Music

Ariana Grande becomes playable Final Fantasy character

by Jeremy Mersereau

Maybe a decade or two ago a pop star could rake in absurd cash without some brand synergy, but it’s a different world today. If you’re a top-tier pop icon and want that ridiculous 90s money, you’re gonna need to take advantage of more cross-promotional opportunities than ever before, and what better medium to get involved in video games, aka the one that increases in cultural cachet (and profit) every day? Anyway, long story short: Ariana Grande is in Final Fantasy now, and one of her songs is being remixed for the game.

Ariana’s been pixelized in her trademark “Dangerous Woman” bunny ears for Final Fantasy Brave Exvius, the mobile edition of the long-running RPG series from Japanese game development corp Square Enix. The game was originally released in 2015, but continues to be updated with new features and characters, which will soon include Grande.

“It’s the cutest thing I’ve ever seen in my entire life and I’m so excited and in love with it I cannot contain myself,” Grande said of her character, which looks like this:

Grande’s character hasn’t been officially released yet, but fans clamouring for the singer in their favourite series’ mobile iteration don’t just have a character to look forward to: “Touch It” is being remixed in the Final Fantasy style, through the use of a 52-piece orchestra. “I certainly don’t think you’ve heard anything like this from Ariana Grande before, and I think Final Fantasy fans will be happy to hear something new in this game,” said the song’s producer Nick Wood.

There’s currently no official release date for the character’s in-game appearance, but Square Enix has stated that more info will soon be made public. Hopefully that info will include why they went with Ariana Grande, of all people.

[H/T Sky News]