Final Fantasy 16 brings fans to a new world with a new cast of characters. In the land of Valisthea, people live comfortably thanks to mountains of crystal called the Mothercrystals. However the six ruling factions are on the verge of conflict due to a spreading malady called the Blight. A central part of the plot is Eikons, summoned monsters controlled by or manifesting through humans called Dominants, and each region has at least one. The main cast of Final Fantasy 16 includes Clive Rosfield; the firstborn child of the Archduke of Rosaria, and Joshua Rosfield, Clive's younger brother; Dominant of the Eikon Phoenix, and heir apparent to Rosaria.
Clive embarks on a quest for revenge after tragic events involving the dark Eikon Ifrit; apparently resulting in the capture or death of his brother. Notably, Clive is still seemingly able to use some of many different Eikons’ abilities, though it has not been revealed how yet. This causes the story to briefly leave off on a time skip, picking back up while a mature Clive is participating in warfare with a yet-unnamed mercenary group. This marks a striking change in his design and motivations, and will probably change Clive’s gameplay and place in the story as well.
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Clive, the main and possibly only playable protagonist of Final Fantasy 16, is shown being happy with his family and friends while he is a teenager. He may not have the Phoenix’s powers or the right to rule like his younger brother, but he still intends to become an accomplished knight and serving as the First Shield of Rosaria. Unfortunately, what happens to his brother at the end of the first act probably broke him emotionally. He failed to protect his brother, and possibly his country as well. Clive has lost everything, and now all he can think about is making his enemies pay.
Artwork of the adult Clive shows him as a sort of dark avenger or dark knight, with fire and darkness warping around his arms. This is a far cry to the gentle light of the Phoenix, a power he borrowed from as a teen. It’s still not clear how exactly Clive is using powers from the various Eikons, but there’s a real possibility that he is ruthlessly forcing their power into himself to make sure that he can fulfill his goals. Revenge stories go hand-in-hand with protagonists who have self-destructive natures, as a well-adjusted person typically does not travel across the globe to murder someone.
Exactly how committed to his mercenary group Clive is remains to be seen, as by genre conventions, it can be assumed that he’s going to strike out on his own eventually.
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Being a sort of dark knight in the Final Fantasy multiverse does have its advantages. For one, Clive’s mixture of physical and magical fighting is probably extremely potent after the time skip. He would have spent years honing his combat abilities exclusively to fuel his crusade, probably with the aid of his mercenary group. The trailer certainly shows Clive getting some action while he’s still a teen, even fighting an elite warrior from another nation, but it’s not going to compare to the experience Clive will have post-time skip. This is a somewhat abnormal man readying to fight Eikons and armies, he has to have some tricks up his sleeves.
That does beg the question what those tricks are. It’s far too early to make a firm call on how Final Fantasy 16’s action combat is going to turn out, but based on the genre involved, there can be some educated guesses. While the fire element is associated with Clive already and he seems to exhibit warping abilities comparable to Final Fantasy 15’s Noctis thanks to Phoenix’s blessing, Clive probably has some other tricks up his sleeve. There’s a good chance that any Eikons Clive bests or befriends will extend its blessing to him, offering new spells and possibly new actions entirely.
Like in Devil May Cry, Clive will probably have an arsenal of styles based around each Eikon, and a good way to kick off future-Clive’s re-introduction would be the addition of a gameplay altering new style. Perhaps it could be a ranged icy armament from Shiva, or a slower but more powerful charge-based moveset from Titan. Regardless, these abilities will do a lot to make the adult Clive feel a lot different from his younger self.
With all this talk of similarities to Final Fantasy’s dark knights of yore, it cannot be understated what this means for how adult Clive will interact with the world around him. When he was young, Clive had the support of his family and country behind him. He was a hero to his brother, and a staunch ally for his fellow knights. Matters of repelling wild monsters, criminals, and sometimes even political agents fell to him. However, all of that presumably changes when he grows up.
Clive as an adult takes whatever work that falls to him, being a mercenary like some FF protagonists before him. He holds no firm political allegiance, and will likely do things that are utterly heinous crimes in one nation while in the pocket of another. Add in his own anger at his circumstances and a constant search for the people who wronged him, and Clive becomes a wild card that can go anywhere and do anything. It’s a good position to be in in terms of a sprawling RPG, as it lets Clive (and perhaps his party, if he has one) travel the world and take a wide variety of work from just about anyone.
From a loyal knight and protector to an unfettered mercenary, Clive Rosfield’s journey in Final Fantasy 16 looks to be a fascinating one indeed. Clive’s status as an angst-ridden hero certainly isn’t unique in the context of the wider FF franchise, but it’s rare that players will be able to experience the before and after of loss alongside the hero. Players should be able to learn more about Clive and his quest through Valisthea soon when the next batch of information, possibly containing a release date, drops for Final Fantasy 16.
Final Fantasy 16 is in development for PS5.
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