Final Fantasy XVI is an action RPG which is a slight departure from most of the games in the numerical series. I say most because Final Fantasy XV was the first game to introduce an action RPG based combat system on modern platforms. While this was the first on modern platforms, previous entries in the series did it first with those being Final Fantasy Type-0, Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII, and most recent of the previous releases being the Final Fantasy VII remake releases
Not being a fan of Final Fantasy XV but really enjoying Type-0, I was curious to see how this game handled the combat. Well the combat in this game is a lot of fun and feels more like old school action RPG combat found in earlier titles. With Final Fantasy XV, I felt like something was just off, but definitely feels very right with this release.
Enemies are encountered in real time and action is very fast and fluid. Allowing you to balance between physical attacks and the use of magic. This fluidity makes combat feel very very intuitive and something I found myself looking forward to with every encounter.
Exploration in this game is done from a world map that has a menu system as opposed to a map you run around in. Once you select an area, you can freely explore them and they are semi-open. Meaning the areas as quite large, but not too much so. I kind of like this approach as it feels a lot less overwhelming and very manageable.
There are a lot of weapons, armor, items, and even abilities to unlock in this game. The amount of abilities, and equipment is somewhat overwhelming when you first get into this game. I would have preferred this over a vast open world map, so I am glad that they chose to throw so much management at you as opposed to here’s a huge map, figure it out.
Once you level up by battling enemies, you are given points you can use to upgrade your abilities or to learn new ones. I kind of like this approach as it gives you the freedom to play the way you want as opposed to giving you a set of magic and moves you can have, giving you the ability to tailor the game to the way you would prefer to play it. The point of leveling only affects your stats aside from giving you ability points.
One thing I wanted to touch on speaking of battles, are the Eikons. Eikons are this game’s take on summons, a staple in the Final Fantasy series. The cool thing about Eikons is that rather than just summoning them, you actually take control of them in battle. It’s a unique way to incorporate them and really fun to experience.
So we have talked about Eikons (summons), battling, and leveling, but what about your party members? Well in Final Fantasy XVI, much like was done in Strangers of Paradise, you have AI controlled party members that accompany you. On occasion you will be able to take control and use them in battle which is a nice way to change up the way the game is played. Not only does it give you the ability to experience other characters, but introduces different strategies as the other party members are going to have different attributes and combat styles. Playing with the various party members reminded me immediately of Final Fantasy Type-0.
Though this entry embraces the type of game that came before it with Final Fantasy XV as well as the spin-off games, this game does a much better job at being an action RPG than those titles did and I am glad that this is the direction they chose to take.
Final Fantasy XVI first was released on Playstation 5, then on PC, and now finally on Xbox. When it was first announced, I thought the game looked incredible then. Well I am glad that we finally have it on the Xbox Series X. The game looks very impressive with the character models, textures, facial animations, all of it just looks so good.
That’s not to say the game looks bad on PC or Playstation 5, just that this is the first time I’ve been able to really get my hands on it now that it’s come Xbox and how graphically impressive it truly is.
When the game transitions from story related cut-scene to actual in-game interaction, there is no load times, there is no definitive way to tell the difference because there is none. I mean there is a bit of a load in the form of a fade to black, but that’s it. The exception to this is loading into new areas from the world map and coming back into the world map from a specific area, which is to be expected.
The graphical nature of this game with its environments has a bit of an uncanny look to them, bordering on realism. I mean of course, games aren’t quite there yet, at least on console, but this is pretty close, at least as far as I can tell. Rock faces, the shiny reflections of ice crystals, the dust that kicks up from walking around, the lighting from fire and magic, the facial expressions…all of it makes for a very realistic experience.
Final Fantasy XVI has some of the best music I have ever heard in a Final Fantasy game. It’s well orchestrated and works very well at hitting the points needed for the climatic scenes and intense action sequences. But the game isn’t always about the hard hitting music, there elements in the sound track that are calm and soothing at times, but it all comes together so nicely and flows like a music river so to speak.
Aside from the music, the game is very well voice acted. There is a lot of emotion in every line of dialogue and this is one of the first games in the Final Fantasy series that doesn’t sound weird when it comes to the English voices. It feels natural, almost like you’re watching a movie instead of playing a cinematic video game masterpiece that is Final Fantasy XVI.
Final Fantasy XVI the complete edition comes with two DLCs which are “Echoes of the Fallen” and “The Rising Tide. Both of these DLC packs are accessible at the end of the game. Echoes of The Fallen is a super dungeon that offers a bit of a challenge to get through. The Rising Tide introduces a new area to explore, new enemies to encounter, and a new Eikon which is Leviathan.
If you’re a fan of the Final Fantasy Series and want a lot of content, and to experience everything Final Fantasy XVI has to offer, I would suggest picking up Final Fantasy XVI The Complete Edition.
This game is fun, engaging, beautiful, and a game that I can not highly recommend enough. Easily the best game in the numerical series of Final Fantasy so far!
Disclaimer: A review key was provided
In addition to writing articles, Ryan Byers also creates content for his YouTube channel called "Obscure Games and Consoles", collects video games, and dabbles in video game development.