Square Enix RPG Gets Free Release, 34 Years Later

May 7, 2026, 6:15am

A Square Enix RPG from 1992 has got a free release, 34 years later. The RPG in question hails from 1992, before Square and Enix merged, so this is technically a 34-year-old Square game, in this case, for the SNES. As for the free release, it’s free via Xbox Game Pass across all tiers, minus Essential. This includes Premium, Ultimate, and PC Game Pass. To this end, those with an Xbox Game Pass subscription at any of these levels can now download this Square Enix game for free.

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How long it’s going to be available via the Microsoft subscription service remains to be seen, but right now, Xbox Game Pass subscribers can add Final Fantasy V to their library for free, and play it 24 hours a day, seven days a week on repeat. Typically, most Xbox Game Pass contracts are for 12 months or 24 months, which some subscribers may need because it’s not the shortest game. While many modern RPGs are longer than Final Fantasy V, its 30-50 hour runtime still holds in the modern day. Of course, the bottom part of this range represents a mainline playthrough, while the top end reflects a completionist playthrough.

An SNES Classic RPG

As its name suggests, Final Fantasy V is the fifth main instalment in the Final Fantasy series, which dates back to 1987 and remains one of the most relevant franchises in gaming to this day. Upon release, and for several years, it was an SNES exclusive. In the West, RPG fans are going to know it as a PS1 game because the SNES version was Japan-only. This means Western gamers didn’t get their hands on the RPG until 1999, seven years later. Through various releases, the reception to the game was positive, but most agree it’s not one of the highlights of the series. It’s also not a low point, but is rather somewhere in the middle.

That said, it’s not the original version of the game that has been added to Xbox Game Pass, but the Pixel Remaster version, an enhanced re-release of the game from 2021. This version has completely redrawn 2D pixel art supervised by the original artist, Kazuko Shibuya, some new combat animations, improved environmental effects, widescrene support, support for higher resolutions, an optional rearranged soundtrack, auto battle, faster menus, quick save, diagonal movement, a sprint toggle, modernized UI, improved inventory systems, a new minimap, adjusted abilities, improved progession, less grinding, and a few other things of this nature. What’s equally noteworthy is that the additional content from the Game Boy Advance release is not included.

It is worth noting that with Final Fantasy V being available via various tiers of Xbox Game Pass, subscribers of these tiers are saved from a $17.99 purchase of a game that rarely goes on sale.

All of that said, and as always, feel free to leave a comment or two letting us know what you think, or join the video game conversations happening over on the ComicBook Forum.