We had our first contact with Final Fantasy XVI in London a few months ago. There we examine the extent to which Square Enix has turned the franchise’s traditional combat system upside down, turning the most strategic combat, or past diversions that already seem remote, into real-time carnage with relish and spectacle. Have given. picture. Now we have the opportunity to taste this installment again which will arrive on June 22nd for PlayStation 5 as a temporary exclusive.
However, this new visit to the world of Valystia had a very different outlook. Three months ago we saw non-stop action and a competent skill and power management system, which allows us, on the one hand, to equip and improve our character in the most effective way with slowing rings, dodge automation, attacks and potions. Is. And also the possibility to use and rotate the abilities of giant eons to recharge magic with special melee attacks, spells and special abilities.
A system, in short, that has a certain complexity and that serves, among other things, to set for each player the level of difficulty under which they want to face this adventure. However, in this new immersion of several hours in the game the system was set aside a bit and it allowed us to delve briefly into the story, and verify that if on our first contact we had ‘Devil May Cry’ (combat) It is the responsibility of the same man, Ryota Suzuki, whom we also saw in ‘Dragon’s Dogma’) The most obvious influence this time is ‘Game of Thrones’.
This introduction to ‘Final Fantasy XVI’ focused on the early stages of the game, where we delve into the world of Valysthia, where there is very powerful magic associated with the Mother Crystal and where the fallen remnants of a technologically advanced civilization abound. Are. in heaven fifteen centuries ago. But the bulk of the political-narrative comes from the six nations (five warring and one neutral) that dispute the domains of Valysthia. A struggle waged by some giant demons, the Ekons (Phoenix, Shiva, Titan, Garuda, Leviathan, Bahamut, Odin and Ramuh), to which a new Ekon of fire, Ifrit, has been added, in a significant rebalancing of the situation.
The game’s protagonist is Clive Rosefield, who, despite being the eldest son of the family that Rosaria controls, is not Dominant, meaning he cannot manifest econs. It is his younger brother who can summon the phoenix, and whom he has to protect as heir to the throne. Here the intrigues begin with relatives who are not what they seem, warring nations and of course Clive commanding a group of adventurers in search of revenge where we will have the opportunity to see that the haiku -how icons appear in abundance since the genre. Battles among them are an important part of the game.
A little walk through vallystia
In addition to immersing ourselves in the intricate story that we’re sure will go through a good number of twists and turns in the game’s development, we also had the opportunity to delve into the open world features of the adventure, something we’ve had in earlier levels. Toured in London, more linear and action-oriented, we couldn’t see. As such, we wander through some of Rosaria’s wooded areas and other open areas, and we accept a secondary mission of transporting cargo on behalf of a troubled secondary character.
In these places we find and hunt wild animals and improve our fighting skills by facing some wild animals. We even glimpse a few buildings that fell from the sky of that civilization of the past now turned into legend, and we get to beat copper with the game’s putty, a good number of evil goblins who carry their own mini-bosses on their backs. But.
The result is a much more complete game than we found on our first Busy ride. The open world is complete, for example, with a hub, a refuge for allies in which to manage a good portion of the missions, talk with members of our team, get some secondary missions in the process, and start the adventure. Includes stocking up for work. , Which is to say, this new ‘Final Fantasy’ may have inked some of the most frenetic action, but it hasn’t forgotten that it’s the details that enrich the world. Whether they are laden with palace intrigues or not.
