Square Enix should bet on launching Final Fantasy 16 in 2023.
On the occasion of the launch of the Uniqlo 35th Anniversary Final Fantasy Collection, Naoki Yoshida revealed new information about the new opus, which will be released exclusively on PS5, in an interview with UT Magazine: “We are in the final stages of development. Our goal is to offer a complete game with rich story and gameplay. Unlike an online game that involves many players at the same time, FF16 offers a different experience that focuses on the player personally and immerses you in the story. I think the story is very specific. We hope that FF16 will be a game for those who grew up realizing that reality is unfavorable to them and moved away from Final Fantasy, that it can rekindle the passion you once had for the license. ”
Final Fantasy 16 gameplay at the next Sony conference?
Late last year, Naoki Yoshida, producer of Final Fantasy 16, stated that announcements should take place in the spring of 2022: “As the latest addition to the Final Fantasy series in development, FF16 has brought together a large team of talented creators from around the world. However, to offset the effects of COVID-19, we have had to decentralize this workforce by allowing staff to perform their duties from home. Unfortunately, this made it difficult to communicate with the Tokyo office, which in turn led to delays or, in extreme cases, the cancellation of asset deliveries from our outsourcing partners.
However, we’ve spent most of 2021 addressing this issue and hope to have its impact minimized by the new year, allowing us to better focus on current tasks: improving art quality, improving combat mechanics, fleshing out battles, apply finishing touches on cutscenes and perform global graphical optimization. Our mission is to be as active as possible in the game so that it is completely polished.” Given the time that has already passed, it is more than likely that the event will be scheduled for the summer. Whether it will be a digital conference from Square Enix or Sony, its biggest partner, remains to be seen.