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
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  1. gnaleinad
    Jul 19, 2023
    10
    Square Enix did not disappoint.

    Just reach level 100 and platinum it. Yup it's not the usual final fantasy but it was great, much better than I'd have expected! I rate it as a 9.9 because it was very close to perfection. However I think it deserves a overall 10 because it is an extremely polished experience. Yes I have watch those video and read those articles condemning it, and maybe    Square Enix did not disappoint.

    Just reach level 100 and platinum it. Yup it's not the usual final fantasy but it was great, much better than I'd have expected!
    I rate it as a 9.9 because it was very close to perfection. However I think it deserves a overall 10 because it is an extremely polished experience. Yes I have watch those video and read those articles condemning it, and maybe there are some tiny minor issues but overall, especially in hindsight of completely mastering the game, this game is gooooooood.

    ESPECIALLY IN A TIME WHEN SO MANY GAME FAILED TO LIVE UP TO THEIR HYPE. Maybe it's because i have been playing alot of action game in recent years so this game play experience is engaging for me and amongst the best!

    Characters: 9.5/10
    Story: 9.0/10
    Design: 9.7/10
    Gameplay: 9.9/10
    Depth: 9.2/10
    Replayability: 11/10
    Fun: 11/10

    Overall = 69.3/70
    Which is 9.9/10!

    The various arcade mode Replayability and Fun is just so addictive!!!    … Expand
  2. Maradum
    Jul 19, 2023
    9
    FF XVI is in many ways a completely new way to play a Final Fantasy game, while providing one of the most FF stories ever. The new action gameplay brings in fresh air, while the story beats, characters and story telling stay extremely true to what makes a FF a FF game.

    The best parts about the game are the main story and the characters. The main plot starts of with political issues,    FF XVI is in many ways a completely new way to play a Final Fantasy game, while providing one of the most FF stories ever. The new action gameplay brings in fresh air, while the story beats, characters and story telling stay extremely true to what makes a FF a FF game.

    The best parts about the game are the main story and the characters. The main plot starts of with political issues, wars because of ressources, a world on the brink due to the Blight, a plague that destroys the land. It gets a lot more supernatural as time goes on and what starts as something we can compare to Game of Thrones, turns into one of the most Final Fantasy stories, not unlike what VI or IX did. The main story is strong, not convoluted, well explained and well written. A great experience from start to finish.

    The characters and their character development is also extremely strong. Main characters have a lot of depth, but also side characters like Gav or even our dog Torgal get a lot of backstory. There are some misses, like Vivian, which has no character arc at all and is just the walking wikipedia of the world.

    The combat feels fast and fresh, overall there are 8 different Eikons, each giving you one basic, three medium and one ultimate skill that you can combine as you like. This offers a lot of combo potential. The combat is definitely more on the fun/power trip side than being hard.

    One of the best features of the game, as in almost every FF, is the soundtrack. It has absolutely amazing arrangements, emotional and powerful parts, some of the best tracks in all of FF.

    On the negative side, we have the quest structure and the RPG systems. There are 70+ sidequests and all of them have the same structure. Talk to quest giver > go to place A (B, C) > random fight > ending dialog. While the writing is great and the substories give a lot of character and world building, having so many of them all gameplay wise being the same and extremely bland feels bad. The same applies to some parts of the main story, where you also do some random fetch quests from time to time. Quest design feels super bad from a gameplay point of view.

    Regarding the RPG systems, they are barely there and it feels like they added them just because they HAVE to be in a Final Fantasy. The sword and armor is basically just „number go higher“ without any actual value or system. Either go full action RPG and scrap that completely, or take a system like FF VII Remake, where you get a weapon from each Eikon, you can power up that weapon to make that Eikons abilities stronger, for example.

    Overall an amazing game and a top 5 FF for me!    … Expand
  3. Pionator
    Jul 19, 2023
    4
    Muy repetitivo el juego dura 50 horas de las cuales hay como 20 horas de cinemáticas. El combate se resuelve todo apretando cuadrado y R1 a veces y si quieres ni eso. No vale la pena su jugabilidad es horrible.
  4. AyoGG
    Jul 19, 2023
    10
    Game is fantastic.
    The story is really good although the side quests can draw the game out too much.The combat is fun albeit a tad easy, but thats okay because its still fun.

    Overall its a nice departure from the same boring turn based and I hope all the FF games are like this,Im over 100 hours in and havent even beaten the main story yet!
  5. sicksak
    Jul 19, 2023
    10
    Amazing game. Story is good. Combat is fun. I would recommend it for anyone to try.
  6. GARFIELDLINK
    Jul 19, 2023
    10
    GOTG

    THIS GAME IS A MUST-BUY. THE STORY, AND THE ACTION GO BEYOND DELIVERY. THE GAMEPLAY IS FUN AND YOU WON'T GET BORED FROM IT. THE STORY IS GRIPPING ( THE ACTORS AND ACTRESSES ARE PHENOMENAL WITH THEIR DELIVERIES ). THE SOUNDTRACK IS ABSOLUTELY JAW-DROPPINGLY MESMERIZING. THE WORLD FEELS ALIVE ( THIS IS DUE TO THE AMAZING GRAPHICS, VOICE ACTING, AND OVERALL STORY ). THE SIDE QUESTS ARE    GOTG

    THIS GAME IS A MUST-BUY. THE STORY, AND THE ACTION GO BEYOND DELIVERY. THE GAMEPLAY IS FUN AND YOU WON'T GET BORED FROM IT. THE STORY IS GRIPPING ( THE ACTORS AND ACTRESSES ARE PHENOMENAL WITH THEIR DELIVERIES ). THE SOUNDTRACK IS ABSOLUTELY JAW-DROPPINGLY MESMERIZING. THE WORLD FEELS ALIVE ( THIS IS DUE TO THE AMAZING GRAPHICS, VOICE ACTING, AND OVERALL STORY ). THE SIDE QUESTS ARE FUN AND WILL HOLD YOUR INTEREST AND FURTHER HELPS IN DEVELOPING THE STORY. THE GAME ITSELF IS SO FUN AND HAVE ENDLESS REPLAYABILITY WITH ITS MULTIPLE MODES. AGAIN, THIS GAME DESERVES YOUR MONEY AND SHOULD BE ON EVERYONE'S LIBRARY. MUST-BUY. GAME OF THE YEAR!!!!!    … Expand
  7. 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
  8. elvysh
    Jul 18, 2023
    9
    i’m still reeling in the post-game depression. loved the story and characters a whole lot!! i really appreciated that the story-driven mode was genuinely easy to play (i hate being stressed out during combat lol). honestly deserves a 10/10 for being the only game with clive rosfield.
  9. ashoha
    Jul 18, 2023
    10
    That ominous prelude at the end is always phenomenal. Can't wait for the OST to release alongside XVI.
  10. I-Marsh
    Jun 23, 2023
    10
    The best FInal Fantasy by far. The graphics, story and game play are just out of this world. I love it!!! Ignore the review bombing from the jealous Xbots who don't have a PS5 to play it.
  11. AusAlaiis
    Jul 18, 2023
    10
    Final Fantasy has been one of my favorite franchises all my life, and Final Fantasy IV (then II) was probably one of my primary motivations to learn to read as a very small child. That being said, I haven’t always been the hugest fan of each game or the direction they seemed to be going but the franchise would always be near and dear. There is such a huge variation of reasons as to whatFinal Fantasy has been one of my favorite franchises all my life, and Final Fantasy IV (then II) was probably one of my primary motivations to learn to read as a very small child. That being said, I haven’t always been the hugest fan of each game or the direction they seemed to be going but the franchise would always be near and dear. There is such a huge variation of reasons as to what people like about the Franchise which creates an unsurprising variety of favorites amongst fans. One of the things I love most about RPGs are the stories and the characters, which I think explains why FFIV is so special to me.

    I absolutely love Final Fantasy XVI, and while I don’t know where to place it on my personal list, it is far up there. Final Fantasy Tactics (non-numbered, I know) has been my number two so it shouldn’t be surprising how much I adore the game. I do have some expectations with Square Enix when it comes to the development of the series mothership titles. I know that they always strive to continuously evolve the games, from stylistic choice, the type of stories they choose to tell or how they choose to tell them, to the combat. Final Fantasy XVI does make some huge leaps and it’s almost like it specifically catered to me haha The combat through the series in particular is somewhere I have seen much consistent change. I could see for years that SE have been trying to achieve something both immersive and cinematic and I felt like they achieved it in this game. The combat can be remarkably subtle if you choose to embrace it. I find it so much fun to play and pleasing to look at. But it’s not to say I haven’t enjoyed other combat systems either. FFIV and FFT are two of my most replayed games in my life. While I enjoy it, I look forward to see where they take the series next in 17.

    Admittedly, I hope they keep the quality and style of the storytelling and expand on it! (Also the high fantasy setting, it’s just my vibe.) But whatever comes, will. For now, I LOVE the **** out of this game.

    Some things I liked:
    -Story (obviously, I said that)

    -Characters (some of my favorite characterizations in the franchise - and the acting, holy ****)

    -Art direction (as an artist, I found this game absolutely beautiful and to my taste - I wish I made it)

    -Side Quests (unlike so many RPGs, I felt like the side quests held meaning. They often served to flesh out side characters and your organization or what you character has been doing in between story beats. I have never gotten teary-eyed at any side quest in any game I played until this game)

    -Romance (I love the subtlety of the relationship growth, I love that it didn’t in some way take control of the main story but added to it, I was rooting for it the entire time. When I replay, I admire it even more.)

    -Side characters (I love these characters sooo damn much, holy cow. Even some I didn’t think I’d ever care about, I eventually came to cherish them.)

    -World Building (I absolutely love some of the concepts and the directions they chose to take this world. FF series games worlds always change incredibly dramatically - FFI and FFIV were high fantasy complete with dwarves and elves reminiscent of D&D - more of the recent ones go full sci-fi. That’s an overstatement - all of them have elements of both. This world has so much depth and I am more interested in medieval fantasy settings that modern or futuristic settings, personally)

    Something I didn’t like.
    - I wanted more. There were definitely areas where I wish there could be more but not so that I feel it detracts from the overall experience. Sometimes I wanted more just like how I want more after finishing a book - book hangover. I want to feel it all over again right from the start. It’s going to be difficult to find another game that is going to check all the marks for me like this.

    Hope you all give it a chance and enjoy! Skol!    … Expand
  12. Marquess
    Jul 18, 2023
    10
    Jogo incrível, com gráficos, jogabilidade, enredo... tudo crocante!! Aconselho comprar a mídia física, porque no futuro vai valer ouro.
  13. Darlanmoreira
    Jul 18, 2023
    10
    Jogo mais épico que já joguei na minha vida!

    História é muito fascinante, a gameplay é supimpa, amei os personagens e as batalhas contras os Eikons são de CAIR O QUEIXO!! Mundo aberto e as missões secundárias podem ser decepcionantes, mas todo o conjunto bom do jogo, com adição dos belos gráficos e com boa fluidez, se torna para mim o melhor Final Fantasy e, com certeza, um dos    Jogo mais épico que já joguei na minha vida!

    História é muito fascinante, a gameplay é supimpa, amei os personagens e as batalhas contras os Eikons são de CAIR O QUEIXO!!

    Mundo aberto e as missões secundárias podem ser decepcionantes, mas todo o conjunto bom do jogo, com adição dos belos gráficos e com boa fluidez, se torna para mim o melhor Final Fantasy e, com certeza, um dos MELHORES JOGOS QUE JÁ JOGUEI NA MINHA VIDA!!    … Expand
  14. Jason_VA
    Jul 18, 2023
    10
    The best final fantasy has been in a while. Characters voice acting is top tier and what a spectacle this game was.
  15. Temelios
    Jul 18, 2023
    9
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I went in expecting to be disappointed because of how much Square-Enix has been dropping the ball the last 15ish years, but I was hooked right away with the demo. The main story, characters, voice acting, graphics, and core gameplay are all incredible. I haven't been this invested in a game in years, and I'm still depressed with how the end of it all came about, but in a good way!

    The gameplay is fantastic with how it allows you to mix and match whatever skills you want to adapt to any scenario or fit any gameplay style that you like, and the fact that it requires keeping a certain tempo to complete combos rather than just mashing the button sequences allots for a fun challenge; I can't say how many times I got into a panic and lost my rhythm just to shoot myself in the foot with, which is fun because it feels like I'm actually immersed in the fight itself. That, and the voice acting is phenomenal. The actors really knocked it out of the park; every region had its own dialect, every character their own voice ticks, and so on. That, and they caught every emotion perfectly; they actually got tears out of me during the most intense parts. As for the story, it was sublime. They made every event relevant and left no loose ends, nor did I catch any plot holes. They didn't even pull that typical JRPG crap where they set up the big bad at the beginning and then have him trounced to only be a puppet of an even bigger bad at the very last second; no, this time around they introduce him from the beginning, and it makes him all the more menacing. They do this for every single villain in the game, big or small. They also had a pleasant amount of subtle easter eggs referencing past games, like how they even brought back the hunter's board from FFXII and even hinted at it with the Rogue Tomato being the icon for it.

    The only complaints I have are in regard to the side content. Every talking sequence not directly related to the main quest/story is very poorly animated. The fact that they had voice acting for most of it but didn't bother to sync the lip animations was incredibly distracting and shook me out of the experience every time; it took me hours to get over it. That, and the majority of the side content was all just boring fetch quests. Fetch quests can be fine if there is some variety, but I can't tell you how many times I loathed having to go back to the same location just to get whatever new obscure thing some NPC wanted. Granted the side stories were mostly interesting with how they developed the core cast, but there were more than a few that were cringy, if not because they were poorly written but also poorly animated. To make matters worse, there were at least two instances where they forced this kind of content, and if you want the real nice gear in-game, then you have to do all of it.

    All in all, it was an amazing experience and worth every penny I used to purchase it.

    Gameplay: 9/10
    Story: 10/10
    Characters: 9/10
    Voice Acting: 10/10
    Graphics: 9/10
    Side Content: 5/10    … Expand
  16. REGUISTHEFIRST
    Jun 26, 2023
    8
    This game is nothing short of a resurrection for the final fantasy saga.Heavy on fast paced and deep combat and somewhat light on the RPG component (which is by design) After all is said and done, when enough time has passed that trolls and envious gamers have lashed upon another exclusivity this will be recognized as one of the best entry in the Final Fantasy franchise.
  17. Shinyu26
    Jul 18, 2023
    10
    Avid gamer for of all genre. I have been every type of game for over 30 years. I have never ever reviewed anything but I feel compelled to.

    Honestly, 16 has a few stress points here and there but I’m so confused by the lack of scores. The gameplay is solid and leaves you wanting more, the story is great and so is the music and world building. Honestly, point me in the direction of an RPG    Avid gamer for of all genre. I have been every type of game for over 30 years. I have never ever reviewed anything but I feel compelled to.

    Honestly, 16 has a few stress points here and there but I’m so confused by the lack of scores. The gameplay is solid and leaves you wanting more, the story is great and so is the music and world building. Honestly, point me in the direction of an RPG that is going as far as 16? There are a few out there but few and far between. Anything under a score of 9 to me seams like there are other agendas or people are just wanting to be part of the “hate on the new thing” club. I am very much reconsidering which media sites I will visit. How could IGN rate this as an 80? Whatever compass they are using to rate games must be extremely off balance. It’s a crime against the game industry. Either people have forgotten how to have fun or or something shady is going down.

    Honestly, great game. 100% would recommend to anyone on the fence. I’m confident you will enjoy it. If you can’t trust me on this, try googling RPG for the last 5 years and see what comes up. By no means is this game anything less than a 9.    … Expand
  18. Darkvenom407
    Jul 18, 2023
    8
    A masterpiece of a story filled with outstanding moments and epic characters, other major titles throughout the past 10 years wish they had such a material. However the game does lack in its “open world” elements by giving you segments and vast areas to go to with 0 exploration, secrets, and repetitive respawns and enemies it feels like a 16 bit open world than a modern one, so don’tA masterpiece of a story filled with outstanding moments and epic characters, other major titles throughout the past 10 years wish they had such a material. However the game does lack in its “open world” elements by giving you segments and vast areas to go to with 0 exploration, secrets, and repetitive respawns and enemies it feels like a 16 bit open world than a modern one, so don’t expect anything similar to tears of the kingdom, elden ring, and heck even its predecessor FF15, the open world in FF16 is terrible and the game shoulve stayed a action adventure game instead, just like FF7 remake. Side quests only become interesting after the mid section of the game and especially very meaningful and memorable by the ending. Combat and gameplay is a very interesting take the i love actually, its a hybrid of the new god of war games and DMC making it very hack and slash with cool animations and epic abilities, tho it does lack a bit when it comes to mini bosses and bosses cuz who ever made that stagger meter so high and spongy did a terrible job at that.
    I am overall in love with this game! I will play it again after i managed to digest and wipe away all my tears after that sad and epic ending. Be prepared for an experience you never had before with final fantasy.    … Expand
  19. Soulsweeper
    Jul 18, 2023
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I want to love this game so much but there are some issues we need to talk about. I have played all the main entries of FF games and I enjoyed every single one since FF7, however despite having moderate expectations, FF16 falls a bit flat in important bit while it shines in big moments.
    This review is only about the first run (i don't have the motivation for the New Game Plus)

    Starting with Pros:
    - Almost every single cinematic moment is an absolute master class in direction.
    - The music is another huge highlight (except the music during Titan fight, that felt off for me). For me music is really important when being used in a story background and they don't miss here.
    - The combat feels really good, specially in a long run when you unlock more eikon powers that help stun, special dodges, etc, during fights.
    - You can use different abilities from Eikons to see the best combos you can use.
    - Eikon fights are visually amazing.
    - Character design feels more contained, compared with many FF titles but each character is well designed and easy to identify.
    - The story feels more mature than usual, I am glad they made a more adult story.
    - Game design is phenomenal, the visuals are another big highlight, I can't count how many times I stopped the game to take a screenshot.
    - Cid is probably the best Cid iteration we have ever had even if the character didn't reached the end of the game.
    - Monster design feels grounded but I think it's good.
    - High rank monsters feel like good challenges.
    - Best characters: Benedicta, Anabelle, Cid, Kupka, Gav.

    Now the Cons (this is going to hurt):
    - Gameplay, I kid you not, you can literally fight enemies with one hand and win, just use attack and dodge.
    - First part of the game is good since it teaches you about the world, world rules, characters, and life changing moments at the end of First Act.
    - Second part of the game is almost unnecessary, you continue your journey through the world with the story more focused on saving bearers. Some side quests are good but in general it just felt the same over and over with no impact in a long run.
    - Third part of the game felt much better as a closing act, however there is no closure for a game of such magnitude. All the work done around, secondary characters is worth nothing, Bearers have zero impact and in the end there is zero explanation of what happened to the world. You have a small epilogue and that's it. WTF?
    CHARACTERS! Holy s*** this is my biggest issue. You have characters like Cid, Dion, Joshua, even Byron, Wade and Gav. You can't use a single one of them. They could have made the same system like Torgal but no, sure you have Torgal but it's so basic and his abilities are the same from beginning to end.
    -Jill survives the whole game and could have easily been used as a secondary playable character. So much potential lost in terms of gameplay and story, she literally feels like a female token npc. Even Benedicta or Anabelle are more complex and interesting.
    -Barnabas, I literally skipped his dialogue whenever he appeared, I couldn't handle the way they made the character speak like he's reading Shakespeare the whole time. This character felt important at first but in the end it was just a big empty fart when it came to character building.
    - Dion could have been managed in a better way (big potential as a playable character).
    - Do not play in Performance mode because the frame drops are quite distracting, locked 30 fps makes it more bearable and still I had drops below 20 even in dialogue moments. It shows that the optimization isn't very good.
    - There are ZERO mini games or any kind of puzzle mechanic. Not even Chocobo racing, nothing.
    All side quests are all FETCH Quests, at some point it bored me to death. The only side quests that have real impact are the upgrade ones (potions, recipes for weapons).
    - There almost no magic to use, the world exists around magic but Clive can only use little balls of fire, or wind, etc, from little to no impact in gameplay.
    - Rpg elements are almost non-existent, don't expect to see special stats on weapons or accessories, it's just the basic stats and that's it.
    - The customization in Clive is just the sword, nothing else is visible in your character. You have one playable character and you can't even change the look of armor, bracelet, not even the story items given by npc's are visible.
    - I used my first Potion at the big Bahamut fight, I'm not joking. The game is very easy and the potion system is almost useless.
    - Second Hideway, There are too many Npc's that only give you information that is literally useless. Sure you can learn about characters and the state on the world but there is zero substance. The area it self is so big and forces you to walk so much to reach characters.
    - Maps are big despite being semi-open but they just feel so empty, some map areas like the region next to Dragon Talon just feel bland and rushed.    … Expand
  20. slaine130177
    Jul 18, 2023
    7
    Fini en 27h avec toutes les quêtes annexes, contrat d'élite et autres défis, ce qui fait quand même très peu pour un RPG type FF.
    Pour résumer FF16 n'est pas un RPG avec une dose de combat type DMC, mais bien un jeu Devil May Cry avec une pincée de Final Fantasy.
    Ici pas de gestion d'inventaire (du moins minimaliste), pas d'exploration libre mais des zones définies, pas de grandes    Fini en 27h avec toutes les quêtes annexes, contrat d'élite et autres défis, ce qui fait quand même très peu pour un RPG type FF.
    Pour résumer FF16 n'est pas un RPG avec une dose de combat type DMC, mais bien un jeu Devil May Cry avec une pincée de Final Fantasy.
    Ici pas de gestion d'inventaire (du moins minimaliste), pas d'exploration libre mais des zones définies, pas de grandes citées à explorer (que des villages quasi vides), des couloirs et des salles à l'infini jusqu'à la fin du jeu. C'est un pur jeu d'action teinté d'un scénario type RPG. Même pas besoin de farmer les levels, le titre est très facile.

    Il y avait tellement mieux à faire....Si seulement il y avait plus d'interractivité avec le joueur. Par exemple, à un moment dans l'histoire vous avez accès à une carte complète du monde avec tous ses enjeux politiques, sociaux et les stratégies de la guerre. Si au moins on avait laissé le choix au joueur d'attaquer le royaume qu'il veut dans l'ordre qu'il souhaite, qu'ensuite cela impactait le monde, les autres royaumes et changeait les stratégies, ça aurait été génial. Mais non, on doit suivre à lettre le scénario écrit.
    Ne cherchez pas non plus d'autres libertés, tous les objectifs sont indiqués sur la carte, même les PNJ à qui parler. Absolument AUCUNE liberté.

    Heureusement le jeu a quand même quelques beaux atouts comme un gameplay de combat bien maîtrisé et simple à prendre en main, d'excellents boss, un scénario sympa (mais pas aussi sombre que je l'aurais voulu), une OST excellente, un doublage VF bien travaillée et, un "méchant" charismatique.

    Dernier point sur la technique, le jeu alterne le très beau avec le très moyen en permanence. Le pire étant la modélisation des personnages (hors persos principaux) qui font peine à voir pour de la next gen. La PS5 peut faire largement mieux, le jeu aurait pu être cross Gen.

    Un bon jeu qui aurait mérité un peu plus d'ambition dans sa partie level design, liberté donné aux joueurs    … Expand
  21. DanmaMax
    Jul 18, 2023
    9
    Игра понравилась. Музыка шикарна, катсцены тоже красивые. Гемплей в целом за 32 часа прохождения не душил. Да, открытый мир не особо интересен, да и дополнительные квесты не привлекли. Да, игра линейная и местами однообразная. Но впечатление осталось очень положительное. Не так много игр хочется пройти до конца, но эта одна из них.Игра понравилась. Музыка шикарна, катсцены тоже красивые. Гемплей в целом за 32 часа прохождения не душил. Да, открытый мир не особо интересен, да и дополнительные квесты не привлекли. Да, игра линейная и местами однообразная. Но впечатление осталось очень положительное. Не так много игр хочется пройти до конца, но эта одна из них.
  22. Shiroineko
    Jul 18, 2023
    9
    Amazing graphics, Exciting free-flow combat and Breathtaking Eikon boss fight... Despite many shortcoming, it's still a enjoyable Final Fantasy game.
  23. Eterna97
    Jul 18, 2023
    10
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Che regia, che emozioni.
    Uno dei finali emotivamente scritti meglio che abbia mai visto, per non parlare delle bossfight.    … Expand
  24. CorruptShaolin
    Jul 18, 2023
    6
    Final Fantasy 16 has been a bit of a roller coaster ride with absolutely incredible ups and absolutely incredibly boring put you to sleep downs. I haven't completed the entire game yet but have played a lot of the game and feel I've played enough to know what this game is.

    PROS Combat - The thing that stands out the most in this game is the combat and the boss fights. I give the    Final Fantasy 16 has been a bit of a roller coaster ride with absolutely incredible ups and absolutely incredibly boring put you to sleep downs. I haven't completed the entire game yet but have played a lot of the game and feel I've played enough to know what this game is.

    PROS

    Combat - The thing that stands out the most in this game is the combat and the boss fights. I give the combat a solid 10/10. The combat resembles Devil May Cry style combat but it's much easier to pull off crazy combos in this game than it is in DMC which I think is great. The boss fights are absolutely epic and very fun!

    Visuals/Art style - The visuals are incredible and are actually pretty breathtaking, which has been the norm for FF games for the longest time but this game just adds new elements visually that I don't think have ever been in FF games.

    Music - GODLIKE!! Nothing left to be said.

    CONS

    Performance Issues - This game hurts my eyes just playing it and walking around. There seems to always be this constant jittery vibration on the screen that just ruins the experience of just walking around in non-combat gameplay. Sometimes in games that look amazing and have cool sceneries to look at, I enjoy just walking around and looking at how far video games have come. I did it with RDR2, Ghost of Tsushima, Demon Souls and others but in this game the constant nonstop performance issues are so distracting and takes away from the immersive experience in a huge way. The performance is great in combat but most of this game is spent not fighting which I also think is a problem.

    Pacing - The game has incredibly bad pacing. There will be moments where I think HOLY GOD this is the greatest game of all time while I'm fighting some crazy boss battle and then immediately after I find myself about to fall asleep from having to do some fetch quest where I go and pick berries or listen to some common folk talk about something that adds absolutely no value to the engagement of the story or anything for that matter. The prizes for doing side quests are useless and there is no motivation or incentive to do them at all.

    Upgrade Systems/RPG elements - This game has new items you can buy or forge but it's all based on the game's progression. When you get to the next part of the story there usually is a new item for each weapon or accessory and nothing else. You can't even see what the item looks like. I absolutely despise this type of upgrade system, it gives no incentive to work towards something, it's a scaling effect and the stat system is absolutely terrible and meaningless. As you get stronger, NPCs also get stronger and there doesn't seem to be any point where you feel like you're progressing in terms of how strong your character is.

    Dialogue/Cutscenes - This game is plagued with HEAVY amounts of cutscenes and constant snooze inducing dialogue that for one, is incredibly uninteresting and two, super awkward in the way body movements and the angles in which people interact with each other play out. It's like they're AI robots trying to be humans but are malfunctioning at times and the interactions just seem so unnatural in those moments and there are ALOT OF THESE MOMENTS and it makes me want to shut off the console and put the game away in storage and is a big part of why I haven't finished the game yet.

    No run mechanic - This game doesn't allow you to run on command, it only allows you to run in very specific moments. I am absolutely confident that the game doesn't allow to run because of how bad performance issues are. It makes no sense why they won't allow you to run. Adding the run mechanic would've made combat even better and the long distance traveling you have to do in this game would be more bearable.

    I am disappointed with this game and I really was looking forward to it more than any other game this year. Hopefully FF7 makes up for that.    … Expand
  25. LunarKnight
    Jul 17, 2023
    9
    Amazing story. Amazing gameplay. Amazing cast and characters.
    Side quests could be better.
    Exploration wasn’t bad but it wasn’t the best either and could’ve been to be more rewarding. Having played other entries in the series I couldn’t help but compare XVI to the others so I am trying to review this game from the perspective of a newcomer (which I might add was not easy). That being said    Amazing story. Amazing gameplay. Amazing cast and characters.
    Side quests could be better.
    Exploration wasn’t bad but it wasn’t the best either and could’ve been to be more rewarding.
    Having played other entries in the series I couldn’t help but compare XVI to the others so I am trying to review this game from the perspective of a newcomer (which I might add was not easy). That being said I noticed many common mechanics were missing like elemental weakness, secret bosses, secret challenges, etc, which left me wanting more by the time I finished the game and all of its side quests.
    All in all the game is amazing for what it is and I enjoyed the experience.    … Expand
  26. ParanoydAndroyd
    Jun 29, 2023
    10
    Final Fantasy fanboys.......calm ya'selves down! You want turn-based combat then go play Persona or Dragon Quest. FF16 has some of the best, most polished, clean, sexy combat I've seen in years, and measures up to the likes of Devil May Cry. Awesome story, great combat, gorgeous graphics, wild adult/mature themes, lots of gore, amazing Eikon battles, and the best part of all.......is thatFinal Fantasy fanboys.......calm ya'selves down! You want turn-based combat then go play Persona or Dragon Quest. FF16 has some of the best, most polished, clean, sexy combat I've seen in years, and measures up to the likes of Devil May Cry. Awesome story, great combat, gorgeous graphics, wild adult/mature themes, lots of gore, amazing Eikon battles, and the best part of all.......is that it's a PlayStation 5 console exclusive.......the TRUE most powerful gaming console to have ever existed!!!… Expand
  27. Sbhu
    Jul 17, 2023
    5
    The story was so hard to get through and I miss the more traditional RPG elements. Won’t be preordering this series anymore.
  28. MedJial
    Jul 17, 2023
    10
    I'm 38 grown ass adulte. Whene i finished the game and saw this scene i broke into tears. No little tears i mean genuin flood gates where open.
  29. TrentDarko
    Jul 17, 2023
    8
    In Final Fantasy XVI, the combat is incredibly enjoyable, featuring fluid mechanics that keep players engaged. The graphics are stunning, immersing players in a visually captivating world. While some cut scenes may have been lengthy, they still managed to entertain to some extent. However, there were certain story plots that felt unnecessary, seeming to solely prolong the overallIn Final Fantasy XVI, the combat is incredibly enjoyable, featuring fluid mechanics that keep players engaged. The graphics are stunning, immersing players in a visually captivating world. While some cut scenes may have been lengthy, they still managed to entertain to some extent. However, there were certain story plots that felt unnecessary, seeming to solely prolong the overall narrative. Despite these occasional dull moments, the game is undeniably impressive. The character development for Clive is particularly noteworthy, effectively establishing a strong connection with players and allowing them to empathize with his goals and emotions throughout the journey.… Expand
  30. NN010
    Jul 17, 2023
    10
    Final Fantasy XVI is an excellent character action-RPG with unforgettable boss fights, a tight & fluid action-combat system & an amazing story that quickly proves itself to be more than just Game of Thrones-lite & brings its own distinct feel separate from anything that came before it in the Final Fantasy franchise while still feeling like a Final Fantasy game (especially if you got intoFinal Fantasy XVI is an excellent character action-RPG with unforgettable boss fights, a tight & fluid action-combat system & an amazing story that quickly proves itself to be more than just Game of Thrones-lite & brings its own distinct feel separate from anything that came before it in the Final Fantasy franchise while still feeling like a Final Fantasy game (especially if you got into the franchise with XIV like I did). A true testament to the flexibility & ever-changing nature of the Final Fantasy franchise. Shame about the lacking difficulty & bad early-game side quests though…

    Ratings

    Creative score (story, gameplay, voice acting, art direction): 9.5/10

    Technical score (graphics, audio, performance)): 8.5/10

    Business Practices score: 6/10 (points mainly detracted for the whole PS5 timed exclusive thing)

    Overall score (my thoughts on a game’s overall quality, does not consider the business practices unless they are detrimental to the experience): 9.5 out of 10    … Expand
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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]
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