When Final Fantasy XVI was first announced towards the end of 2020, I was almost positive that the game was a next-gen-enhanced continuation of Final Fantasy XIV’s MMO formula. The visuals were reminiscent of A Realm Reborn’s fantastical art direction and Creative Business Unit III’s involvement spoke for itself. However, the rest of the launch trailer disproved my original assumptions; Final Fantasy XVI is likely going to be a solo, narrative-focused experience similar to fan-favorite, classic Final Fantasy games. Producer Naoki Yoshida practically confirmed this in a recent radio show talk. In fact, the latest installment in the JRPG franchise, according to Yoshida, will come with an easy mode.

Yoshida was originally talking about the future of the popular Final Fantasy MMO; a project that he's been involved with since its original release back in 2013. As questions started to focus primarily on the next chapter in the illustrious franchise, Yoshida couldn’t help but offer a few words about what the dev team is working on: “We really want players to enjoy the story, so we’re preparing a mode for players who want to focus on story,” Yoshida stated. “Since we have quite the substantial support actions, we’re of course preparing something easy to operate and smooth to play. Don’t worry too much...players who aren’t good at action games."

Apparently, Final Fantasy XVI is slated to be extremely action-oriented; I can't help but think of a cross between FFXV and FFVII Remake's combat systems, which represent Square Enix’s recent successful forays into real-time mechanics. This also makes me wonder if the upcoming JRPG is going to be difficult.

As a long-time Final Fantasy fan, I’m looking forward to seeing how Final Fantasy XVI builds upon the successes of its predecessors as well as the ways in which it’ll distinguish itself for a next-gen audience. Will you be diving into FFXVI’s easy mode, or do you plan on braving the wild cactuars and malboro’s on a much higher difficulty?

[Source: Gematsu via Destructoid]