Square Enix's greatest sequels prove that direct follow-ups can surpass the originals, with standout entries like Lightning Returns and Secret of Mana
Making a video game is like cooking a gourmet meal while blindfolded—one tiny slip and you’ve got burnt bits and angry diners. Making a sequel that doesn’t make the fanbase want to hurl controllers out the window? That’s cooking on a tightrope suspended over a volcano. Every big publisher knows the stakes, and Square Enix, that legendary Japanese giant with a flair for drama and boy-band hair, is no exception.
Let’s face it, Square Enix’s mainline franchises often treat continuity like a suggestion. Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest titles frequently leap to a new universe every time, so calling something a “direct sequel” almost feels rebellious. But every now and then, Square does the unthinkable: it locks into a story and delivers a follow-up that actually makes you nod in appreciation. So grab a potion, save your game, and let’s laugh through the sequels that proved Square Enix knows how to run it back—sometimes even better.
🔮 Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII – The Clock-Watching Adventure
When Final Fantasy XIII dropped, fans felt like they’d been handed a labyrinthine corridor with a battle system that needed a PhD to parse. Two years later, XIII-2 tried to patch things up, but the real redemption arc belonged to its finale. Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII tossed the turn-based comfort blanket out the window and dived headfirst into real-time combat that was snappier than a Chocobo on espresso. Lightning strutted back as the sole playable hero, and the clock-ticking doomsday mechanic gave everything a delicious urgency. Was it perfect? Nah—the story still made eyes glaze over sometimes—but the combat felt so good that players forgave the narrative detours. In the grand family of Final Fantasy sequels, Lightning Returns stands as that rebellious cousin who shows up to the reunion with a leather jacket and wins everyone over.
🌳 Secret of Mana – The SNES Gem That Started on Game Boy
Picture this: it’s the early ’90s, and Square Enix sneaks a tiny RPG onto the Game Boy called Final Fantasy Adventure in the West. Hardly anyone bats an eye. Then along comes the Super Nintendo, and suddenly Square decides to revisit that same world with Secret of Mana. BAM—colourful sprite work, a soundtrack that could make a Moogle weep, and real-time combat that felt like a revolution. What most folks didn’t realize back then was that this wasn’t a brand-new IP; it was a sequel to that obscure handheld adventure, the true start of the Mana series. The power of SNES let the developers turn a modest seed into a sprawling, vibrant tree. It’s the ultimate glow-up: a sequel so dazzling that its predecessor practically faded into legend.
🎴 Bravely Second: End Layer – When Turn-Based Nostalgia Struck Twice
In 2012, Bravely Default hit the Nintendo 3DS like a blast of retro air freshener. At a time when Final Fantasy was experimenting with action, this love letter to classic turn-based combat felt like coming home. Four years later, Square and Silicon Studio unleashed Bravely Second: End Layer, a direct sequel that took place two years after the original and kept all the strategic goodness while sanding down the rough edges. The “Brave” and “Default” system returned with new jobs that let you break the game in wonderfully creative ways. Fans still debate which entry wears the crown, but let’s be honest: both games are comfort food for the JRPG soul. If your heart yearns for menus, crystals, and jobs that sound absurd (catmancer, anyone?), this sequel dish is served piping hot.
🎧 NEO: The World Ends With You – Fashionably Late and Totally Worth It
The original The World Ends With You was Nomura’s stylish side project that defied convention on the DS. It screamed Shibuya cool, dual-screen chaos, and a cult following loud enough to shake Square Enix’s headquarters for over a decade. When NEO: The World Ends With You finally materialized in 2021, it didn’t just arrive—it swaggered onto Switch and PS4 with 3D environments, an earworm soundtrack, and a fresh cast of Reapers’ Game participants that still found space for the original crew. Nomura and his team poured every ounce of modern console muscle into making the streets bigger, the fights flashier, and the music even more addictive. For fans who waited fourteen years, this sequel felt like a perfectly timed encore.
🗝️ Kingdom Hearts III – The Grand Keyblade Reunion Tour
C’mon, you knew the Keyblade gang would show up on this list. After Kingdom Hearts II wrapped its convoluted bow in 2005, Square didn’t exactly nap—they peppered the landscape with portable titles that became vital lore threads. But the main-stage event, Kingdom Hearts III, arrived like a Disney-themed blockbuster party. Its secret weapon? A combat system that stole the best toys from every previous entry—Shotlocks, Flowmotion, Keyblade Transformations, you name it—and mashed them together into one gloriously fluid mess. Did the story still require a conspiracy board to follow? Absolutely. Yet the epic culmination of the Dark Seeker Saga left most fans misty-eyed, while slyly leaving enough loose ends for the upcoming Lost Masters Saga. Sometimes a sequel just needs to feel like a reunion tour, and KH3 nailed the encore.
🤖 NieR: Automata – The Sequel Nobody Knew They Had
- NieR: Automata took 2017 by storm with PlatinumGames’ slick combat and Yoko Taro’s signature brand of emotional devastation. But here’s the kicker: it was actually a sequel—a direct follow-up to one of the endings of the original Nier (later reborn as NieR Replicant). Many newcomers blissfully enjoyed 2B’s journey without realizing they were walking through narrative echoes of a cult classic. Veteran players, however, caught every somber reference and felt the weight of a world that had survived one apocalypse only to stumble into another. The 2021 remaster of Replicant* finally made the full saga accessible, revealing that this stylish robot drama had always been standing on the shoulders of a melancholy giant.
⚔️ Kingdom Hearts II – The Smoother, Bigger Disney Mashup
Before the series became a punchline for narrative complexity, there was Kingdom Hearts II on the PlayStation 2. Square and Disney’s first crossover was a weird little experiment; the sequel, released in 2005, turned that experiment into a blockbuster. Combat flowed like butter, Drive Forms added a spicy layer of transformation, and the Disney worlds ballooned in size and spectacle. Boss fights turned into cinematic light shows, and although the plot started threading its famous knot, it still packed an emotional wallop. While some purists cling to the first game’s innocence, KH2 is the reason the franchise exploded into a multimedia empire. It’s the sequel that said, “Okay, now let’s crank everything to eleven.”
🌍 Final Fantasy VII Rebirth – The Gold Standard (for Now)
Square Enix did something bonkers: they decided to remake the untouchable Final Fantasy VII as a three-part epic. When Final Fantasy VII Remake arrived in 2020, skepticism melted into cheers. Then 2024 brought Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, and the gaming world collectively lost its mind. Combat evolved into a symphony of real-time slashing and tactical menu-freezing; the open zones breathed life into Midgar’s outskirts; the mini-games multiplied like rabbits; the reinterpretations of classic moments made jaws drop. Rebirth didn’t just honour the original—it danced on its legacy while juggling chocobo racing and piano rhythm games. As of 2026, it stands as Square Enix’s finest sequel achievement... but word on the street is that the final instalment, Remake Part 3, might just steal that trophy. Let’s just say the plate is still spinning, and we’re all here with popcorn.
All in all, Square Enix’s sequel record is a rollercoaster of risks, reinventions, and occasionally glorious returns to form. Whether it’s a clock-ticking Lightning or a Keyblade-wielding reunion, the best follow-ups share one thing: they don’t just repeat the recipe—they add new ingredients and hope nobody sets the kitchen on fire. And honestly? When Square Enix pulls it off, you can’t help but grin like a Chocobo with a belly full of greens.
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