When Naoki Yoshida came to present the new trailer of Final Fantasy XVI during the last State of Play, he also promised us that interviews were coming to give us more details on this episode. Today we discover these edifying interviews with IGN, Game Informer and many others, which finally allow us to have a more precise idea of the game, going from its absence of open-world to its combat system, passing by the release date of the next trailer.
No open world, but a real sense of travel
Yes, you will have understood it, Final Fantasy XVI will not be an open-world. Yoshida indicates that despite the absence of this open world, large areas will be present, and that the game is still inspired by the open-world AAA RPGs of recent years :
” To bring a story that feels like it spans everyone and beyond, we decided to avoid an open world that limits us to a single open world space, and instead focus on a game design based on several independent areas which can give players a better feeling of traveling around the world. »
We can therefore imagine a structure at the dragon age inquisition or Pokemon Legends Arceuswith perhaps each nation having its own map?
The combat system is clarified
As we could already guess with the last trailer, Clive will base his attacks and chains on the power of the Primordials. Each of the Primordials will be entitled to their own skill tree for Clive, and it will be up to us to customize their skills according to our style of play.
Speaking of a more dynamic combat system, Yoshida praises the merits of that of Final Fantasy VII Remakewhile asserting that Final Fantasy XVI will be different and will have its own uniqueness:
“ Final Fantasy 7 Remake wouldn’t exist without the original Final Fantasy 7, and the latter’s systems ultimately influenced what the Remake became. Final Fantasy 16, however, is a whole new game with a completely different concept.. In order to give the series a new direction, rather than relying on old combat systems, director Hiroshi Takai and combat director Ryota Suzuki focused on real-time action, transforming abilities of traditional summons into player actions, and allowing these abilities to be swapped and chained in real time, which allowed us to create a system that not only looks great, but actually feels great to play. »
The Battles of Primordials
The last trailer focused on the strong presence of the Primordials in the game, these famous invocations that are typical of the series. Except that unlike most episodes, here, Primordials seem to be really playable (Clive will be able to transform)with battles of giants between them.
Naoki Yoshida says a little more about these fights like no other:
” Primordials appear in many different situations. They are not all represented in the same way. Some will face Clive as fierce enemies, others will be friends and come to Clive’s aid. There will also be times when the player controls a Primordial in real time, battling other Primordials. The type and scale of battle stays fluid and happens naturally depending on the battle…allowing you to keep all the thrill of combat while maintaining immersion. These action-oriented battles are one of Final Fantasy 16’s biggest selling points, and we’ll be bringing you more details about it in the coming months. »
We therefore imagine that these fights will therefore not be just a series of QTEs, but that certain Primordials may well be controlled. Each battle against them promises to be unique, with even one fight featuring a 3D shooter sequence, while another looks like a wrestling match. (we imagine it’s against Titan).
Companions will be present, but not playable
In the last trailer, we could see that Clive, the game’s protagonist, was widely highlighted, but above all that he seemed to be the only character in the adventure, far from what the series Final Fantasy got used to us.
Does that mean there won’t be a band and other characters accompanying Clive? Not necessarily according to Naoki Yoshida:
“ We didn’t want to overwhelm players in our new trailer, so we focused only on Clive’s battles. That said, for most of his journey, Clive will be accompanied by one or more companions. These companions will also participate in the battle, as well as they can exchange pleasantries with Clive. That said, party members will be controlled by the AI to allow players to focus solely on controlling Clive.. »
Clive will therefore not be entirely alone, but nothing is known of the identity of the other companions. We could bet on the other Dominants, although Clive will obviously fight them, for the most part.
If Yoshida does not want to confirm anything at this time, he indicates that Torgal, the cute little puppy seen in the first trailer, could become one of these companions (having grown well we imagine). After all, we learn that we will follow Clive since his childhood, in his twenties until his thirtieswhich means that he will meet different allies at different times of his life.
No DLC planned, next trailer in autumn
We learn at the same time when it comes out, Final Fantasy XVI will be a complete gameand that for the moment, no additional content is planned.
Yoshida again explains that the game is playable from start to finish, but the localization in the multiple languages still needs to be completed, as does the balance of the game. action, it takes a little longer.
However, we should soon hear again about Final Fantasy XVI. But it won’t be this summer, because we will have to wait until next fall to be entitled to a new trailer. The latter will focus on the game’s storyline, with more details about the universe and Clive’s story. Maybe during the Tokyo Game Show?
Final Fantasy XVI will arrive on PlayStation 5 sometime in summer 2023.