PS5 exclusive Final Fantasy XVI using rogue genre mashup

Final Fantasy 16 is looking to shake things up for players in the next instalment of the franchise. This PS5 exclusive has new inclusions including multiple genre mashups and the distinct lack of an open world to adventure in.

Square Enix is set to make some big changes going into the newest instalment of the Final Fantasy franchise. A lot was revealed in an interview from GameSpot, that discusses the comments made by the producer of Final Fantasy XVI, Naoki Yoshida.

Final Fantasy XVI will have battles reminiscent of 3D shooting game

Final Fantasy XVI will take a break from the traditional

In a bold move, Square Enix has decided to step away from the open-world elements of Final Fantasy XV. In an interview with IGN discussing the JRPG, Yoshida had this to say in regards to the lack of an open world: "To bring a story that feels like it spans an entire globe and beyond, we decided to avoid an open world design that limits us to a single open-world space, and instead focus on an independent area-based game design." This choice could also be due to the fact some members of the fan base took issue with Final Fantasy 15's open-world setting.

But this isn't even the end to the amount of interesting information that Yoshida spilt in these interviews. Something that is likely to catch people's attention is that there will be multiple genres guest-starring throughout your playthrough of Final Fantasy 16. While discussing the gameplay trailer (that can be seen down below) Yoshida had this to say in regards to the Titan boss fight: "There are several other summon versus summon battles and they are all unique from a game design perspective."

Yoshida then went on to elaborate on what some of these boss fights may look like, saying this: "For example, while one of these battles is reminiscent of a 3D shooting game, another feels like a pro wrestling match, while another, like the one with Titan, incorporates an entire area as the battlefield." With so many interesting mechanics set to feature in Final Fantasy 16, players can expect a unique Final Fantasy experience like never before. You can't deny that the thought of doing a scorpion death drop on some giant, ancient being, sounds like one of the greatest things to happen in video games in a long time. Final Fantasy may even get an entirely new fanbase of wrestling fanatics if Square Enix plays its cards right.

Final Fantasy 16 says bye-bye to the open world setting

Then we have the inclusion of some sort of 3D shooting game mechanic, which knowing how Final Fantasy can be, will probably be absolutely bonkers and off the rails. Something I think we can all agree on is that it sounds like a bloody good time. These summon vs summon fights look like they will really switch up the gameplay, keeping everything fresh and fun, while also keeping players, both new and old, engaged with the story and world.

Final Fantasy XVI looks to shake things up

I am also positive that the more traditional RPG elements will be left intact and that these fun new genre-borrowing elements won't encompass the entirety of the game. Hearing all this news from Yoshida, I am very excited for the next instalment of Final Fantasy, I like that they are attempting to do something a little outside of the box and experiment.

We have received a lot of Final Fantasy news recently, with the announcement of both the new Crisis Core remaster and Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, it is a good time to be a Final Fantasy fan. How do you guys feel about Final Fantasy 16? Excited? What do you guys think of the inclusion of these different genre-based fights? Sound off in the comments below!

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Written by Sean Lawson

Sean is a Staff Writer with a focus on the geekiest Sony news. He writes stories about unobtainable PlayStation trophies, the best PS Plus games, as well as RPGs and Fighting games. He is also excited for Tekken 8, Dragon Age Dreadwolf, Baldur's Gate 3, and Dragon's Dogma 2 to launch on PS5. Sean’s favourite games include Mass Effect, Tomb Raider, Tekken, and Persona.