Final Fantasy XVI

 PlayStation 5
User Score
8.1

Generally favorable reviews- based on 8567 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 6,528 out of 8567
  2. Mixed: 693 out of 8567
  3. Negative: 1,346 out of 8567
Buy Now
Buy on

Review this game

  1. Your Score
    0 out of 10
    Rate this:
    • 10
    • 9
    • 8
    • 7
    • 6
    • 5
    • 4
    • 3
    • 2
    • 1
    • 0
    • 0
  1. Submit
  2. Check Spelling
view
per page
  1. Talitor
    Jul 18, 2023
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. As a huge fan of the series, this entry was yet another letdown. I'll try to go through it as short as possible as pros and cons:

    The pros:
    -Very good graphics, although performance isn't great. I'd recommend going for the 'graphics' mode, since the 'performance' one can't hold a stable framerate to save your life. It's really jarring to look at.
    -Stylish combat, although it does get pretty repetitive by the half-point
    -A lot of "content" (which is also a con, more on the quotation marks on the 'cons')
    -High production value, with decent voice acting. You can tell the game was made with good hardware and talented people.
    -A few memorable boss fights

    The cons:
    -The story. It's actually quite interesting when you look at the setpieces, but the execution simply doesn't hold up. The pacing is very poor, and after fairly surprising first good two hours the story takes a backseat, and all the filler content starts taking place. Also, the game pulls a massive "your princess is in another castle" by capturing the female lead not one, not two, but three freaking times. It got old the second time.

    -The music. I didn't expect to be so disappointed by FF soundtrack, but I honestly cannot remember any tracks of this game, and music was always very important part for me about these games. The music is simply not memorable nor particularly noticable, but rather that epic orchestra which is just backing up the fights and the scenes.

    -The content. There is a lot to be had, with the main story easily taking close to 20 hours. Add another 20 for all the hunts, side-quests and another playthrough with possibly harder difficulties. The issue here is that the content is mostly not interesting. The side-quests are often XIV-style (you know, the MMORPG of the series) styled fetch quests with plots that actually don't provide for interesting stories to tell, but rather VERY generic stuff.

    -The dialogue. This one is probably related to the content as well, but the dialogue is written in a manner where everything has this weird, very slow pace which seems to question the intelligence of the listener. This goes as far as to have some incredibly cheesy, corny lines (which isn't that unusual in the series, but here they went way overboard). The dynamic between characters is like something generated by two robots without any real emotions, other than the biggest emotional parts of the game, which are at least voice acted well.

    -The UI is XIV copy.

    -The fighting. It actually feels like a lot to take in at first when they start introducing new Eikon abilities, but after getting a grasp of it all the battles run exactly the same without any real strategy. Despite being flashy, it feels almost as like a step up from FFXV: you do actually have to put more consideration into your inputs, but it simply isn't too interesting once you actually figure it out.

    -The Eikon battles. Now, I actually enjoyed the parts where you fight the Dominant before they turn into Eikon, but these battles seem to go on forever. You literally "slay" (the game even says so) the same boss 3 times. I get that these are supposed to be the main pull of the game, but surprisingly fighting as your own Eikon is pretty much the same stuff you do as Clive: but simply on a bigger scale. The principle is exactly the same.

    -The antagonist. There are quite a few, but only a single major one. The problem is that none of these have enough impact on your journey to actually make them interesting, and the game has a weird refusal to do unexpected things and kill off characters when they most definitely should have died. The antagonists simply are too weak, and I'm getting massive FFXII vibes here (and they are not good).

    -The leveling/character upgrades. The loot system is absolutely pointless, as you get the good upgrades regardless via gil that you get automatically (of which amount is also greatly inflated), and the upgrades are also extremely minimal (we're talking about a few %, which means like a couple of actual hits in a fight). The abilitiy upgrading is also doing very little to enhance the gameplay or give actual weight to the customisation. It is by far the simplest FF in regards to this.

    -The ending. I mean, it ended pretty much the way you expected from the very beginning of the game, but I was still expecting it to subvert these expectations. It actually ended up being even more simple form of the ending that was very predictable. It's a little bit emotional, but it fails to deliver on those high emotional notes the game is supposed to hit.

    Considering I was very disappointed with XII, XIII, XV and XVI, I feel sad to say this may have been the last time I buy FF title on launch. Call me nostalgic old fool, but the magic, the emotion, the joy and the fantastic atmosphere of the old dames is long gone. I believed the reviews, but after 100%'ing the game, I cannot believe the game has scored as high as it has    … Expand
  2. gun661
    Jun 24, 2023
    4
    It's sad to see they actually and purposefully tried to copy Games of Thrones' style. Especially in the case of Final Fantasy... that's even more disheartening than FF16's story itself. So many big games and other works of fiction try to copy that style nowadays. Because of this, it very much isn't a bold shift.

    To me, a "guy from the Europe", Final Fantasy 1-10 were great in offering    It's sad to see they actually and purposefully tried to copy Games of Thrones' style. Especially in the case of Final Fantasy... that's even more disheartening than FF16's story itself. So many big games and other works of fiction try to copy that style nowadays. Because of this, it very much isn't a bold shift.

    To me, a "guy from the Europe", Final Fantasy 1-10 were great in offering another point of view from another culture. Despite coming from the other side of the world, these stories hit close to home and inspired me to trust my friends and believe in kindness. I felt connected despite the cultural differences. "You're not alone", a central message of FF9. Final Fantasy games didn't intrigue me by trying to imitate western narratives about the disconnect and mistrust between people in an attempt to get larger market shares. Final Fantasy games were answers to the question of how to overcome mistrust.

    I don't get why so many think these grimdark stories are "mature" and "based more in reality". It's just as real and mature as pink fluffy unicorns, just the other way round. It's what 12-year boys hitting puberty might think of what "brutal grown-up stuff" is like. "Look at how tough I am, playing such a game." But even grown-up kids seem to buy into these stories full of mistrust, backstabbing, and needless violence. If these stories are deemed mainstream entertainment nowadays and (young) people start to believe that they imply "realism", oh boy, that's the real dark stuff of our societies taking the risk of going completely bonkers.

    I remember playing Doom when I was twelve. Man, I did feel badass. But it wasn't very mature. In contrast, Games of Thrones takes itself way more seriously and is carried by an edgy, cynical, almost neurotic interpretation of human society ruled by sociopaths that never really did grow up. You could argue that yes, that's social criticism, and yes, there are sociopaths running wild in contemporary politics. But that's not really entertaining. Just as the mentality that most other humans are evil, you "have to fight dirty" to "survive" and mistrust every other person, especially your nearest acquaintances, is neither an insightful nor a helpful moral of the story. It just builds upon another rather bleak ideology. Especially in the context of social criticism.

    I had hoped Square Enix would stay true to themselves instead of seeking similarity, reinventing themselves with a fresh and different take and a level of maturity on par with the old Final Fantasies - all way more mature, authentic, and profound than this installment.    … Expand
  3. Daniel_Campbell
    Jun 28, 2023
    4
    I'm super happy that most of the fanbase loves this game...but I honestly can't bring myself to like it.

    I was excited after seeing all of the positive buzz but I am super disappointed in the final product. It's like they have all of the ingredients except for one... Fun. The game is impressive and so many ways except for the gameplay. It could be some of the most bland and uninspired    I'm super happy that most of the fanbase loves this game...but I honestly can't bring myself to like it.

    I was excited after seeing all of the positive buzz but I am super disappointed in the final product. It's like they have all of the ingredients except for one... Fun. The game is impressive and so many ways except for the gameplay. It could be some of the most bland and uninspired trite I've ever encountered in a AAA game. The environments, music, SFX, ect. All that stuff is great... But, the actual game part sucks. Everything cool that happens in a fight is literally handled with a QTE. Like it's 2006 or something. There's entire boss fights that are 90% super long cutscenes with QTEs. I seriously have no idea what game all these reviewers were playing.

    And this is completely glossing over the fact that they give you these "cheat" items at the start of the game that completely trivialize combat. Items that automatically pull off the optimal combos, auto dodge attacks, auto heal you, etc. There's literally no incentive NOT to use them. At the start of the game they've ask you if you're okay with action, or if you'd rather just enjoy the story. Even if you pick "Action" they STILL give you the items. The story started off strong, VERY clearly trying to copy Game of Thrones. Hell, there's even a Dire Wolf that was "found on a journey from the northern region". But after a few hours it turns into Final Fantasy melodramatic drivel. Deaths mean nothing, huge plot holes, confusing character dialogue, etc.

    There are various "eras" of Square history. There's the 2D classics, the early 3D offerings, the "1000 spin-offs" era, and now we appear to be in the "VFX" era. I certainly hope you like sparks, smoke, explosions, and other various VFX. Because you're going to see them EVERYWHERE in combat. To the point where you can barely see what is happening on screen sometimes.

    Overall the game is pretty...but that's all. It's all flash, no substance. A high budget version of a bargain bin action adventure.    … Expand
  4. Ndonnine
    Jun 26, 2023
    4
    Just let your girlfriend play and you watch cuz this is just a joke. They spent 6 years making cut scenes and forgot to make the game.

    In reality, you should want to keep turning this game on and playing... But you may never finish it or find the will to turn it on. Lets be frank: this isn't a game. It's a game of thrones ripoff cinematic story with a few action combat scenes that you    Just let your girlfriend play and you watch cuz this is just a joke. They spent 6 years making cut scenes and forgot to make the game.

    In reality, you should want to keep turning this game on and playing... But you may never finish it or find the will to turn it on.

    Lets be frank: this isn't a game. It's a game of thrones ripoff cinematic story with a few action combat scenes that you control.

    There's basically no exploration. You maybe play 1/7th of the actual the game. The rest is cut scenes. Combat is over simplified... So much that it's impossible to die. Weirdly, you can make the game even easier by adding newbie rings... No clue why you would.

    There's so bad arse cut scenes with some big things that you basically hit r1 or square.... And these cut scenes battles take WAY TOO LONG.

    If I have to hit x then hold r2 to open another door I'm going to throw the game in the trash. Any reason a dev does something like this is: they are daft and lack any knowledge of gaming.

    Equipment is stupid- you just buy new crap everytime you go to a town.. no real variety or even a need to update your gear. It's thoughtless. Yes, the graphics are good 90% of the time. Sometimes the character models drop textures - super weird.

    Voice acting is mostly good....    … Expand
  5. Doan
    Jun 25, 2023
    4
    The Good:

    1. Graphics - This is also a con, as SE focuses far too much on graphics, while neglecting other aspects of their games 2. Audio - Music, Voice Acting, & Sound Effects 3. Combat* - With the exception of controlling Torgal, which is horribly implemented The Bad (Essentially, everything not mentioned above): 1. Unimmersive - UI clutter and invisible walls everywhere.    The Good:

    1. Graphics - This is also a con, as SE focuses far too much on graphics, while neglecting other aspects of their games
    2. Audio - Music, Voice Acting, & Sound Effects
    3. Combat* - With the exception of controlling Torgal, which is horribly implemented

    The Bad (Essentially, everything not mentioned above):

    1. Unimmersive - UI clutter and invisible walls everywhere. 95% of doors in the game serve no purpose and cannot be used. Windows are constantly popping up which disrupt gameplay, every time a quest is completed, or a new mainline quest starts, or upon level-up, or upon defeating enemies, etc. FF16 feels like any other AAA game: Don't think for yourself to progress the game, simply chase the objective marker around the world until the credits roll.
    2. UI Clutter (Kills immersion) - Quest icons and objective markers are constantly floating around the screen like annoying little bugs. Everything in the game is indicated with brightly-colored and/or animated icons. The Quest Tracker is persistently onscreen with no option to hide it. Damage numbers and enemy health bars cannot be disabled.
    3. Linear - FF16 gives FF13 flashbacks. This is not a good thing.
    4. Quick Time Events - These should be non-interactive cutscenes, so the player can sit back and enjoy the great cinematics, instead of mindlessly mashing whatever button appears on the screen. Nobody likes QTE.
    5. Overly-simplistic Equipment System
    6. Motion Blur - Cannot be disabled
    7. Visually-noisy Combat - During combat, so many obnoxious visual effects are occurring, which makes it difficult to see what is happening. This makes it difficult to focus on the correct enemy and time attacks/dodges
    8. Poor Performance - FPS frequently drops, resulting in noticeable stutters and choppy gameplay
    9. Lame Sidequests (Kills immersion): Side quests require zero thought, as you simply chase objective markers until the quest is complete.
    10. No sense of exploration or discovery - Everything is thrown in your face, as if your are a moron (Kills immersion): Side quests are marked on the map and with floating icons onscreen, items in the environment are large, brightly-lit, & animated, coffers are marked with an icon which can be seen through walls, etc.
    11. Combat - Most of the combat is fun and engaging. The one terribly-implemented combat aspect is controlling Torgal. To control Torgal, you must swap between two different onscreen menus: One for using healing items, and one for issuing commands to Torgal. This is just dumb. You should not have to choose between either using healing items _or_ controlling your AI companion. Torgal should act completely autonomously. If anything, Torgal should have cooldowns which are occasionally activated by the player, but Siccing, Ravaging, and Healing should be fully automated. The accessory which does make Torgal behave this way should not exist, as this is how Torgal should behave by default.
    12. Slow Menus - Menus are animated, so it takes an unnecessarily long time to open, close, and navigate between menus
    13. Lame Eikon Fights - Eikon battles look good, but there is zero challenge to them. They should have just been cutscenes the player could sit back and just enjoy watching.    … Expand
  6. X-File
    Jun 29, 2023
    4
    Is this even a FF game? Pretty much nonexistent gear and item system. Combat is screwy, two ability slots to use for all those skills. Yes, you can "queue up" four more and rotate through them, still screwy. Fights are short and easy. The story is so linear, you might as well be walking down a hallway. No chocobo music while riding! They have crossed the line here. What game is this?
  7. BMBender
    Aug 4, 2023
    4
    Somehow, SqE made action combat more boring than endless cut scenes ( of which there is a mind numbing amount) If you think game of thrones was the hight of creative endeavor and are willing to sit through it again with name changes you may like the story. IM kinda waiting for a news report of Martin and/or HBO suing SqE over this. Prob 5 or more hrs of dialog is literally lifted wordSomehow, SqE made action combat more boring than endless cut scenes ( of which there is a mind numbing amount) If you think game of thrones was the hight of creative endeavor and are willing to sit through it again with name changes you may like the story. IM kinda waiting for a news report of Martin and/or HBO suing SqE over this. Prob 5 or more hrs of dialog is literally lifted word for word.

    Production value is obviously high, however polishing a turd is still a polished turd.

    There is no rpg
    There is no adventure There is no exploration There is no FF Protip: pop Got into your DVD, grab a PS controller, every 5/10 minutes randomly mash square and L1 for a couple minutes. You have now "played" FF16 and saved yourself $70    … Expand
  8. Adgalo
    Aug 15, 2023
    4
    I don't get where dows all this praise come. Graphic wise, it doesn't look bad, but its nothing to write home about, and performance is a problem. If it looks just ok, renders at just 1440p, I should expect 60fps, and it barely maintains 30...

    Voice acting is ok, but lipsync is really bad and the characters look really stiff and cheap animated during conversations. The soundtrack contains    I don't get where dows all this praise come. Graphic wise, it doesn't look bad, but its nothing to write home about, and performance is a problem. If it looks just ok, renders at just 1440p, I should expect 60fps, and it barely maintains 30...

    Voice acting is ok, but lipsync is really bad and the characters look really stiff and cheap animated during conversations. The soundtrack contains some good compositions, and some important bosses have their own epic track. Problem is, for every other moment of the game, a generic song is used, without any kind of dynamic adaptation, and a lot of times, the music doesn't fit what is happening...

    Story is mediocre. There are a lot of characters, and when you start the game many of them look like may be important, but all of them end their participation in the game without any real development or weight in the narrative (there's just a couple of exceptions, and even then, they are not that well developed).

    Gameplay... See, I don't mind change and experimentation with combat, and this one starts being funny and looking espectacular. This doesn't last long, as you end up smashing attack button and spamming the Eikon abilities. You can dodge and block enemy attacks, which adds a little bit of flavor, but combat ends up being terribly repetitive. Eikon combats look espectacular... and that's it.

    Sidequests are an absolute chore. Fetch this and combat that ad nauseam, without any kind of real narrative involved. Some of the latter one contain more story and throw some light over some characters, but they look and feel cheap nevertheless.

    A half assed game, that starts strong and quickly becomes boring... Everything in it screams mediocrity.    … Expand
  9. NihylBaxter
    Jun 26, 2023
    4
    Oh boy am I disappointed in this game. Except from the boss fights everything is shallow, too easy, pointless, boring, unfinished and repetitive. This really seals it for me, Final Fantasy is officially dead to me. It’s a shame I paid so much money for this and I would rather watch a let’s play and skip the boring parts! I mean I played a main dungeon drunk and with one hand an one eye andOh boy am I disappointed in this game. Except from the boss fights everything is shallow, too easy, pointless, boring, unfinished and repetitive. This really seals it for me, Final Fantasy is officially dead to me. It’s a shame I paid so much money for this and I would rather watch a let’s play and skip the boring parts! I mean I played a main dungeon drunk and with one hand an one eye and was able to do it. Even the praised combat system is just way too simple and easy. The side quests are a joke ( fight 3 normal enemies for what you take max. 5 mins and get materials you have +50 of it already with which you can’t do anything because you already have everything. There is no flow because you have to stop all the time and everything is slow and needs extra steps to confirm or whatever. I have so many complaints about little things which makes this game just a chore to play for me. Fuxk this game seriously. At the end you are just pressing forward walking through areas where exploration is pointless because you will just find potions and materials you already have enough of to another cutscene to then fight pointless, easy enemies till you arrive at a bossfight which at the end is just an interactive cutscene. This was false marketing and I’m literally mad right now that I bought this crap.… Expand
  10. SimonExMachina
    Jul 7, 2023
    4
    Please watch SkillUps review. The guy is on point. This game is 70-75% non interactive cutscenes, the rest is an outdated, brainless action game. No RPG mechanics, no chalange, no freedom or player agency. Game is very linear and even when there's an open area there's absolutely no reason to explore. Mission and level design are as basic & repetitive as it gets. Combat is flashy but soPlease watch SkillUps review. The guy is on point. This game is 70-75% non interactive cutscenes, the rest is an outdated, brainless action game. No RPG mechanics, no chalange, no freedom or player agency. Game is very linear and even when there's an open area there's absolutely no reason to explore. Mission and level design are as basic & repetitive as it gets. Combat is flashy but so easy there is no depth or strategy to it.

    Story was ment to be a dark fantasy tale inspired by Game of Thrones but it's juvenile, cheesy anime shlock. Just because there's violence, sex and profanity doesn't make it mature. It's a childs idea of what an adoult story is. Ther's no depth on nuance here, just over the top stupidity.

    To top it all of the performace is framerate mode is horrible - the game never hits a stable 60fps and runs at a low resolution with extreme motion blure to hide it.    … Expand
  11. T4l0n
    Aug 31, 2023
    4
    This game is such a step backward for the series: there's no exploration, there's no airship, there's close to no rpg mechanics, NO MANA, ...

    Say what you want about FF15, yes it was unfinished and rushed but it took risks and had a great vision about the future of the series, FF16 is is an average action game masquerade as a Final Fantasy.
  12. WithFieryTruth
    Sep 11, 2023
    4
    I tried to post an in-depth review for this game, but the coding on the Metacritic website is as bad as always and gives me a 403 error whenever I try to post it. I guess I'll make a shorter one and hope it's accepted.

    The story, characters and soundtrack are all great, but the combat system is one of the worst I've ever had to endure throughout my life as a gamer, mainly for one    I tried to post an in-depth review for this game, but the coding on the Metacritic website is as bad as always and gives me a 403 error whenever I try to post it. I guess I'll make a shorter one and hope it's accepted.

    The story, characters and soundtrack are all great, but the combat system is one of the worst I've ever had to endure throughout my life as a gamer, mainly for one reason: enemy HP.
    Basically, every enemy in the game has a ridiculous overabundance of health, especially the bosses. It doesn't really add to the challenge of the game; it's just there to artificially prolong it.
    The situation is so bad that the button mashing that is required makes my hand physically hurt to the point where I deliberately have to take breaks from playing just to recover from the pain. This is the first game I've played since Track & Field on the NES where this has happened, and that should say something about how awful it is.

    Do yourself a favor and just watch a Let's Play of Final Fantasy XVI instead of playing it yourself.    … Expand
  13. Anthor
    Jun 27, 2023
    4
    Un mal rendimiento puede convertir una obra de arte en una puta mierda injugable. Y este ha sido el caso de Final Fantasy XVI. Un título con un diseño espectacular y un combate demoledor destrozado por su propio rendimiento atroz. No sólo viene con una resolución mediocre para los tiempos que corren sino también con un frame drop infumable. Su modo rendimiento es tan malo y está tan malUn mal rendimiento puede convertir una obra de arte en una puta mierda injugable. Y este ha sido el caso de Final Fantasy XVI. Un título con un diseño espectacular y un combate demoledor destrozado por su propio rendimiento atroz. No sólo viene con una resolución mediocre para los tiempos que corren sino también con un frame drop infumable. Su modo rendimiento es tan malo y está tan mal optimizado que lo hacen intragable. Las caídas de la tasa son inaceptables y el motor no sabe mantener ni de broma los 60fps estables que debería. No hay por donde cogerlo. Es una mierda de build la del lanzamiento. Viendo a obras maestras como Forbidden West o el Ragnarok, mucho más complejos que este, visualmente superiores y con un rendimiento excelente en PS5, demuestran que aquí Square Enix no ha estado al nivel de la consola ni mucho menos. No ha dado la talla.

    Final Fantasy XVI es basura como programa y no está en condiciones de ser vendido. Quien niegue esto es directamente un necio, como medios comprados e incompetentes regalando 9s y 10s a diestro y siniestro. O no tienen ojos en la cara o no saben ni de lo que cojones hablan. Y hay que decirlo bien alto para que se enteren tras explotarles en la frente: El rendimiento es el 50% de una obra y la build de lanzamiento de Final Fantasy XVI es inaceptable por ello. Ahora que Square Enix se ponga a trabajar en serio para arreglarlo que buena falta le hace. Es lo que deben hacer y rápido. No sea que ya no tenga salvación por tardar demasiado.    … Expand
  14. Belafonte
    Jul 17, 2023
    4
    Be aware that this is a straightforward action game with no RPG elements. The game is not great overall. There are fantastic boss fights with seamless feeling between real game and cinematics. But between these fights, the game is so boring unfortunately. horrible sidequests, no customization...Story is better than previous FF but it still far from the maturity of Games of thrones or gamesBe aware that this is a straightforward action game with no RPG elements. The game is not great overall. There are fantastic boss fights with seamless feeling between real game and cinematics. But between these fights, the game is so boring unfortunately. horrible sidequests, no customization...Story is better than previous FF but it still far from the maturity of Games of thrones or games like witcher or last of us.… Expand
  15. Taitaloscriba
    Jun 27, 2023
    4
    This isn't final fantasy. This is Devil May Fantasy. Total disappointment. It has now become an action game where you don't need a strategy but just press random keys.
  16. fearthemost
    Jun 23, 2023
    4
    The combat system is the worst part of this game. they removed many elements from previous games that made Final Fantasy a good game. After 5 hours of playing I was already bored with this battle system. All you do in this game is attack, dodge and make combos. There is no strategy. An important point for me in any Final Fantasy title is the spell system and here there is no relevanceThe combat system is the worst part of this game. they removed many elements from previous games that made Final Fantasy a good game. After 5 hours of playing I was already bored with this battle system. All you do in this game is attack, dodge and make combos. There is no strategy. An important point for me in any Final Fantasy title is the spell system and here there is no relevance to spells at all, they are just ranged attacks. There is no white magics, no support magics, no controllable party, most items are absent. The combat is boring and tedious.
    The map exploration is limited and the locations are not connected. The sidequests are all boring. I like the story and music.    … Expand
  17. Erickqe
    Jun 27, 2023
    4
    Tiene muchas misiones que se sienten como si fueran secundarias, los graficos no son tan tan buenos para que tenga caidas de framesen el gameplay y el gameplay es bueno las primeras 2 horas depsues se siente q con solo tocar botones se pasa todo el juego,
  18. BloodAndWine
    Jun 24, 2023
    4
    For being such a story heavy game (half the playtime is cutscenes) it has severe pacing issues. For every hour of interesting story, there is another hour of padding of what feels like bad fetch quests that were rolled into the main quest.

    The combat can be fun at first, but by the end I was ready for the game to end as it became stale and repetitive. Diesn't help that the game is very    For being such a story heavy game (half the playtime is cutscenes) it has severe pacing issues. For every hour of interesting story, there is another hour of padding of what feels like bad fetch quests that were rolled into the main quest.

    The combat can be fun at first, but by the end I was ready for the game to end as it became stale and repetitive. Diesn't help that the game is very easy. Since you only play as one character, there is no real variety. RPG mechanics feel entirely tacked on. Gear is boring. Loot dropped by fights is mostly irrelevant and exists solely to fill up your inventory.

    The game is very linear. It's level design goes from hallways to "open" fields, but the open areas have nothing in them. There is nothing interesting to find via exploration. Areas exist merely to be scenic. Too much time is spent going from one bland, muddy town to another.

    Most of the cast is quite bland and uniteresting with the exception of Cid. Overall character designs are lacking and visually boring. Interaction between the cast feels thin. The game seems heavily inspired by Game of Thrones except only superficially so. In trying to present itself as "mature" it ends up coming across incredibly forced and contrived (often corny but not in a fun way), and the attempt at being grounded plays against the strengths of the series.

    The music is very good.

    Overall, i didn't like it. Really disappointed. Game doesn't have much to it. It has some cool fantasy scenes, but it's bogged down by fetch quests, paint-by-numbers political intrigue and bigotry plotlines, too many mundane settings, repetitive combat, filler cutscenes, an empty world devoid of exploration and cool gear, a gloomy cast of characters with generic designs and dull personalities, and no real parties end up making the game a lonely and derivative experience.

    Also, the way sprinting works is dumb, motion blur is excessive, and the inability to turn off the auto-follow camera is annoying. Luckily the later two will be patched. And people giving the game a bad score doesn't mean you can write off their criticism as "review bombing". Sometimes people don't like things. No one ever fusses about the hordes of mindless 10/10 reviews.    … Expand
  19. Camzillasmom
    Jun 24, 2023
    4
    I played each Final Fantasy game since the early 90ties and enjoyed FF15. After playing Final Fantasy 16 for more than 8 hours, I have to say that I am concerned and disappointed about how superficial the series will become if it continues on this path.

    The story is okay, the graphics beautiful and the fights can be complex but else than that, it plays and feels more like a visual novel    I played each Final Fantasy game since the early 90ties and enjoyed FF15. After playing Final Fantasy 16 for more than 8 hours, I have to say that I am concerned and disappointed about how superficial the series will become if it continues on this path.

    The story is okay, the graphics beautiful and the fights can be complex but else than that, it plays and feels more like a visual novel with hack and slash elements then a complex Final Fantasy game that I have gotten used to from the past.
    The Side Quests are the shallowest I have completed in any FF game consisting of go fetch, find, fight, take back with no interesting twists or well hidden items. For me, just not enough effort by the developers...
    Clive's encouraging sentences towards his companions during fights is limited to 3. So after hearing "Get them boy" or "You know what to do, boy" various times in a fight with tons of encounters that I have to fight through... - I just want to turn off the sound all together.
    The corridor-like areas feel empty, dead and there is not much to discover. The shops only sell 3 potions, so they reduced the content overall.
    Outside towns it's even worse - sometimes you have to go through an area various times to do the Side Quests and hearing Clive say, after you've passed the vinyard area at least 3 times before: "This must be the vineyard" is just ridiculous!
    We all know, the Final Fantasy series can produce visual masterpieces, but I would have liked to see a better future of Final Fantasy in FF16 - one that has - apart from a gripping story - life with interesting Side Quests and a surprising, complex world.

    While FF15 was bursting with side activities like fishing, cooking and chocobo races - which were not mandatory and could totally be avoided by pure action lovers - at least it was those activities that put life into the game. FF16 contains only 3 "activities" which alternate and mix up until the end of the game interrupted by Cut-scenes: Walking - Hack'n'Slash - Shopping. This may be enough for others but certainly not for me and it really doesn't deserve a higher rating than FF15.    … Expand
  20. check2wice
    Jun 24, 2023
    4
    I hate that holding hand tutorials and way too much cutscenes. This doesn't feel like a final Fantasy
  21. luiznark
    Jul 19, 2023
    4
    Gráficos muito bons, porém perfomance fraca. Tem muita queda de FPS, achei a jogabilidade travada. Tem uma história que é boa mas tem muita cena, em que gera a impressão que você mais assiste do que joga. Além disso, jogo muito fácil, os inimigos são vencidos com muita facilidade.
  22. DutchPotato
    Jul 14, 2023
    4
    Would maybe be interested in slogging through the painfully dull story if the combat wasn't also equally uniteresting to due to how painfully easy the game is. After Yoshi P bragged about how the game was finished months ago and wouldn't need a day one patch you would think the games performance would be able to atleast hold a somewhat consistant 60fps in what is supposed to be a fastWould maybe be interested in slogging through the painfully dull story if the combat wasn't also equally uniteresting to due to how painfully easy the game is. After Yoshi P bragged about how the game was finished months ago and wouldn't need a day one patch you would think the games performance would be able to atleast hold a somewhat consistant 60fps in what is supposed to be a fast paced action game but I guess that's simply expecting too much from this team. Probably the only good thing about the game are it's visuals and the games impressive boss fights. The sheer spectacle of these fights combined with an outstanding soundtrack make these fights feel truly epic, they're also some of the few fights in the game that don't immediately melt to mindlessly spamming your abilities and actually seem fairly well balanced for the games mechanics, unlike regular and "elite" enemies which make up the majority of the games combat. Unfortunately they're too few and far and simply aren't worth putting up with the meandering busy work the game puts in between them.… Expand
  23. KojimaWhisperer
    Jul 26, 2023
    4
    Wow i was very hyped of this because i thought yoshida is the god of final fantasy. But XVI is bad, even XV and FF13 is now better in my eyes. Where is the RPG in this Game everything feels fake.
  24. Suter
    Jul 6, 2023
    4
    I'm 12 hours into this game, and I am immensely bored. While this game is absolutely stunning graphically, the characters, plot, and setting is immensely underwhelming, generic, and forgettable. Why does the main character have to be royalty? This was already done in FFXV and now we have it again? There is absolutely NOTHING relatable or truly likeable about any of the characters.I'm 12 hours into this game, and I am immensely bored. While this game is absolutely stunning graphically, the characters, plot, and setting is immensely underwhelming, generic, and forgettable. Why does the main character have to be royalty? This was already done in FFXV and now we have it again? There is absolutely NOTHING relatable or truly likeable about any of the characters. ChatGPT could easily create a better storeyline with charismatic characters and much more interesting elaborate backstories. The plot is thin, and oftentimes I just don't see the point to any of it. Playing FFXVI feels like a chore. This very well may be the worst FF game I've ever played.… Expand
  25. Voltaire1776
    Jun 23, 2023
    4
    Final Fantasy 15 was better, and that's saying something because 15 wasn't good.
  26. newjks
    Jun 27, 2023
    4
    FF13 - you have 1 town, still have some RPG element
    FF15 - you have 2 towns, RPG elements start fading
    FF16 - you don't have any RPG elements, no city to explore, cities are the dungeons, towns are laughable with almost no interior.
    Is a better ff than 13, 15 though

    Where did the development funds go?
  27. Joruto88
    Aug 4, 2023
    4
    The game is very boring, the side quests(bring 3 meals to people, fetch something) are primitive. The fights are simple, bring down the posture, unleash special attacks and repeat. Defeating some random wolfs and crabs takes about as much effort and time as defeating a Dominant with demigod lke powers. The maps are narrow corridors connecting battle arenas with 5 enemies. The cutscenesThe game is very boring, the side quests(bring 3 meals to people, fetch something) are primitive. The fights are simple, bring down the posture, unleash special attacks and repeat. Defeating some random wolfs and crabs takes about as much effort and time as defeating a Dominant with demigod lke powers. The maps are narrow corridors connecting battle arenas with 5 enemies. The cutscenes after boss battles are interrupted wit victory screens. There is no exploration, loot is useless.… Expand
  28. Valgarv
    Jun 26, 2023
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. HISTORIA:
    Antes de que saliera el juego ya se comentaba que la historia es muy "Juego de tronos" y realmente en lo único que se parece a GOT es a su última temporada.
    El arranque de la historia da a entender que hay muchas subtramas, con muchos personajes involucrados, con un contenido más profundo, maduro hasta que el juego avanza lo suficiente para dejar de lado toda esa idea del principio y pasar a algo mucho más simple, infantil, alargado superficialmente y sin carisma.
    El juego tiene un problema serio con sus personajes y el protagonista no se salva en absoluto. Clive es un personaje soporífero, sin carisma, sin personalidad y que no logra empatizar para nada. Los personajes "secundaríos" carecen totalmente de importancia, de carisma, son personajes sin personalidad con nulo trasfondo ( incluso Cid ).
    La narrativa tampoco ayuda nada, donde quieren contarte la historia utilizando mediante cinemáticas y si quieres profundizar algo más tienes que leerte el códice y esto es una chapuza, una falta de tacto a la hora de querer contar su lore.

    GRAFICOS:
    En este apartado hay que comentar el mal rendimiento que presenta el juego en ambas modalidades, con bajadas importantes de FPS y una falta total de configuración donde puedas quitar ese blur abusivo insoportable.
    El juego tiene unas cinemáticas muy épicas, con combates muy vistosos llenos de efectos y en ese sentido está muy logrado.
    Artísticamente me ha parecido feo y sin personalidad, es como si hubieran usado assets de otros juegos del estilo y los hubieran pegado en el mapa.
    Las texturas son correctas, nada sobresaliente, con un uso abusivo de blur para tapar errores y marear al jugador y con una iluminación/sombras muy pobres.
    Hay poca variedad en los rostros y muchos personajes se parecen demasiado. Los expresiones faciales fuera de las cinemáticas son pésimas y propias de un juego de hace 10 años.

    JUGABILIDAD:
    Una de las características básicas de la saga Final Fantasy es que su núcleo pertenece al género JRPG/RPG ya sea por turnos, por gambits, action, táctico, etc.
    FF16 se presenta como un Final Fantasy Action-RPG y es una mentira como una casa. Mucha gente pretende llamar a esto "evolución" cuando en realidad es que no han tenido ningún pudor en eliminar la esencia, el núcleo, el género propio de su saga a cambio de ser más comercial ( que no es lo mismo que evolucionar ), demostrando el poco amor propio y el poco respeto que tienen por lo suyo.
    Este juego ya NO es un jrpg, ahora es un hack&slash, un bloockbuster e incluso un beat 'em up muy cinematográfico con un sistema de batalla sencillo y sin nada de profundad, sin debilidades, elementos, atributos, estrategia donde usas fuego contra fuego y hace lo mismo que si usaras viento, aquellos elementos propios de un jrpg/rpg y que ahora ya no tiene.
    La progresión del personaje ( pues solo podemos manejar a uno ) es tan insulsa e insignificante como el combate, con 3 chorradas que puedes comprar o mejorar a base de lo mismo ( ataque, defensa ) donde carece de importancia.
    Las misiones secundarias son puro relleno, misiones de recadero propias de los MMO. El mundo está vacío, sin nada oculto por encontrar ( independientemente de que sea lineal o no ), no hay exploración y los items que puedes recoger te los ponen enfrente de la cara.

    SONIDO:
    Final Fantasy siempre destaca en este apartado y en este FF16 también pero no tanto como en otras entregas. Sinceramente el ost no es tan memorable como en anteriores FF.

    En conclusión, he perdido la poca confianza que me quedaba con Square Enix. Que tiempos cuando era la marca referente para jugar un jrpg/rpg de calidad.    … Expand
  29. fuerstrainier
    Jun 29, 2023
    4
    Looking at these positive ratings here I am really surprised. I played around ten hours now and think I will abandon the game entirely, although I love the franchise, even the latest entries. This "game" is in my mind not only not an RPG but not a game at all in my mind. I am not sure why I as a player am here for. The game constantly interrupt me after a single button click.
    The world has    Looking at these positive ratings here I am really surprised. I played around ten hours now and think I will abandon the game entirely, although I love the franchise, even the latest entries. This "game" is in my mind not only not an RPG but not a game at all in my mind. I am not sure why I as a player am here for. The game constantly interrupt me after a single button click.
    The world has nothing in it to explore, which is a slap in the face after coming from Elden Ring. The combat system is rudimentary at best and the leveling system is none existing.
    I really wanted to like this game, but after I fell asleep while playing, this entry in my beloved franchise clearly doesn'value my time enough to go on.    … Expand
  30. BloodstarvedB
    Jun 24, 2023
    4
    I played all FF and over 400d playtime in ff14. This ff16 is an overall dissapointment to me. FF single player saga died after ff10. In 16 theres way to many cutscenes
    Boring loot
    Boring weapon visuals and upgrades of gear Areas look nice but feel empty Fighting at first feels like wow, but after 1hour of levelling up, you level up for nothing. Theres little nice skills and no magic to put    I played all FF and over 400d playtime in ff14. This ff16 is an overall dissapointment to me. FF single player saga died after ff10. In 16 theres way to many cutscenes
    Boring loot
    Boring weapon visuals and upgrades of gear
    Areas look nice but feel empty
    Fighting at first feels like wow, but after 1hour of levelling up, you level up for nothing. Theres little nice skills and no magic to put skill points into. Only into your summons
    You also dont have a party, only 1 main char that is also Boring AF.
    Theres no thunder3, fire3, firage, no holy, no ultima, no meteor or poison, no flare, no nothing. Only a few summons wich each 4 skills. Yet again, 79euro waisted.    … Expand
prev
Page:

Awards & Rankings

16
#16 Best PlayStation 5 Game of 2023
1
#1 Most Discussed PlayStation 5 Game of 2023

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
87

Generally favorable reviews - based on 146 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 134 out of 146
  2. Mixed: 12 out of 146
  3. Negative: 0 out of 146
  1. LEVEL (Czech Republic)
    Jan 22, 2024
    100
    Final Fantasy XVI is an excellent game in every way. If you're a fan of the series for the stories and characters, you won't go wrong here, and if you've avoided the series for, say, turn-based combat, the sixteenth installment offers the perfect opportunity to get started with this legend of the gaming industry. [Issue#329]
  2. Riot Pixels
    Oct 30, 2023
    73
    This is a solid RPG/action game. Some elements of the game are unusual and fresh for single-player parts of the Final Fantasy series, but some are too dull and rudimentary.
    Read full review
  3. PLAY
    Sep 17, 2023
    90
    New numbered FFs are good again. Stunning to look at, with new, punchy combat, and a great yarn, it is, if anything, too focussed, lacking a bit of the weird. [Issue#30, p.78]
See all critic reviews »