Final Fantasy 16 is an enormous beast, as is tradition with the long-running RPG series, but just how long is it? Here we’ll let you know exactly how many hours it took different members of the IGN team to finish the story, and what they prioritised doing with their time.
How long is Final Fantasy 16?
Our fastest player finished it in 29 hours.
Our “slowest” player spent 60 hours before credits rolled.
Everyone plays games differently, so read on for more details about how everyone played, how long it took to reach the credits, and how much extra time players spent exploring the world. Once you’ve finished the game yourself, be sure to submit your times on How Long To Beat and see how your time compares!
Matt Purslow – News and Features Editor
Playing with a focus on the main story, it took me 46 hours to complete Final Fantasy 16. I discovered fairly early on that the side quests are a bit simple for my liking, and so by the mid-way point I was ignoring all of them aside from those which improved my gear. Overall I completed 25 side quests and a couple of the optional monster hunts, which I’d say extended my time beyond the main scenario by about eight to ten hours. I also spent quite a while reading the in-game lore entries and history lessons, which constantly update as the story progresses, and that’s likely why I’m not the fastest on this list despite more or less mainlining the story.
While I’ve missed out on the very best weapons and a variety of items that are awarded for doing side content, it didn’t affect my enjoyment and certainly didn’t hamper my ability to deal out effective damage on the action-focused difficulty mode. By sticking mostly to the main quests, when the credits rolled I’d progressed Clive up to Level 42. Even on the action-focused setting, Final Fantasy 16 isn’t a difficult game, and the final boss didn’t prove particularly challenging at this level. So if you’re planning on mainlining the story you can be reasonably confident that you won’t have to grind. Definitely do the side quests that increase the number and potency of your healing potions, though!
Mitchell Saltzman – Senior Producer
I took my time with Final Fantasy 16, systematically crossing off every green exclamation mark denoting a sidequest on the map, up until the main quest’s “point of no return,” at which point about 12 more popped up, and I decided to leave those for after I beat the final boss. All together, it took me about 60 hours before I hit credits, and that includes about half of the bounty board, roughly 60 or so sidequests, and some toying around with FF16’s arcade mode, trying to set some high scores.
I’ve also dabbled a bit with the extensive New Game+ mode, which remixes enemy locations, increases the difficulty, raises the level cap, and provides all new opportunities to upgrade your gear. I still find the difficulty pretty easy even in NG+ mode, at least at the start of the remixed campaign, so I don’t know if it’s going to carry me through a whole second playthrough, but I do envision myself going back through my main save, finishing up the rest of the sidequests, hunting down my remaining bounties, and locating and completing all of the chronolith trials.
Dale Driver – Executive Producer of Video
I stormed through the story of Final Fantasy 16 in 29 hours, taking part in a good chunk of the sidequests along the way too. Infact, I would often prioritise chipping away at my huge list of incomplete side activities before taking on some of the big bosses the game has to offer. A side effect of this was I consistently found myself overpowered and the enemies lacking much of a challenge.
After the credits rolled I still had over a dozen side quests to do, and 20 notorious marks to hunt down, so I could easily see myself sinking in another 10 hours into the world of Valisthea.
I’m a keen trophy hunter though, and I’ve already got my eyes on the platinum prize. I’m close to having the majority complete already, but they’ll be one outstanding gold that will likely double the completion time. You can have to complete the entire game again in Final Fantasy mode. Definitely set aside a minimum of 60 hours if you’re looking for that precious platty.
If you want to see how Final Fantasy 16 stacks up in length to the previous games in the series, check out our complete Playlist of Final Fantasy games. You can sort it by HLTB playtime, rating, and release date. And you can of course make your own lists and rankings, too. And if you need a little help with anything in Valisthea, be sure to check out our Final Fantasy 16 guides.
Big Ant Studios and NACON have today confirmed that Cricket 24 will be released on October 5, 2023. Described by the studio as “the culmination of a decade of cricket video game development,” Cricket 24 will be available on PS5 and PS4, Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One, as well as PC.
Announced in April, Cricket 24 was initially scheduled to arrive at the crease in time for this year’s Ashes series – which has already commenced.
It’s not all bad news, though; it’s also been confirmed Pakistan is joining the roster of officially included cricketing nations – just in time for the Pakistan tour of Australia this 2023-24 summer. Pakistan join Australia, England, West Indies, New Zealand, and Ireland in Cricket 24, although more nations appear set to be announced over the coming months. Cricket 24 will also feature the Pakistan Super League alongside other previously confirmed official tournaments, including The Ashes, the BBL and WBBL, The Hundred, and the Caribbean Premier League. An unspecified selection of professional Indian T20 clubs are also joining the game, and more than 50 official stadiums are set to feature.
“We can’t wait for cricket fans to be able to experience and play Cricket 24, leading their favourite Test, One Day or T20 team to victory in the most realistic cricket video game ever made,” said Big Ant CEO Ross Symons in a statement accompanying the new release date. “After a decade of experience the Big Ant Studios team are the leading cricket video game developers in the world. We are really excited to offer our fans Cricket 24 this October, a cricket game with greater immersion and depth than any that have come before it.”
Luke is Senior Editor and part of the IGN reviews team. You can chat to him on Twitter @MrLukeReilly.
It’s now June 21 and there have been over 20 gaming showcases this summer (since PlayStation kicked things off on May 24 with their showcase) including a Final Fantasy XVI pre-launch celebration and Final Fantasy 7 announcement from Summer Game Fest. Even though Sony, Ubisoft, Microsoft, Capcom and other big companies have officially wrapped up their game events for the summer, IGN is excited to announce another exciting livestream still to come: a Final Fantasy 16 Summer of Gaming Preview. So, if you’re a Final Fantasy fan, keep reading!
Assuming you’re caught up on all the gaming showcases thus far, this is one of the final streams airing from IGN Summer of Gaming after extensive gaming coverage across May and June 2023. In case you need to catch up on exclusive clips and gameplay first from Final Fantasy 16, check out our first-look videos from the game including hunt battles (a closer look into two different Notorious Mark battles), FF16 Boss Fights gameplay, and learn how FF16’s side quests affect the story, (and vice versa).
We hope you’ll join us as IGN plays through part of FF16 with Producer Naoki Yoshida and Director Hiroshi Takai in anticipation for Final Fantasy 16’s release – coming to PS5 on June 22.
How to Watch FFXVI Summer of Gaming Preview Livestream
Tune into the special FF16 livestream on Thursday, June 22 right here on IGN or on any of our channels below:
Watch IGN’s Nicholas Limon sit down with Final Fantasy 16 Producer, Naoki Yoshida, and Director, Hiroshi Takai, to discuss all things Final Fantasy. They’ll answer fan questions about the game and even rate Nicholas’ Arcade Mode performance throughout The Greatwoods, Garuda bossfight, and monster hunt.
For More Final Fantasy:
Where to Buy FF16
FF16 releases on June 22. You can buy Final Fantasy 16 standard or deluxe editions at retailers like Amazon, Best Buy, Walmart and beyond. Here’s what comes in each FF16 Edition so you can know before you buy.
Exclusive Clips from Final Fantasy 16:
Watch: Devs Introduce Eikon Abilities:
Watch: We asked six members of the Final Fantasy 16 dev team to tell us their Top 3 Final Fantasy games. Here’s what they had to say:
If you are playing Tears of the Kingdom, (we hope you are), you’ll absolutely need this interactive map of Hyrule! The in-game map is helpful, (here’s how to reveal it by finding all of the Skyview Towers), but if you want to set a destination, like those Towers – or Shrines, Great Fairies, or Korok Seeds– and just knock them out, we’ve got the locations for everything in the interactive “TOTK” map. The map of Central Hyrule holds more surprises than you’d think. We’ve found them all.
Tears of the Kingdom Map (Central Hyrule)
On the Tears of the Kingdom Interactive Map page, you can:
Filter by map marker
Check off your progress as you go
Store your checklist data online
Once you are on the helpful Tears of the Kingdom Interactive Map page, you can filter by map marker type easily (eg. Koroks, Fairies, Shrines, Caves), but even better, you can check off your progress as you go to make sure you’ve gotten them all. We actually save that data for you, so when you come back, your precious Seeds stash is tracked and ready to pick up where you left off. In fact, we store your checked-off Shrines, Fairies, and Koroks in the cloud so if you switch to your phone from your laptop, we have you covered.
And by the by, about those Shrines, we have many, many guides to the Shrine puzzles themselves including the step-by-step instructions for reaching them.
Find Important Weapon and Armor Locations
In addition to finding key locations and Korok seeds, the interactive Tears of the Kingdom map can help you find the best weapons and armor in the game. You can also filter by materials or enemies to find their locations on the map.
Tears of the Kingdom Map-based Spoilers
Note that the Tears of the Kingdom Hyrule map has three layers:
The Sky
The Surface
The Depths
The Sky, The Surface, and the Depths maps are stacked in our Tears of the Kingdom Interactive Map, so you can scroll up on the map to see the Sky, down to see the Depths. In the Depths, Light Roots are also mapped (and note that they correspond to the locations of the Shrines above, which is a nice hint for exploring the Depths).
Tears of the Kingdom Walkthrough
For help with everything Tears of the Kingdom, hop into our massive Tears of the Kingdom Walkthrough to set about making your way through Hyrule.
More Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom Guides
Samuel Claiborn is IGN’s Managing Editor. He has worked at IGN for over 13 years and has contributed to hundreds of game strategy guides and videos, reviews, and other fun things IGN publishes over the years.
On paper, Crash Team Rumble doesn’t seem like it should work. It’s a team-based, strategic platformer that breaks a lot of the rules we associate with other multiplayer games like it. Instead of getting ahead by KOing members of the enemy team, you’re racing to collect 2,000 Wumpa Fruit before them. But while this concoction may seem strange at a glance, it comes together in surprisingly fun fashion. The three hours I was able to spend with Crash Team Rumble as part of a pre-release review session (plus a few more on live servers since launch) isn’t enough to get a full sense of what’s here or how it might hold up over time, but I did come away with a much better understanding of what developer Toys For Bob is going for and a hunger to collect even more Wumpa Fruit.
Rumble’s 4-on-4 matches pit teams of iconic Crash Bandicoot characters against each other. There are currently eight to choose from, each broken into one of three archetypes: Scorers: Crash, Tawna, and Catbat; Blockers: Dingodile, Dr. N. Brio, and Dr. N. Tropy; and Boosters: Coco and Dr. Neo Cortex. It’s a good starting roster – so far I’ve enjoyed playing as any character, and they all feel very different even if they come from the same archetype.
Scorers are, naturally, the best at scoring. They can hold more Wumpa Fruit at one time than the other archetypes, tend to be pretty good at fighting off enemies trying to stop you, and usually have special movement abilities that make them tough to corner. Blockers are good at blocking scorers from scoring. They can sit on the other team’s bank for a long time if played well, with strong offensive capabilities and knack for controlling the space around them. Boosters are a little less straightforward; their job is to support their team, but they do so in a couple of interesting ways.
Boosters are custom-built for capturing fights, which can be won and lost in an instant.
The first is by capturing Gems by simply jumping on them, which is essential because they provide a significant scoring boost. There’s a big difference between turning in Wumpa Fruit normally and turning them in when you control every group of Gems on the map because that means you’re doubling your score. Even capturing at an additional 30% makes a huge difference, and Boosters are custom-built for capturing fights, which can be won and lost in an instant. They excel at keeping other players away from them (or their location), but they’re not just there to capture Gems.
The real game-changer is when you take your Booster – who can collect Relics more quickly than Scorers or Blockers – to the stage-specific ultimate Relic Stations and cash them in for power-ups. There’s only one of these on each of the 10 launch maps, and they’re more expensive than standard Relic Station upgrades that only affect your character, but the rewards are enormous. Just Beachy’s is a Bonus Bank that doubles your Wumpa turn-ins as long as it’s up. City Scrape’s summons TNT drones that chase your enemies. Serenity Gardens’ gets you a Big Bonsai, a tree full of Wumpa Fruit. Others summon dragons, spaceships, sandstorms… there’s a lot. Best of all, each one is specifically tailored to its map’s themes and design, which has helped each and every one I’ve played so far feel unique.
Locking in a character doesn’t mean you’re stuck doing one thing.
All of this adds up to a game that asks you to make a lot of important decisions on the fly during the action, but picking your team composition beforehand matters just as much because you can’t change your mind once the match starts. I love Dingodile; his vacuum sucks up Wumpas and enemies from afar; his spin attack hits hard, can be charged, and holds an area well; and he’s pretty tanky. That said, a team of four Dongodiles is probably not a good idea because his mobility is limited and he can’t keep up with the Scorers in sheer Wumpa collection.
Locking in a character doesn’t mean you’re stuck doing one thing, though. Sure, Dingodile is a Blocker, but his vacuum lets him suck up Wumpa Fruit quickly and he can hold more of them than the average Blocker or Booster, so he can still score in a pinch. Crash’s speed and ability to carry a lot of Wumpa is core to being a Scorer, but he’s also handy in a fight and his Slam and Super Slam attacks work great if you’re trying to control space or KO another player – ideal for double-duty as a Booster or a Blocker. Each character is different: Tawna has a grappling hook for zooming around the map and pulling enemies to her, Dr. N. Tropy can hover and create energy balls that knock opponents away, Coco’s shields can keep other players off of platforms, and so on. I haven’t gotten a chance to really dig into everyone yet, but what’s here is promising, and it’s nice that a character’s specializations don’t stop you from going where you’re most needed. Crash Team Rumble is about adaptation as much as it is filling your role.
Every character also gets a Power that charges up throughout the match. They’re not character specific – you can choose from a list – but they can make all the difference in a close game. The Wumpa Stash builds up over time once you activate it, letting you score big when you turn in Wumpa if you can stay alive long enough. There’s also a refrigerator that will heal any allies within range, the Gasmoxian Guard, whose lightning pulses are great for holding areas or playing keep away, and the Flytrap Spitter, which attacks enemies from range. Matches can be won and lost based on what abilities you choose and when you deploy them. My team stole the final match of our review session because I saved my Gasmoxian Guard until the last second – it knocked the entire enemy team off our bank, allowing us to score for the win.
What I like most about Crash Team Rumble so far, though, is its map design and how it forces you to use your character’s skills. The maps here remind me of arena FPSes like Quake or Unreal. There’s a lot of height to them, and being able to get to where you want to be quickly – and developing routes that maximize your Wumpa pickups, Relic collection, Gem activation, and drop-offs along the way – is crucial to winning. I really enjoyed maximizing my routes through maps, and I can’t wait to perfect them as I spend more time in the full version.
I still have a lot more Crash Team Rumble to play, but I’ve really enjoyed what I’ve seen so far. It’s already clear how much its unique multiplayer structure rewards map knowledge, teamwork, and smart play. I still need to play around with more of the cast, put the unlock systems through their paces, and master the maps, but I’m excited to see what else I discover as I get more comfortable with it. I’ll be back with a final, scored review next week, but until then I’ll be happily scoring Wumpas.
Microsoft is about to increase the price of the Xbox Series X and Game Pass, The Verge reports.
In a statement sent to the outlet, Kari Perez, the head of communications at Xbox, confirmed the price hikes. Microsoft will increase the price of its high-end ninth-generation console, the Xbox Series X, beginning August 1. The Verge notes that the pricing will impact most countries (not including the US), explaining that the cost of an Xbox Series X will be £479.99 in the UK, €549.99 across most European markets, CAD $649.99 in Canada, and AUD $799.99 in Australia. Important to note that the Xbox Series S will remain at the same price of $299.99 for the 512GB model or $349.99 for the 1TB model.
However, the price of Xbox Game Pass will go up in all countries with the service. Beginning July 6, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate will now cost $16.99 (a $2 increase), and regular Xbox Game Pass will now cost $10.99 monthly (a $1 increase). However, the price of PC Game Pass will remain at $9.99 a month. This is the first time that Microsoft has announced an increase for Xbox Game Pass since the service launched in 2017.
“We’ve held on our prices for consoles for many years and have adjusted the prices to reflect the competitive conditions in each market,” Perez told The Verge.
Developing…
Taylor is a Reporter at IGN. You can follow her on Twitter @TayNixster.
Lies of P’s awkward dodging button will be fixed before the game launches, developer Neowiz Games has confirmed.
A Q&A with director Jiwon Choi was uploaded to Lies of P’s YouTube, who explained the development team have heard fan feedback regarding the dodging in the game.
“We have taken note of the substantial feedback received regarding the dodging system in Lies of P,” he said. “Dodging and guarding are one of the most crucial elements, alongside the P-Organ.
“Given the inherent intricacies of the game’s structure it is imperative to handle these elements meticulously with great care. We are currently undergoing a comprehensive evaluation on the various aspects of the dodging system including the invincibility frames, distance mechanics, and more.”
This will come as a welcome adjustment to those who played the demo and general fans of the Souls-like genre, where a correctly timed dodge is the difference between victory and defeat.
In our preview of the game, IGN said: “Even if Pinocchio’s story in Lies of P isn’t being manipulated by cosmic old gods that turn people into slugs, the attention to detail in recapturing Bloodborne’s magic has got [our] full attention.”
Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelance reporter. He’ll talk about The Witcher all day.
Xbox owners are always looking for a great deal, especially as our love for Game Pass is twinned with how great of an offer it is! So, if you are looking for a discount on anything Xbox-related, you’ve come to the right place. We’ve got deals on Xbox SSDs, Game Pass, OLED TVs, and so much more!
TL;DR – Best Xbox Deals
There are also preorders listed below for the highly-anticipated Starfield, including its limited-edition headset and controller. Check out all the relevant deal links we’ve left below.
Order Starfield Limited-Edition Xbox Controller and Headset
Alongside the game, you can also order the limited-edition Starfield-themed Xbox headset and controller. Better yet, these items are available to purchase right now, so you don’t have to wait for Starfield to officially release before you can get them.
For those looking to get their hands on Bethesda’s exciting new space adventure, you can preorder the game now at various retailers listed below. It will also be available day one on Game Pass for those subscribed. If you’d like to see what comes in each edition of the game, make sure to visit our Starfield preorder guide.
Preorder the New Xbox Series S With 1TB SSD in Carbon Black
This year’s Xbox Showcase had plenty of exciting reveals, and one of its best was the brand new Xbox Series S with a 1TB SSD. What’s even better is that it comes in a sleek Carbon Black color! It’s set to release on August 31 and is available to preorder right now from Microsoft or Best Buy.
Xbox: Budget to Best
Good Xbox deals only come around every once in a while, but thankfully, there are plenty of Xbox-related items worth picking up that won’t break the bank. Here, we’ll detail more affordable Xbox purchases that are worth your money.
Looking to pick up a new Xbox controller? Amazon is here to help with a sale on select options. The Pulse Red controller is currently available for $42.22, and you can also pick up the Electric Volt for $44.89 and the Robot White controller for $43.95.
Get the Xbox Series X Diablo IV Bundle
Diablo 4 is one of the hottest new games out right now, and you may find yourself wanting to pick up an Xbox Series X just to get in on the fun. Fortunately, Microsoft has bundled Diablo 4 with an Xbox Series X, so you can kill two birds with one stone. Not only will you get Diablo 4, but you’ll be set to play all of the exciting new games that were announced at Xbox’s showcase in the coming years.
Get Three Free Months of Xbox Game Pass with the Backbone Controller
The Backbone controller is already a great option for cloud gaming on your smartphone, but today that deal is even better. For $99.99, you can get both the Backbone gaming controller for Android devices and three free months of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, which is a $44.99 value. Game Pass seems to be going on sale less and less these days, so you have to scoop up these deals when you can. And fortunately, these two products go great together, as Game Pass gets you access to Xbox’s cloud gaming beta, where you can play tons of Xbox Game Pass games directly from your phone.
How to Get 105 Days of Walmart+ for Free
Sign Up for a Walmart+ 30-Day Free Trial – See Here
Activate your Xbox Game Pass Ultimate Walmart+ perk BEFORE your existing trial expires
Enjoy the benefits of Walmart+ for over three months (105 days to be exact)
Paramount+ is also included with Walmart+
So, it’s time to watch Dungeons & Dragons again!
Best Xbox Accessory Deals for June 2023
If you’ve been after any new accessories for your console, such as a new controller or headset, then you’re in the right place. Included in the deals below you can also find Xbox’s more recent controller release from February, the Stellar Shift controller, which has been marked down 15%.
Best Xbox Seagate Storage Expansion Card Deals
If you own an Xbox Series X|S, and especially if you frequently make good use of Xbox Game Pass and its many available titles, you’ll likely want a way to upgrade your storage to hold all of your favorite games and the ones you want to play later.
Best Xbox and Gaming Soundbar Deals
If you’ve got a killer living room set up, you may want to consider the next best thing to upgrading your space, a decent soundbar. Some of the most immersive elements of gaming can be from the incredible soundtracks, and often enough our TV speakers just aren’t good enough to pick up some of the most intricate sounds. This is where soundbars come in. Right now, you can even save on select Bose soundbar models!
Best OLED TV for Xbox Series X
This enables seamless 4K gaming at 120Hz on consoles like the PS5 or Xbox Series X. It also supports variable refresh rate (VRR), auto low latency mode (ALLM), and even HGiG, making it a comprehensive choice. These televisions are so exceptional that the smaller 48″ and 42″ sizes are also highly recommended as the best gaming PC monitors available. Check out our own IGN LG Evo C2 OLED TV review for our hands-on experience with this TV, or have a browse through our full OLED TV deals roundup for more options.
Robert Anderson is a deals expert and Commerce Editor for IGN. You can follow him @robertliam21 on Twitter.
Even with 16 mainline entries (20 if you include X-2, 13-2, Lightning Returns, and Final Fantasy 7 Remake) and a slew of spinoffs, there’s no Final Fantasy game quite like Final Fantasy 16. The latest in this legendary series is more an evolution of the character action genre than the RPG foundation the franchise was built on. It merges quick twitch reflexes with character-building RPG mechanics, but focuses far more on the former than ever before. It’s not a perfect mixture – while the combat is phenomenal for an action RPG, it is admittedly a bit lacking when compared directly to the greats of the character action genre – but even an imperfect mix is potent enough when paired with FF16’s epic, 50+ hour story. It’s packed with unforgettable characters, outstanding worldbuilding, an incredible soundtrack, and knock-your-socks-off moments of sheer spectacle the likes of which are rarely seen in any game.
Final Fantasy 16 picks up the ball that FF14 got rolling and continues to move the series back down the path of high fantasy, taking more than a little inspiration from Game of Thrones along the way. Its story spans decades’ worth of history in the realm of Valisthea, a land brimming with both beauty and death as an encroaching blight forces neighboring kingdoms to fight over untainted resources, including five enormous Mother Crystals that are the primary source of the realm’s magic.
At the heart of this tale is your character, Clive Rosfield, the eldest prince of the kingdom of Rosaria and protector of his brother Joshua, the Dominant of Phoenix (…let’s not get bogged down in jargon for now, we’ll talk about Dominants a bit later). Clive is a fantastic, well-rounded protagonist, brilliantly brought to life by actor Ben Starr. He undergoes a lot of change and development over the course of the decades-long story, but always remains supremely likable, relatable, and an absolute badass when the need arises, as it very often does.
Clive is a fantastic, well-rounded protagonist.
The rest of the cast is excellent as well. Jill (played by the excellent Susannah Fielding) is Clive’s childhood friend and acts as a wonderful companion who understands and empathizes with Clive on a deep and emotional level, and the tender scenes between them are always a highlight as their relationship grows. Cid is probably my new all-time favorite Final Fantasy character. He’s almost got a young Liam Neeson kind of vibe going on, despite being voiced impeccably by Ralph Ineson (who’s having quite a 2023 in the world of video games, having also starred in Diablo IV). Cid is a natural leader, full of charisma and charm, and without going into detail, his cause is one that was very easy to rally behind and made me excited to follow him and his band of outlaws.
A Story that Sticks
The greatest achievement of Final Fantasy 16’s story, though, is how it never leaves you to drown in its lore. This is a massive world complete with five kingdoms, each with their own forms of government, rulers, religions, and ideals; a whole encylopedia’s worth of realm-specific terms, like bearers, Eikons, and Dominants; and a grand history of the world that you’re expected to keep up with in order to get the most out of the big story moments. It would all be a little overwhelming if not for an ingenious quality-of-life feature that I truly hope becomes standard throughout all story-heavy video games: Active Time Lore.
At any point during any cutscene or conversation, you can hold down the DualSense touchpad to bring up a series of contextual compendium entries that are relevant to what’s going on in that scene. So anytime a character mentioned a term, character, or location that I either didn’t know or needed a reminder about, I could bring up the Active Time Lore and a succinct entry would be right there to get me up to speed. These entries change with the events of the story too, updating with new information about the state of the world and Clive’s knowledge about it as it happens.
Active Time Lore should become a standard throughout all story-heavy video games.
Having this kind of feature was a godsend. Later on, big missions are also preceded with stylish history lessons by your crew’s scholar that fill you in on what you need to know about the region you’re about to visit – who the rulers are, their ambitions, their allies, their enemies, and so on. I know that might sound like school, but it actually did a really effective job of bringing me into, and keeping me invested in, the realm of Valisthea.
One of the most interesting elements of the story – and one that also ends up being an excellent addition to the already very good combat – is the existence of Eikons and Dominants. Eikons are supremely powerful beings that Final Fantasy fans will recognize as the usual summons from previous games, and Dominants are the special humans who are able to tap into their power, even to the point of fully transforming into them. In the lore, Dominants are used almost like nuclear deterrents; saved as a last resort due to the potential mutually assured destruction that would be caused by their fights.
But fight they will, and everytime they do, it’s an unforgettable scrap of gargantuan proportion. I’d hate to spoil these encounters by talking too much about them, but I will say that they’re absolute spectacles. Some are like giant kaiju fights mixed with Dragon Ball Z, others take the gameplay in a completely different direction and play out like a Panzer Dragoon level. But nearly all of them brought back memories of playing Asura’s Wrath or God of War 3, and that feeling of just being absolutely floored by the breathtaking sense of scale and overwhelming power.
Fighting Fantasy
Final Fantasy has been shifting further and further away from its turn-based RPG roots for a long time now, and with Final Fantasy 16, it feels like a metamorphosis that’s been in the works for years is finally complete. Final Fantasy 16’s combat is a straight-up action game, full stop. It is fast, flexible, extremely reflex-driven, and is full of opportunities to absolutely style on your enemies with air combos, jump cancels, and a huge arsenal of extremely powerful spells and abilities.
Some sacrifices are made to facilitate this transformation: You only ever control one character, levels are far more linear than they’ve been in the past – though about as linear as they were in Final Fantasy 13 before that game opens up – and many of the actual RPG elements have been made to play second fiddle in ways that I’ll discuss shortly. Purists might not be a fan of these drastic changes, but I found this approach far more preferable to FFXV’s more hybridized take on combat, and equally enjoyable to FF7 Remake’s unique approach.
Despite how chaotic the action may look, it’s actually elegantly simple once you break it down.
Despite how chaotic the action may look, it’s actually elegantly simple once you break it down. Clive can execute a four hit melee combo by mashing Square, he can shoot magic with Triangle to hit enemies at a distance, he can use an ability unique to whatever Eikon power he currently has equipped, and he also has access to up to three abilities from that Eikon as well.
In familiar Final Fantasy fashion, for bigger enemies and bosses there’s a stagger meter that you can fill by landing attacks, and once it’s full, they will be put in a staggered state, giving you an opportunity to build up a multiplier and lay down huge amounts of damage for a limited amount of time. Much of the skill involved with combat comes from your ability to quickly stagger enemies, and then maximize the amount of damage you’re able to do while they’re staggered by optimally using your skills and switching between your Eikons.
To that end, there’s a lot of smart mechanics in place that reward skillful play. If you just mash the attack button, you won’t build up stagger very quickly, but if you use carefully timed magic attacks in between your melee attacks, you’ll execute magic bursts, which do more damage and build more stagger. On top of that, perfectly timed evasions give opportunities for counter attacks that deal big stagger damage, or if you’re feeling extra fancy, you could try to time an attack to clash with theirs to trigger a parry, which slows down time and allows for even more punishment.
It’s a great combat system that kept my brain firing at a rapid pace as I balanced timing my magic bursts with managing my skill cooldowns and keeping an eye out for enemy tells to be ready to dodge – on top of just trying to look cool for the sake of looking cool, which is always an important element of any action game in my book. One of my favorite touches is that you can issue commands to your hound, Torgal, one of which will launch weaker enemies, allowing me to zip right to them in the air, juggle them with some quick aerial hits, and then send them crashing down with an explosive helm splitter-style attack.
All that said, this is a long game, and while you do pretty regularly get new Eikons and abilities, they don’t change up the combat in ways that make the basic fights substantially different or more engaging, which means they do eventually lose some of their luster. That isn’t helped by lots of recycled enemy types in the open fields and linear dungeons that you explore, either.
At least the bosses were always fresh and exciting, with many playing with some fun Final Fantasy tropes like having the names of their big attacks show up on the screen, and some exceptionally dangerous techniques even having a countdown that ends with an extremely powerful blow if you’re unable to do enough damage to stop them from getting it off. Many of the bigger boss battles also have QTEs that do a wonderful job of adding extra cinematic flair and punctuate the different phases of a fight with some truly awesome moments.
Imperfect Fusion
The weird twist of FF16 is that while the action elements are all top notch, the RPG elements feel a little underdeveloped. Status ailments are basically completely absent, there’s no real system of elemental strengths or weaknesses, very little in the realm of buffs and debuffs, and most crucially, loot seems like an afterthought. I never once felt incentivized to explore either the corners of the linear main levels, or the more open fields of the interconnected overworlds; and in general there just aren’t a ton of character building choices that you can make to customize Clive in any sort of unique way.
The weird twist of FF16 is that RPG elements feel a little underdeveloped.
The deepest it gets is that you can equip Clive with up to three accessories that can have a variety of useful. effects, usually powering up specific special abilities, increasing your combo damage, or increasing healing potency. You also begin with a total of five special rings that are designed to take some of the edge off of combat in lieu of lower difficulty modes. One essentially lets you mash Square and let the AI take the wheel as it automatically casts spells, switches Eikons, and uses basic attacks, while another will automatically dodge as long as an attack is capable of being avoided. While I personally didn’t feel the need to use these rings, I do appreciate their inclusion as a completely optional way to adjust the difficulty in very specific ways. Of course, the downside is that if you do equip them, you won’t have space for other stat-altering accessories, thus removing the one element of RPG-like customization all together.
But where Final Fantasy 16 really impressed me was in the quality of its sidequests… eventually. They actually start out pretty generic and menial, with objectives like finding X number of Y items out in the field, or delivering three hot bowls of soup to people in the hideout. However, in the back half of the story, these sidequests act as smart ways to button up all of the loose threads outside of the main campaign. Side characters are given proper send-offs, pieces that were toppled over in the central story are satisfyingly built back up, and characters that you wouldn’t really expect to have very deep backstories open up to you in often very moving ways. It’s exactly the kind of side content that I want in a big RPG, even though it takes a little while to get there.
And the soundtrack, by Bahamut’s grace, the soundtrack!
In addition to sidequests, there’s also a bounty board that you can use to locate exceptionally challenging monsters for some greater rewards. Many of them are just stronger versions of enemies that you’ve already fought, but others are boss encounters unto themselves and make up some of the hardest fights available. All things considered, there’s a fair amount of extra content here to keep you busy, and you’ll want to do as much of it as you can to be ready for New Game+, which significantly ups both the challenge and the level cap, and introduces new gear upgrades. Even beyond that, there’s also an arcade mode that you can use to go through previous levels to try and set high scores to upload to an online leaderboard. Needless to say, there’s a lot to do even once credits finish rolling.
And the soundtrack, by Bahamut’s grace, the soundtrack! It manages to perfectly accompany every big scene, whether it’s the tender moments between Clive and Jill, the quiet moments of respite inside the hideaway, or the absolutely epic battles between Eikons. I don’t know if I’m ready to claim it’s in the top Final Fantasy soundtracks of all time just yet, but it’s certainly one of the best soundtracks of 2023 so far. Final Fantasy 16 looks stunning, too. The performance may not hold onto a consistent 60 FPS all the time, even on the prioritized frame rate graphical setting, but those minor hiccups don’t stop it from still being one of the most gorgeous games I’ve ever played.
A Blizzard developer has explained the flavour text of a Diablo 4 item players are praising for helping brighten up their day.
Redditor Wholesome_Meow posted an image of the Mark of the Conclave amulet, highlighting its recently carved description: “Healing is a journey. A series of steps. Some days you may stumble, but so long as you continue to put one foot in front of the other, you will reach your destination.”
The post, currently on over 1,000 upvotes in the Diablo 4 subreddit, sparked a number of positive responses from those within the community, and it didn’t take long for the writer of the flavour text to notice.
Responding to Wholesome_Meow’s post, senior quest designer Harrison Pink took to Twitter to explain the thinking behind the text: “I wrote this flavor text for this person. I wrote it for me and I wrote it for you. I wrote it hoping against hope that it might help someone remember that things will get better.”
Mark of the Conclave is a reward for completing a side quest called A Series of Steps. It revolves around a witch doctor called Taissa who helps an NPC deal with grief after losing his son. In a follow-up tweet, Pink explained the thinking behind the quest.
“I created this quest to be about overcoming grief and trauma, and how you cannot force healing, or always slay your demons, but by accepting who you are NOW, you can continue to heal and move forward,” Pink revealed.
(I created this quest to be about overcoming grief and trauma, and how you cannot force healing, or always slay your demons, but by accepting who you are NOW, you can continue to heal and move forward)
Across social media Diablo fans have thanked Pink for the quest and the item description, with many praising the positivity it has generated. “I always hesitate about being emotionally vulnerable online but, in this instance I think it’s important,” Pink responded to one user.
