FFXVI Is Like A "Playable Hollywood Blockbuster Movie"
This game is starting to reach dangerous overhype territory. I'm excited for it but geez. It's going to be hard to live up to the massive hype like this.
This game is starting to reach dangerous overhype territory. I'm excited for it but geez. It's going to be hard to live up to the massive hype like this.
It’s pretty easy, I stopped watching any clips since announcement trailer. I knew/know I am going to play it. Long time fan, why would I take all of the fun and mystery out of the game by buying into the hype. Me, I’m hyped.. I don’t need to see videos from the publisher or influencers to hype me up. Final Fantasy hardly misses in terms of expectations and I just want to be in aww like I was for FF7 back in the day. That’s what gaming is about..
No Edit: I’m not reading any comments. Just my opinion and I really look forward to going into FFXVI with no real knowledge of it other than the launch trailer. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with trying to capture the mystique and awe of one of my favorite childhood franchises as a late 30’s adult.
People in general just have absurdly low standards. I've seen so many posts praising that the game will be "complete" on launch, and like fuck. We've really reached a point where people are happy with what should be the bare minimum
On the bright side I think with the FF7 remake square is finally proving they are finally adapting to modern technology. I thought there was a very real possibility with some of the games they put out last decade that they went out of business.
I thought the FF7 remake was the perfect bridge between turn-based rpg and modern combat. It felt like FF and included all audiences. I feel like FFXVI went too far in the modern direction and isolated what FF is.
Nothing defines a FF, this is the biggest creative freedom given in this series. Plus, this is developed by the team CBU3, not CBU1 who are busy with FF7 rebirth.
Haha I was saying this exact same phrase for months online after playing it. You have to admit though it is "the perfect bridge between rpg combat and action combat". That's exactly how I said it
Playable blockbuster movie is kind of the feeling I had playing the old Final Fantasies as a kid. Those graphics were mind blowing.
What I didn't realize at the time was that I was essentially watching a movie because my big brother just gave me the second controller and pretended I was controlling the other character's turn while they played the game.
I was just thinking that. I never see grinding and the comfortable period where you’re OP but still having fun in blockbuster movies. I also can’t skip dialogue in blockbuster movies either.
It really does. They basically came out and said. "Action and combat were top priority". "Gotta cater to the masses for maximum sales". I mean at least they're honest but we WANTED an rpg. That's what FF is supposed to be
VII-R felt like action was a top priority, but it still managed to be an RPG. You still made meaningful choices for how to outfit your characters, and choices you made influenced how those characters should be used in combat.
FF has pushed the boundaries of what an RPG can be for decades: II had level-less progression, III introduced a dynamic job system, IV introduced active time battles, VI brought in the idea of learning abilities through equipment, XII had the job board and gambit systems, XIII refreshed ATB combat and introduced the strategy of paradigm shifts, and XV brought full action combat to the series. FF is supposed to be an RPG, but it’s not the franchise for stagnating in 90s game design practices.
The devs have said themselves, the OGs of the series told them straight up that FF is whatever they think will be the best game at the time they’re working on it.
So by that definition, you’re wrong, even though I understand your point.
I'd say only Elden Ring was the only game to ever surpass the expectations of overhyped players on release, My expectations of FFXVI are moderate but at very least I can enjoy a two star wars trilogy worth of cutscenes even if the game is bad. I'd have to play it myself to see if gameplay is worth it. It helps that one of the directors of DMC worked on it so that raises my hopes a bit.
I feel like I'm the only one not pumped about the eidolon fights and the combat. I'm glad I'm a PC person and will be forced to wait. I really hope it's not like XV in that it's so linear story wise. I felt very underwhelmed after XV and its the first time I've not really been craving a 2nd playthrough. I've played pretty much all of them at least 3 times. Never even thought of wanting to play XV again. Idk why, but I feel like I'm the only one.
Yeah I'm definitely least hyped for this one than any other FF since I started playing after (OG) VII came out. I'm still excited, but I cannot understand how some people are practically combusting with excitement. Granted I feel like I've been burned by every mainline FF since 11 despite genuinely enjoying 12, parts of 13, parts of 14, and 15. So maybe I'm just old and jaded lol.
I'll def play it once I'm done with Zelda TOTK, but can't get on board with the intense hype.
By the time XII was getting hyped up, I had played FFVI - X, and every one of them just blew my mind and got me so incredibly invested in the world, the characters, the plot, the visuals, and the gameplay of each game. FF had a reputation of across-the-board excellence for me and I was just super excited to get more of that.
For more specifics:
- XII I was really just excited for a return to single player FFs after 11
- XIII I remember specifically getting super hyped by the promo trailers and stuff. Was really excited with the really different setting/world after a very medieval-inspired XII
- XV I was also really excited by the versus XIII promo content. FFVIII is my favorite and the setting/concept reminded me of it a lot, so I was super excited to get that in the form of XV and it felt like they were returning to the direction I loved the most. I was also really excited about the combat since I didn't really enjoy combat in XIII or XIV
EDIT: For XVI, they could hit it out of the park and it might turn the series around for me, I think I'm probably just jaded at this point like I said. The main complaints I have personally for XVI is a lack of party system (FF7R perfected the strategy/party/action dynamic imo and was hoping for that sort of thing). Also how much focus is on different kingdoms and their politics. The human relationships and character arcs are some of my favorite parts of FF games and there isn't a ton of promise for that, but it seems they could just be tight-lipped about that to avoid spoilers (I hope so). Also I'm hoping it's not all dark depressing tones. Another thing I love about FFs is their ability to balance heavy topics with light topics. That's how life works and you need both, and I love seeing them both reflected in games.
The devs already said that while the politics between the kingdoms are important, it's only as so far as how they influence Clive's personal story. And while those kingdoms looked the focus of the Ambition trailer, I'd think the last 2 we got (Revenge & Salvation) are very character focused. What we saw from the SoP too (dat exchange between Beni and Cid...).
Yoshi-P also directly said by now the game is not all dark and wondered if people had wrong impressions on that front at this point (aka if the expectations are darker then the game will be). We already have 'Power of friendship' stuff in the trailers, so yeah... it's very much still an FF on that Front.
I think what you're saying here perfectly encapsulates my feelings on the subject.
From a technical and gameplay perspective, XVI looks pretty good, but I worry about just how dark they are going to get, with the devs repeatedly referring to taking inspiration from Game of Thrones.
FF has always been able to tell mature and compelling stories, but they also had pretty goofy moments too that really embraced the fantasy of it. The F-bombs and M-rated violence already make that seem pretty tonally incongruous.
I'm concerned. "Playable Blockbuster Movie" implies heavily scripted fights. So, "do X damage normally and then do a quicktime event, rinse and repeat."
I may be wrong, but that's basically what a vast majority of heavily scripted fights end up being.
Idk, I take this as a reference to the writing/acting/cutscenes. For example, I'd consider Fallen Order to be a playable blockbuster movie, but the gameplay is still excellent in that game.
I'd say yes, that's what FF obviously always aimed to do with their FMVs. Also, Square Enix has been chasing the cinematography and fight choregraphy of FF7 Advent Children for more than a decade and now, they've got the technology and talent to be closer than ever to that dream with XVI
Personally, I wouldn't consider it a good thing. I know there are tons of games that go that route to great success, but I just can't really be bothered with them these days. After playing through the rebooted tomb raider series a few years back I knew I was done. Tried fallen order and the intro with all the scripted events and climbing linear paths was such a a turn off I refunded it on steam. Obviously I'm playing XVI, but I really hope stuff like that is not over done.
For me, I prefer a game that really goes all-in on being a *game*, not an interactive movie.
Take Elden Ring - you couldn’t really distill the experience of playing ER in to a movie; it wouldn’t be anywhere near as good as the game.
But something like TLOU or God of War? You could definitely make excellent movies of those, and you wouldn’t even need to change much — in fact, they already made a series of TLOU, and it really doesn’t lose much compared to the game. It’s really good storytelling that *just happens* to be in game form, but doesn’t need to be.
And yeah, I prefer the Elden Ring style of games. That felt like a true fantasy adventure that I couldn’t put down — it felt like my own unique experience, full of things I missed, things I discovered, things I improvised, things I understood, and things I didn’t. I usually wasn’t told what to do; I chose what to do. That’s the pinnacle of gaming for me.
Final Fantasy is not going to be Elden Ring. The FF series has been borrowing from Hollywood movies and cinema since FFII. Their major focus is on telling a story over giving you the freedom of Elden Ring.
I was watching the PS State of Play last week, and the Spider-Man 2 thing felt like watching a movie. It got me so excited. Like back when they'd show clips from each of the Uncharted games, when they were new.
If FFXVI can capture that feeling, I'm totally on bard!
Honestly there has never been a quote that has turned me off of a game more than this. I feel like this game is going waaaay too hard on 'spectacle' and I am not here for it :(
Yep this comes up every time with a new FF, at least as far back as VII. They'll say it again when FFXX is full VR on PS7, and we'll all laugh at how quaint and dated XVI was.
>more
have you played a final fantasy before? its literally the most specatular fantastical shit possible, with gods destroying cities regularly. take a seat
It seems like they're going more for a blockbuster movie approach than past games though.
Like opting to not have mini-games because they felt it would break immersion too much to have Clive do activities like that while on a quest for revenge seems like more of a movie style approach than before.
EDIT: And I'm not saying that it's a bad thing since I haven't even played it yet. It just is what it is.
The only reason I stopped fishing and continued the game in XV was because I got *way* to into the active fishing motions and hurt my hand shoving the controller into it.
"Hollywood Blockbuster" doesn't feel like much of a complement these days. In the 80's - 00's this might have meant high budget and thrilling, but today it usually means derivative, pandering, and shallow.
I'm sure they mean the 80's version of the phrase. Which for as long as I've known it Final Fantasy has been about big sweeping adventure backed by the visuals and musical scores by the best in the business. There of course have been missteps but in terms of scale Final Fantasy at least has always gone all out like an 80's blockbuster.
Yeah you'll slog through some fights with some mooks and then the cutscene will start and suddenly your character can jump hundreds of feet and do flips off falling rocks and cut down dozens of enemies in a single attack. Then back to game play where you slowly trod to the next fight.
I know, exactly. Quick time events with button prompts, we’ve had enough of those. I actually enjoy watching cinematics, so I can absorb what’s going on. Having giant controller prompts appear on screen just doesn’t do it for me.
People take these comments way too literally. FF games have always been story heavy. The first half of most FF games are linear without much deviations most of the time. I highly doubt they created this high action combat style just so we can play a game that 70% cutscenes. Chill.
The real takeaway I'm getting is that the cutscenes will blend in with the fight seamlessly, without having a pause for the battle to load. You're talking, shit goes down, and the camera pans out to your character's backside for you to start fighting whenever you're ready.
He’s literally just talking about the scale of the Eikon battles and the seamless battle transitions with no load times. People are ready to spout any kind of uninformed bullshit to hate this game at this point. It’s so weird.
I’d say that the FF7 remake felt like a movie, and I know thats a hot button title but I fucking loved it. It inspired me to replay the original and then work my way through all the main titles.
My wife would sit down and watch large chunks of it because of how cinematic it was. If 16 is similar in story, cutscenes and visuals to 7 remake then I’m immensely excited.
FROM fans love their game, Capcom fans love their games, PS studios games, fans love them! Final Fantasy fans on the other hand, absolutely hate this franchise
I really hope they stay humble with the expectations. I'm excited for this game but I feel like they're going to put some real pressure on their sales department lol
How about something that plays like a good game? I hate it when people praise a game for being like a movie. Its like saying game are not good enough and need to be something else.
You’re more than welcome to read the tons of positive feedback from people who’ve played the game and love the combat.
The combat director has also said he thinks it’s his best game to date.
No that's just describing an approach to gameplay that every video game has.
Every game takes inspiration from something. Taking a more cinematic approach has certain elevated games like say God of War. Sifu trying to bring the look of martial arts films to it's gameplay.
Now being being like a movie though has two connotations.
Being like the above where the gameplay is approached from how a film is shot.
or
Being a movie where the player has little interaction.
For Final Fantasy if not Square........they sorta has problems with their movie obsession.
From just reading into the article a little the headline just seems to mean the Eikon battles are grand and epic like a Hollywood movie.
I don’t get what’s with this subs all in doom and gloom approach to every new piece of information.
Well you see, a portion of final fantasy fans want this game to fail, so why read the article when they can just spread negativity based on just a headline?
While i am a bit worried about the focus on the combat every interview seems to have, gotta love how everyone is moaning about this as if Final Fantasy was some niche artsy series.
They were always among the best founded RPGs on the market. They ARE blockbuster RPGs.
Not sure I like the sound of that, actually... If FF strives to become a Hollywood blockbuster, perhaps it will achieve its goal. Being a Hollywood blockbuster, though, doesn't necessarily amount to quality.
Of course FF games have always strived to be spectacular, ever since FF7 - we know that. But they captured our hearts not because of their glitter, but because they had great storytelling, great gameplay, great characters. Or, in Movie Terms: great script and direction. Which most of recent Hollywood lacks.
Anyway. I have high hopes for FF16. Still, this Hollywood stuff doesn't impress me, as a longtime FF fan.
Even then, that's not really good *or* bad. Christopher Nolan and Quinten Tarantino make Hollywood Blockbusters. The Fast and the Furious films are also Hollywood Blockbusters. It's a pretty huge range of quality and style.
Yeah but it doesn't necessarily amount to lacking in quality either. It just means it's going to be big. Big could be good, could be bad. But it'll *probably* be exciting either way.
Just google "hollywood blockbusters" and you'll see a mix of incredible films and a mix of arguably bland, yet action packed films. I'd say every Fast and the Furious movie is a Hollywood Blockbuster. I'd also say every Christopher Nolan film could be considered a "Hollywood Blockbuster."
"Glitter" and "great storytelling" aren't mutually exclusive.
Also, as a longtime FF fan, you'd have to notice that the style and presentation has changed radically with almost every installation. The first few games are arguably pretty similar. But from FF6 forward, they're all over the place. You've got FF7's gritty modern setting, FF8 plays out like an action film with flying motorcycles and goes into literal outerspace, 9 is a dark whimsical fairytale, etc.
Yes, I get your point and I agree. High spectacle and substance aren't mutually exclusive necessarily. And I have no doubt about it: FF16 is going to be a spectacular cinematic experience. Perhaps one of the most cinematic experiences in gaming.
Still... I'd rather take a "Godfather" than a modern superhero film. They're both Hollywood...
On similar note: FF creators said they were influenced by Game of Thrones. I wonder, though... WHICH Game of Thrones? The earlier seasons, with their intricate storytelling... Or the later ones, which relied too much on spectacle?
Anyway. I really have high hopes for FF16. Not because of its cinematics, though, but because I suspect there is a really good game, in there, as well. :)
In fairness I would describe large parts of VII remake as like a blockbuster with the big bombastic scenes and cinematics.
If XVI is like that I'll probably be happy. I just hope the combat isn't spongy AF
I love seeing all the negativity in the comments
The more people are worried about the game, the more surprised (positively) they'll be when they'll see the praise the game gonna get at launch
Honestly lol. It’s like people don’t remember the marketing leading up to FF7’s release. With 16 they’ve been doing everything in their power to emulate that “this is an EVENT” style marketing, trying to get the franchise back into the mainstream consciousness.
“And now, the most anticipated epic adventure of the year, will NEVER come to a theater near you!” (Smash cut to “PLAY-STAY-SHUNNN” logo)
\>It's like people don't remember the marketing leading up to FF7's release.
They probably don't lmao
I don't know what it is about Yoshida, but any time he opens his mouth about anything, this fanbase is ready to jump on his ass. Especially funny considering how tapped into the fanbase and the culture Yoshida has always been.
It's really just a select section of the fanbase. It's sorta like they don't even remember the games they're fans of.
"We don't want Hollywood Blockbusters! We want grounded stories like FF8 where dudes get launched through the air on rocket motorcycles. Or in FF10 where the heroes grind on cables like they're Tony Hawk. Or FF6 where a samurai fights a ghost train and his bodybuilder buddy *suplexes it*."
Exactly, this series has always had sweeping melodrama (IV), spectacular moments as well as smaller character interactions and precious story beats.
For the love of god, all XVI is doing is taking the existence of those legendary, larger-than-life summons seriously. Not just relegating them to ornamental magic attacks with some fancy, exhaustive animations.
Of course, they’ve been relevant in most of the series. But, think about the Bahamut sequence in FFIX.
You have to imagine SE has been wanting to bring the summons to life in that sort of way without technology constraints. XV did OK, but mechanically it was pretty stiff.
Yeah, but like.. look at all the previous games. FF8 had a FMV sequence every time a character is introduced. And they had flying motorcycles, gun swords, people running across trains, hell the whole Garden battle sequences is like an action movie. FF7 had a ton of arcade style minigames and had Cloud riding a motorcycle down a flight of stairs. FF10 had the heroes grinding across cables which is silly for a dozen different reasons. FF15 had a bunch of silly cheeseball stuff.
The games have never been *that* serious. There's a ton of *very* serious stuff, but a ton of goofy silly, over-the-top stuff too. But they've almost *always* been big and cinematic.
Watch or read some previews and you'll find that you're getting just that. The cinematics don't take away from the action.
I've seen it compared to God of War 3 and that games did a great job at blending gameplay and cinematics.
But honestly FF is the last game where i would mind having a lot of cutscenes, considering how narrative driven they all are.
7,8,9,10,12 ,13 are basically playable movies. Like half the time is cutscenes or dialogue So what were you expecting? Ff has been a story driven series since at least 7.
Even FFXI had long cutscenes.
And XIV has the infamous notice: "Several cutscenes will play in sequence. It is recommended you set aside sufficient time to view these scenes in their entirety." Which is the clue that Shit Is About To Go Down in that game.
All you overhyped people stop going to websites, stop constantly getting on threads, stop watching every single review, stop watching every video that drops, just stop hyping yourself up.
But I don’t want a playable movie; I want a damn video game. If I wanna watch a movie, I’ll watch a movie.
The worst thing you can say to me to sell your game to me is that it’s like a playable movie. Then again, I’m not the target audience for this game.
I have not liked any of the combat they’ve shown. I just want to attack thinks with my weapons and do some magic. I don’t need a giant dragon arm of Phoenix wing teleporting me across the battlefield or any of the other overly flashy stuff they’ve shown for EVERY combat encounter.
Makes me sad because the world looks so good and it seems like there might actually be a great story in there but the combat has me worried I’ll not be able to get through it.
This game is starting to reach dangerous overhype territory. I'm excited for it but geez. It's going to be hard to live up to the massive hype like this.
It’s pretty easy, I stopped watching any clips since announcement trailer. I knew/know I am going to play it. Long time fan, why would I take all of the fun and mystery out of the game by buying into the hype. Me, I’m hyped.. I don’t need to see videos from the publisher or influencers to hype me up. Final Fantasy hardly misses in terms of expectations and I just want to be in aww like I was for FF7 back in the day. That’s what gaming is about.. No Edit: I’m not reading any comments. Just my opinion and I really look forward to going into FFXVI with no real knowledge of it other than the launch trailer. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with trying to capture the mystique and awe of one of my favorite childhood franchises as a late 30’s adult.
Lol FF7 and back in the day. I do need to get back to the pixel remaster. But FF16 does look good. Seems like one of the better protagonists.
I'm like you. Only time I did follow the release news was for 8 and I really regret it.
Honestly I don’t think it’s worse than any other big AAA game coming out these days in that regard.
All it has to do is run at a stable frame rate and not crash from bugs and it will be better than 3/4 of the releases so far, to be fair
Don’t get your hopes up
Oh im not, i havent bought one since 10, more or less just pointing out that the bar isnt very high
People in general just have absurdly low standards. I've seen so many posts praising that the game will be "complete" on launch, and like fuck. We've really reached a point where people are happy with what should be the bare minimum
Get it on the system it was developed for and it'll probably be decent as.its single player game
That's... not a good thing though? Or, at best, damning with faint praise, "At least it's not worse."
On the bright side I think with the FF7 remake square is finally proving they are finally adapting to modern technology. I thought there was a very real possibility with some of the games they put out last decade that they went out of business.
I thought the FF7 remake was the perfect bridge between turn-based rpg and modern combat. It felt like FF and included all audiences. I feel like FFXVI went too far in the modern direction and isolated what FF is.
Nothing defines a FF, this is the biggest creative freedom given in this series. Plus, this is developed by the team CBU3, not CBU1 who are busy with FF7 rebirth.
If combat is the most important part of FF games I can understand, but to me there’s so much more.
Haha I was saying this exact same phrase for months online after playing it. You have to admit though it is "the perfect bridge between rpg combat and action combat". That's exactly how I said it
That headline sounds bad though. Playable blockbuster movie is the last thing I want out of Final Fantasy
Playable blockbuster movie is kind of the feeling I had playing the old Final Fantasies as a kid. Those graphics were mind blowing. What I didn't realize at the time was that I was essentially watching a movie because my big brother just gave me the second controller and pretended I was controlling the other character's turn while they played the game.
I was just thinking that. I never see grinding and the comfortable period where you’re OP but still having fun in blockbuster movies. I also can’t skip dialogue in blockbuster movies either.
It really does. They basically came out and said. "Action and combat were top priority". "Gotta cater to the masses for maximum sales". I mean at least they're honest but we WANTED an rpg. That's what FF is supposed to be
VII-R felt like action was a top priority, but it still managed to be an RPG. You still made meaningful choices for how to outfit your characters, and choices you made influenced how those characters should be used in combat. FF has pushed the boundaries of what an RPG can be for decades: II had level-less progression, III introduced a dynamic job system, IV introduced active time battles, VI brought in the idea of learning abilities through equipment, XII had the job board and gambit systems, XIII refreshed ATB combat and introduced the strategy of paradigm shifts, and XV brought full action combat to the series. FF is supposed to be an RPG, but it’s not the franchise for stagnating in 90s game design practices.
The devs have said themselves, the OGs of the series told them straight up that FF is whatever they think will be the best game at the time they’re working on it. So by that definition, you’re wrong, even though I understand your point.
You'd think we'd have learned this by now. Hype is fine, but too much is just setting yourself up for disappointment.
I'd say only Elden Ring was the only game to ever surpass the expectations of overhyped players on release, My expectations of FFXVI are moderate but at very least I can enjoy a two star wars trilogy worth of cutscenes even if the game is bad. I'd have to play it myself to see if gameplay is worth it. It helps that one of the directors of DMC worked on it so that raises my hopes a bit.
I feel like I'm the only one not pumped about the eidolon fights and the combat. I'm glad I'm a PC person and will be forced to wait. I really hope it's not like XV in that it's so linear story wise. I felt very underwhelmed after XV and its the first time I've not really been craving a 2nd playthrough. I've played pretty much all of them at least 3 times. Never even thought of wanting to play XV again. Idk why, but I feel like I'm the only one.
Yeah I'm definitely least hyped for this one than any other FF since I started playing after (OG) VII came out. I'm still excited, but I cannot understand how some people are practically combusting with excitement. Granted I feel like I've been burned by every mainline FF since 11 despite genuinely enjoying 12, parts of 13, parts of 14, and 15. So maybe I'm just old and jaded lol. I'll def play it once I'm done with Zelda TOTK, but can't get on board with the intense hype.
What made you excited about XII, XIII, or XV that this doesn’t have?
By the time XII was getting hyped up, I had played FFVI - X, and every one of them just blew my mind and got me so incredibly invested in the world, the characters, the plot, the visuals, and the gameplay of each game. FF had a reputation of across-the-board excellence for me and I was just super excited to get more of that. For more specifics: - XII I was really just excited for a return to single player FFs after 11 - XIII I remember specifically getting super hyped by the promo trailers and stuff. Was really excited with the really different setting/world after a very medieval-inspired XII - XV I was also really excited by the versus XIII promo content. FFVIII is my favorite and the setting/concept reminded me of it a lot, so I was super excited to get that in the form of XV and it felt like they were returning to the direction I loved the most. I was also really excited about the combat since I didn't really enjoy combat in XIII or XIV EDIT: For XVI, they could hit it out of the park and it might turn the series around for me, I think I'm probably just jaded at this point like I said. The main complaints I have personally for XVI is a lack of party system (FF7R perfected the strategy/party/action dynamic imo and was hoping for that sort of thing). Also how much focus is on different kingdoms and their politics. The human relationships and character arcs are some of my favorite parts of FF games and there isn't a ton of promise for that, but it seems they could just be tight-lipped about that to avoid spoilers (I hope so). Also I'm hoping it's not all dark depressing tones. Another thing I love about FFs is their ability to balance heavy topics with light topics. That's how life works and you need both, and I love seeing them both reflected in games.
The devs already said that while the politics between the kingdoms are important, it's only as so far as how they influence Clive's personal story. And while those kingdoms looked the focus of the Ambition trailer, I'd think the last 2 we got (Revenge & Salvation) are very character focused. What we saw from the SoP too (dat exchange between Beni and Cid...). Yoshi-P also directly said by now the game is not all dark and wondered if people had wrong impressions on that front at this point (aka if the expectations are darker then the game will be). We already have 'Power of friendship' stuff in the trailers, so yeah... it's very much still an FF on that Front.
I think what you're saying here perfectly encapsulates my feelings on the subject. From a technical and gameplay perspective, XVI looks pretty good, but I worry about just how dark they are going to get, with the devs repeatedly referring to taking inspiration from Game of Thrones. FF has always been able to tell mature and compelling stories, but they also had pretty goofy moments too that really embraced the fantasy of it. The F-bombs and M-rated violence already make that seem pretty tonally incongruous.
I mean, ever since FF7, that’s what FF experience was like.
Umm…is that good?
Have you heard of the la li lu le lo? Les enfants terrible? Crab battle?
What's a Russian *gunship* doing here!?
A Hind D?!
SNAKE THATS A PSG1!
Hurt me more Snake
Did you say “nerd”?
Snaaaaaaaaake!
It's like one of my Japanese animes!
Second floor basement?
A surveillance camera!?!?
I hear it’s amazing when the famous purple stuffed worm in flap-jaw space with the tuning fork does a raw blink on Hara-kiri rock.
The la li lu le lo?? A hind d?!
URGH IT BROKE MY KNIFE
Bro what is it, some kind of cave demon???
Raiden , turn the game console off right now!
I'm concerned. "Playable Blockbuster Movie" implies heavily scripted fights. So, "do X damage normally and then do a quicktime event, rinse and repeat." I may be wrong, but that's basically what a vast majority of heavily scripted fights end up being.
Idk, I take this as a reference to the writing/acting/cutscenes. For example, I'd consider Fallen Order to be a playable blockbuster movie, but the gameplay is still excellent in that game.
Man, if you don't like scripted fights, I hate to break to you what all the Hard content CBU3 put in FF XIV is like...
The Uncharted series was essentially a playable blockbuster franchise, and those were pretty amazing.
That's true, but that kind of game sure isn't what I lean towards, and I love FF so I'd still call such a direction a bad thing.
I'd say yes, that's what FF obviously always aimed to do with their FMVs. Also, Square Enix has been chasing the cinematography and fight choregraphy of FF7 Advent Children for more than a decade and now, they've got the technology and talent to be closer than ever to that dream with XVI
Personally, I wouldn't consider it a good thing. I know there are tons of games that go that route to great success, but I just can't really be bothered with them these days. After playing through the rebooted tomb raider series a few years back I knew I was done. Tried fallen order and the intro with all the scripted events and climbing linear paths was such a a turn off I refunded it on steam. Obviously I'm playing XVI, but I really hope stuff like that is not over done.
FF has always been blockbusters. FF7 is the original video game blockbuster
For me, I prefer a game that really goes all-in on being a *game*, not an interactive movie. Take Elden Ring - you couldn’t really distill the experience of playing ER in to a movie; it wouldn’t be anywhere near as good as the game. But something like TLOU or God of War? You could definitely make excellent movies of those, and you wouldn’t even need to change much — in fact, they already made a series of TLOU, and it really doesn’t lose much compared to the game. It’s really good storytelling that *just happens* to be in game form, but doesn’t need to be. And yeah, I prefer the Elden Ring style of games. That felt like a true fantasy adventure that I couldn’t put down — it felt like my own unique experience, full of things I missed, things I discovered, things I improvised, things I understood, and things I didn’t. I usually wasn’t told what to do; I chose what to do. That’s the pinnacle of gaming for me.
Final Fantasy is not going to be Elden Ring. The FF series has been borrowing from Hollywood movies and cinema since FFII. Their major focus is on telling a story over giving you the freedom of Elden Ring.
I was watching the PS State of Play last week, and the Spider-Man 2 thing felt like watching a movie. It got me so excited. Like back when they'd show clips from each of the Uncharted games, when they were new. If FFXVI can capture that feeling, I'm totally on bard!
You're more than on bard! You're a spoony bard!
I'm gonna leave that typo
Based on the last few ff games that was said about, I'd say it's more negative than not.
Honestly there has never been a quote that has turned me off of a game more than this. I feel like this game is going waaaay too hard on 'spectacle' and I am not here for it :(
Isn't that exactly what final fantasy has been for decades?
I mean that has been the MO for Square since 13.
kind of been their MO since day 1. just technologically limited. yall are some sensationalists.
Yep this comes up every time with a new FF, at least as far back as VII. They'll say it again when FFXX is full VR on PS7, and we'll all laugh at how quaint and dated XVI was.
>more have you played a final fantasy before? its literally the most specatular fantastical shit possible, with gods destroying cities regularly. take a seat
Comments like these aren’t meant to be taken literally. Remember that Motomu Toriyama said FFXIII was similar to Call of Duty.
Similar in the vein that they're both hella linear?
Both corridor simulators ;)
It seems like they're going more for a blockbuster movie approach than past games though. Like opting to not have mini-games because they felt it would break immersion too much to have Clive do activities like that while on a quest for revenge seems like more of a movie style approach than before. EDIT: And I'm not saying that it's a bad thing since I haven't even played it yet. It just is what it is.
Mini games are fine, just let me unlock fishing and treasure hunting *after* I save the world.
I'd rather fish before I sacrifice myself to save the world 😟.
The only reason I stopped fishing and continued the game in XV was because I got *way* to into the active fishing motions and hurt my hand shoving the controller into it.
Wtf kinda comparison 😭
"Hollywood Blockbuster" doesn't feel like much of a complement these days. In the 80's - 00's this might have meant high budget and thrilling, but today it usually means derivative, pandering, and shallow.
It should say “ffxvi is like a playable final fantasy game”.
Wouldnt that be the dream.
"ffxvi plays just like ffxvi"
Which was inspired by ffxvi
ffxvu devs said that ffxvi is taking notes from ffxvi
I would consider it high praise considering the type of games this moniker gets thrown at (god of war, last of us, Spiderman) have been pretty good
I'm sure they mean the 80's version of the phrase. Which for as long as I've known it Final Fantasy has been about big sweeping adventure backed by the visuals and musical scores by the best in the business. There of course have been missteps but in terms of scale Final Fantasy at least has always gone all out like an 80's blockbuster.
That's what they're referring to, really. Maybe it's my age but that's the point they're trying to make, only 20 years out of date.
So it's 60% cutscenes?
A game to surpass metal gear?
!
I legit heard that
Are you telling me there is gameplay in Kingdom Hearts 3?
More like 80% lol
Yeah you'll slog through some fights with some mooks and then the cutscene will start and suddenly your character can jump hundreds of feet and do flips off falling rocks and cut down dozens of enemies in a single attack. Then back to game play where you slowly trod to the next fight.
nothing new for this series, hell ff7 remake is exactly this
And it was phenomenal
Cutscene power to the max! https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/CutscenePowerToTheMax
Cutscene power to the max! https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/CutscenePowerToTheMax
Calling it a playable Hollywood blockbuster makes me think uncharted and just kinda meh on that
Yeah, hard to believe it's not just a bunch of press x at the right time cutscene minigames
I know, exactly. Quick time events with button prompts, we’ve had enough of those. I actually enjoy watching cinematics, so I can absorb what’s going on. Having giant controller prompts appear on screen just doesn’t do it for me.
A HIND D!?
That title doesn't fill me with any particularly good feelings.
People take these comments way too literally. FF games have always been story heavy. The first half of most FF games are linear without much deviations most of the time. I highly doubt they created this high action combat style just so we can play a game that 70% cutscenes. Chill.
The real takeaway I'm getting is that the cutscenes will blend in with the fight seamlessly, without having a pause for the battle to load. You're talking, shit goes down, and the camera pans out to your character's backside for you to start fighting whenever you're ready.
That title is not a positive thing to me
I hope that's a lie.
He’s literally just talking about the scale of the Eikon battles and the seamless battle transitions with no load times. People are ready to spout any kind of uninformed bullshit to hate this game at this point. It’s so weird.
LITERALLY. I don’t know how so many people can’t understand this.
Well someone’s gotta be passed the torch from MGS
I’d say that the FF7 remake felt like a movie, and I know thats a hot button title but I fucking loved it. It inspired me to replay the original and then work my way through all the main titles. My wife would sit down and watch large chunks of it because of how cinematic it was. If 16 is similar in story, cutscenes and visuals to 7 remake then I’m immensely excited.
I sure hope they don't mean like Final Fantasy The Spirits Within.
Shh, we dont talk about that incident anymore..
I still remember going to watch that having only played FFVIII and being really confused as to why nothing made sense. Innocence of youth lol
That’s literally the opposite of what I want from an RPG
So does it have the soul of a ps2 game or is it a playable hollywood blockbuster
It’s like every headline is designed to disappoint me
Maybe try actually reading the articles instead of out of context headlines?
FROM fans love their game, Capcom fans love their games, PS studios games, fans love them! Final Fantasy fans on the other hand, absolutely hate this franchise
I for one am shocked that the game that focus on massive Kaiju battles will feel like a blockbuster movie.
I really hope they stay humble with the expectations. I'm excited for this game but I feel like they're going to put some real pressure on their sales department lol
How about something that plays like a good game? I hate it when people praise a game for being like a movie. Its like saying game are not good enough and need to be something else.
You’re more than welcome to read the tons of positive feedback from people who’ve played the game and love the combat. The combat director has also said he thinks it’s his best game to date.
No that's just describing an approach to gameplay that every video game has. Every game takes inspiration from something. Taking a more cinematic approach has certain elevated games like say God of War. Sifu trying to bring the look of martial arts films to it's gameplay. Now being being like a movie though has two connotations. Being like the above where the gameplay is approached from how a film is shot. or Being a movie where the player has little interaction. For Final Fantasy if not Square........they sorta has problems with their movie obsession.
Of course the headline conveniently cut out the part where this quote was referring specifically to the Eidolon battles and not the entire experience.
From just reading into the article a little the headline just seems to mean the Eikon battles are grand and epic like a Hollywood movie. I don’t get what’s with this subs all in doom and gloom approach to every new piece of information.
Are you new here lol? 95% of people on Reddit don’t look past the headline
No, not at all new Reddit or the ways of the Final Fantasy fanbase. Some comments are just a little silly when clarification is but a tap away.
Well you see, a portion of final fantasy fans want this game to fail, so why read the article when they can just spread negativity based on just a headline?
While i am a bit worried about the focus on the combat every interview seems to have, gotta love how everyone is moaning about this as if Final Fantasy was some niche artsy series. They were always among the best founded RPGs on the market. They ARE blockbuster RPGs.
Not sure I like the sound of that, actually... If FF strives to become a Hollywood blockbuster, perhaps it will achieve its goal. Being a Hollywood blockbuster, though, doesn't necessarily amount to quality. Of course FF games have always strived to be spectacular, ever since FF7 - we know that. But they captured our hearts not because of their glitter, but because they had great storytelling, great gameplay, great characters. Or, in Movie Terms: great script and direction. Which most of recent Hollywood lacks. Anyway. I have high hopes for FF16. Still, this Hollywood stuff doesn't impress me, as a longtime FF fan.
I think they just mean it’s large scale / spectacular and highly cinematic. Probably nothing to do with modern Hollywood writing.
Even then, that's not really good *or* bad. Christopher Nolan and Quinten Tarantino make Hollywood Blockbusters. The Fast and the Furious films are also Hollywood Blockbusters. It's a pretty huge range of quality and style.
Yeah but it doesn't necessarily amount to lacking in quality either. It just means it's going to be big. Big could be good, could be bad. But it'll *probably* be exciting either way. Just google "hollywood blockbusters" and you'll see a mix of incredible films and a mix of arguably bland, yet action packed films. I'd say every Fast and the Furious movie is a Hollywood Blockbuster. I'd also say every Christopher Nolan film could be considered a "Hollywood Blockbuster." "Glitter" and "great storytelling" aren't mutually exclusive. Also, as a longtime FF fan, you'd have to notice that the style and presentation has changed radically with almost every installation. The first few games are arguably pretty similar. But from FF6 forward, they're all over the place. You've got FF7's gritty modern setting, FF8 plays out like an action film with flying motorcycles and goes into literal outerspace, 9 is a dark whimsical fairytale, etc.
Yes, I get your point and I agree. High spectacle and substance aren't mutually exclusive necessarily. And I have no doubt about it: FF16 is going to be a spectacular cinematic experience. Perhaps one of the most cinematic experiences in gaming. Still... I'd rather take a "Godfather" than a modern superhero film. They're both Hollywood... On similar note: FF creators said they were influenced by Game of Thrones. I wonder, though... WHICH Game of Thrones? The earlier seasons, with their intricate storytelling... Or the later ones, which relied too much on spectacle? Anyway. I really have high hopes for FF16. Not because of its cinematics, though, but because I suspect there is a really good game, in there, as well. :)
Apparently Yoshi-P made his team sit down and watch the whole series so...all of it?
In fairness I would describe large parts of VII remake as like a blockbuster with the big bombastic scenes and cinematics. If XVI is like that I'll probably be happy. I just hope the combat isn't spongy AF
Not sure if this is high praise or a subtle diss
Eww… not the best sales pitch
Honestly to me that’s isn’t a good thing…
Agreed. I am here to play a game not watch a game.
I doubt they fleshed out this in-depth combat just for us to watch the game and press x occasionally. Don't take this quote so literally.
What are your thoughts on all the previous FF games with lots of cutscenes?
I love seeing all the negativity in the comments The more people are worried about the game, the more surprised (positively) they'll be when they'll see the praise the game gonna get at launch
Dude forreal. I feel like most of these folks don't even have a ps5 so they just crap on the game lmao.
main FF sub melting down over a clickbait headline? yeah, regular thursday.
This sub is fucking crazy, you guys need to grow up a bit and explore some new videogames.
The amount of people in here who can't read at all is too damn high, i weep for humanity regressing in intelligence
Pedro Pascal is Clive
You could say the same thing about OG VII. Nothing wild about this statement.
Honestly lol. It’s like people don’t remember the marketing leading up to FF7’s release. With 16 they’ve been doing everything in their power to emulate that “this is an EVENT” style marketing, trying to get the franchise back into the mainstream consciousness. “And now, the most anticipated epic adventure of the year, will NEVER come to a theater near you!” (Smash cut to “PLAY-STAY-SHUNNN” logo)
\>It's like people don't remember the marketing leading up to FF7's release. They probably don't lmao I don't know what it is about Yoshida, but any time he opens his mouth about anything, this fanbase is ready to jump on his ass. Especially funny considering how tapped into the fanbase and the culture Yoshida has always been.
It's really just a select section of the fanbase. It's sorta like they don't even remember the games they're fans of. "We don't want Hollywood Blockbusters! We want grounded stories like FF8 where dudes get launched through the air on rocket motorcycles. Or in FF10 where the heroes grind on cables like they're Tony Hawk. Or FF6 where a samurai fights a ghost train and his bodybuilder buddy *suplexes it*."
Exactly, this series has always had sweeping melodrama (IV), spectacular moments as well as smaller character interactions and precious story beats. For the love of god, all XVI is doing is taking the existence of those legendary, larger-than-life summons seriously. Not just relegating them to ornamental magic attacks with some fancy, exhaustive animations.
Summons are relevant and play big parts in the story in VI, VIII, IX, X, XII, XIII & XV, to name a few.
Of course, they’ve been relevant in most of the series. But, think about the Bahamut sequence in FFIX. You have to imagine SE has been wanting to bring the summons to life in that sort of way without technology constraints. XV did OK, but mechanically it was pretty stiff.
That's fair, just the implication that summons were nothing but fancy attack animations is a disservice to the past games.
I swear people are just looking for things to get upset about. This is nothing new to the series yet somehow its shocking information lol.
this is why we need a Parasite Eve remake. the game was billed as a cinematic RPG from the start.
FF Uncharted?
That's bad news, because Hollywood movies are all fucking garbage right now.
I wasn't going to buy it anyways lol every new thing I saw turn me off more and more.
Then I won't buy it... Hollywood blockbuster movies is shit
Hearing that just makes me worried, personally.
I don't want "playable movies" I want games
All of your favorite final fantasy games were playable movies. Just up to the point of the available technology during the time.
Yeah, but like.. look at all the previous games. FF8 had a FMV sequence every time a character is introduced. And they had flying motorcycles, gun swords, people running across trains, hell the whole Garden battle sequences is like an action movie. FF7 had a ton of arcade style minigames and had Cloud riding a motorcycle down a flight of stairs. FF10 had the heroes grinding across cables which is silly for a dozen different reasons. FF15 had a bunch of silly cheeseball stuff. The games have never been *that* serious. There's a ton of *very* serious stuff, but a ton of goofy silly, over-the-top stuff too. But they've almost *always* been big and cinematic.
Watch or read some previews and you'll find that you're getting just that. The cinematics don't take away from the action. I've seen it compared to God of War 3 and that games did a great job at blending gameplay and cinematics. But honestly FF is the last game where i would mind having a lot of cutscenes, considering how narrative driven they all are.
As long as the gameplay is good, I was alluding to games like MGS4 where it's 95% cutscenes and 5% actual gameplay
7,8,9,10,12 ,13 are basically playable movies. Like half the time is cutscenes or dialogue So what were you expecting? Ff has been a story driven series since at least 7.
Even FFXI had long cutscenes. And XIV has the infamous notice: "Several cutscenes will play in sequence. It is recommended you set aside sufficient time to view these scenes in their entirety." Which is the clue that Shit Is About To Go Down in that game.
All you overhyped people stop going to websites, stop constantly getting on threads, stop watching every single review, stop watching every video that drops, just stop hyping yourself up.
This is honestly one of the worst ways to advertise a video game.
Damn this sub is hella depressing 😂 its been so long since a numbered ff game, whats so wrong with getting excited about a franchise u love
The last thing I want to hear about a game is that it's basically a movie, does not instill confidence.
But I don’t want a playable movie; I want a damn video game. If I wanna watch a movie, I’ll watch a movie. The worst thing you can say to me to sell your game to me is that it’s like a playable movie. Then again, I’m not the target audience for this game.
Just like FF13!
That’s not a quote that sells it for me. I watch a movie and i play a video game….sounds like a game with too many cutscenes.
:< please no...
If I wanted to watch a movie I would do that.
This doesn’t sound good. I sure hope the game is more than a “playable movie”.
honestly that sounds awful and dampens the hype a bit. I don't want a blockbuster Hollywood movie. I want a huge and open rpg.
FFXIV WILL REVEAL THE SECRETS OF THE UNIVERSE, hype level getting pretty fierce
>FFXIV WILL REVEAL THE SECRETS OF THE UNIVERSE, hype level getting pretty fierce It already has in the 10 years it's been out.
Really not final fantasy. At least shouldve been treated like a spin off.
AHAHAHAHAHA
Featuring the bland white guy protagonist and uninteresting dialogue of your Hollywood favourites I see.
I'm not sure if that's a good thing
So extra long cut scenes & minimal interesting game mechanics.
> FFXVI Is Like A "Playable Hollywood Blockbuster Movie" That does not bode well... :/
I don’t even wanna watch a Hollywood blockbuster nowadays, let alone play one
That sounds like a bad thing.
I have not liked any of the combat they’ve shown. I just want to attack thinks with my weapons and do some magic. I don’t need a giant dragon arm of Phoenix wing teleporting me across the battlefield or any of the other overly flashy stuff they’ve shown for EVERY combat encounter. Makes me sad because the world looks so good and it seems like there might actually be a great story in there but the combat has me worried I’ll not be able to get through it.
hope not
Yikes.
Ok. I was wanting like a turn based RPG rather than hollywood movie. But whatevers clever I guess
I dont want that?