Final Fantasy XVI Is Like A “Playable Hollywood Blockbuster Movie,” Says Producer

In a new interview with the Japanese magazine ASCII, Final Fantasy XVI producer Naoki Yoshida has described Final Fantasy XVI as a “playable Hollywood blockbuster movie.” While shedding some light on the title’s seamless battle system, the series veteran said that the summoned beast battles will expand the scale of the battle from the story without any delay and will feel like playing Hollywood action movies with your hands.

Furthermore, the game’s producer also revealed that this aspect takes full advantage of the PlayStation 5 SSD. Yoshida told ASCII that the console’s SSD helped the devs create seamless giant-summoned beast battles without any loading.  As a result, the experience will be completely different from normal battles and situations will change for each summoned beast as per Naoki Yoshida:

FINAL FANTASY XVI takes full advantage of the power of the PlayStation 5, and was created with a focus on a seamless gaming experience that does not require any loading. It will feel like playing a blockbuster Hollywood movie with your own hands, so we will deliver a game experience that is completely different from normal battles, such as situations that change for each summoned beast, battle methods, and dynamic production.”

Final Fantasy XVI producer Naoki Yoshida also mentioned that the game’s PC port will begin development shortly after it releases on PlayStation. As per the producer, the development team will “carefully” work on the PC version of the game. Yoshida also encouraged fan feedback and said that Square Enix will update the game based on player response post-launch.

We will release the main game, and if we receive positive feedback, we will consider doing something about it. Please let us know! We also plan to work on the development of the PC version carefully after the release.”

The Final Fantasy XVI alum also expanded on the difficulty levels of the upcoming action game. As revealed in the game’s State of Play presentation, it will have two difficulty settings, namely a story-focused one and an action-focused one. Per Yoshida, if you find the action difficult, you can get “support accessories” right at the start by choosing the “Story Focus Mode.”

Unlike normal games, this setting doesn’t decrease the difficulty but instead compensates for your weakness. For example, if you aren’t good at attacking there is no need to worry as this mode will give you the “Auto Attack Ring” accessory at the start. You can use more than one accessory at a time and if you get better at a certain aspect of Final Fantasy XVI you can remove the accessory supporting it.

Various “support accessories” are available for Clive If you select ‘Story Focus Mode’ at the start of the game. Support accessories do not simply change the difficulty level of the game. For those who are not good at it, there are programs that can compensate for their weaknesses, such as ‘Auto Attack Ring.’ If you get used to it, you can remove the equipment, and you can equip more than one. It is devised so that you can enjoy the action and the game with your own hands.”

Hence, through this new feature, you can manipulate the difficulty to your liking instead of automating everything. This aspect is just one of the exciting features of Final Fantasy XVI, with Naoki Yoshida also revealing that Clive’s companions including Torgal will evolve through the game through dynamic AI. With a story based on real-world issues, FF XVI is looking like a must-play PlayStation 5 timed exclusive when it drops on June 22.