Final Fantasy 16: Release Date, Trailers, Gameplay, And More
After a huge reveal back in September 2020, Final Fantasy 16 was finally announced to the public in a showcase that revealed a return to the medieval fantasy setting of some older titles. Like most Final Fantasy games, each new instalment takes on a new universe and cast of characters, and from the trailers and information we've been given so far, there's a lot to learn about FF16 before its 2023 release. So read on for our full breakdown of Final Fantasy 16, including the release date, trailers, gameplay, and more.
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Final Fantasy 16 Release Date
We are still yet to get a solid release date for Final Fantasy 16, but at the recent PlayStation State of Play in June, it was revealed that it would launch sometime in the summer of 2023. This places it roughly a year away as of writing this, so there's still a while to wait until you can get your hands on it. We'll make sure to update this once we get information on a concrete release.
Final Fantasy 16 Trailers
We got a pretty extensive trailer at the announcement of Final Fantasy 16. This was a deliberate choice by director/producer Naoki Yoshida, as he wanted to reduce speculation, and show fans exactly what kind of game it would be. It also served as a way of showing that the game wasn't half a decade from release, as Square Enix have a reputation of announcing games very early in their life cycle.
The trailer showed a myriad of fast cutting scenes from both a cinematic and gameplay perspective, escalating from soldiers at a bonfire, to warfare, and then to a giant burning demon with a phoenix. The story seems to pivot around Mothercrystals which have shaped the history of the land by providing people with the ability to create magic. However, a Blight is spreading through the land and threatens to destroy that peace, which is presumably where your character would jump in to save the day.
The latest trailer for FF16 came at the PlayStation State of Play in June, where we saw a lot more gameplay, ranging from smaller skirmishes, to massive battles between giant fantasy creatures called Eikons.
Final Fantasy 16 Gameplay
Click to enlargeThe gameplay that we have so far in both trailers looks typical of Final Fantasy, with tonnes of flair and flourish to the combat, big environments, and all the damage numbers you could dream of. It seems that your character is one of the game's Dominants, who are people with extraordinary powers they can harness to turn into powerful creatures called Eikons. The scale of the combat shown between the Eikons makes it clear why FF16 is a next-gen title, but it does also show comparatively more subtle encounters between humans, so it's likely these Eikon encounters will be bigger moments in the game.
Final Fantasy 16 Platforms
Click to enlargeAs far as we know, Final Fantasy 16 will be a PlayStation 5 exclusive. The previous title in the series did launch on both Sony and Microsoft consoles on the same day, even coming to PC two years later. While we could imagine FF16 getting a PC release at some point after launch, the ramping up of console exclusivity certainly suggests it may stay a PlayStation game.
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