run by Square Enix and Gumi, boasted a long list of collaborative events with many mainline Final Fantasy entries, a fully voiced main story, and many multiplayer events and game modes that kept players coming back while building a strong community.

Square Enix announced that the game's global service will be discontinued on May 29. In-game purchases have already been disabled. A Facebook post from the developers added that there will be a livestream on March 26 detailing the roap for War of the Visions: Final Fantasy Brave Exvius until its inevitable closure.

War Of The Visions: Final Fantasy Brave Exvius Had A Loyal Playerbase

Five Years of Content With Many Memories to Cherish

War of the Visions: Final Fantasy Brave Exvius was a turn-based tactical gacha RPG that initially launched in Japan in November 2019, followed by a worldwide launch four months later in March 2020. The game was first released with a Final Fantasy XIV collaboration event, giving players both Y'shtola and Thancred for free as playable characters. This was shortly followed by its first Final Fantasy Tactics event, a game which War of the Visions closely emulated in its combat style, drawing many fans of the larger franchise.

Alongside a fully voiced main story with multiple in-game cinematic cutscenes, the game was regularly updated with various limited-time events, including collaborations with many of the mainline Final Fantasy titles, including the popular Final Fantasy VI. War of the Visions also crossed over with a few other games, such as Persona 5, NieR Automata, and Dragon Quest Tact.

Many players are disappointed to hear the news about the global shutdown, with some wondering if there will be an offline version to preserve the game. X FadedKaiser questioned, "I know we won’t get answers because no one ever answers, but will there be an offline version of this so we could still play story content?"

One long-time player in particular commented on how they'd miss the game's original characters. X Tht1Chika said they've "been playing since the first Final Fantasy Tactics collaboration, and I'm really sad about the End of Service announcement. I knew it was coming, but it's tough to see. I'm going to miss Glaciela, Sterne, Jayden, and Howlet."

The Final Fantasy Franchise Is Struggling On Mobile

Various Mobile Titles With the Final Fantasy Name Have Shut Down in Recent Years

Speaking of mobile Final Fantasy titles, Square Enix did release Final Fantasy VII: Ever Crisis for PC and mobile platforms in late 2023, gathering a base of interested Final Fantasy VII fans. But the news of War of the Visions shutting down comes a year after the shutdown of the popular Dissidia Final Fantasy Opera Omnia, which lasted six years, signaling a downward trend with Square Enix's Final Fantasy mobile games.

In an even less impressive run, the battle royale game Final Fantasy VII: The First Soldier, of which its original story is now being experienced in Final Fantasy VII: Ever Crisis, barely lasted a year. The most recent shutdown was that of the global version of War of the Visions' predecessor, Final Fantasy Brave Exvius, which ended service outside of Japan in 2024.

Unfortunately, a lack of news and the removal of certain in-game purchases over the past two weeks in War of the Visions: Final Fantasy Brave Exvius had many players fearing the news about an end-of-service announcement. Recent frustrations about unit powercreep and a lack of updates were slowly having people move away from the game, losing interest over time. I'm hoping the livestream for the game will provide some decent content and updates until it closes down, including some closure about the current main story arc.

Source: Square Enix, FINAL FANTASY BRAVE EXVIUS WAR OF THE VISIONS/Facebook