General Gaming Final Fantasy XVI – Information Thread, update: PC version in "final stages of optimization', pre-release demo planned

[Greatoneshere]

I mean, game looks like it could be good? Trailer just looked like a lot of pretty nonsense and random babble. I'm one of the few who really enjoyed FF12 and FF15, but I really did not enjoy FF10/10-2 or the FF13 trilogy (I didn't play FF11 and am currently on Stormblood in FF14). I did thoroughly enjoy FF7R, though I know it's ending is incredibly divisive, I'm doing a "wait and see" approach to the ending, but otherwise great game. So I'm not inherently against newer Final Fantasy games. But I am cautiously optimistic right now at best.

[Keyser_Soze]

5 hours ago, Greatoneshere said:

I mean, game looks like it could be good? Trailer just looked like a lot of pretty nonsense and random babble. I'm one of the few who really enjoyed FF12 and FF15, but I really did not enjoy FF10/10-2 or the FF13 trilogy (I didn't play FF11 and am currently on Stormblood in FF14). I did thoroughly enjoy FF7R, though I know it's ending is incredibly divisive, I'm doing a "wait and see" approach to the ending, but otherwise great game. So I'm not inherently against newer Final Fantasy games. But I am cautiously optimistic right now at best.

 

Bacon posted it earlier but maybe this is a better reason to get excited

 

 

[Keyser_Soze]

Shareholders not excited

 

 

 

[Bacon]

9 hours ago, Greatoneshere said:

I mean, game looks like it could be good? Trailer just looked like a lot of pretty nonsense and random babble.

Yes, but the summons are straight out of FFXIV except for titan which looks totally different and that is hype. It also seems like the summons are flesh mechs, or kaiju, or titans from AoT and that seems cool. But overall, this trailer really makes the game seem like Final Fantasy XVI: Final Fantasy XIV-2 online, which is all I could have ever wanted. I feel bad for all the people what want a proper party of 4 but fuck that shit. I mean, it is a bunch of shit thrown together with voice lines out of context but that is also how FFXIV does trailers. And like @Keyser_Soze said, the team behind the game makes me hard. Game could be total shit. I can already tell you the "human" side of combat looks fairly uninteresting so far, but I have put up with worse to enjoy a story. I am really hyped to see what original ideas Creative Business Unit III can make. As much as I love FFXIV, much of their story is recycled NES-SNES FF content. I know all Final Fantasy games share major themes, but Endwalker is almost a remake of FF4. 

 

 

[Bacon]

9 hours ago, Keyser_Soze said:

Bacon is into this game because the MC looks like his sexy FFXIV character

Spoiler

 

[Mercury33]

It’s been forever since I played a FF game. The combination only the return to a Medieval setting and FFVIII combat(I did play that) has me pretty hyped. For those bigger fans, is this game tied into any of the other ones? Repeat characters? Or completely independent story? 

[Bacon]

1 minute ago, Mercury33 said:

For those bigger fans, is this game tied into any of the other ones? Repeat characters? Or completely independent story? 

So far, it is completely independent much like every other mainline FF. If there is any connection to a previous FF it will have connections to FFXIV. Big spoilers for FF14. 

Spoiler

In FFXIV the main world was shattered so there is the Source World and its 13 reflections. People are wondering if the World of FF16 is one of those reflections. The 13th reflection was lost to the power of darkness so it could not be there unless this was a prequel. The 1st reflection was almost lost to the power of light but was saved by the player in FFXIV: Shadowbringers. Unless I am forgetting something, that leaves 11 reflections in which this could take place. 

 

Oh, and reflections aren't really just parallel worlds either. Like, you won't find your character but with a different hair color there. 

 

[Greatoneshere]

6 hours ago, Keyser_Soze said:

 

Bacon posted it earlier but maybe this is a better reason to get excited

 

 

 

I know people praise it but 14 hasn't been anything amazing so far at all. Heavensward and Dragonsong were good, but it's not like they were Nier: Automata or anything. All feels like pretty typical high fantasy to me.

[Brian]

I didn’t care for the combat too much in 15 so I have higher hopes with this person is charge. 

[Bacon]

9 minutes ago, Greatoneshere said:

All feels like pretty typical high fantasy to me.

It is, but with a Final Fantasy flair which is what I love. You mentioned Nier: Automata. I am not of a fan/have come to hate esoteric convoluted nonsense that plagues many Japanese titles. It is why I'll never play FF7R, or anything else Tetsuya Nomura gets his grubby little paws on. To be fair to Nier, I have never played it, but a game that has that many endings and based on the Nier raid that is in FFXIV, Nier hangs out with the rest of the esoteric convoluted nonsense Japanese games. 

 

And like, I have played and beat FF12 and I think 14 blows that game's story out of the water. 

[Kal-El814]

2 minutes ago, ManUtdRedDevils said:

I didn’t care for the combat too much in 15 so I have higher hopes with this person is charge. 

 

We’re gonna get taken for a ride.

[Keyser_Soze]

 

[Fizzzzle]

I'm excited because the team working on FFXVI is completely different than the ones who made FF 13-15. This is the first time we've had a fresh take on what FF should be since FF12, 16 years ago. Tetsuya Nomura isn't a driving force. That used to be a common theme in FF. They were all different. Sakaguchi was open to all ideas. 

 

It's crazy to think that Square, at one point was working on FF8, FF9, FF,10, Spirits Within, Xenogears, and Vagrant Story all at the same time. Bit off more than they could chew? Probably. But it's also a time of the greatest muscle flex any gaming company ever

[Bacon]

there are a bunch of character profiles on the official site and lore on the various factions/kingdoms/city-states 

FINAL FANTASY XVI （FINAL FANTASY 16）| SQUARE ENIX

NA.FINALFANTASYXVI.COM

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FINAL FANTASY XIV OFFICIAL WEBSITE The legacy of the crystals has shaped our history for long enough.

screen grabs:

Spoiler

 

[Keyser_Soze]

 

[BloodyHell]

22 hours ago, Mercury33 said:

It’s been forever since I played a FF game. The combination only the return to a Medieval setting and FFVIII combat(I did play that) has me pretty hyped. For those bigger fans, is this game tied into any of the other ones? Repeat characters? Or completely independent story? 

FFVIII combat? 

Did you play a different FFVIII than me? FFVIII was very turn based.

 

No, all FF numbered titles are separate, only connected by staples like chocobos, moogles, crystals, jobs, summons, etc etc. 

[Keyser_Soze]

14 minutes ago, BloodyHell said:

FFVIII combat? 

Did you play a different FFVIII than me? FFVIII was very turn based.

 

It's been forever since he played a FF game, presumably since FFVIII!

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

On 6/2/2022 at 7:43 PM, stepee said:

PC day1?

 

OLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLO

[Bacon]

3 minutes ago, Commissar SFLUFAN said:

 

OLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLO

It will happen. SE will realize the the exclusivity deal is a mistake. 

[Mercury33]

12 hours ago, BloodyHell said:

FFVIII combat? 

Did you play a different FFVIII than me? FFVIII was very turn based.

 

No, all FF numbered titles are separate, only connected by staples like chocobos, moogles, crystals, jobs, summons, etc etc. 

 

FFVII remake is what I meant to type 

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

Producer Naoki Yoshida shares his vision for FINAL FANTASY XVI | Square Enix Blog

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FINAL FANTASY XVI Producer Naoki Yoshida discusses the combat system, why the game is like a rollercoaster and more.

 

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Why have you chosen an action-based battle system for this game and what reaction do you hope it inspires from players?

 

Each new entry in the FINAL FANTASY series brings with it a new world, new characters, and a new battle system.

 

We get a lot of different suggestions from fans about what they want to see in future games, and unfortunately it isn't possible for us to satisfy every one of them. There are also a lot of younger gamers out there who might never have played a FINAL FANTASY game before.

 

With FINAL FANTASY XVI, we wanted to appeal to as wide a range of gamers as possible by setting the story in a classic fantasy world that's reminiscent of the early FINAL FANTASY games, but combining that with fast-paced, real-time action.

 

We have a comprehensive support system in place for players who aren't too confident with action games, so even if action isn't your thing, I hope you'll give it a try.

 

One other reason we went with an action-based battle system this time round is to push the boundaries of what a FINAL FANTASY game can be and expand the range of possibilities for the developers who pick up the reins of the series after us.

 

 

 

Final Fantasy 16: Everything We Learned In IGN's Naoki Yoshida Interview - IGN

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We recently had an opportunity to interview Final Fantasy 16 producer Naoki Yoshida. Here's everything new that we learned.

 

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Final Fantasy 16 won't be following in the footsteps of its predecessor and won't be offering a true open world. Instead, it will divide up its regions into more contained areas while still taking inspiration from other triple-A games, Yoshida said.

 

"To bring a story that feels like it spans an entire globe and beyond, we decided to avoid an open world design that limits us to a single open world space, and instead focus on an independent area-based game design that can give players a better feel of a truly "global" scale," he explains.

 

 

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"We didn't want to overwhelm users in our newest trailer, so we focused solely on Clive's battles. That said, for most of his journey, Clive will be accompanied by one or more companions," Yoshida says. "These companions will participate in battle, as well as trade banter with Clive. That said, the party members will be AI-driven so as to allow players to focus solely on controlling Clive."

 

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Remember the pup from Final Fantasy 16's very first trailer? Naoki Yoshida revealed his name while teasing that he may have a much bigger role to play in the gameplay.

"Well, let's just say he's more wolf than dog—and his name is 'Torgal,'" Yoshida told IGN. "As for him being a party member, you'll just have to wait and see. We'll have more info on parties soon."

 

 

 

Final Fantasy XVI Interview: The Legendary Naoki Yoshida Speaks About Final Fantasy XVI's World, Combat And Fearsome Eikons

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Final Fantasy XVI Interview: The Legendary Naoki Yoshida Speaks About Final Fantasy XVI's World, Combat And Fearsome Eikons

 

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THE RECENT DOMINANCE TRAILER PUT A BIG FOCUS ON SUMMONS, OR EIKONS, WHICH TRADITIONALLY HAVE JUST BEEN SUPPORTING CHARACTERS IN BATTLE. HOW DID EIKONS COME TO BE SUCH A BIG PART OF FFXVI'S WORLD AND WHAT DO THEY MEAN TO THE GAME'S NARRATIVE?

 

Naoki Yoshida: To put it simply, the Eikons in Valisthea can kind of be compared to what you would call weapons of mass destruction or nuclear bombs. And so, within the world of Valisthea, there are a lot of different nations and each nation has one of their own Eikons with the being awakening inside a single individual, although the rules as to how and within who that Eikon awakens differs between them.

 

So the person in which that Eikon dwells, we call the Dominant, and they can summon forth the Eikon's unparalleled power by literally changing into it. As you know in previous Final Fantasies, it would always be that you'd have a summoner job who would use magic to summon forth the being from a different plane, but this time that Dominant actually summons forth the Eikon's power by becoming the Eikon themselves.

 

Another key word in our story is the Mother Crystals and these realms' Mother Crystals are what you can call kind of like oil fields – in the term that they supply the land with the ether which is basically the energy which is used to to power magic.

 

The thing is, though, that ether that's contained in the Crystals has begun to dry up. And this has prompted some nations to basically try to invade other nations in an attempt to wrest away control of those remaining Mother Crystals. And up until now, the Eikons have never really been used, because again, they're like nuclear bombs so you don't use them. You just have them, and it creates this kind of standoff. But now, to wrest control of these Mother Crystals away from other nations, some nations have begun using and deploying these Eikons and basically bringing the realm into chaos, and that is one of our main focal points of our narrative.

 

And so as to exactly why we decided to make a game that revolved around summons, well, we thought it would be both unique and exciting to have a game where players could actually control a to-scale summon of their own as it is something that the series hasn't really delved into and hasn't really explored yet.

 

 

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IN THE TRAILER IT LOOKS AS THOUGH CLIVE CAN SWITCH BETWEEN DIFFERENT STYLES OR FORMS BASED ON THE EIKONS, CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT THAT SYSTEM OR HOW CLIVE GAINS THESE ABILITIES?

 

Naoki Yoshida: As it's a major plot point, I can't really talk about how or why Clive can use the power of different Eikons. That said, I can tell you that he does use the power of the Eikons as was shown in the trailer, as you saw him swapping between the different abilities.

 

After claiming an Eikon's power Clive will be able to unlock that Eikon's abilities in what we can call an 'ability tree'. And then Clive will earn points during regular battles and can use those points to further unlock abilities within that tree.

 

We want players to be able to use this system to customise their character to their own play style, to use these points to purchase abilities that they want to use or power up the abilities that they really enjoy using. That said, we also want players to be able to decide on something that really fits them and so, rather than having those those point decisions be final, we're going to allow players the opportunity to refund those points at any time and as many times as they want so they can experiment with different builds until they come to one that suits their playstyle best without having to worry about starting over.

 

 

 

Interview: Naoki Yoshida sheds new light on Final Fantasy XVI

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In a wide-ranging talk, the producer shares fresh details on the game’s development, juggling it and FFXIV, his favorite Summon, and much more.

 

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PSB: Thinking back to the beginning of the FFXVI project, do you remember how the conversation went when you were asked to produce this new mainline entry? What was your initial reaction?

 

NY: I said "Thanks, but I have my hands full with Final Fantasy XIV, so let me think about it." I was truly honored that the company would choose my section, Creative Business Unit 3, to be responsible for making the next entry in the FF series. But, as you probably know, I'm already the producer and director of Final Fantasy XIV. I was worried that if I took on the directorship of XVI, too, fans of both games would have good reason to believe I wasn't giving either project my full attention.

 

To ensure that the development of XVI didn't affect that of XIV, we picked out a very small group of core team members to start with, and over the course of several years, slowly and carefully transitioned them across to start work on the new game, until we had the full team assembled.

 

 

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PSB: How was the composition of the rest of FFXVI's development team decided?

 

NY: Being the director of a Final Fantasy game is a tougher job than most people imagine. Not only do you have the expectations of the fans and the media to live up to, but you're constantly under pressure from the development team, too. You always have to be up for the challenge.

 

I'd worked with Hiroshi Takai for many years, and he's one of my most trusted colleagues, as well as a veteran developer, so I asked him if he would take on the role—and thankfully, he agreed. That's how it all started. We brought two other members into the group, and between the four of us, we sketched out the core concepts of the game and its world, as well as the key themes that we wanted to put across, and started work on writing the main storyline. Later, we brought a few more members on board to take charge of the battle system and the graphics, and through a process of building on what worked and scrapping what didn't, we gradually moved towards full-scale development. And all the while, in the back of my mind I was thinking "Please don't let this impact on Final Fantasy XIV!"

 

 

 

Final Fantasy 16 Is An Ambitious, More Mature Entry In The Series, Says Producer - GameSpot

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Naoki Yoshida talks about what fans can look forward to in the next mainline entry in the Final Fantasy franchise.

 

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How much of a gameplay factor are the big Titan battles we saw in the recent trailer? What's the ratio to those versus more recognizable FF15-like human combat?

 

Naoki Yoshida: So what you saw in the trailer with that Titan battle, the Eikon versus Eikon battles, is only actually a tiny sample of the battles that we have in store in the game. In the trailer, you had the one scene where Shiva and Titan are battling. Actually, this is not a playable part of the game; this is a cutscene, but while that's happening Clive will be in that same area, kind of experiencing the battle from a different perspective.

 

However, later in the trailer, you saw a different type of battle with Titan involved. That part of the battle is actually fully playable. But again, what you've seen there is only a very, very small part of that battle. So the battles with Titan, for example, it's only about maybe a 20th of what you actually get to experience.

 

So in that [trailer], the battle was tightened. The battle itself goes through many different stages, many different phases, and all of these change in real time. And the player ends up experiencing something that is large-scale, action-packed, and high-octane. And hopefully, a lot of players will see that and [think], "I can't believe you created something that's so crazy." And again, that's just the battle with Titan. There are several other summon versus summon battles and they are all unique from a game design perspective.

 

For example, while one of these battles is reminiscent of a 3D shooting game, another feels like a pro wrestling match, while another, like the one with Titan, incorporates an entire area as the battlefield.

 

And again, what we saw in the trailer, that's a good example of those battles. The [user interface] that you saw on there, again, it's showing that this is all in real time. However, that UI, we've had to actually remove parts of the UI from the trailer because they would be spoilers for the story. But we did want to show that these battles exist, and that, again, Clive will be able to control one of the summons and have these summons versus some in battle.

 

 

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Are there plans to support the world with tertiary lore material, or is it more self-contained?

 

Currently, there are no plans to create anything, for example, like a lore book like we had in Final Fantasy XIV. So, the development team is currently working really hard to make the final release of the game a complete experience so that no other tertiary content will be required to enjoy or understand it. And so, how the story and the narrative progresses is that we follow the life of Clive Rossville through three different stages: his teens, his 20s, and his 30s.

 

And because we're covering such a large amount of time with those jumps, it's safe to say that a lot will be happening in the background with regards to the state of the realm. And while we have a few side quests available in the game that will touch upon what's going on in the world in the background in addition to that main scenario, we also will have these in-game compendiums, and a lot of stuff to read in-game that will hopefully help provide a lot of the lore to those people who wish to delve deeper into the game world.

 

 

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There was implied nudity in the recent trailer. Is this a more adult, M-rated Final Fantasy?

 

So this is something you can say, not just with the Final Fantasy series, but in general, compared to the past, video game ratings have become more and more restrictive recently regarding what can or cannot be shown. That said, I do believe that ratings are very important to ensure that younger players, younger children, are shielded from extreme material.

 

But on the other hand, when trying to tell a story with difficult adult themes, these ratings can end up becoming somewhat of a hindrance. And you find yourself changing things that you wanted to do in the game based on that rating. You wanted to show something, but because you have this certain rating that you need to go to, you need to move the camera away. And that ends up making the entire experience feel a little bit cheaper. And so, this time, to make sure that we could tell the story that we wanted in the way that we wanted to, we decided to pursue a mature rating in most of the regions that will be releasing the game. But again, this is not because we simply wanted to make the game more violent or the game more explicit, this is because we felt it was necessary to allow us to explore those more mature themes that the game tackles.

 

 

 

Final Fantasy XVI Preview - An Interview With Naoki Yoshida On Eikons, Boss Fights, And When We’ll See More - Game Informer

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We dive deep with producer Naoki Yoshida on the latest trailer for Final Fantasy XVI.

 

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GI: A lot of players are excited about the prospect of a single-player Final Fantasy from the developers behind FFXIV. What learnings, mechanics and systems, and storytelling techniques, if any, from FFXIV can fans expect to show up in some way in FFXVI?

 

Yoshida: So Final Fantasy XIV was designed as an MMORPG from the ground up whereas Final Fantasy XVI has been designed as a single-player game from the ground up, so from the get-go, you're going to have completely different design concepts. MMORPGs, as you know, are all about the long haul – you're stringing together experiences over an extended period of time to maintain that user base.

 

Single-player games, on the other hand, are a lot more about that, I guess you could say, instant gratification. They're speedy, they hit you with excitement. That excitement is concentrated into a smaller package. So with that in mind, you can imagine that at least system-wise, Final Fantasy XIV won't have influenced Final Fantasy XVI that much. However, that said, one of the most unique things about Final Fantasy XIV is the kind of connection that the development team has with the community, [and] the amount of communication that goes back and forth between the development team and the community. In the past 11 years, interacting with the community has given us a lot of very, very valuable information on what you know fans want and expect from the series. And so having this 11-year knowledge base, that has helped us and has allowed us to put some of those ideas in and incorporate those ideas into the development of Final Fantasy XVI.

 

 

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GI: Mainline Final Fantasy games of late have skewed more toward modern timelines, with heavy emphasis on the integration of tech with magic, but FFXVI looks decidedly more medieval, or classic FF. How did the team arrive at this setting and time period when developing the game?

 

Yoshida: The answer to that is actually kind of simple: it just happens to be that a lot of the core members in [Creative Business Unit III] really enjoyed those classic Final Fantasies as well as that classic medieval European fantasy feel – myself included – and we wanted to create a game that had that feeling. When creating this game, we wanted to take that look, that medieval European classic fantasy look, and meld that with our own unique idea that we had, and then take all of that and try to express that with the current level of technology and make something that is really, really exciting.

 

As you know, the Final Fantasy series is kind of famous, or infamous, for being different with each entry in the series. That said, after doing some recent user research, we found that a lot of the users were finding that a lot of the recent Final Fantasy [games] were kind of becoming static in that vision so we wanted to use this as an opportunity to step back from that and try something different; not just for us, but thinking to the future of Final Fantasy and forthcoming projects, we wanted to try something different and maybe show that yeah, the series can go in different directions rather than focusing on one.

 

While we just released our second trailer, we're currently already working on readying a third trailer for release this fall. In that trailer, we hope to concentrate a little bit more on the world and the lore and the storyline, and hopefully bring a little bit more of that information to players, showing what the story is going to be like, what the narrative is going to be like, and how that's going to fit into the world.

 

 

 

Final Fantasy XVI producer Naoki Yoshida innovates series in new entry - The Washington Post

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Yoshida is incorporating the lessons he took away from revitalizing “FFXIV” into “FFXVI’s” design philosophy

 

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While specific details of the combat will be revealed at a later date, Yoshida is confident in the direction the system is taking. He believes that Square Enix, now with titles like "Final Fantasy XV," "Final Fantasy VII Remake" and the Kingdom Hearts series under its belt, finally has the expertise to create a compelling action combat system that players, regardless of their familiarity with the series, will enjoy.

 

"The Kingdom Hearts team at Square Enix has been especially helpful in contributing to those real-time combat and boss battles," Yoshida said. "It can be said that the battles in 'FFXVI' are in some ways a culmination of the company's past experiences."

The team, led by Battle Director Ryota Suzuki, formerly of Capcom, who helped design "Marvel vs. Capcom 2," "Devil May Cry 5" and "Dragon's Dogma," feels similarly confident, according to Yoshida. Issues that plagued previous games in the franchise — around battle animations, combat fluidity and messy UIs — have all been streamlined thanks to Suzuki's guidance.

 

 

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Yoshida also believes that the game's story — which he says is not going to be a happy tale, and includes a setting, Valisthea, that is much darker than previous entries — will have overarching themes reminiscent of what fans of the series have come to expect.

"One of the main themes that's explored in 'Final Fantasy XVI's' narrative deals with a clash of ideals. What is right and wrong? Should the people live the life that was chosen for them, or should they have the right to choose the path that they walk?" Yoshida said.

 

 

 

Exploring Final Fantasy 16's action battle system with producer Naoki Yoshida | GamesRadar+

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Naoki Yoshida on Final Fantasy 16's combat: "We have a lot of confidence in these systems"

 

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That, Yoshida-san explains, is why developer Creative Business Unit 3 has tried to "go back to the series' roots" in terms of Final Fantasy 16's world building and tone – a more "classic fantasy feel" – while trying to drive modern sensibilities through the action. He adds that his team is "focusing on creating a setting reminiscent of the original Final Fantasy games, but then adding to this that real-time action that's more reminiscent of modern games."

 

Bringing in a new generation of players is important to Square Enix, but Yoshida-san says that his team is acutely aware of the challenges that a more action-focused real-time combat system can bring. Yoshida-san offers us reassurance that combat in Final Fantasy 16 will be approachable for those who may not have played, or necessarily excel at, these types of fast-paced, timing-based action games in the past. 

 

"Of course, we know that there are a lot of players out there who may not excel at action games – that action games might not be their forte," Yoshida-san adds. "But those fans do not need to worry, because we have been developing systems and developing in-game features that will lend a helping hand to those players. You know, and we have a lot of confidence in these systems. And we want to get those into the hands of players. And we're actually kind of excited to have players that maybe don't consider themselves action game players to actually get in and try these new systems." 

 

 

[Paperclyp]

On 6/3/2022 at 10:03 AM, Greatoneshere said:

 

I know people praise it but 14 hasn't been anything amazing so far at all. Heavensward and Dragonsong were good, but it's not like they were Nier: Automata or anything. All feels like pretty typical high fantasy to me.

I think A) they’re on some level being judged vs other MMOs, and on that metric are incredible and 

 

B) maybe generally people enjoy them a little (or a lot) more than you personally. 
 

I thought the original realm reborn was pretty weak and was super impressed by the next two. I am up to shadowbringers now and have heard that might be the best one, so I’m excited. 
 

I also found that the more “in” I was on the MMO experience in totality, as much as a guy with two young kids and a full time job and other shit I like to do can be at least, the more I enjoyed the characters and story. I think the characters end up being the main draw. 

[Chris-]

Sounds sick as fuck. Day one. 

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

54 minutes ago, Paperclyp said:

I think A) they’re on some level being judged vs other MMOs, and on that metric are incredible and 

 

B) maybe generally people enjoy them a little (or a lot) more than you personally. 
 

I thought the original realm reborn was pretty weak and was super impressed by the next two. I am up to shadowbringers now and have heard that might be the best one, so I’m excited. 
 

I also found that the more “in” I was on the MMO experience in totality, as much as a guy with two young kids and a full time job and other shit I like to do can be at least, the more I enjoyed the characters and story. I think the characters end up being the main draw. 

 

Yeah - FFXIV needs to be evaluated on the "MMORPG curve", not the "single-player RPG" curve

[Bacon]

1 minute ago, Commissar SFLUFAN said:

Yeah - FFXIV needs to be evaluated on the "MMORPG curve", not the "single-player RPG" curve

I haven't played an FF with a better story. Shit is great. 

[Paperclyp]

19 minutes ago, Commissar SFLUFAN said:

 

Yeah - FFXIV needs to be evaluated on the "MMORPG curve", not the "single-player RPG" curve

In his defense and as bacon demonstrated, many people praise them as the best final fantasy stories ever. But I always think that - even as a final fantasy loving fool, stories and all - that’s kind of a low bar lol. 

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

24 minutes ago, Paperclyp said:

In his defense and as bacon demonstrated, many people praise them as the best final fantasy stories ever. But I always think that - even as a final fantasy loving fool, stories and all - that’s kind of a low bar lol. 

 

Considering the overall reception for the stories for XIII and XV, I'd say that bar is set firmly on the ground, if not under it 

 

[Bacon]

Yeah, I don’t really think the FF games have amazing stories but FFXIV is different. 

 

The best way to play FFXIV and enjoy the story is to become a self-insert. When I’m playing 14, I am my character. My character is more of an avatar. A way to enter the world of 14. And it is because of that, that I find the story to be so amazing. There is literally no other game to offer an experience like 14. Star Wars: The Old Republic is close, but it just doesn’t pull it off like 14. 

 

Cuz like, in 14 people rely on you. There are people who need your help. The Scions (your allies) are your friends. The characters in the game remember you even when you have forgotten them. You are the Warrior of Light. You become one of the most well-known figures in Eorzea. The enemy knows of you, and they fear and hate you. They know you on sight. They know the names of the people you killed and they hate you for it. In 14, you aren’t the “Champion” or just the “hero.” You are *insert character’s name here* and even though the game can never really say your name, everyone knows it even if they don’t say it. You are the main character. You aren’t the spectator. You don’t exist simply as an elite force that kills bosses while the cutscene shows the hero characters putting away the evil for good. At the end of the universe, you will be the last one standing. 

 

And all of that works because the game is so long. The game does its best to make you part of the world. As long as you can invest yourself into the game and experience all the story the game has to offer, you will find yourself feeling like a real member of the world. There are 10 years of story in this game and every single part of it is still relevant. Like man, I really wish I could explain it better. Cuz like, you know while I think some parts of the story truly are amazing, not everything is. And that’s OK. It really isn’t that the story is THAT good, but it is all about how you experience it. I wouldn’t say it is immersive, but like, it also is I guess. Cuz like, an OK story that is about another character isn’t anything special. That character lived through the story but you didn’t. And that’s how 14 is different. In 14 you are the one living through the story and even if it is only OK, that shit is pretty crazy man. 

 

And, maybe you can’t do that. Not everyone can really feel like they are the ones going through the story, but I can, and boy oh boy what a fucking ride Final Fantasy XIV is. It ain’t perfect, but damn if it ain’t been one hell of an adventure. It ain’t one I will ever forget.

 

[Xbob42]

If you're talking about FFXIV's story and haven't even touched Shadowbringers yet, then you haven't touched FFXIV's story. Heavensward is a big step up from ARR, but in the end it's a fairly standard if more nuanced tale of fighting dragons and whatnot. It has its twists and turns and isn't as simple as it first appears, but it's nothing mindblowing either. Then Stormblood meanders for a very long time and the post-4.0 patches really see it coming into its own. Then Shadowbringers hits and it's like a different game, but also a game entirely built on the foundations of the 3 previous versions of itself. And while it's divisive, for me Endwalker took it even farther than that, though I consider Endwalker to be a continuation of Shadowbringers specifically rather than something to compare it against.

I guess for me, Shadowbringers is where FFXIV turned from an MMO with a pretty good story to an amazing story with a pretty good MMO. Shadowbringers alone shits all over the entire rest of the FF catalogue and most other contemporary RPGs in terms of storytelling, at least in my opinion. No special MMO bell curve bullshit needed.

[BloodyHell]

13 hours ago, Paperclyp said:

In his defense and as bacon demonstrated, many people praise them as the best final fantasy stories ever. But I always think that - even as a final fantasy loving fool, stories and all - that’s kind of a low bar lol. 

Shafowbringers and Endwalker have some of the best stories in gaming.

 

This is, by far, the game I am most excited about. It isn't even close. GoW has me excited, so does playing Crisis Core again. I can't wait for Rebirth, but this is the announced game I sm most excited about.

[Fizzzzle]

17 hours ago, Commissar SFLUFAN said:

Producer Naoki Yoshida shares his vision for FINAL FANTASY XVI | Square Enix Blog

WWW.SQUARE-ENIX-GAMES.COM

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FINAL FANTASY XVI Producer Naoki Yoshida discusses the combat system, why the game is like a rollercoaster and more.

 

 

 

Final Fantasy 16: Everything We Learned In IGN's Naoki Yoshida Interview - IGN

WWW.IGN.COM

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We recently had an opportunity to interview Final Fantasy 16 producer Naoki Yoshida. Here's everything new that we learned.

 

 

 

 

 

Final Fantasy XVI Interview: The Legendary Naoki Yoshida Speaks About Final Fantasy XVI's World, Combat And Fearsome Eikons

PRESS-START.COM.AU

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Final Fantasy XVI Interview: The Legendary Naoki Yoshida Speaks About Final Fantasy XVI's World, Combat And Fearsome Eikons

 

 

 

 

Interview: Naoki Yoshida sheds new light on Final Fantasy XVI

BLOG.PLAYSTATION.COM

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In a wide-ranging talk, the producer shares fresh details on the game’s development, juggling it and FFXIV, his favorite Summon, and much more.

 

 

 

 

Final Fantasy 16 Is An Ambitious, More Mature Entry In The Series, Says Producer - GameSpot

WWW.GAMESPOT.COM

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Naoki Yoshida talks about what fans can look forward to in the next mainline entry in the Final Fantasy franchise.

 

 

 

 

 

Final Fantasy XVI Preview - An Interview With Naoki Yoshida On Eikons, Boss Fights, And When We’ll See More - Game Informer

WWW.GAMEINFORMER.COM

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We dive deep with producer Naoki Yoshida on the latest trailer for Final Fantasy XVI.

 

 

 

 

Final Fantasy XVI producer Naoki Yoshida innovates series in new entry - The Washington Post

WWW.WASHINGTONPOST.COM

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Yoshida is incorporating the lessons he took away from revitalizing “FFXIV” into “FFXVI’s” design philosophy

 

 

 

 

Exploring Final Fantasy 16's action battle system with producer Naoki Yoshida | GamesRadar+

WWW.GAMESRADAR.COM

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Naoki Yoshida on Final Fantasy 16's combat: "We have a lot of confidence in these systems"

 

 

 

I'm just pretty stoked to get a mainline FF game that the Yoshinori Kitase/Kazushige Nojima/Tetsuya Nomura group has nothing to do with. Final Fantasy IX and XII are the only ones in the modern era, and they're easily the best ones in my opinion.

[BloodyHell]

5 minutes ago, Fizzzzle said:

 

I'm just pretty stoked to get a mainline FF game that the Yoshinori Kitase/Kazushige Nojima/Tetsuya Nomura group has nothing to do with. Final Fantasy IX and XII are the only ones in the modern era, and they're easily the best ones in my opinion.

VI is the best FF, imo. But IX and XII were definitely the best of the ed era so far.

[Fizzzzle]

3 minutes ago, BloodyHell said:

VI is the best FF, imo. But IX and XII were definitely the best of the ed era so far.

Oh yeah, FFVI is also my favorite. I just meant in sort of like the "post-Sakaguchi" era.

 

FF8 is alright, the first one Sakaguchi had nothing to do with

FF9 is all-time great, Sakaguchi was involved, but pretty hands-off since he was making Spirits Within at the time

FF10 is pretty good

FF10-2 is alright

FF12 isn't as great as 9, but still head and shoulders above the rest

FF13 is meh

FF13-2 is garbage. I actually heard Lightning Returns is alright, but I never cared enough to try it

FF15 is like 75% of a great game, but it face plants *hard* about 2/3 of the way through.

I have heard great things about FFVII Remake, but I haven't had a chance to try it yet.

 

So yeah, I'm just excited for someone other than the Kitase/Nomura team to take a crack at a mainline FF game.

[BloodyHell]

22 minutes ago, Fizzzzle said:

Oh yeah, FFVI is also my favorite. I just meant in sort of like the "post-Sakaguchi" era.

 

FF8 is alright, the first one Sakaguchi had nothing to do with

FF9 is all-time great, Sakaguchi was involved, but pretty hands-off since he was making Spirits Within at the time

FF10 is pretty good

FF10-2 is alright

FF12 isn't as great as 9, but still head and shoulders above the rest

FF13 is meh

FF13-2 is garbage. I actually heard Lightning Returns is alright, but I never cared enough to try it

FF15 is like 75% of a great game, but it face plants *hard* about 2/3 of the way through.

I have heard great things about FFVII Remake, but I haven't had a chance to try it yet.

 

So yeah, I'm just excited for someone other than the Kitase/Nomura team to take a crack at a mainline FF game.

I mostly agree, except I hate 13, and 10 grates on me a bit. 

[Paperclyp]

3 hours ago, BloodyHell said:

Shafowbringers and Endwalker have some of the best stories in gaming.

 

This is, by far, the game I am most excited about. It isn't even close. GoW has me excited, so does playing Crisis Core again. I can't wait for Rebirth, but this is the announced game I sm most excited about.

That’s what I’ve heard, and I am stoked to play them. I love what I’ve played so far, but I had heard people hype up heavensward up pretty high too so I’m just a little skeptical on the best stories in literal all of gaming thing. Would love for that skepticism to be wrong, so we’ll see.