Square Enix’s Final Fantasy Dimensions £19.99 iPhone challenge

It has never been shy of charging top dollar for its iOS games, but Square Enix is to try and push the boat out further still.

The publisher has finally confirmed an August 31st Western release date for its episodic Final Fantasy mobile title Final Fantasy Dimensions, which was first released in the Japanese market some two years ago.

It has also confirmed the pricing. The first of the game’s four chapters can be downloaded for 1.99, but chapters two to four will cost 6.99 apiece. Or the four can be bought in a single 19.99 purchase.

That makes the game the most expensive that Square Enix has yet put out on iOS and one of (if not the?) most expensive games ever to hit the platform. What the price does suggest, however, is that the company has enjoyed success with its previous premium priced offerings.

Not wanting to undersell what is still a rich IP, Square has been careful never to devalue the Final Fantasy brand in its move from consoles to mobile.

The standard version of Final Fantasy currently costs 10.99 to download, with the HD iPad version costing 12.99 and Final Fantasy III for iPad costs 11.99. Even non-FF brands have followed similar strategy, with Chaos Rings II costing 12.99 to download.

And unlike companies like EA who will frequently cut the price of its catalogue titles to 69p for a weekend, Square Enix has stuck by its prices.

What makes this particularly interesting is the prevalence of free-to-play titles on smartphones. With the barriers to entry lower than ever before, key IP can still clearly compete in a space dominated by free games.

And you can bet that rival publishers haven’t let this go unnoticed.