Critic Reviews
Attack of the Fanboy - Diego Perez - 5 / 5
Final Fantasy XVI is an outstanding achievement. Every part of it, from its characters to its combat, was put there with a purpose. Not only does it deliver satisfyingly slick action RPG combat in between masterfully directed cutscenes, but also a story with real heart. Most importantly, it’s incredibly clear that a team of creative individuals was behind every decision. There’s a human element that permeates every aspect of Final Fantasy XVI, and it’ll end up becoming a lot of people’s favorite Final Fantasy because of that.
But Why Tho? - Kyle Foley - 10 / 10
In a world full of games trying to stand out, Final Fantasy XVI has no problem rising above the rest. Wonderfully fun combat and beautiful presentation help make the excellent story even more impactful in an adventure well worth the price of admission.
DASHGAMER.com - Dan Rizzo - 10 / 10
Final Fantasy XVI proposes a new foundation for finding a masterclass of perfection in action role-playing, and cements a prime legacy founded on past iterations, capitalising on a formula that’s seen inarguable successes throughout its years in this medium, and has promulgated an establishment of extravagance that will indeed be hard to surpass.
Digital Trends - Giovanni Colantonio - 3 / 5
Final Fantasy XVI delivers on the “action” side of its action-RPG formula. A fierce and fast-paced combat system makes for the series’ most exciting stab at real-time swordplay yet, while its blockbuster Eikon fights rank among some of gaming’s most awe-inspiring battles. But there’s a general flatness surrounding those exhilarating highs, as shallow RPG hooks and dated design leave a promising evolution for the series stuck in the past.
GGRecon - Harry Boulton - 4.5 / 5
Despite the weight of expectations from a series full of gaming hallmarks, Final Fantasy 16 stands tall as an outstanding experience that you won’t want to miss out on.
Game Informer - Wesley LeBlanc - 8.5 / 10
When I look back at my time with Clive, his friends, his enemies, and Valisthea, it’s those highs that I vividly remember. FFXVI is very different from its predecessors, but in many ways, very familiar; And it’s still a Final Fantasy, through and through, reminding me why I love this series so much.
Gamer Escape - Josh McGrath - 9 / 10
Stellar and surprisingly customizable combat, a masterfully written and engaging storyline, and a beautiful audio visual presentation. It’s nearly a complete package, but with a few annoyances that keep it from being a perfect game. That said, even with those frustrations in mind, Final Fantasy XVI is an absolute return to form for the mainline franchise, and easily a reason to get yourself a PlayStation 5 if you’ve yet to.
Geek Culture - Wong Si Jia - 9.3 / 10
Final Fantasy XVI is a lot of things. It’s ambitious, gritty, and beautiful, but more importantly, it dares to dream. A sobering tale disguised as a dazzling visual spectacle, the almost-masterpiece presents a nuanced, clever take on all-too-familiar elements, and turns them into fresh experiences that devastate as much as they delight, before delivering the biggest reward – a well-executed emotional payoff.
Multiplayer First - James Lara - 9.5 / 10
Regardless if FFXVI is your first Final Fantasy game or you’re returning to the series, Square Enix’s latest game in the franchise lives up to the hype. Forget about JRPG’s or how action-RPGs nowadays need an open world, side quests that last for ages, co-op or whatever gimmick. FFXVI just throws all that out of the table and proves a tightly woven narrative-driven game –when built right — can make up for all those.
The minor issues the game has doesn’t detract from the incredible experience Clive & Co. bring to the table. Players will be treated to a compelling tale, stunning visual spectacles, and a fluid and fun combat system. What’s even more impressive is, Square Enix manages to make the franchise “grow up” alongside the players who grew up playing the series. FFXVI deals with more mature themes and manages to make it matter without being overly preachy about it.
Those looking for the series’ return to glory, rejoice! Final Fantasy XVI is that game, and this is one fantasy you’ll want to make sure you’re a part of.
Noisy Pixel - Bailey Seemangal - 9 / 10
Final Fantasy XVI is an action JRPG polished to an iridescent sheen. Its well-designed combat system and enemies, outstanding character writing and worldbuilding, and consistently stellar side content make it a standout entry in this legendary franchise. Even when accounting for the weak villains and a lukewarm conclusion, this was a journey that truly gripped me from beginning to end. This is a must-play game of the year and a Final Fantasy adventure you won’t forget.
PSX Brasil - Thiago de Alencar Moura - Portuguese - 100 / 100
Inspired by the past but modern at every turn, Final Fantasy XVI is the overhaul the series needed with unparalleled quality. Driven by a fantastic story and charismatic characters, built on accessible, exciting gameplay and impressive graphics on the PS5, it consolidates itself as one of the best games in the franchise history.
PlayStation Universe - Timothy Nunes - 9.5 / 10
Very little gets in the way of the success that Final Fantasy XVI creates. The strength of combat on top of a compelling, deep narrative steal the show. Despite little need for world exploration and the occasional lower resolution texture, Final Fantasy XVI stats true to the namesake while forging its own path forward.
PowerUp! - Adam Mathew - 9 / 10
I could barely put my controller down during my 57 hours with Final Fantasy XVI. It represents a huge milestone for this franchise, thanks to its bold shift to more adult story-telling (and language), addictive real-time combat, and gargantuan VFX spectacles that are best in class. Marry all that with what the series is already known for — epic orchestral OSTs and phenomenal world-building — and Final Fantasy XVI is nothing short of a must-own.
Prima Games - Jesse Vitelli - 9 / 10
Final Fantasy XVI’s grander narrative takes wild turns, evokes plenty of heartfelt emotions, and has given me a new cast of characters to fall in love with all over again. It’s a bold direction that Creative Business Unit 3 has taken the franchise, but one well worth the journey.
Sirus Gaming - Noel Lontoc - 9 / 10
Final Fantasy XVI may offer daring adjustments, but it is in this spirit of creativity that the genre flourishes. The game is not perfect, yet Naoki Yoshida, the game’s director, held faithful to his promise to deliver a compelling experience and bring Final Fantasy back to the must-have games again.
TechRaptor - Andrew Stretch - 9.5 / 10
Final Fantasy XVI is everything I could have hoped for and more. Combat is fast paced and rewarding as you master combos and abilities. Eikon fights, while not as interesting to play, are gorgeous to witness. All of this is wrapped up into a deep story and fully fleshed out world that you’ll want to be protecting.
Twinfinite - Hayes Madsen - 5 / 5
Final Fantasy XVI is a bold and ambitious new vision for the franchise, that succeeds on almost every level.
If you don’t count ATB, it hasn’t been since III, with the exception of X.
not counting ATB is kinda dishonest, though, IMO. It’s still turn-based, they just decoupled the turns. IG you could argue that it was “real time” in that you can wait and enemies will continue attacking, but you still have to wait for your turn to move and can’t move and attack freely, in almost every case
Fans of RPGs, and especially JRPGs, make a big distinction between the two. A lot of games are “turn based” - Dragon’s Quest, the Trails Games, Pokemon…
It seems like splitting hairs, but it is just a different battle system. In Trails there is a priority order, and a big part of the game is considering how the moves you are doing will affect that. The game even applies bonuses or penalties for certain terms somewhat randomly, so you have to take that into account as part of your strategy. Plus, certain moves will apply an turn delay to characters. Turn order is also really important in a game like Blue Dragon apparently. In the wider RPG world, this is referred to as an initiative system.
A lot of designers look down on Active Time. Their logic is usually that there is no point to adding time pressure to selecting attacks from a menu rather than putting in an initiative system. ATB lives on a bit in xenoblade and in MMO global cool down systems (GCD), but I would argue that both of those are more structured around a battle system that can be implemented over a network (and nostalgia for it in xenoblade’s case). I personally think that ATB should be taken more seriously by designers, and isn’t that bad. To me, it is like playing speed chess, and having time pressure on role playing. ARPGs are still alive and popular, and the concept of playing dnd mechanics in real time is similar to ATB. So I definitely think someone could make a good ATB game still.
The real issue is that they are just not commercially viable. Square Enix definitely can’t put an ATB system in Final Fantasy and attract the kind of sales they want for that franchise. Making it pure action is a much cleaner break from the shenanigans they tried to pull in XIII and XV (yuck in terms of battle system). I thought the gambit system from XII was brilliant, but square is just not interested in revisiting it I guess.