Phantom Brave: The Lost Hero Reviews
A long-awaited sequel that delivers charm, tactical depth, and heart—even if it plays it safe. The inventive Confine/Confire/Confriend mechanics shine, and Marona’s journey strikes a perfect balance between whimsy and emotional weight. While not as expansive as some Nippon Ichi epics, its accessibility and polished combat make it a worthy return to Ivoire.
Phantom Brave: The Lost Hero is a cute, comfy game with fun mechanics that do a lot of unique things, which is almost paradoxical considering how much it's also in the mold of Nippon Ichi Software's style of games. It's a place of comfort where you go in knowing exactly what's in store for you, and that's both its strength and its flaw depending on how you look at it.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Phantom Brave The Lost Hero marks the return of an IP that has been dormant for too long. Nippon Ichi has tried in every way to introduce the series to several generations of gamers with its re-releases. A few months after the arrival of yet another remastered on new platforms, here comes Phantom Brave The Lost Hero, the sequel that every fan has been waiting for for years now. You don't see many RPGs like Phantom Brave around, for this reason I consider it an excellent addition to your collection. The confinement system is a mechanic that, if learned well, can be really rewarding. But in addition to the confinement, NIS's latest work uses the classic turn-based RPG canons, which makes it modern in many aspects. The graphics remain more complex to judge as it uses the super deformed character technique. For me, it is a quality that can make me immediately associate this game with the others developed by NIS. However, I understand that it may be too cartoonish for many. If you can get past the graphics, though, you'll have a really complex and fun RPG on your hands.
Review in Italian | Read full review
While Phantom Brave: The Lost Hero echoes Disgaea down to its core, players who don’t like that series might have more reason to love this one. From the fun little story to interesting combat mechanics, it treads its own ground and revamps combat in a quite enjoyable way. It doesn’t run that long either, with my playthrough being only a bit over 40 hours, and that’s without the post-game stuff. A well-made tactical RPG can really suck you in, and Phantom Brave: The Lost Hero will do precisely that if you give it a chance, and that’s no mean feat.
e other. Its creative gameplay, deep customization, and nostalgic charm make it one of 2025’s standout SRPGs. While its narrative occasionally feels predictable and its early tutorial may deter some, these flaws hardly dim its brilliance. Like a ship navigating the turbulent seas of JRPGs, it’s not flawless—but brimming with wonder and worth the journey. For longtime fans, it’s a heartfelt reunion; for newcomers, it is an invitation to a world with untold stories.
Review in Persian | Read full review
Despite some pacing issues and a demanding difficulty curve, Phantom Brave: The Lost Hero is a fantastic SRPG that offers deep, rewarding combat, an engaging world, and a unique battle system that sets it apart from other games in the genre. The nautical theme adds a fresh twist to the experience, and the strong English voice acting and charming presentation make it a joy to play.
Phantom Brave: The Lost Hero is a fun tactical JRPG with a great story and many systems to get to grips with for a fun pirate adventure, it may seem a bit complex for anyone not familiar and not all systems seem to be explained in depth, if at all, but once you get to grips with it theres a lot of fun to be had.
Phantom Brave: The Lost Hero surprises players with its fluid gameplay and fun personality. The game offers various opportunities for creativity, captivating the player. Despite its interesting content, the price may seem high, and the lack of Portuguese localization causes some references and jokes to be lost. Overall, it’s a good choice for tactical RPG fans or those looking for a lighthearted experience to enjoy on a Sunday.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
After almost a decade, “Phantom Brave: The Lost Hero” showcases the best parts of the “golden era” of NIS, in which the developer tried more unorthodox approaches to strategy RPGs. Its story its simple, childish sometimes. Its systems deep and complex. If you want a game to spend a massive amount of time grinding, creating some of the most broken and brilliant builds, this one is for you. Also, its one of the very few games where you can defeat a boss by beating them up with a fish.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Phantom Brave: The Lost Hero , although technically imperfect, remains an excellent game that deserves to be discovered, especially by fans of the genre.
Review in French | Read full review
Phantom Brave: The Lost Hero is a sequel that manages to use the concept of the original SRPG from over two decades ago and explore it in depth. With complex mechanics and a combat full of options, this work is a great choice for fans of the genre despite some serious performance issues that don't let it shine more.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
This long-awaited sequel’s story is filled with adorable characters and combat that is both solid and designed to be busted open make it a great return for Marona in Phantom Brave: The Lost Hero.
While the story lacks the narrative depth of its predecessor, Phantom Brave: The Lost Hero is a sequel that knows what it is good at, and leans into it, delivering a sharper and more refined experience.
Phantom Brave: The Lost Hero is packed with content and provides about 10 hours plus many more for the completionists. Despite its negatives, Phantom Brave: The Lost Hero is the sequel that fans have been waiting for, which has been worth it.
Phantom Brave: The Lost Hero certainly isn’t a terrible sequel. As mentioned earlier, NIS’ usage of familiar concepts from the first game should make this offering a worthwhile treat for long-time fans. Sadly, those who are relative newcomers to the series might be turned off by the campaign structure and overall progression.
Phantom Brave: The Lost Hero is a game that I have no trouble saying is better than its predecessor, yet I’m left with the sense that it’s not as much of an upgrade as it ought to be. I have no complaints with the story and feel it is about as good as a sequel to the original should have been. While in terms of gameplay, it offers up some varied systems that allows for player freedom and fun improvisation that provides dynamic play, it’s also undoubtedly cumbersome. Game speed is slow and the way it completely eschews quality of life features means that a lot of time is spent tediously fiddling with menus rather than engaging with the meat of its strategy elements. Its tutorialization is equally as clumsy, and coupled with its high difficulty, it means I can only really recommend this to highly dedicated SRPG players. A charming game with rich mechanics, to be certain, but you’ll have to wade through some weeds to fully grasp the fun.
[...]Marona's, Ash's and Apricot's adventure is yet another worthy entry in Nippon Ichi Software's catalogue and a memorable experience for fans of the company or those who like a borderline experimental touch to the tactical RPG genre.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
This is truly a tactical RPG that you can play any way you like. You decide which Phantoms to take into battle, how to deploy them, which equipment to use and more. Now, that is true for more games like this, but the sheer number of possibilities is quite something. Add the gridless battlefield to that and the special abilities Marona has, and you’ll have many hours of gaming fun with Phantom Brave: The Lost Hero.
Phantom Brave: The Lost Hero is a good sequel to a beloved series that introduces a lot of good ideas. Still, it's a game that falls flat in its storytelling, going a bit too over the top, resulting in something that is hard to get engaged with.
Phantom Brave: The Lost Hero offers a refreshing take on the SRPG genre with its unique gridless combat and deep customization. While the slow pacing and complex systems may deter newcomers, fans of tactical games will revel in its rewarding gameplay and intricate strategies.