Final Fantasy 16 a year later
Вставка
- Опубліковано 26 лип 2024
- It has officially been 1 year since Final Fantasy 16 released. In this video I will take a look back at FF16, what I've taken from it, and what it means to me.
#finalfantasy16 #finalfantasy16review #ff16 #ffxvi #rpg #jrpg
Twitter - x.com/MoreLimitless_
0:00 Intro
1:02 Development
3:11 Free will (themes)
4:47 The story & plot
7:08 Main characters
11:34 Other Dominants
14:49 Villain (spoilers)
20:48 Combat system
25:32 Soundtrack
30:24 Eikon fights
31:37 Game design
33:04 DLC
34:50 Ambiguous ending (Spoilers)
37:54 Conclusion - Ігри
It’s been an entire year since we got the best version of Cid in the entire franchise
Literally the goat
I feel like I am the only one who wasn't bothered by him lol. I never liked him that much in this one. Can't quite put my finger on why.
Spoilers ahead:
That character death was one of the most well done and emotionally impactful character deaths I’ve ever experienced in a video game. The treatment Joel should have got
And the best Waifu (Gav)
More gay comments incoming...
On a technical level, Clive is the most polished character I’ve ever controlled in an action game. Animation flow, style, hit boxes, collision, the physics, variety, EVERYTHING works (like unique Garuda pull on bosses, parrying fancy boss moves), animation cancels, sound design, endless combos, graphical prowess while still being grounded, it was just insane.
when people compare it to rebirth having multiple playable characters, I just realize how much this effort went over most players’ heads. I imagine in the future that they will not consider so much polish/effort on one character to be worth it… but that’s a shame.
@@BrittanyFox That’s actually a very good point and one that I wholeheartedly agree with. No HD FF game has the level of polish when it comes to hit boxes and animations. The one thing I always hated in the remake games, for example, was how annoying the “action” side of things can be at times. Dodging, hit boxes, and animations can be pretty annoying depending on the character you’re playing. The actual real-time action is much better in 16 than any game in the series, and I appreciate that they go all in on making it a true action game here.
I think they will, which is why they recruited Ryota Suzuki. If he wasn't there, most ( if not the entirety) of Clive Tech wouldn't exist. I think Yoshida said that if he wasn't there, they'd take a long time to figure it out, and it wouldn't be any better than what they did with Ryota Suzuki.
Idk it didn't really feel any better than every single other AAA action game
@metacube9913 yeah these people are lost. This game is VERY watered down kingdom hearts gameplay.
It went over people's heads because the "character action" combat system in 16 is rather shallow compared to character action games made by experienced developers from that genre. I don't blame just the system itself but the overall balancing in the game, especially enemies. While the system was designed by Ryota Suzuki, he clearly wasn't "the entire" DMC5 system by himself. Those games seem simplistic but there's a lot of thought and balancing that goes on making a game like Devil May Cry, Metal Gear Rising or Bayonetta.
This game still has the most impressive boss fights I’ve ever seen in gaming the Bahamut boss fight was a masterpiece the set pieces, the music, and the build up to the fight everything was perfect
I love this game and the boss fights are very cool but also a little bit to easy for my taste, especially the icon fights. I have to play the leviathan dlc though ^^
You will really enjoy that dlc.
Clearly u never played Asura Wrath before that game more than 10 years ood mind you
My main problem with Final Fantasy XVI is that you can't visit any of the big cities (the ones built around the Mother Crystals). Everytime you get close to one of these cities, you're like "are they doing it? can we finally visit an urban area?" but you can only get glimpses of it during cutscenes. For example, The Holy Empire of Sanbreque. It looks so amazing, but you can only actually run around a field outside of the city, and the only time when you can walk around in it is to fight.
While it would have been cool, I suspect that they didn't do so because explorable cities like those are extremely expensive. And considering FFXVI already cost a lot to produce anyway, especially with the Eikon battles, explorable cities were most likely just not viable to do.
They showed castles and cities and crystals in the trailers but left us with empty fields with those things forever in the distance.
@@dmurray2978That’s absolutely what it felt like. I was so excited to visit the cities showed off in the trailers. All we got is a two minute walk at the beginning of the game through the Kingdom of Rosaria capital, and afterwards, absolutely nothing. Just green fields, forests, and deserts.
@@OnaSotoyea i dont even think its unrealistic expectations either. just more time in the oven was needed and thats how ive felt about a couple of the recent FFs.
That was my main problem too. I'm not asking for a city of the size of a city in Assassin's Creed but just a portion to let you see what is the life like in there and have some interesting encounters with people living there. Besides I like the medieval setting but there were very few details interesting in the "towns". Like that well producing water out of a crystal, that is the kind of world building I wished to see more.
I still mourn Final Fantasy versus 13
Still hurts to this day!
KH 4 will be our time of happiness if done correctly.
@@SomnusShinra it won’t be the same and you know that
@@SomnusShinraMy time of happiness would be me playing Final Fantasy Versus XIII
😢
I remember seeing Ben Starr for the first time in the series You, and when I heard him as Clive, I had to pause immediately upon starting this game to check the wiki. He has the range, darling
Flawed as it is, there is still a lot to love and celebrate about FF16. I would like to see where they can take this style of Final Fantasy game because Creative Studio 3 are passionate about what they do. XVI and Rebirth really restored my faith in Square Enix as developers.
I loved the exploration in that Final Fantasy. A lot of emptiness and nothing. It was brilliant.
Imho every FF is flawed in one way or another but to me personally speaking.
Compared to other FF games past 12, 16s flaws are extremely minor by comparison.
Hell I'll even say at worst it's sidequests for example are average for the individual quests but it's quest chains are really good imho.
I don't personally think that 16s flaws are as big as people make them out to be.
the combat is just awful though, extremely shallow, repeatitive with next to no choice brings this game massively down
@@phuklyyve8941 calling DMC combat awful is certainly a confusing take.
You can say that you don't understand the appeal of the combat system but calling what is widely considered the best combat system in gaming awful is just......weird?
@@bearcavepro8832 lol i must not understand because if i did understand it id like it?
its tedious, button bashing. Dont care that you like DMC. It cant hold a candel to the depth off the ff7 remakes, and if it were so good this game wouldnt be largely critised for it? Just because you like something doesnt make it objectively good, why take this personally?
"largely considered the best combat in gaming" Fucking stop lying haha, find me the article or reddit post or whatver that says this lol
My only true problem with Final Fantasy XVI was that it felt like it could have been something bigger and better. For instance, the world is pretty well built with kingdoms, armies, and political conflicts throughout Valisthea, BUT we are not part of it at all. What we are is just a group of people branded as "bandits/heretics" basically, and we spend most of the time either running away from these people or trying to go ninja on them by killing their leader.
In that way, I feel we are missing great opportunities for story-building. Let me give you an example of what I mean. Remember the dude who forced Jill to commit off-screen atrocities? Yeah, when I encountered that person in that Volcano island, I didn't even know who he was and Jill was going ape shit about how she wanted to kill him, and I was "Oh, okay, cool". There is no feeling, no build-up for that. You need to read records or reports to know what's going on, and there are SO many examples of this throughout the game that feel like massive missing opportunities.
Another problem I forgot to mention, is that they could've added more towns, it feels like the game is just like 3 minor towns, and the Holy Empire and the other very big cities are just places designed for a one-time-only quest. Other than that, the game looks good, music is fantastic as expected, and the main cast is developed really well alongside secondary characters such as Gav who are stellar.
I feel like this is a design philosophy that Square is never going to abandon
@@MelodeathxTedyup, afraid so. They did the same thing with FF15 and FF12. They just aren’t it. They never learn from their mistakes. They have a creative cap that they have maxed at, only capable of creating good enough games. Nothing all timer/masterpiece worthy since FF10.
Final Fantasy’s true greatness died the moment Enix took over Soft. All the games we get now are hella incomplete rushed out mids, smh.
It had a really really really hot opening. One of the hottest in gaming. It felt like game of thrones the game. Then it fell off quickly.
Agreed, I was looking for something more akin to Final Fantasy Tactics
"BUT we are not part of it at all."
Looks like we played different games. Clive literally changed the world. Have you played all the sidequests? Yes there are fetch quests, but there are also many sidequests that helps with the world building.
This video you made truly was beautiful. I can see why it took longer to make than expected, it's very well crafted, with lots of your great points, arguments and personal feelings being put out in it, as well as having great edits, in a very inspirational way (approve of your soundtrack samples). Like you, I share the same sentinments of FF16, while far from perfect, and good god, is any game truly perfect (maybe some that are near to perfection or some that the highest highs outweigh any potential lowest lows), it's still a game I would confidently have in my top 3 or top 4 favourite FF games, alongside FFX, FFVI and FFIX. It's an experience I'll never forget.
@@madkaiser4887 Thank you, that means a lot! And yeah, it’s far from perfect, but of course, no game is truly, undeniably perfect. Regardless, this a game that has become very special to me. I understand it isn’t a game for everyone, but that’s also a given with an anthology series such as Final Fantasy. At the end of the day I have my experiences, and I will always cherish them.
i think about this game almost everyday since i blindly played the demo. I’ve never had a game or any other type of entertainment leave such an impact on me
Play tales of Berseria
it's average, that means you haven't played games way better than this hahaha
@@gethermedel3620 Bait
Which ones?
me too. Really loved the story. The gameplay was decent, but this is by far the best story of all of FF.
That's one of the most reliable videos I've ever seen on Final Fantasy XVI. In 40 minutes you were able to fully summarise and explain what this game truly is. I've already shared your video and given a big like.
Like you said, a Final Fantasy isn't tied only to the gameplay. But also to the story, the themes, the characters, the soundtrack and, of course, the CIDs. Thank you again for your video, and happy 1st anniversary to Final Fantasy XVI, my 2023 GOTY ❤
No problem, my friend! I'm glad you enjoyed the video and thank you for sharing it, that means more than you know. Happy 1st anniversary!
What a great video! Thank you. You captured my feelings on the game almost entirely.
I didn't mind the weaker pacing and side quests as I was appreciating how strong the game was when it was telling it's main story. I loved the more mature themes when compared to more campy Final Fantasy characters and stories from other games.
The music is probably the thing that elevated this game to my favourite Final Fantasy and one of my favourite games ever. All the best games have incredible music, for me it's a defining feature to draw me into the emotion of the story. The score on show is absolutely beautiful. I don't think there is a weak piece of music in the lot. Greatest music of any video game.
I've also often found the turn based combat of older Final Fantasys the weakest part for me. It's the part that makes it difficult for me to go back to anything before XII. Probably why XII was my favourite Final Fantasy when it came out for it's more action focused battle system.
I just love this game and hope more and more people can come to appreciate how great of a game it is.
So glad to see such a nuanced take on the game. People seem to feel the need to jump to extremes when it's alright to like a game despite it's flaws or dislike a game while acknowledging what others might like about it. Personally, I absolutely adore Final fantasy 16.
Clive is an incredible protagonist. The world of ff16 tests him at every step of the way. He experiences so much tragedy and see's humanity at it's absolute worst. He breaks down, he cries, he feels unsure of himself. He is all of the things that make us human wrapped up in one package, our weakness and our strength.
The characters all reflect that too. I know the quests can be tedious but honestly? The reward was worth it imo. You learn so much about these characters and it fleshes them out a lot. If it wasn't for them, I wouldn't have grown to really appreciate and love characters like Goetz and Charon. Final fantasy 16 is just one of those games you gotta experience at least once.
@@mysticalakatsuki4818 Yeah, it’s as you say most people lean so far on one side that they refuse to acknowledge how others feel. I love the game, but I can definitely understand why it is not for everyone. Yet despite its problems m, it still perfectly embodies what I look for in a Final Fantasy, in its story, themes, characters, and bringing a fresh take to the series once more. It may not be everyone’s cup of tea but that can be said with literally any game in the series.
You’re right that people jump to extremes but you just kinda did that as well.
To me this game is weird because for everything it does exceptionally well it does something very poorly. Clive is an incredible protagonist but he has probably the weakest antagonist in all of FF. The soundtrack has some of the best themes but a lot of it is repetitive and forgettable. The supporting characters are very strong but it has the worst party system of all final fantasy games. The budget for the cinematics seems huge but it seems incredibly cheap when you’re fighting the same old enemies in the same old zones I so much. The main story is intriguing and gripping up until Barnabas, yet the optional content is the worst in the series. It has the hottest opening quarter in modern RPGs and one of the slowest most slogfest third quarters in all of gaming.
It’s like you give it a point then you have to take it away, over and over. Perhaps it just needed more time in the oven.
@@jaybee4288 That's totally fair. I get what people don't like about it. Just because I can overlook the flaws and find the enjoyable parts doesn't mean I think everyone else has to too. Jumping to extremes would be unwilling to accept any critiques about it. I gush because I really like the game, not because I think it's perfect.
I still believe Leviathan should’ve been in the base game. And that leaving it out because it would cuz it would diminish Leviathan in XV was an absolutely atrocious thing to do
From what I know they ran low on budget to fit Levi into the game so they wrote the story of the base game in a way that didn't have need for him.
@@MoreLimitless_ does it need him? You can't constantly talk about the eight elements and then exclude one of those elements the entire game
@MoreLimitless_ Leviathan is traditionally female (I think 🤔)
@@rd6416 No, Leviathan is traditionally male. FFXV was either only the first or second time in the entire franchise it was shown to be a female.
@AICW No evidence it was ever male. It didn’t have a speaking role or a declared gender until late on in the series. Leviathan is based on a female sea serpent from the Old Testament.
Ff12 and ff16 are the best ones I've played so far🤷
The only thing i would have loved to see in ff16 would be been a more flushed out magic/effects system. Like the basic spells in other ff games couldve been added as weapon effects
I never expected anything from a final fantasy because I'm not interested in a turn based, when I decided to try this game is not only the game that I love the most to this day, Clive really is now my favorite fictional character.
Since I finished it, I have never felt the same experience and level of emotion again.
It is very nice to think how something that you didn't expect can make you very happy.
Nice video ❤
"I never expected anything from a final fantasy because I'm not interested in a turn based"
I need you to know that fans of this franchise are not happy with the company catering to you.
I think you misinterpreted my message, said I wasn' t
interested in any final fantasy because turn based isn't my favorite type of game, with that I didn't mean the other games were bad, in fact I decided to try ffix and ffx and I loved both.
Personally, I can understand why there are people who don't like this game or rebirth due to are very different from the old ones and its other gameplay, but it also ends up being a way to find people like me who might be interested in the franchise and give a chance to the other games
@@MisterAlerion Lmao, bullshit. "Fans" of this franchise love the action direction that is being taken. FF7 Remake series and XVI are fantastic.
@@ZephyrFatetotally agree, have been a huge fan of final fantasy for 30+ years and FFXVI is my favourite, and FF7R hard mode has been incredible to play, tried a turn based game recently and it’s just boring now, I hope we have seen the back of it. Long may this new style continue
@@ZephyrFate i hate ff16 direction which i hope they dont continue prefer ff7 remake better
This is the absolute best review I've seen on the game. Extremely great work here! I'm in the same camp as you, when it comes to the ending. It's very fitting of Clive to finish the book Joshua began towards the end of the game, and then use his name as the author. Also, like you said, he was the narrator for the entirety of the game. Almost as if he was reading the book to us.
a year later its still my favourite modern final fantasy game.
I enjoyed FFXVI enough to get the Platinum Trophy + all trophies from both DLCs as well. Truly a masterpiece.
The writing, dialogue, and character performances are just next-level not for the franchise, but videogames in general. It can't be understated how this felt like the first true next-gen PS5 game (in that, it had no base PS4 development, it had no back ports, it wasn't constrained by it at all).
That was an amazing video. Thank you for reminding me of how truly wonderful this game is!
I doubt any game for awhile can recapture the experience and magic I had with FFXVI. Epic, Emotional, Adrenaline Fueling, Melodramatic, Beautiful, Sense of Adventure and most of all powerful. It’s not even the most complex and varied game in terms of Design and Mechanics except for the combat but it such a memorable game that’s carried by Masterful performances, Music Composers and Storytellers that’s basically soap opera the video game. Great video! Like to see you do more of these for other games as I always loved critiques especially you’re energy for the games we all love.
@@Jylstin I’m definitely interested in making more videos like this, but it won’t be frequent as these are longer videos that take a long time to make lol. But I’m very glad you enjoyed it because this game does mean lots to me as well!
I really loved FFXVI. I didn’t mind the fully action-based battle system. I don’t get the “isn’t an rpg” thing, but I guess that means something different to each person. My favorite thing about FF is the difference between the titles-what makes each game unique.
My biggest issues with the game were the lack of enemy variety and the poor loot/treasure systems. I feel that improving these two aspects would have nullified a lot of other complaints in the game.
I played the DLC and loved it. Makes further playthroughs that much more worthwhile. Can’t wait to replay on PC and hopefully XBOX.
My favorite track in the game is Control btw.
I agree for sure. It is still an RPG, however, it lacks depth in those systems that people are used to in other JRPGs. Exploration, looting, and enemy variety in mechanics were all dumbed down so that people could focus on the story, and that, imo, was a bit overdone. Still though I loved the game despite it's problems and no game is really perfect at the end of the day.
This is probably my favorite ff in terms of gameplay i liked the combat better than 7/rebirths. I love that you can freely choose and put together combos rather than waiting for ATB charges
you only need to smash one button the entire game. this is not final fantasy.
Actually in this game all you do is waiting for charges, because base attacks are a joke )
Imho, they already had better action combat systems, in KH or even in SoP. I like 16 for the story, lore and characters. But the gameplay is NOT a best part of it. It's a cheap copy-paste from DMC5, broken by cooldowns, without any sensible role-playing system, depth, mini-games, or in general any of JRPG elements.
@@pyccku212 just like the old games? Just press one button the whole time to choose an attack, use item, or anything else
Absolutely adored 16. I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it since I beat it tbh 😂 great vid man 🙌
I wish they would add a new mode to this game that increases the difficulty and allows us to have 4 Eikon slots. This is the best game I have played since Shadow of the Colossus. I really wish for more content in the future.
Awesome video, my man! I have similar feelings to the XVI as you do. Well done! Still can't believe it been a year!
@@afrocloud3238 Thank you, my friend! It definitely is unbelievable how fast the year went by, I still remember being beyond hyped when, especially after the demo. Its one of the best gaming experiences I’ve ever had.
@@MoreLimitless_ Yeah. Me too, man. It seem like yesterday when I first put this game into my PS5. And I never took it out until I finished my first playthorugh. This game delivered on our hype and exceeds expectations. FFXVI is truly one of the best gaming experiences of my life!
im so happy to have been trought the game without getting spoiled on anything, what includes the powers and dominents. rlly gave the game a diff feeling, not knowing whats going on or whats coming
Probably my favourite gameplay.
Loved the idea of switching/customising Eikons
Huge text incoming. I don't expect anyone to read, but hey.. I had the time and I like to wrinte, so here it goes:
I have a lot of problems with XVI when it comes to gameplay and level/world design.
The game has a good story and while the true villain and "big mystery" is cool and works, it's also somewhat of a trope in stories where fantasy/scifi mix. The characters are great, the cutscenes and boss fights are superb.
I'll start with the combat. You're right that the combat system itself is mostly fine, what brings everything down is the systems around it. Not only generic enemies are too weak to incentivize skillfull play and combos, the ability system heavily inventivizes the incessant spam to destroy encounters in seconds. Then, when "elite enemies" and bosses show up they committ a huge sin in the "character action" genre, which is to create artificial difficulty by removing mechanics from the combat system. For example, most of the Elite enemies and bosses can't be juggled and have super armor, powering through your moves and punishing you for trying combos (which also incentivizes just using your openings to use Abilities instead of moves), that alone instantly kills 70% of the depth of the system. Hence why ability spam and parrying are the best strategies against bosses... because they're also pretty much the only strategy.
The combat system itself is okay but even though it was made by Ryota Suzuki, it became pretty clear that just one man doesn't make and entire game. While the game has all the core systems (cancelable animations, i-frames, parries, juggles, etc), it lacks deeply in character moveset. Clive having just one melee weapon moveset and one ranged weapon moveset really throws a wrench on the system. One might argue that the Eikons are the "weapons", but they trully aren't, they're "unlockable abilities".
Now the worst part of the game, the level and world design. I won't hold back the words here, it's just miserable. XVI feels like a PS3 game, and no I'm not talking about graphics, of course. I'm talking about the fact that the absurd amount of invisible walls in the open world areas and lack of exploration is very baffling. It sounds cruel to say this about a Final Fantasy game but this is the "most open, linear game" in the market. Clive can't jump over anything, even the smallest ledges, the itemization of the game is so bad that the rewards of exploring 99% of the time isn't worth it. And what is heartbreaking is that the biggest argument against XVI, is 7 Rebirth, which is the precise opposite of this. You can jump almost everything, there are usually means of traversal that makes you cross bodies of water or climb hills. That makes me feel, not angry at XVI, but almost sad about it. Almost as if it was set up to fail with all of it's budget allocated to 7 Rebirth.
Which leads me to the dungeon level design, this one is inexcusable. Square Enix is a good 14 years behind when it comes to dungeon level design. I'm not kidding nor exaggerating, it's comparable to PS2/PS3 games. Every dungeon is made up of corridors that lead to elevators that leads to another corridor that leads to simple 2 way path, with one usually leading to a dead end making you go back and just take the other path. It's terrible, it's Tartatarus (Persona 3) levels of simplistic, it just looks a billion times better. Note that this isn't just an issue with XVI, pretty much every FF game is still stuck in the FFX/FFXII level design. They are completely out of touch in this aspect.
Conclusion: I would say that XVI is a game that tries to appeal to everybody and ends being for no one. I'm not saying "No one likes XVI", but I am saying that when you think about playing XVI again, there are usually much better games depending on which specific aspect you want to experience. If you want the combat, you can play Devil May Cry, if you want the exploration you can play Rebirth. The only "unique" aspects of the game is the story (you simply can't replace story.. you either like it or you don't) and the boss fights. The game has little to no RPG elements, it's combat system although good, can't compete with action games made by Capcom, Platinum or Team Ninja, the world is not that fun to explore and most side quests aren't interesting. The result is a game that would've been a lot better if it had 50% or even 60% of it completely cut from the final product. I say this because this is a 50 hour long "Devil May Cry" game, except there's a reason games like Devil May Cry are usually short (like 10 hours long) and very replayable. To me personally, XVI would be better if it was structured like a DMC game, meaning "cutscene at the start of a mission, walking around a bit killing enemies, boss fight, cutscene, end of mission". Straight to the point. Which is interesting because that's EXACTLY what the demo was, like... that castle/tower section that leads to the Garuda fight was (by coincidence or not) a perfect slice of what a "Final Fantasy May Cry" could've been. Instead those sections are like 20% of the game with most of the game being just fetch quests, and filler content between major story moments (you know what I'm talking about) that you desperately wanted to skip to get to the next big set piece moment.
I would say 40% of XVI is a 8.5/10 character action game but the other 60% is the most bland and boring 5/10 action RPG I've played. There is a great game underneath all the rubble and as funny as it may sound, a Director's CUT with most of the game completely removed would end up being a better product. Actually, the "time attack" mode that unlocks after you beat the game is pretty fun for this exact reason.
You can tell that FF16 was rushed and that the developers were lazy with the game. They only focused on Clive, somewhat the cutscenes, and the boss fights. Everything else was boring. It's fine for a game to have flaws but FF16 has way too many flaws that are unjustified imo. Here's some of the issues that I have with the game (most of this is a copy/paste but is very long too lmao):
The pacing of the game was so off. The 13 year time skip is completely understandable but to this day I still don't understand the 5 year time skip. I also thought it was ridiculous that none of the characters personalities or even appearances except for Clive's even changed after the 5 year time skip. There's also no explanation as to why Joshua stays away from Clive for those additional 5 years.
Literally none of the other characters again except for Clive even get to shine on their own and we don't learn much about their stories or why they are the way they are. It's like they all only exist for Clive's development and I find that so insulting to the characters and a complete waste of them. Out of all of them though, I'd say Jill was without a doubt the character that was done the dirtiest and I'm sure everyone knows why.
Unfortunately, the only character that we see all of the other characters bond with is Clive and they get no other meaningful connections with anyone else
The side quests except for the endgame quests were repetitive, boring, and unrewarding. All of them were either just fetch/kill quests. Even main story stuff is repetitive. You go destroy a crystal/stop an antagonist, come back to base, do crappy side quests and repeat that throughout the whole game.
The loot you find in the game is not that great
The gameplay was way too easy (I didn't die a single time in my playthrough) and the design of it is lazy because it didn't have much enemy variety, no enemy weaknesses/strengths. The other characters in your party are completely useless and hardly do any damage in battle and what's even more ridiculous about the gameplay and is probably the stupidest thing that I've ever seen in an FF game is that the characters in your party are immortal and can never be incapacitated in battle. What the actual fuck is that? It makes no logical sense for any party member whether they're playable in the game or not to have eternal fucking health. Whoever designed the gameplay for FF16, you deserve to be fired for that reason alone, I don't care.
The game has an unnecessary ambiguous ending, but the game still gives off an obvious hint that Clive dies from the curse. I don't really see a point in ambiguous endings unless the story is going to have more somehow, and if Clive is dead then I think that throws part of his character development out of the window. Part of Clive's character arc is about him living and there's even multiple characters in the game especially Joshua, Jill and even Cid scolding him to save himself. What was the point in all of that only to have him die in the end?
The developers could've done a lot better than this. Such a wasted potential, and I think it's hilarious that the developers pretend that they don't know why the game didn't sell to their expectations. You know, I think if they had just given what the fans wanted for the DLCs, it's possible that that alone could've saved the game. They admitted that they knew what the fans wanted before the DLC even came to be but they didn't care what people wanted, and look what happened lmao. Hardly anyone even played it, and I'm glad because that's also what they get for lying about what the DLCs were going to be about.
@@phoenixblossom2167 Yea.. honestly, it’s baffling that Square Enix is making meetings to figure out why FF hasn’t been selling well lately. And it never crosses their mind the fact that they’ve been going against fan feedback for more than a decade. Nobody liked 13, they went and made 2 sequels. Not only people didn’t like the direction 15 went, the game itself was incomplete at release. And now this is the FF16 we got.
Remake and Rebirth are good games but the FF brand is in shambles at this point. Nobody has any faith in it.
@@Ocean5ix The fans are what make them, so it's not wise imo if they don't take valid criticism from the fans into consideration. They obviously look at feedback including the negative and we know they see it because they admitted to it, but again they don't care. And like you said, it's not even crossing their mind that the problem is that they don't care.
They don't have anyone to blame but themselves...
@@Ocean5ixBeing compared to a ps2/3 game is great in my book. I prefer the linearity of the world and simple dungeon design since I just want to fight enemies. It's much better than the open world slop we have today. And I do agree it'd be much better if it was structured like a DMC game cause the fetch quests are boring. I have to disagree with you regarding what you said about just playing DMC if you want the combat, though. I tend to view 16 as a much more chill version of DMC. It may not have as much depth compared to it but there's still some pretty cool spectacles you can pull off without having to do crazy inputs whereas if I want something more technical with more skill involved I'll just play DMC. It just depends on my mood.
@@Mark-se6ux Oh for sure, can't argue against preference. It's just that for a game that marketed itself as at least "semi open world" with the devs mentioning God of War 2018 and Ragnarok as inspirations, the game was very disappointing.
I also agree that a lot of times, comparisons with PS2 games are great. A good example is the Yakuza franchise, which still has that PS2 feel/jank to it that makes us remember the PS2 days. That said, I think when it comes to dungeon level design there's no way to justify how simplistic it is in 16. It feels like Square never learned how to make 3D dungeons in these games because it's not just the PS2, the PS3 13 games also had this problem, the 7 Remake also has this problem. Their dungeons not just lack in level design, they also lack artistic design to hide how linear they are.
I can agree with your combat argument. It's easier to look cool in 16 than it is in DMC5.
I absolutely love this game. Sure fetch quests are chores, however the back story the NPC gives you why it benefits them is vital to the world building.
I'm playing FFXIV with this video in the background and the sound you use for the chapter title cards just makes me look around the game wildly. "I didn't que for anything!"
On June 22nd, I celebrated the game's 1st year anniversary with Soken and Koji Fox at Distant Worlds: music from FINAL FANTASY.
That's awesome!
I think one of the things that ff16 did extremely well was show a great love story that had a lot of maturity and was handled with the delicate care the characters needed. To date, it’s definetely in my top 3 love stories of all the games and showed much more emotional depth than almost every other one in the series. I do wish they fleshed Jill out more but speaking just purely about the love story, it’s top tier.
My main gripe with the game design wise is the lack of meaningful side content, which is weird coming from me as I normally b-line things as im a story enjoyer before anything else. But with the extended downtime between major arcs in the game feeling like the bad kind of side content, the lack of any dungeons, puzzles, or meaningful extensions of combat really make b-lining 16 the only enjoyable way to play. I get the the side quests mainly aim to give more lore and perspective but given that I played every side quest but found only like 5 out of the 76 be enjoyable, it kinda makes the other 71 pointless. Not to mention that non-super abilities don’t scale well into higher difficulties. I hated how easy the game was so when I went into Final Fantasy mode, it was disappointing that the combo abilities didnt feel good at all and the only setup that stays viable is lightning rod, will o wykes, and filling the rest of your slots with supers (which i find boring and i think we should have been limited to 1 super at any given time). Story wise my enjoyment took a dip after the second time skip, everything felt too on the nose and it lost a lot of its urgency along with expecting us as the audience to care for all of the filler side characters while sidelining the main cast. I like Jill anytime she’s actually on screen, but since thats like 15% of the game she just feels like an after thought. I don’t mind that she can’t fight all the time because she’s ill, but not that that means she doesn’t get anything to do at all. Which is my last major thing, as much as im all for each numbered entry being its own thing and not being pigeon-hold to specific mechanics, there being no real party gameplay wise destroys the final fantasy of it all. Even in vanilla 15 you still interacted with the rest of the boys and actively fought with you but you can barely even see your teammates in 16 much less feel any impact from them at all. As much as i disagreed with the, “this isnt final fantasy” discourse, there being a lack of a party really made it feel generic and, “not final fantasy” for me. That being said, I remember enjoying 16 from minute 1 to 2nd time skip like it was the greatest thing ever and I still love the game to bits for it. But the last half is where my patience wore thin both gameplay and story wise.
i wanted to spend so much time in its world but there was damn near nothing else to do outside combat. Even the usual lame minigames like darts would have done it for me. How about some basebuilding mechanics for the hideout. What a missed opp. So pissed because this could have been the most iconic ff game since X
I think they just spent all their money on cinematics. I really think that was it.
@@jaybee4288exactly. They were epic no doubt, but I found some of them dragged on for too long. A world as depressing as this is bound to have some fun places like Wall Market in FF7. In fact, we come across a place that probably would be like it, but they don't let you go in and engage with it.
Beat this game yesterday. One of the most focused narratives. never feels as grand as other final fantasy games. It's all around solid
One of the best games ever made. And it’s not even close.
Lol
The Funny part is that FF 16 really is the most LOYAL one to the really classic era of final fantasy, if you could make final fantasy 1 and 2 in current realistic graphics those games would totally look like FF16, and i´m talking about everything, the protagonists, the villains, the towns, the world, the weapons, etc., the "medieval" look of FF started with FF 1 and 2, also they gave a big important to swords in those first 2 games, the excalibur and the blood sword, they kept the importance of the sword in "Seiken Densetsu" their first final fantasy action rpg for the gameboy., final fantasy 4, tactics, 11 and 14 kept the serious medieval look, 9 was more in line with 3 and 5, with that cartooney medieval look, i still miss the turn based because i like to think in strategies, and i´m not a fan of action rpgs but FF16 was really a very throw back to the roots of the franchise for sure,
Agreed. I feel like most don't actually realize how much 16 pay homage to classic FF in some of it's narrative. Perhaps the most classic feeling game we've had for years, and you can tell a lot of the blood from the first 5 FF entries, and even Tactics are woven into the feel of the world, how the story presents itself at times.
I wish it also took some elements from IV like temporary playable characters akin to Yang or Tellah, Dion and Cidolfus were way too cool to simply be... Kingdom Hearts' assist characters.
Recently on a mainline final fantasy marathon and bought this one yesterday. I'm currently finishing FFX so still a few more games to go, but as a guy who only played (and loved) ffvii and nothing else back in the day, god damn what a fun ride has been.
I'm looking forward to XVI in the near future.
That's awesome! I hope you enjoy it when you get to it!
I did want to point out one lie by Square. They may have said that they didnt plan on making a DLC, but they absolutely always were going to do so. The entrance to echoes of the fallen was such a strange part of the base game that I figured as soon as it came out was gonna be in the dlc since I beat the game and nothing was done with that. The surge from dlc 2 was also in the base game and visible from Sanbreque's coast. They had already laid out a bit of the groundwork.
I also want to point out how similar unexplained areas of the game, particularly seen at a distance, make you think "hey what's over there?" Turns out that almost every landmark you see in the game, you get to visit at least once. I do stress almost, since there are still quite a few locations I wish we could have gone to, but couldn't.
Thank you for replaying this masterpiece.
🤣🫵ua-cam.com/video/W1eGrBdyO7g/v-deo.htmlsi=91ZKOkozORTHFBPl
nothing will beat that ending cutscene after the final boss man
Definitely explained this passionately to the point I can understand you’re understanding but also can give constructive criticism without a bias. Definitely looking forward to seeing more videos of you breaking down games I played, loved, hated or in the middle about. Earned a sub 💯💪
Truly excellent story / character summary. Thank you for making this video. It’s exactly what I needed so I can start playing the game even though I pre-ordered it! 🤗❤️. You made me interested in the game. 🤗
Awe 16 will forever hold a special place in my heart 🐕 the music was freaking phenomenal ❤️
I'm just glad this game stuck with its core mechanic. FE7 Rebirth had way too many minigames that I became burned out from it after I had beaten it.
I beat this game about 2 days ago, it's definitely my favourite game of all time after beating it
Final Fantasy XVI is my favorite game of 2023 and I'm confident it's in my top 5 FF games, weaknesses aside. Great video, man!
Thank you! And it's definitely one of my favorite gaming experiences ever.
Keep up the good work man! I love RPG's and FF so you've got my sub. Good luck!
That means a lot, thank you!
Excellently made video! I loved 16 but I do get the common complaints, but like you also stated, the Eikon fights took up the brunt of the budget you can see this by the time you hit the last Eikon fight that it’s the most underwhelming imo. Thanks for the video and brining this fantastic story back into my mind. The story was phenomenal imo. Loved the darker tones and they hit hard. I gave it a 9/10 and stick by it lol.
Man, what an excellent video! 👏🏽
Beautifully crafted but I had to skip the DLC chapter for the vid tho.
You inspired me to finally go and finish it.
I did the Echos DLC but not the Tide yet.
1 year Anniversary,.. what better time than now.
Absolutely! The Rising Tide is a fun little piece of content, and if you enjoyed the base game, you'll love this DLC.
What a fantastic step in the right direction. Final fantasy has felt so lost for so long, but I feel like the combat, characters, voice acting were maybe my favorite ever. I feel like quests and exploration are more easily fixed than something like a combat system
this is a great detailed video on everything to love about ff16, thank you!! simply rekindles the love I had for this game, so keen to play it again on PC when it eventually comes out 😁
Not a huge FF buff but XVI was so fucking raw. The violence was so cool and refreshing. Phoenix death? Iconic, raw, depressing.
To Sail Forbidden Sea uses the same melody as the boss FATE music in FF14.
I'm glad you made this video. FF16 is among my favorites and I hate seeing it unfairly criticized by people that either haven't played the game or just hate Final Fantasy.
@@Marshall-Bit it’s also harshly critiqued by FF traditionalist. As I explained in the video, there are fair criticisms, sure, but most of what I see are criticisms that judge based off the FF it’s not, rather than judging what the game excels at and strives to do itself.
@@MoreLimitless_ Definitely.
I love FF and I played the game to completion. I have lots of criticisms of it. I dont think you can label all criticisms as ff hate. I can barely remember it while I know the older stories, characters, places and music off by heart.
''Mythos and Ultima translates to Final Fantasy'' Holy shit... you just blew my fucking mind with that one.
Final Fantasy 16 was my first true Final Fantasy experience apart from 14. I didn't know anything about it at all and I went into the demo completely blind. This game has one of the best and most effective demos I have EVER seen in a video game. From the first second I was instantly hooked. The story, cinematic cutscenes, the epic scale boss fights and the music make this game truly unforgettable. Bahamut and Titan are definitely my favorite fights. I also really love Clive as character and I loved seeing how much he progressed as the game went on.
That being said, this game does have its flaws as you pointed out. My biggest disappointment was the fact that you never actually get to explore any of the main cities despite them being the most prominent points of interest on the map apart from the mothercrystals. Some characters like Jill, Benedikta, Hugo and Barnabas also felt a little underutilized and they definitely could have done more with them.
But apart from that, it's definitely up there with one of my favorite games of all time! ❤
Amazing video, i'd love for you to do this with all the other FF's
@@neoandroid8586 I would love to! The only problem is how long these type of videos take, and I’d probably like to replay them again so it’s fresh in my mind. Otherwise, it’s definitely a type of video I would love to do again.
The best Final Fantasy since the PS1 era. No Multiverses, no split timelines, no annoying shonen tropes, just a straight up medieval fantasy game
It's my favorite single player FF since FFX
Rebirth isnt any of those things either, imo. I think 7r is more like zanarkand in 10, a dream world.
The game is full of Shonen Tropes actually, I mean the main reason the hero beat the bad guys is basically because of the power of friendship... now I'm not saying this makes it bad not at all, but these tropes are still there, they do however avoid the bad ones (like the hot sources scene for instance), but to be fair while they follow typical Shonen narrative I can't recall of any FF old or new that use these kind of tropes like the Persona or Tales games does for instance.
Yes, the straight up medieval fantasy with an alien God. Lol
@@ashleycornwell67 You didn't even play the game. Ultima wasn't an Alien. He was apart a an ancient race of magical beings which 100% fits the medieval fantasy trope. LOTR, GoT, hell even previous final fantasy games had that
In my personal opinion, this is still the greatest game I've ever played and remains my favourite
Amazing review. It's rare to find others who truly understand the combat system, both the good and the bad.
I played it a few months ago and I liked it, the only mistake I made was to play it after finishing FF7 Rebirth because the gameplay it's much more simple...
Awesome review! As a big fan of FF since SNES, I couldn’t agree more with you! 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼
I thought you had 852K subs because you gave me that vibe, quality content. Subbed
Man, I still want more - great game! 😊
I still remember how unsettled I was when Ultima first appeared on screen. Dude made my skin crawl at first. Lol
Absolutely love this game. This and ff7 rebirth have put ff back on my map again, it took a while.
I wish FF mode was the normal mode and there was another difficulty between Ultimaniac mode, I feel like I have to play way more safe than I should with the mode especially with no saves
I think a mode between FF mode and Ultimaniac would be great for the base game and even if not that, FF mode on the first playthrough would be Ideal. It's one of the reasons Im looking forward to play the PC version since mods will fix a lot of those issues of the game.
I'd call this game one of the best examples of an "uncut masterpiece." The game is a masterpiece, and nothing will change that. But it could have hit better if it was willing to risk being a little bit less. Cut a few of the more unnecessary side and main quests to keep the pacing tighter, cut some of the unnecessary gameplay systems that aren't fleshed out, etc.
I agree. Even if they wanted to keep it the same length, some of the main quests could have been a bit better in design than "go here and fetch me 3 out this item and come back to talk to me." But other than the flawed quest design and early game side quests, the game is still very good overall. The most complete and quality single player FF game we've gotten in the past 20 years.
I recently finished 16 yesterday, DLC included. Definitely a fantastic journey with a great story and incredible voice acting.
Biggest complaint? Not necessarily the side quests per say, but more so the side quest distribution. All side quests after the sky became cloudy just drained me, i know its my own problem wanting to 100% the game but thats probably my main critique. I will never 100% this game ever again.
I would also say the gameplay variety was near nonexistent with the exception of the eikon abilities of course. Mixing and matching different abilities was a massive highlight for me. I just wish there was more to do in the game than just back and forth side quests as well as combat. Playing 7 Rebirth before this certainly affected my opinion with that in all fairness lol
Good call. I beat the game a few times now and I love more than I can gripe over. As an RPG, yea it's lacking although as a character action game like DMC or Metal Gear Revengence it's really fun. The combat is a blast and the common consensus seems to be the same - it could be more difficult - the complexity outmatched the difficulty. FF mode would have been better suited for Action mode and maybe something between FF mode and Ultimaniac would have been good NG+. I enjoyed different builds in terms of Eikonic abilities and I do like how there are saved load outs in the newer updates - I just don't understand why you couldn't save accessories as part of those saved loadouts. As for the accessories, I didn't really find that they made that much of a difference until the newer gear came out with the DLCs and those were more fun and were actually advantageous to have equipped. Maybe 2-3 more accessory slots would have made the game feel more like an RPG or if the base eikon accessories could be upgraded further or - better yet - combined together through crafting, then you could really have noticeably different builds changing the gameplay as well as making crafting more meaningful. This might be basic to say, but Clive and Ultima are a great hero and villain and are in my top three with Cloud/Sephiroth and Guts/Griffith but that just might be vanilla. I'm a sucker for anti-christ like villains and quasi-religious themes in media and this fits the bill. Omega and The Timekeeper boss fights are amazing and specifically the timekeeper fight is a visual masterpiece, just my two cents. FFXVI left me wanting more and I believe that this formula could be made better. If you read through this, thank you and sorry for the rambling lol.
ever since 15, i had little hopes for 16. however, 16 has now become one of my top 3 FF’s and I’ve played a considerable amount of FF from early childhood years, to my now adult years
you - good sir - made me play the game again!! thank you for that
Favorite game💯 Both of Titans fights was my favorite parts especially the clashing ideologies of the 1st fight. I wish ffxv would get put on ps5 with Dawn of the future DLC and full fights since the ps5 can handle it
watching this while waiting for a duty to fill in ff14 was a pain in the ass lmao. that transition sound
This is one of my favorite games ever.
Put over 500 hours into it
Hell yeah, man. This entry is top 3 for me.
Best game I've ever played no matter what people say
@@Bader-ey2gj Tell em!!
It was a solid game. The boss fights,story,music, and main character were great. But the gameplay could’ve been a little more deeper like dmc, no real magic spells and once you get 3 icon powers and level up it did get too easy
Incredible video! Subscribed, let's get you over the line!!
I finished the game and haven't touched it since. I didn't get the DLC, maybe I'll get them eventually but overall this game was just fine
hey man great vid! what's the song at 1:03??
i picked up 16 but only got 20 hours in. just finished rebirth so now making my way back to it. i'm so excited. i'm a very late bloomer to jrpg's in general so got so many greats to work through
@@xxbillybarnes I’m glad you enjoyed it! And the song is called the Greatwood from FFXVI.
Great writing, editing, delivery. Fair and measured criticism and praise, get this man more subs!
I appreciate that sm!
I just find it funny that Clive is literally the combination of Cloud and Strife
You deserve all of the success coming your way
Imma be real, I feel like Jill was the most compelling and well written character next to Clive. Imo she has more development than people give her credit for, and she still has direction and an arc that goes somewhere following through right to the end of the game, it's just relatively subtle and told through little moments/dialogues rather than another big setpiece like the Iron Kingdom. I keyed into so much more during my second playthrough, her writing is actually really good and she's much more of a three dimensional character than even Joshua.
Unfortunately she suffers the most from the writing issues in the third act, and there are some big issues with her execution ofc. I think if she had just that little bit more she would have landed better overall. Show her curse, emphasize it and her need to start taking care of herself by having her fight Titan with Clive instead of what happened at Rosalith, dig a little deeper into her relationship with Shiva, etc.
@@foob420 That is exactly how I feel about her character. She’s a good and well written character that intertwines with Clive nicely, however, she lacks direction going into the latter half of the game. Instead they choose to focus more on only Clive and Joshua and Jill was just not given enough material, but she still has her moments as well.
i had to get used to the Duty Pop sound effect lmao. i'm not even playing ff14 but i react to that sound
I'm still waiting for the pc release. Waiting for it and trying to avoid spoilers is insane
Hopefully soon this year!
I recently got the Cape of the Inexorable (Ultimaniac All S-Ranks) and I saw the game from a whole new side, it showed its greatest strengths and weaknesses to me.
First things first, the game's main gameplay is about the best action gameplay I have ever touched. Everything works pitch perfect and there is a surprising amount of depth, that you might never get to see, when you only just play through the game. Also, the game has a lot of long time motivation, because of mission replay and chronolith trials.
That being said, S-Ranking the game felt counter intuitive to what the game teaches you over its runtime. The game tells you that damage is the desirable state throughout its runtime. But then S-Ranks require you to not do damage and squeeze every enemy out to the last drop for points.
Furthermore, there isn't enough RPG in the game. Not enough build variety and character progression, not enough exploration, dungeons and creative level design, not enough gameplay variety.
Tl;dr: Top tier gameplay, a lot of endgame content, but also that endgame content is counter intuitive to the main game and the game lacks RPG elements
Still love this game! Side quests and villain were a bit boring but everything else was very well done and epic.
Worried about Joshua spoilers but splicing in cutscenes from the ending 😂 Despite this strangeness, I really appreciated and enjoyed this video!
Most people new probably wont even notice that small clip even if they do make it all the way through this 40 minute vid lol, and I'm glad you enjoyed it!
Clive is a very likeable character. I really like FF16, coming from a person who loves turnbased, this game was a breath of fresh air as the story standouts. The game feels more like a God of War game rather than Final Fantasy. At the end of the day, a good game is a good game.
This game in terms of aesthetics is definitely one of the best I’ve seen in a while. Every boss fight were like a cinematic movie.
I really enjoyed Final Fantasy 16. It’s not my favorite in the series but it’s definitely not the worst either. I enjoyed the story. I enjoyed the combat. It was a beautiful game. I think it was solid.
Great video. I’m so down to replay this on a high end PC but I need need NEED a mod that disables the purple sky that stays permanently for the entire endgame. I just want to appreciate these areas without that filter.
The purple sky definitely got tiring after a while lol
@@MoreLimitless_ definitely because if you are doing a completionist run you spend more time with the purple filter present than without and it’s not close because of all the endgame quests and hunts
1 year already!!!! time flies 😭😭
Well crafted video. Thank you!
Noct will always be my all time favourite and its a miracle we got FFXV, but I love Clive, he's a genuinely good guy and despite all the shit thats been thrown at him, he's still a sweet guy with a pretty good attitude about it. It's so refreshing to have a protag thats in their 30's tbh.
I'm not ashamed to say FFXV is my favourite FF warts and all, but the team did a good time with FFXVI. Its very polish and like you say, the story is cohesive and the message is clear cut. Makes me wish FFXV got the same polished treatment.
Great video!
The game is a solid 8/10 for me. I agree with critics that the lack of RPG elements, and the side quest structure definitely holds it back. For example, it doesn’t really make sense how my Phoenix abilities can kill Bombs, when in most games Bombs absorbs and get stronger with fire based attacks. Not to mention the combat can get really shallow in many general mob battles. For an action game, it’s definitely not the best. But the Eikon battles and its story are definitely its high points.
@@OmarO_721 Well I’ll say this, like I said in the video the combat is made to encourage creativity to the player. Having elemental weaknesses and MP sort of defeats that purpose of being able to use anything you want to combo with as it is built like a CA game, not a strategy RPG. In that sense, at least for me, I absolutely love the combat. The problem it runs into as explained in video is the lack of interesting mechanics, enemy variety or difficulty within them that hold it back, not the fundamental gameplay itself which I believe is very well made. But the other negatives I just mentioned don’t require the player to bring the most out of the combat like other CA games do because they don’t have those problems. I still enjoyed the combat a lot myself but those negatives definitely hold it back from being great.
This was a brilliant video, it was like you’re in my head as I agree with everything you’ve said. Great to see someone who is aware of its flaws but still absolutely loves it for all its strengths (which far outweigh the down sides) I’m still playing it and listening to the soundtrack regularly. Even rebirth didn’t reach the same highs, objectively sure it’s a better game, but FFXVI is a game I’m way more passionate about, it’s definitely my favourite game of the series
I absolutely agree. I loved Rebirth and I do think overall it's a better rounded game then XVI, but the highs, the story and characters in XVI just did it for me more.
@@MoreLimitless_ 100% agree
First final fantasy I’ve ever beat, insane boss battles, realllllly sluggish side content, except for the final missions in each side storyline they were horrible and really slowed down the experience. But man the eikon battles were exceptional and the boss battles were a spectacle, especially barnabus
Also probably one of the strongest openings (the demo section) to a game Ive ever played
My first final fantasy that turned me into a FF fan, had me watching hours of lore about the series. So much so I bought FF7 Rebirth and fell in love again
I'm not even a Final Fantasy fan but I was addicted to this absolute kino. Here's hoping for a PC port cause the PS5 visuals definitely dropped quite a bit in many aspects.