Final Fantasy IV: The After Years

Final Fantasy IV: The After Years is a sequel to Final Fantasy IV, originally released for Japanese Mobile Phones on February 18, 2008. The game was originally released for the NTT Docomo FOMA 903i series of phones, and later released for au EZ Web on May 15th, 2008, and Yahoo! Keitai on November 4th, 2008. Like the earlier cellphone game Before Crisis -Final Fantasy VII-, the game was released in an episodic format, with a series of thirteen chapters (or nine tales on the Wii) from February 18th to December 24th, 2008. Executive Producer Takashi Tokita has stated the game was released this way so that players would anticipate new chapters like an anime or manga series, and also cited the game  as an inspiration. The game's feel remained similar to Final Fantasy IV, with sprites being used rather than 3D graphics.

The game has been released as WiiWare, in nine chapters. The base game (consisting of the Prologue, Ceodore's Chapter, and Kain's Chapter) costs 800 points. The Gathering Chapter and both parts of the Final Chapter are bundled together for 800 points. The other character chapters cost 300 each.

On December 13th, 2010, Square Enix announced Final Fantasy IV Complete Collection coming to the PlayStation Portable in Japan in Spring 2011, which includes remakes of both Final Fantasy IV and Final Fantasy IV: The After Years and a new scenario to connect the stories of Final Fantasy IV and The After Years together.

On September 2013 in the Tokyo Game Show it was announced Square Enix is giving Final Fantasy IV: The After Years a full 3D remake in the vein of Final Fantasy IV for Nintendo DS. Final Fantasy IV: The After Years will be released in winter 2013 for iOS and Android.

The story of Final Fantasy IV: The After Years is set seventeen years after Final Fantasy IV, and focuses on the arrival of a second moon, after which the events of the past begin to repeat themselves.

Gameplay
Final Fantasy IV: The After Years uses Active-Time Battle, a system used in older Final Fantasy titles. There are five characters in a party, and many elements of Final Fantasy IV's battle system are added, along with some new features:
 * Moon Phase: Physical and magical attacks of both players and enemies are affected by the four phases of the moon, which change when the player sleeps at an inn, uses either a tent or cottage, or 30 minutes of game time passes. For example, during a full moon weapon attack power decreases, while Black Magic's power increases. This can greatly affect the battle for the player, forcing them to create new battle strategies, though the moon phases also affect enemies. When a command is decreased, the command will be shown in red, and when a command is shown in green, it gets a bonus of strength. Moon phase also affects which monsters can appear and with what rarity.
 * Band System: Certain abilities that cost MP can be used when certain characters are in the party. For example, Cecil can execute Holy Blade when Rosa is in the party. Each character needs to do a specific ability to make the Band ability happen. Some Bands are learned as the story progresses, but the player can learn others only by "searching" for them during battle and inputting the correct commands.

Prologue: Return of the Moon

 * Released in Japan on February 18th, 2008.
 * Part of the Base Game in Wii Ware version.

Seventeen years have passed since the events of Final Fantasy IV, and the world has returned to a state of peace. Ceodore, Cecil and Rosa's son, is an apprentice to the Red Wings, struggling with the expectations and obligations of being born with sacred blood. While returning from an expedition to obtain Ceodore's Proof of Knighthood, the Red Wings airship fleet, captained by the gruff Biggs and his second-in-command, Wedge, is attacked by a mysterious swarm of monsters.

Noticing flames rising from Baron's direction, the fleet attempts to return at full speed. The monsters besiege the Baron Castle from an unknown source. As Cecil and Rosa fight the horde to defend their kingdom, they determine the monsters are attacking from above, and look skyward, only to witness the arrival of a new moon.

Ceodore's Tale: Last of the Red Wings

 * Released in Japan on February 18th, 2008.
 * Part of the Base Game in Wii Ware version. Merged into the Prologue in the PSP version.

Questioning what the second moon could mean, Cecil continues to battle alongside Rosa, and is soon joined by Cid. The group battles their way to the castle's ramparts, when Cecil, sure that Baron will fall, orders Cid to take Rosa and retreat.

As Cid and Rosa reluctantly agree, Cecil witnesses the Eidolon Bahamut descend from the moon, a Mysterious Girl resembling Rydia mounted atop its back. Cecil questions her identity, only to be attacked and defeated by Bahamut. Meanwhile, the Red Wings fleet is damaged, Edge and the dwarves witness a strange occurrence involving the Tower of Babil, and the Mysterious Girl enters the Eidolons' realm of Feymarch to claim the powers of Leviathan and Asura.

The Red Wing fleet crash-lands and Ceodore, the sole survivor, resolves to carry out Captain Biggs's final order: to return to Baron. Accosted by monsters, a Hooded Man garbed in robes rescues him, and the two set out for Mysidia, where Porom helps them reach Baron by way of the Devil's Road. Arriving in the village, they find the kingdom is safe, though the soldiers are acting strangely and refuse to let Ceodore into the castle. Infiltrating the castle through the waterway, Ceodore finds Cid's airship missing and comes to the conclusion the castle's inhabitants have been supplanted by monster impostors, while the Hooded Man briefly encounters "Cecil".

The two leave the castle and travel through Mist Cave, chased by the impostor soldiers on the king's orders. As the two prepare to traverse the mountains east of Mist Village in hopes of losing their pursuers, the Hooded Man reveals he is searching for a former Dragoon of Baron, vowing to defeat him even at the cost of his own life.

Rydia's Tale: The Eidolons Shackled

 * Released in Japan on March 17th, 2008.
 * Released as WiiWare on June 1st, 2009
 * Released in Europe on June 5th, 2009

The chapter opens with a flashback showing Edge assisting in the rebuilding of Mist, with mentions of Cecil of Baron and Yang of Fabul also rendering aid, and implications that Edge has turned to selling Eblan's royal treasures to help fund the reconstruction, followed by a flashback of Rydia attending Ceodore's birth. The player is shown the events just before the Mysterious Girl's arrival in the Feymarch: Rydia was visiting the Eidolons, but was confronted by Asura who had expressly forbidden Rydia from returning, stating the girl belonged with her own kind.

Following the Mysterious Girl's attack, Rydia finds the Eidolons have been petrified. She discovers she is unable to call upon them for aid, and is cornered by monsters while attempting to return to the Underworld, only to be rescued by Luca, daughter of the Dwarven King Giott and Cid's apprentice.

They return to the Dwarven Castle aboard the airship Falcon, and witness the Red Wings airship fleet arrive. Within the castle, they find the Mysterious Girl has already claimed three of the Dark Crystals, with only the one located in the Sealed Cavern remaining. With Giott's permission Rydia and Luca set out for the Sealed Cavern to obtain the last Dark Crystal before the Mysterious Girl. Though they recover it, the Mysterious Girl defeats them and taunts Rydia, destroys Calca and Brina, and takes the Dark Crystal. Rydia and Luca flee the Underworld aboard the Falcon and retreat to Agart for repairs.

They enter a cave and find some of the material they need to fix the Falcon and scrap Calca and Brina for the remaining parts (in an alternate scene, if the player found a Mythril Nut, Mythril Spring, and Mythril Bolt, the Falcon will be completely fixed and Calca and Brina are repaired). Shortly after finishing the repairs, the Eidolon Titan attacks them, but a man clothed in dark armor and a black mantle appears and defeats the phantom creature. The Man in Black boards the Falcon and urges the pair to travel to the Tower of Babil before history repeats itself.

Yang's Tale: The Master of Fabul

 * Released in Japan April 9th, 2008.
 * Released in North America July 6th, 2009.
 * Released in Europe July 10th, 2009

Yang's tale begins with him training three monks of Fabul. His daughter, Ursula, enters the castle and pleads with him to train her, but he refuses. She goes to Mt. Hobs to train on her own, where she witnesses the Red Wings approaching Fabul. After being attacked by a Mother Bomb and rescued by her father, the pair returns to Fabul where they find the Red Wings are attempting to steal the Crystal. The Red Wings are being led by Kain Highwind, who claims to be acting of his own free will.

Following a battle with Yang and his daughter, Kain retrieves the Crystal and departs. Yang and Ursula venture to Baron with the help of three monks but during their voyage they get stuck on an uncharted island and must find fuel for the ship. Yang and Ursula are separated within a dark forest. The three monks traveling with them are attacked by an Adamantoise, which barely takes any damage from their attacks.

Ursula attempts to rescue them but cannot win. Yang reunites with Ursula, and they band together to defeat the turtle. After they find the fuel for the boat, Yang tells Ursula she has understood something more important than pure strength and allows her to train with him, but asks Ursula to no longer address him as "Father", but instead as "Master." They board the ship and resume their course to Baron, but on the way their vessel is swallowed up by Leviathan's whirlpool.

Palom's Tale: The Mage's Voyage

 * Released in Japan on May 1st, 2008.
 * Released in North America July 6th, 2009.
 * Released in Europe July 10th, 2009

Palom, vowing to follow in the footsteps of the Great Sage, Tellah, had set out for Troia, a quiet city surrounded by forest and bordering a lake where he trains the young priestess Leonora in the arts of Black Magic. When the Mysterious Girl attacks the city to obtain its Crystal, Leonora opens an underground passageway for them to escape.

Palom and Leonora capture a black chocobo and travel to the Lodestone Cavern hoping to hide it there. They battle the Dark Elf, only to have it defeated by the Eidolon Shiva. Confronted by the Mysterious Girl, Palom takes the Crystal and tells Leonora to flee while he petrifies himself, effectively preventing her from taking the Crystal.

When the Mysterious Girl threatens to shatter Palom's body to obtain the Crystal, Leonora attempts to fight her off. Palom recovers, and in a flashback, it is revealed Leonora was the girl Palom was flirting with during the ending of Final Fantasy IV. They band together, though Shiva ultimately defeats them. The Mysterious Girl steals the Crystal and vanishes. Meanwhile, on Mount Ordeals, Porom has encountered Kain and senses something has happened to Palom.

Edge's Tale: The Pulse of Babil

 * Released in Japan on May 28th, 2008. 
 * Released in North America July 6th, 2009.
 * Released in Europe July 10th, 2009

The members of The Eblan Four - a group of Ninja under Edge's direct command, are revealed to have witnessed and survived the attacks lead by Kain and the Mysterious Girl: Gekkou was entrenched with Yang's monks, Zangetsu was with the dwarves, Izayoi was disguised as a Troian priestess, and Tsukinowa was among the mages of Mysidia.

Edge sets out to infiltrate the Tower of Babil where the Eblan Four appear one by one to assist him. They travel to the peak of the tower where they find the Mysterious Girl. Though unable to defeat her and the summoned Ifrit, Edge refuses to submit to defeat and the team dives out of the tower, ostensibly to their deaths. However, they land safely aboard the Falcon's deck. Edge reunites with Rydia and discusses the events, then recognizes the Man in Black.

Porom's Tale: The Vanished Lunar Whale

 * Released in Japan on June 26th, 2008.
 * Released in North America on August 3rd, 2009.
 * Released in Europe on August 7th, 2009.

The chapter begins with a pair of flashbacks, the first to shortly after the original game's events: it is time for Palom and Porom's magic lessons with the Elder, but Palom has cut class and is trying to impress a group of girls, including a young Leonora. When he is found and punished, he runs away and is again found by the Elder. After a discussion, Palom reveals his desire to follow in Tellah's footsteps, and the Elder agrees to let him follow his dream.

Palom and Porom travel to Kaipo where Palom visits the Sage's grave and the pair ventures deep into the Underground Waterway, where Porom witnesses how strong Palom has become. The second flashback, years later, begins with Porom having reached adulthood, on a trip with Palom to visit Rydia, carried by Cid and his airship because the Devil's Road is closed. When Palom asks Rydia to take him into the Land of Eidolons so he can learn about summoning magic, they visit the dwarves and Luca tags along, but Rydia is forced to turn back when she is forbidden entry to the Land of Eidolons.

Returning to the present, Porom is praying and senses her brother has arrived safely in Troia. She discusses her desires to become independent when the Elder asks why she did not accompany him, but they are interrupted when he senses a disruption. Outside, they find the mages of Mysidia gathering near the Sea of Mysidia, watching as the Lunar Whale rises up out of a whirlpool, slowly floating towards the second moon. Needing the skills of a Dragoon, Porom sets out for Mt. Ordeals with a Black and White Mage to track down Kain.

Atop Mount Ordeals, they find the tomb of Cecil's father, Kluya, and hear him speak of his sons. They locate Kain and, after explaining the situation and having a brief disagreement, set out to Mysidia together. When they reach Mysidia, they find it under attack by the Mysterious Girl. Kain, wishing to travel to Baron, leaves the Elder and Porom to defend the town. The two battle the Mysterious Girl (who summons Ramuh) and are defeated, with the Elder severely injured. Kain reappears with the Crystal, offering it to the Mysterious Girl in exchange for his service and a chance to see Cecil. The Mysterious Girl agrees and vanishes, and Kain leaps away, ignoring Porom.

Edward's Tale: Star-Crossed Damcyan

 * Released in Japan on July 22nd, 2008.
 * Released in North America on August 3rd, 2009.
 * Released in Europe on August 7th, 2009.

Edward's chapter starts in the re-built Damcyan. Edward's secretary goes off to investigate a disturbance and doesn't return. Edward and three soldiers try to find her and when he does, she joins the team and they return to Damcyan. Damcyan is surrounded by the Red Wings and Edward and Harley go through the cave to Kaipo, but Harley falls ill to the Desert Fever. Harley is treated at the same house where Rosa once succumbed to the same fever.

During the night, the spirits of Anna and Tellah visit Edward. Tellah tells Edward Anna wants him to ask what his heart wants, possibly meaning he should find a new partner. Edward fetches a sand pearl from the Antlion's Den to cure Harley without the Damcyan guards' assistance. With Harley recovered, they board a ship towards Baron and talk to Cecil. Edward notices Cecil is acting strangely, and leaves some Whisperweed in his throne room to eavesdrop on him. He discovers Cecil is plotting something with the Mysterious Girl. After the meeting, they head back towards Damcyan and witness Yang and his ship being swallowed by Leviathan.

Kain's Tale: Return of the Dragoon

 * Released in Japan on August 20th, 2008
 * Part of the Base Game in Wii Ware version

At Mount Ordeals, Kain rescues Porom and the mages from the monsters. The party heads back to Mysidia, where he betrays her and takes the Crystal. He follows the Mysterious Girl back through the Devil's Road. The focus switches back to Ceodore's party making its way over the Mist mountain range to Damcyan. Ceodore reaches Kaipo, where Baron soldiers attack him in the middle of the night. Ceodore and the Hooded Man head through the water cave and encounter and defeat the Octo-Kraken.

The Red Wings have surrounded Damcyan again, and Kain retrieves the Crystal for the Mysterious Girl while also kidnapping Rosa. Edward and Cid, who arrive with the Enterprise, join Ceodore on his journey back to Baron. They encounter Kain and the captured Rosa in Castle Damcyan and upon confronting Kain, they discern he is actually Kain's dark half, who defeated his light half (the Hooded Man) on Mount Ordeals. The Hooded Man (Kain) regains his Jump ability, equips his lance, and fights his dark half. After defeating him, Kain accepts his dark half as being a part of him and merges with it. His appearance changes, and he becomes a Holy Dragoon and gains new abilities. The group goes on to confront Cecil and the Mysterious Girl.

Lunarian's Tale: The Blue Planet That Was

 * Released in Japan on September 16th, 2008.
 * Released in North America on August 3rd, 2009.
 * Released in Europe on August 7th, 2009.

The chapter starts in the past, on the Red Moon. The Man in Black is revealed to be Golbez who notices Fusoya is missing. Golbez goes through the Lunar Subterrane, finding Fusoya and helping him in his investigation. The two head to the Lair of the Father where they find a petrified Bahamut. After leaving the lair they head to a cave where they confront the Mysterious Girl. They battle her and she summons Asura.

She escapes back to the Crystal Palace, where she and Leviathan fight the party. Again she escapes, and they follow her down into the Lunar Subterrane. Where the party of Final Fantasy IV faced Zeromus, the Mysterious Girl is waiting for Golbez and Fusoya. This time she resurrects Zeromus himself, and Golbez and Fusoya fight him. During the fight, Zeromus uses Big Bang, which begins to destroy the palace.

Fusoya teleports Golbez out who takes the Lunar Whale and heads to the Blue Planet. During the ride, he dreams of when he was possessed by Zeromus in the past. The player briefly takes control of Golbez during Cecil's fights against him in Final Fantasy IV, with the battles shown from his perspective.

Gathering's Tale: The Moon's Gravity

 * Released in Japan on October 15th, 2008.
 * Released in North America on September 7th, 2009.
 * Released in Europe on September 11th, 2009.
 * In the Wii and PSP versions, The Gathering and both parts of the Final Tale are merged into one chapter called "The Crystals".

Rydia's party (with Luca, Edge, and Golbez) notice the moon turning the color of blood and is approaching the Earth, dropping meteors and damaging the planet. The party tries to enter Baron Castle but it is guarded by an Eidolon's force field and they must go around the world to find a way to break it. The party flies to Mist, and Rydia's mother's spirit advises them that the force field will be broken if they save the other Eidolons from their mind control.

In Kaipo, Yang and Ursula are passed out in their beds. At Fabul, the party gets the frying pan and a ladle from Sheila. When they give Ursula the ladle and whack Yang with the pan, they join, along with the Sylphs. Troia is covered in ice. Inside the Lodestone Cavern, Shiva is holding the place under a spell; after defeating her, Rydia either gains her as a summonable Eidolon or destroys her. Palom and Leonora join after Troia is unfrozen.

Eblan is engulfed in flames in Ifrit's possession. Edge tells everyone to flee so he may take Ifrit on by himself, but he is defeated. Rubicante (the former head of the Archfiends) appears, and gives Edge a clue on how to defeat Ifrit. Edge bands together with Rydia to defeat Ifrit with Rubicante's Inferno skill. Upon Ifrit's defeat, he rejoins Rydia.

In Mysidia, the party fights Ramuh and recruits Porom. Afterward, they head to Agart and fight Titan, who opens a rift in the ground, swallowing the party whole. After climbing back up through Agart's well, Porom appears briefly to assist them by casting Float on everybody, rendering Titan defeatable. After Titan has joined them, the party drags an exhausted Porom back to the Falcon. They return to Mist, where the Mist Dragon joins Rydia.

The party journeys to Baron Castle where they break the force field. Ceodore's party (with Kain, Rosa, Edward, and Cid) fights the possessed Cecil and Odin who comes to his senses and knocks Cecil out of his possession. While the others nurse Cecil, Ceodore joins with Rydia, Golbez, Rosa, and Edge to take out the Mysterious Girl. She dies, but dozens of her appear from nowhere and tell the party they are awaiting on the True Moon. Golbez calls the Lunar Whale to chase after the girls.

Final Tale, Part One: True Moon

 * Released in Japan on November 19, 2008
 * Released in North America on September 7th, 2009
 * Released in Europe on September 11th, 2009.

The Lunar Whale is parked outside of the Subterrane of the True Moon. Cecil has lost himself and can barely talk or recognize the world around him. In the crater dungeon the eight Crystals are scattered about and each Crystal contains a boss fight. At the end Cecil and Golbez fight Dark Knight Cecil, who uses a special attack to bring everyone to near-fatal status. He tries to kill each party member one by one but Cecil blocks each hit. When the Dark Knight attacks Cecil, Golbez guards him from the attack, taking a mortal blow. However, if the player has Golbez, Ceodore, Cecil, and Rosa in the party when they encounter the Dark Knight, Golbez will survive. Cecil regains his lost strength and White Magic and claims the Excalibur. After the battle, Cecil thanks Golbez and the party, and heads to a warp tile.

Final Tale, Part Two: Planet Eater

 * Released in Japan on December 24, 2008
 * Released in North America on September 7th, 2009.
 * Released in Europe on September 11th, 2009:

The party continues on to encounter Crystals containing bosses. The party encounters the Mysterious Girl, who summons Bahamut. After an intense battle, Bahamut comes to his senses and turns on the Mysterious Girl, pushing her back. Several clones confront the party, revealing the Mysterious Girl's name to be Maenad. They discover a child Maenad, who opens the last remaining door leading to the True Moon's core. The party reaches The Creator, the last surviving member of a species which once prospered on the distant edge of the universe, but destroyed its own civilization. Concerned about whether or not evolution was a necessity and wishing to conduct experiments regarding the evolution of life, it created a host of Crystals capable of recording the history of a world and distributed them upon planets which held the promise of life.

The Creator mass-produced and dispatched the Maenads to recover the Crystals. It deems the Blue Planet's races evolutionary failures whose continued existence cannot be permitted, and, like the worlds of other inferior races, attempts to devour the Blue Planet with the True Moon, which is revealed to be the remains of a space fleet once manned by the Creator's race.

The party engages The Creator in combat and after defeating it, the area begins to explode. Pausing only to rescue the child Maenad, the party retreats as The Creator pursues them throughout several battles, although multiple Maenads appear to protect the party and the child Maenad. As he dies from a final Meteor spell cast by a Maenad, The Creator thanks the party and perishes.

Corio observes the True Moon leaving, paralleling the original game's end. The Lunar Whale returns to Earth with the party intact, along with the child Maenad. Leonora is present in Troia as the priestesses offer her a position, which she declines. Izayoi disguised as one of the women present, laughs. Leonora heads off to Mysidia, where Palom and Porom are with the Elder, who offers them a joint position as the leaders of Mysidia. Palom complains about not being ready or wanting to handle the responsibility. Leonora shows up and asks Palom and Porom to train her as a sage now that she has quit the priesthood. Tsukinowa, disguised as a frog, is keeping watch.

At the Dwarven Castle, Giott and Luca are approached by Cid and Mid (Cid's grandson), who go to work on an airship, trying to figure out how to power it with the Crystals' magic (with a disguised Zangetsu also present, nearly blowing his cover by saying "NALI-ho" instead of "LALI-ho"). They mention disarming all weapons. In Fabul, Yang begins to train Ursula himself, reminding her he is not going to go easy on her just because she is his daughter. As she gasps for breath and picks herself back up, Gekkou admires the kingdom's strength. In Damcyan, Edward and Harley observe the Crystal. Although pulled away by an elder for discussion about Cecil's plan to amass the material needed to rebuild the damage caused to the Blue Planet since the moon meteors nearly destroyed it, Edward sees the spirits of Tellah and Anna, and thanks both of them.

Edge leaves Eblan Castle for Mist. He dismisses the Eblan Four, but they swear to await further orders. In Mist, Rydia is raising the child Maenad, now named Cuore. Leviathan and Asura arrive, greeting Rydia and saying they figured that since Rydia was not able to make it into the Feymarch last time she tried, it was their turn to pay her a visit. Edge arrives to see Rydia and Asura reveals it was Edge who invited them.

In Baron Rosa referees a sparring match between Cecil and Ceodore. Kain, new leader of the Red Wings, drafts Ceodore for a new quest: to travel the world rebuilding the damage caused by the meteor attack. Rosa and Cecil think of Golbez, who has taken the Lunar Whale to locate Fusoya and the other Lunarians. Biggs and Wedge's spirits make brief appearances behind Kain as he warns Ceodore they would be disappointed if he whines about it. They board the airship with Luca and Cid as they head off to Damcyan meet Edward and Cecil to gather materials.

Returning

 * Cecil Harvey
 * Rosa Joanna Farrell
 * Kain Highwind
 * Rydia
 * Yang Fang Leiden
 * Cid Pollendina
 * Edge Geraldine
 * Palom
 * Porom
 * Edward Chris von Muir
 * Golbez
 * Fusoya
 * Luca
 * Calca
 * Brina
 * Leonora
 * Biggs and Wedge
 * Kain?

New

 * Ceodore Harvey: Cecil and Rosa's fifteen-year-old son, who joined the Red Wings in hope of following in his father's footsteps.
 * Ursula: As Yang's daughter, she wishes to become strong like him, but he refuses to teach her.
 * The Eblan Four: A group of ninjas from Eblan, consisting of four members; Gekkou, Izayoi, Tsukinowa, and Zangetsu.
 * Harley: Edward's personal secretary, she is determined to become a scholar.
 * Mysterious Girl: The Mysterious Girl is the game's primary antagonist who is collecting the Crystals. She bears a striking resemblance to Rydia, although with teal hair instead of green.
 * Mid: Cid's grandson.

Development
Final Fantasy IV: The After Years came about as the developers were in the midst of remaking Final Fantasy IV for the Nintendo DS; the idea was to create a companion piece for a mobile platform. Rather than create a packaged version, which would take one to two years of development, the team wanted something the players of Final Fantasy IV DS version could play right after finishing it.

When remaking Final Fantasy IV for the DS, and coming up with the sequel, the developers thought it would be possible to create a sequel based on a change in generations. Takashi Tokita has compared it to the Star Wars prequels. This is a deliberate homage, as Final Fantasy IV also has Biggs and Wedge and a Darth Vader type character. A theme of Final Fantasy IV: The After Years was to show weak characters developing emotionally rather than physically, thus Cecil is not present in the beginning of the game, rather being a motivational character who rallies everyone up.

There was demand for a packaged version of Final Fantasy IV: The After Years, and that's where the developers started in terms of creating Final Fantasy IV: The Complete Collection for PlayStation Portable.

3D remake
The remake version for iOS and Android is based upon the Final Fantasy IV remake made of Final Fantasy IV on the DS, but the The After Years version will be a refined version of that original engine. The version reuses environments and polygonal models, though there are new characters and locations as well. Instead of being episodic, the new version is in a single package.

Trivia

 * The game takes place seventeen years after the original Final Fantasy IV, a most likely intentional timescale because the original Japanese release of The After Years was seventeen years after the release of Final Fantasy IV on the SNES.
 * The game is visually similar to Final Fantasy IV Advance, although it references a plot point that was exclusive to the DS remake (namely Golbez's background).
 * The plot at the end of the game is similar to the end of Final Fantasy VI, in which the world is ravaged and the party members must be reunited by traveling the world, each waiting on the airship while the player's party travels once they have been recruited.
 * Ceodore's artwork was altered for the game's American version. It is a somewhat less manga-esque face than in the Japanese version.
 * Many pieces of artwork featuring Porom, Rydia, and Ursula were altered to be less revealing in the American version.
 * Many unused items are in the game's code, and still have their stats intact. This includes equipment exclusively found in the Advance version, and others not found anywhere else, such as the Tokita Sword. The Tokita Sword gives characters maximum stats and allows them to break the damage limit of 9,999. It is possible that these items were transferred from the code of the Advance version or were also used for beta testing.
 * Square Enix published a novelization of the game in Japan in March 2009. It was written by Ichiro Tezuka, who is also known for writing the scenario to ''.