Final Fantasy XVI - "Final Devil May Cry Fantasy" (PS5)
Disclaimer: At the time of writing this review, I have only played the game for four hours. Problems I have with the game may be addressed later on, and an update will be added if I feel the need to include any necessary information, such as my opinions on the development of the plot and characters.
The recent string of low-quality releases from modern game companies is astounding. While fantastic games like Octopath Traveler II and Hi-Fi Rush were released this year, titles with broken and boring gameplay like Forspoken, Redfall, and Gollum have appeared more than usual. This trend of low-quality Triple-A games could cause one to experience drastically low expectations for Final Fantasy XVI when its release date inevitably rolled around, but the game turned out great! This title utilizes the power of current-gen hardware to deliver an experience that looks and plays great, albeit with a few minor issues resulting from the developer’s focus on spectacle.
Final Fantasy XVI feels like a true next-gen title due to its graphical prowess. Everything feels vibrant with the utilization of the game’s various visual effects, as magic spells shine with wonderous splendor and environments feel intricate and alive. However, the game might relish in detail too much, as fights and duels feel overly gruesome with realistic blood splatters, blood-stained weapons, and similar phenomena. While impressively realistic, this excessive gore is far from necessary.
Additionally, the performance suffers from a mild hiccup due to its graphics. Transitions from cutscenes to gameplay are mildly noticeable when the game prioritizes graphical fidelity and downright jarring when the game focuses on achieving a consistent sixty FPS as the cutscenes can suddenly switch back to thirty FPS. Spider-Man: Miles Morales also provided settings that let the console direct its resources to either graphics or framerate, but any cutscene/gameplay transition issues- if they existed in the first place- were handled well enough so that one will not usually notice them. Seeing these issues present in a game three years older than a different title that dealt with them appropriately feels odd.
Final Fantasy XVI invests in its presentation to the extent that the plot and lore feel mildly neglected at points. While one can still understand what happens in the story, one can also notice how the focus on spectacle and presentation prevents the writing from explaining the finer details of the lore. These finer details still appear throughout the game, like how people casually use various forms of magic to perform everyday tasks. However, one can still become confused when attempting to understand plot elements like the differences in the various kingdoms and empires.
The developers seem to acknowledge this minor flaw by fixing it in a baffling way. During cutscenes, the player can pause the game and activate a feature known as “Active Time Lore”, which provides little blurbs of information about the current setting and characters involved in a cutscene. While this does relatively fix the issue to an extent, Active Time Lore also brings immersion to a screeching halt as one takes their time to quickly study up on the internal workings of the world.
Final Fantasy XVI continues interrupting the flow of gameplay with a barrage of tutorials. The developers bafflingly decided to go against modern game development design and frequently stop the game to inform the player of basic gameplay mechanics. The game does not need to stop in the middle of its tracks to explain an aspect of gameplay easily explainable with a prompt on the side of the screen.
Thankfully, the core of the gameplay mechanics reaches the same level of quality as the graphical fidelity does, despite the game doing its best to interrupt the experience. Final Fantasy XVI forgoes expanding on the gameplay of Final Fantasy XV and opts for the gameplay of the Devil May Cry (DMC) series. Combat focuses on chaining together attacks, magic spells, special attacks, and other offensive options gained from unlocking abilities in a progression system similar to DMC, but with a high fantasy twist and additional features like the ability to order the main character’s dog to attack certain enemies.
Encounters against stronger foes also provide additional combat options with the introduction of Cinematic Actions. These quicktime events mesh well with the gameplay as they ensure the player stays engaged at all times and keeps them on their toes as they must properly counter their foe’s flashy moves. However, the amount of time the player gets to react feels too lenient and can cause these moments to feel unrewarding. Lowering the reaction time would help these moments feel tense and allow the player to feel accomplished.
The various menus typically seen in an RPG also help encapsulate the stylish feeling of the gameplay by keeping everything streamlined and sleek. One can effortlessly parse through all the menus- including the settings/save game section- quickly and efficiently with a simple yet stylish design that does not clutter the UI with unneeded features. The game even includes 8-bit sprites of all the characters currently in the party, to add a bit of charm!
However, one cannot help but notice how the combat starts to become dull over time, despite the ways the game tries to keep encounters exciting. Devil May Cry works because the player constantly unlocks new abilities, weapons, and characters, encouraging- and sometimes forcing- the player to develop new strategies. Final Fantasy XVI’s combat- while still incredibly fun- frequently boils down to pulling off similar combos and dodging/parrying when appropriate.
A similar issue plagues the game’s progression, as a few locales come across as decisively linear. Linear design is not inherently harmful- and Final Fantasy XVI’s linear design comes nowhere close to horrendously linear games like Final Fantasy XIII- but the number of times the level design felt like nothing more than a bendy hallway felt disappointing. Thankfully, the game does try its best to disguise its linearity with secrets peppered throughout the levels, and a few open world-like areas.
All in all, I give Final Fantasy XVI an 8/10 and I would recommend it, but only with a relatively decent discount off of its current market price of $70.
