bob Posted June 15, 2023 Posted June 15, 2023 What does it say about me that I watched [mention=20895]Julius[/mention]'s tweet and thought "Well, that's just wrong. Ifrit could never one shot Phoenix like that!"?That you're a massive nerd?
Glen-i Posted June 15, 2023 Posted June 15, 2023 32 minutes ago, bob said: That you're a massive nerd? You're damn right!
Julius Posted June 17, 2023 Author Posted June 17, 2023 59 minutes ago, Choze said: They confirm, there will infact be a patch lol More options: Controller binds, camera, lock on/off, motion blur options etc. Performance will be looked at and patched. Apparently not due to Ray Tracing. Pushes PS5 hard. Recommendation to play with HDR on. Good stuff. No real surprise I don't think, I know they've said before they want the game in a state printed on disc where a Day 1 Patch won't be required, but this is also Yoshi-P and CBU III we're talking about; I haven't played XIV, but from the Live Letters to the short delays to touch up cutscenes here and there, I get the feeling that they're kind of perfectionists, so even if not a Day 1 Patch, a Week 1 Patch seemed all but inevitable, because I'd bet a lot of Gil that they'd been working on an update anyways in the 2-3 months since the game went gold. Motion blur options is the main one for me, I said it in my thoughts on the demo but the frame rate and motion just felt a little disorienting at times (I never think the off-centred over-the-shoulder camera works great when those are lagging) as I'm super sensitive to those things when I first play most games before I adapt after a few hours/a second session. Cannot wait until Thursday, I convinced a friend to try the demo and he loved it (no previous FF experience). Trying to get two of my other friends to try it out too. I'm so ready for this game. The hype is palpable; the hype is real
Glen-i Posted June 17, 2023 Posted June 17, 2023 11 minutes ago, Julius said: no previous FF experience I mean, to be fair, previous FF experience won't really help one iota here, would it?
Julius Posted June 17, 2023 Author Posted June 17, 2023 18 minutes ago, Glen-i said: I mean, to be fair, previous FF experience won't really help one iota here, would it? To clarify, my point was that they haven't played an FF before (so there was definite hesitation that they'd be into it) and came out loving the demo to the point that they're considering picking up the full game, so the demo pretty much singlehandedly won them over to the point that they're thinking about picking up their first FF nothing to do with the combat or anything like that carrying over and helping Anyways, that seems to be a sentiment I'm seeing a whole lot across the board from streams and reactions to the demo, it seems to be onboarding a whole lot of new people to the franchise and I don't even think it's just down to being more of an action game, but the story, characters, world and music (all the consistent bread and butter of FF imo) are doing a lot of heavy lifting for prospective newcomers too! It feels like the first mainline FF in a long time where you can just come in fresh and without the game having some sort of baggage. VII Remake, much as I love it, is a hard sell even though I loved it because newcomers are going to be lost with no VII experience to lean on. XV had it's multimedia mess which split it's story up. XIV, well, is an MMO and a daunting thing to get into now, but obviously was a mess with its original launch and took years for Yoshi-P and CBU III to fix. XIII was a trilogy. Which means XII...maybe was the last one you could come in fresh to? And even then: Ivalice. XI, is, well, another MMO. So, honestly, does that mean X was basically the last mainline FF serving as potential ideal entry for newcomers and a complete blank slate, that wasn't an MMO? I know there's X-2 and people love that game's combat, but I also don't see X-2 talked about as being essential to the X experience in the way the latter games in the XIII trilogy are often talked about as essential to enjoying XIII more Anyway, point is: wild that the game's winning so many new people over with its demo (can't remember the last time I saw a demo have this sort of impact), and kind of wild it's the first blank slate the series has had in a super long time. Hopefully it crushes and we get to see Yoshi-P and CBU III continue the good work
Glen-i Posted June 17, 2023 Posted June 17, 2023 Ah right, I get what you mean now. As to the whole blank slate thing, I don't really buy that X was the last one. When XIII came out, it was a stand-alone title. You could play just the first game, and it would be a complete story. Of course, now? Different matter, but in that case, then I'd say it was IX that offers a complete stand-alone plot, not X.
Julius Posted June 17, 2023 Author Posted June 17, 2023 37 minutes ago, Glen-i said: As to the whole blank slate thing, I don't really buy that X was the last one. When XIII came out, it was a stand-alone title. You could play just the first game, and it would be a complete story. Of course, now? Different matter, but in that case, then I'd say it was IX that offers a complete stand-alone plot, not X. Yeah, I was thinking the same about X and XIII after I posted, so I agree. So either XIII (13 years ago) or IX (23 years ago)...yeah, either way I think it's safe to say it's been a minute since the last mainline FF which (at launch) was friendly to newcomers!
Glen-i Posted June 17, 2023 Posted June 17, 2023 (edited) 2 hours ago, Julius said: Yeah, I was thinking the same about X and XIII after I posted, so I agree. So either XIII (13 years ago) or IX (23 years ago)...yeah, either way I think it's safe to say it's been a minute since the last mainline FF which (at launch) was friendly to newcomers! I feel like I should point out that despite my gripes with Square's efforts to distance the series from it's roots, this game in particular, standing on it's own merits, does look really good. Honestly, it's the first game PS5 has flaunted that I actually would want to play. Every trailer has made me want it more. And the demo isn't helping matters. Bringing in Platinum to help out only bolsters my confidence that I need to try this game. ...Eventually. I generally have a rule that no one game is good enough to warrant an entire console purchase, especially one as pricey as the PS5. And it is a Square title, I expect to at least come to the PC in the future, so I can wait. I hope you enjoy it as much as the demo, because Square might have finally nailed the action Final Fantasy genre here, and that's quite the occasion. Edited June 17, 2023 by Glen-i
Julius Posted June 19, 2023 Author Posted June 19, 2023 On 6/17/2023 at 6:47 PM, Glen-i said: I feel like I should point out that despite my gripes with Square's efforts to distance the series from it's roots, this game in particular, standing on it's own merits, does look really good. Honestly, it's the first game PS5 has flaunted that I actually would want to play. Every trailer has made me want it more. And the demo isn't helping matters. Bringing in Platinum to help out only bolsters my confidence that I need to try this game. Yeah, it really does look (and play) fantastic! It's also interesting because, for me, it's one of still only a handful of games that has felt next-gen in how far it is clearly pushing things; because of games like Ragnarök and Forbidden West ending up cross-gen, this feels like the first next-gen game that has the potential to make my PS5 spontaneously combust because it's trying to do so many exciting things. Compare that to Jedi Survivor, which wanted to do the same thing when I hopped from one ledge to another As for Platinum's involvement in supporting, yeah, it's kind of wild to me just how we all just accepted that a former DMC combat designer came in to direct this game and no-one suggested for a second that Platinum - somehow, someway - might have some involvement. It feels so, so obvious once you start playing the game! Similar goes for the Kingdom Hearts team, even with the scant time I've put into the first of those games playing with my younger brother a good while back now, it's super obvious. I was really worried going into the demo that the combat wouldn't be all that engaging, and by all means, like any other mainline FF (at least that I've played), I do get the sense that you could brute force your way through this game without needing to dive deep into the combat. And that's the beauty of it (and the NG+ Final Fantasy and Ultimaniac Modes), after watching others play the demo, I'm really excited to try some new things out once I get my hands on it! On 6/17/2023 at 6:47 PM, Glen-i said: ...Eventually. I generally have a rule that no one game is good enough to warrant an entire console purchase, especially one as pricey as the PS5. And it is a Square title, I expect to at least come to the PC in the future, so I can wait. Yep, I've got the same rule in place for myself too, and at the moment it's hard at work deflecting the alluring potential of Starfield. I just need that game to release and I know I'll be fine, though, there's no way it releases in good enough shape to tide me over based on every Bethesda Softworks launch over the last decade As for it coming to PC - yes it is! I believe it was first announced for it when it was revealed way back in 2020, I think the splash screen was basically PLAYSTATION CONSOLE EXCLUSIVE *also available on PC so I imagine it'll probably be on PC next summer if VII Remake's deal is anything to go by? I just want to see the inevitable Jack mods On 6/17/2023 at 6:47 PM, Glen-i said: I hope you enjoy it as much as the demo, because Square might have finally nailed the action Final Fantasy genre here, and that's quite the occasion. Thanks! Yeah, if the demo is anything to go by, I'm sure I will I've been listening to the Battle Theme nonstop and I'm hooked, and I have no doubt while it feels like they've shown a lot they also have plenty hidden up their sleeves! 4 hours ago, Choze said: I still lose attention with most high rated RPG games (Witcher, Dragon Age, FF games etc.). It's interesting because I completely bounced off The Witcher 3 too, really seems to have drawn a lot of people in, and those that are into it end up loving it and are glued to it, whereas those that bounce off it REALLY bounce off it. Also that TV spot was awesome! THREE DAYS TO GOOOOOOOOOOOO
Julius Posted June 20, 2023 Author Posted June 20, 2023 So, uh, Clive's Invictus sword is on display in London for the next month: Quote Working in partnership with Royal Armouries, a world-renowned museum that houses the United Kingdom's national collection of arms and armour, Clive's Invictus sword from Final Fantasy XVI is on display in the White Tower in the Tower of London until July 19th. Just two days to go! And it's looking like reviews will be dropping tomorrow, so I'm very curious to see how it fares with reviewers!
Julius Posted June 20, 2023 Author Posted June 20, 2023 Available now for pre-load for those going the digital route...
Julius Posted June 21, 2023 Author Posted June 21, 2023 ONE. MORE. DAY! Reviews should be dropping this afternoon.
Julius Posted June 21, 2023 Author Posted June 21, 2023 Digital Foundry tech review is absolutely glowing: Quote With new worlds to explore, characters to meet, and battles to fight, all paired with a world-class soundtrack and a sharp presentation, Final Fantasy 16 arrives in excellent condition and gives players exactly the experience the developers intended. It's one of the most polished games we've seen this year on a technical level, taking into account elements from visuals and audio to technology and performance. It's not quite flawless, but it's as close as we've seen for a long time - and that's worth celebrating. Currently sitting at an 88 on Metacritic and a 90 on Opencritic, which is super exciting to see! I never put too much stock in review aggregation other than to get a general idea of what the general consensus will probably end up being (I'd rather make up my own mind based on my own time with the game!), but man, that's a well-reviewing game if I've ever seen one!
Julius Posted June 21, 2023 Author Posted June 21, 2023 Into. My. Freaking. Veins. All of the art I've seen so far for XVI has been beautiful, and I honestly think it's some of the nicest we've seen for modern FF. Will absolutely buy an art book if/when one arrives. My copy got dispatched earlier today, and tracking is saying that it's on course to arrive tomorrow morning. Will get it installing while I work and then plan to dive in head first as soon as I finish!
Glen-i Posted June 22, 2023 Posted June 22, 2023 18 hours ago, Ike said: Any reason why it releases on a Thursday? Wanted to match up with the eShop update... ...wait... 1
Julius Posted June 22, 2023 Author Posted June 22, 2023 (edited) Royal Mail have pulled off an almighty blunder and so despite being in, they've not delivered. So, naturally, I'm now in an Uber on my way to my nearest GAME to pick up a copy in-person...which I don't think I've done for any game since I picked up my Switch over 4 years ago. But XVI can't wait another day, so I'm just doing what must be done Edited June 22, 2023 by Julius
Julius Posted June 22, 2023 Author Posted June 22, 2023 34 minutes ago, Julius said: But XVI can't wait another day, so I'm just doing what must be done And it is done, even upgraded to the Deluxe Edition just for the pretty box Time to see what this install size and time is like!
Julius Posted June 27, 2023 Author Posted June 27, 2023 (edited) I'll save more complete thoughts for once I've completed it, but this genuinely could be in with a shout at being my personal GOTY over Tears of the Kingdom. I'm about halfway through (I love that there's an accurate % completion for the main story available from the PS5 home screen! Not to mention the changing backgrounds!). I'm just going to say it: I loved Ragnarök last year, but what God of War has lacked in epicness since its reboot, Final Fantasy XVI is carrying the torch on. The music. The boss fights. The story. The gorgeously animated pre-rendered cutscenes, which at times are interspersed between in-engine cutscenes! It's the new definition of a game being considered "epic" for me, it's crazy what they've done. I'm digging into as much lore as I can (as mentioned before, ATL needs to now become an industry standard in lore-heavy story-based games), and the combat is just incredible, this might be my favourite action JRPG, and that's even considering NieR Automata, which I loved for its combat (I mean, Platinum doing Platinum things I suppose!). Totally agree with you @Choze, I think the XIV/MMO inspiration is super on the nose here – and there's no real reason it shouldn't be, it's generally very good when you notice the carryover. I felt like Xenoblade Chronicles was very MMO-like as well, and so things line zones, a main hub, the way levels are laid out, heck even going so far as some of telegraphing attacks in a similar way in some boss battles with how the floor lights up! All works. Only thing that's not working for me so far in this regard, and where the game definitely also feels like an MMO, is in most of its side quests. I've heard that they get better towards the end, but they're very fetch-questy as things stand, so again, basically Xenoblade. Only other real negative I have is just the Performance Mode still not being fixed (it's a really solid 60 fps in combat, but in combat only, weirdly, which is very jarring, and it makes the world look like mush) and not having that motion blur toggle out, so I've been playing in Quality Mode to at least not get that queezy feeling every time I play. I'm sure there's going to be conversation about diversity and the handling of a core element of the story (Bearers). Look, I'm mixed race, and I'm all for inclusion, but I don't think every single story/game/whatever NEEDS representation. It's awesome when it happens naturally, but I'm so tired of it being considered a need; look, it's a fantasy-based game made by Japanese devs who aren't necessarily going to be as exposed to different cultures in the same way the West are, and heck, I don't think I've seen any Asians in this game so far in the same way I haven't seen any dark-skinned black people (jury's out on the people of Dhalmek I guess). I also think, just considering how the Bearers are presented in this game, that would've been a very slippery slope to navigate. I've also read that the writer of this story, who did A Realm Reborn and Heavensward, maybe wasn't the best writer on XIV either when it came to his treatment of some characters? So I don't know how this game goes, but if we end up with a sequel/spin-off/XVII being worked on by CBU III again, would be really curious to see what the more trusted writers from that team can do (to be clear: I've loved this story so far, I guess I'm talking more to the potential of an even greater story). And look, I don't know how this game ends, so unless the game ends with the entire world blowing up? I could see this getting a sequel. The combat and lore is simply too good and rich to be tossed aside. I'd love more. I know I'm going to want more when it's over. Anyways: it's still the horniest FF. It's still on track to be my favourite FF soundtrack, or definitely up there. It's probably going to end up being considered the best modern FF, and honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if it's one of my favourites when all is said and done. It's so good it's making me seriously consider picking up and getting into XIV after I finish it. I'm not joking. It's. Just. That. Good! Edited June 30, 2023 by Julius 1
Julius Posted June 28, 2023 Author Posted June 28, 2023 The game has shipped and digitally sold 3 million copies! Excellent initial figures for a third party exclusive I feel, and I'm sure that demo and a likely decreasing price in the coming months is going to shore it up with more sales. It being a standalone title compared to VII Remake makes me also think it's in a good position to continue to onboard newcomers, as myself and others will surely be pointing at XVI when people ask how to get into the series (with a modern entry)! 1
Dcubed Posted June 28, 2023 Posted June 28, 2023 (edited) I’m sorry to bring you down @Julius, but that’s actually a big decline for the mainline series… For reference… Quote FF15 (1 day): 5.0M units FF7R (3 days): 3.5M units FF16 (6 or 7 days?): 3.0M units Worth noting that it took around 5 years for FF15 to sell another 5 million (and that was at bargain basement prices on multiple platforms), so don’t expect good legs for FF16 either. This is not a good result. Edited June 28, 2023 by Dcubed
Julius Posted June 28, 2023 Author Posted June 28, 2023 (edited) 59 minutes ago, Dcubed said: I’m sorry to bring you down @Julius, but that’s actually a big decline for the mainline series… For reference… Worth noting that it took around 5 years for FF15 to sell another 5 million (and that was at bargain basement prices on multiple platforms), so don’t expect good legs for FF16 either. This is not a good result. Yeah, I'm going to disagree, because I think there's a lot of context being missed here – I do think it's a very good result. Final Fantasy VII Remake sold 3.5 million copies on an install base of 110+ million consoles in 3 days, and that's with arguably the most hype and marketing going into an FF, just due to its nature as a remake of the best-selling game in the series. By contrast, XV had been around F O R E V E R. XVI did 3 million in (less than a week? Both are going to be heavily frontloaded so I don't think it matters if it's a week or over a weekend for either, VII Remake took another 4 months after release to work its way up 1.5 million units to 5 million units sold) on a console which had just over 38 million units sold per their last shareholder's meeting. That's roughly an install rate of 3.1% for VII Remake on PS4 at launch compared with 7.9% for XVI on PS5 at launch. That's more than double. That seems very good to me. I think the better comparison is XV as a unique new entry (I mean, besides all its baggage, which I'll come back to), which sold 5 million copies in November 2016 at opening on a console which was at 43.5 million units sold in June 2016 and 53.4 million units sold by January 2017 (can't find a figure in-between to split the difference, unfortunately). Now I appreciate holiday sales in a calendar Q4 typically dwarf Q3, so let's say that of the 10 million sold between June 2016 and January 2017, roughly 70% were sold at Christmas – so an additional 3 million units by the time of XV's launch. That's an install rate of 10.8% if we say roughly 46.5 million units were in the wild at that point - and from that perspective I think it could be said that XVI hasn't quite performed as well. BUT! That's also across Xbox. XVI is exclusive. Now I don't think it makes an insane difference (I'd guess Xbox were probably 500k to 1 million of those sales at launch, at best), but it is worth mentioning. As for its legs, XVI has reviewed much better than XV did, hasn't been set up with loosey goosey promises of DLC in mind from launch, and doesn't have all of the baggage that XV comes with in terms of supplementary material which could easily put off newcomers (it's one of the reasons I've been able to put if off for so long). I'm not saying XVI will surpass XV in sales as a fact, but XVI has the benefit of word of mouth, better reviews, and an absolutely excellent demo to hook people in. It's also launched in one of the busiest Junes in gaming in recent memory (we've had Jedi Survivor, Tears of the Kingdom, Diablo IV and Street Fighter 6 all release in a 2 month timeframe), and across those games, I'd wager there's an overlap in interest in XVI. Heck, I don't even think @drahkon has dug in yet because he's busy living Diablo IV (no rush by the way, of course!), and I know that's at least one more person who will play the game. It's just such a (surprisingly) busy period for games right now, we've had 4 games that'll shown up as genuine GOTY nominees at the end of the year release in an 8 week window. But, releasing in June gives them all time (well, besides Zelda) to reduce in price pretty noticeably by the holiday sales period - not to mention deals like on Black Friday - so I think it's well positioned as things stand. And it'll very likely get a decent-to-good PC port, given how CBU III function, which we at least know is on the way. I don't think these numbers are setting the world alight, but these aren't numbers to scoff at in the slightest, or cause for concern either. It has a higher attach rate than VII Remake did at its launch, which is insane. Really insane. I don't think it makes these numbers without the demo, honestly. Anyways, most other big third party companies would kill to have a 3+ million opening week, which S-E seem to have all but guaranteed for their AAA Final Fantasy launches as of late. I feel like judgement here is easily clouded by first party figures from Nintendo and PlayStation. I do genuinely wonder if part of this is a communication issue - they've tried in their marketing to say that this is a standalone adventure, but being the 16th entry, anecdotally, I've found it just hasn't worked. I've talked to my own friends about FF in the past (I'm the only one in my group who has a varied palette when it comes to games, and especially JRPGs) and made it crystal clear that the mainline games are standalone unless there's a reason to think otherwise in the title (like with X-2), and I still had to explain - after getting one of them to try (and fall in love with) the demo - to another friend that they should try the demo, and he thought it was the 16th game in a continuous series rather than a standalone. So I had to explain it again, having done so before. I seriously think the numbers and the name being around for so long might be putting some people off. Anyways, closing statement: if I remember right, XV is at over 10 million copies sold in total, or was at some point last year. I wouldn't be totally shocked if XVI gets close to that when all is said and done. At the very least, from what I've played so far, I think it would deserve it. Edited June 28, 2023 by Julius 1
Sheikah Posted June 28, 2023 Posted June 28, 2023 I’m sorry to bring you down [mention=20895]Julius[/mention], but that’s actually a big decline for the mainline series…For reference… FF15 (1 day): 5.0M units FF7R (3 days): 3.5M unitsFF16 (6 or 7 days?): 3.0M units Worth noting that it took around 5 years for FF15 to sell another 5 million (and that was at bargain basement prices on multiple platforms), so don’t expect good legs for FF16 either. This is not a good result.FF15 was released on Xbox too, while FF7 is arguably the most popular/revered FF game of them all. FFXVI also was only sold on PS5 with a much smaller install base than the other games. Those are not valid comparisons, and I'm pretty sure you knew that.
Julius Posted June 28, 2023 Author Posted June 28, 2023 On 6/21/2023 at 11:09 PM, Julius said: All of the art I've seen so far for XVI has been beautiful, and I honestly think it's some of the nicest we've seen for modern FF. Will absolutely buy an art book if/when one arrives. ... Welp, there it is. My wallet! (jk I'm excited as all heck for this )
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