Final Fantasy 16, the next mainline installment of Square Enix’s popular Japanese role-playing game franchise, will be released June 22, 2023 on PlayStation 5, the publisher announced Thursday during The Game Awards 2022.
Square Enix and Final Fantasy 16 producer Naoki Yoshida also brought with them a new trailer, titled “Revenge,” packed with action, intrigue, and (of course) giant monster summons.
Final Fantasy 16 takes place in the medieval setting of Valisthea, against a backdrop of warring nations and political intrigue. Unlike Final Fantasy 15, this game will not be an open-world adventure with AI-controlled companions. It follows the story of two brothers: Clive Rosfield, a young warrior known as the “First Shield of Rosaria,” and his younger brother Joshua, a person known as the “Dominant of the Phoenix.”
Previous trailers have suggested that Final Fantasy 16 will feature typical franchise touchstones like giant powerful crystals, summons (known as Eikons), and plenty of chocobos. The game sports a real-time “action-based” combat system where it looks like we’ll be wielding a variety of weapons and magical powers, and will even conduct kaiju-esque battles as the Eikons themselves.
Final Fantasy 16 is being developed internally at Square Enix by the Creative Business Unit 3 team. Yoshida (aka “Yoshi P”), known for his work on the popular MMO Final Fantasy 14, is serving as a producer on this game as well.
Square Enix has confirmed that Final Fantasy 16 will launch as a PlayStation 5 console exclusive and will remain exclusive for six months, but it’s unclear what exactly means for Windows PC and Xbox platforms just yet.
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