Final Fantasy XVI - General News Thread

[Somber]

This is my stance. Graphics no longer matters any more. FFXIII and FFXV both tried to be pioneers in graphics (or to be shiny in particular) so much they failed to see and address the gaping holes in both storytelling and characterization which are basically the primary pillars of being a Final Fantasy.

https://twitter.com/statuses/1306627009049694210

 

[NikoZ]

Could that grey-haired little girl next to Joshua be Shiva's Dominant? Her features and attire make her look like she's at the very least a part of the Shiva protected kingdom..

 

[LeonBlade]

I actually think that the graphical quality looks really good so far. It looks like it's stable where it is and doesn't have issues running at the quality that it's currently reaching. Would it be nice for it to be better? Sure, there are some things like the summons and the wide shot of the world that could be improved. But, overall? The model quality is really good, the textures are looking really good. Not really sure what there is to complain about in that department.

Anyway, I'm super excited for what we saw so far, there's a lot of promise in this game already.

 

[Ikkin]

This is my stance. Graphics no longer matters any more. FFXIII and FFXV both tried to be pioneers in graphics (or to be shiny in particular) so much they failed to see and address the gaping holes in both storytelling and characterization which are basically the primary pillars of being a Final Fantasy.

Storytelling and characterization might be pillars of Final Fantasy, but they're not the series' Unique Selling Point (USP). FF's USP -- since at least FFVI, if not earlier -- is immersion in an extraordinary kind of experience that other games can't provide, and crazy graphics has always been part of that. (I am absolutely convinced that it's Sony's "prestige games," not current RPGs, that are the truest descendants of 90s Final Fantasy.)

There is a point after which graphics are largely irrelevant, but that point sits somewhere far closer to Death Stranding and TLOU Part II than it does FFXVI. And that's not even mentioning setpieces, which are a big part of FF's USP but are an unknown quantity in XVI.

I actually think that the graphical quality looks really good so far. It looks like it's stable where it is and doesn't have issues running at the quality that it's currently reaching. Would it be nice for it to be better? Sure, there are some things like the summons and the wide shot of the world that could be improved. But, overall? The model quality is really good, the textures are looking really good. Not really sure what there is to complain about in that department.

The game seems to lack PBR outright, which is a pretty major omission in 2020. =/

For reference, here's XVI Shiva:

And XV's Garuda:



The materials used for Garuda and her accessories seem a whole lot more naturalistic than the ones used for Shiva and hers, which is exactly what would happen if XVI didn't have PBR.

 

[SonOfEtro]

The materials used for Garuda and her accessories seem a whole lot more naturalistic than the ones used for Shiva and hers, which is exactly what would happen if XVI didn't have PBR.

I think PBR omission, if it's there and not just difficult to see, would make it appear more fantastical on some level. I found XV's realism rather boring, while XVI's making me excited.

 

[Ikkin]

I think PBR omission, if it's there and not just difficult to see, would make it appear more fantastical on some level. I found XV's realism rather boring, while XVI's making me excited.

Nah, the things PBR improves the most are the most fantastic things - metal and crystal, for instance. Without it, things look plasticky, and plastic is as far from fantasy as you can get.

 

[T.O.T]

Just for me personal, I am completely fine with FFXV's realism given that I'm a fanboy of FFVIII (yes I agree with some of the criticisms and even have a few of my own, but another topic). For me when the fantasy elements do come about, it stands out more against the opposite landscape of realism for me at the very least. Visually XVI doesn't look bad to me.

In regards to FFXV's storytelling and characterization, can't fully agree on the failing of those. I get some people didn't like the format of FFXV's release taking up different formats, but I feel the marketing pros that came from it outweighed the negatives that it brought to some people's experience. Anime hasn't been some niche western thing for some years now, and movies have been in style far longer. Characterization outside of the main 4....a lot of mainline FF games are a victim of that. I personally think what made it stand out in FFXV so much is there were so many 2ndary characters people would have loved to see get more screen time.

 

[LeonBlade]

I think PBR omission, if it's there and not just difficult to see, would make it appear more fantastical on some level. I found XV's realism rather boring, while XVI's making me excited.

PBR is definitely important regardless, but so far I enjoy the look of XVI assuming it will just improve over time.

 

[Jenova]

The graphics overall will clearly be improved as development continues. This was just a trailer to whet the appetite of the fanbase for the upcoming PS5 and not an accurate representation of the final product. Upon reaching closer to release the finer details will get smoothed out. The initial rendering of the Final Fantasy VII Remake improved greatly by the time of release.

 

[LogicalFal'cie]

 

[NikoZ]

The game isn't even ugly at all. I think that we were all used to FF games being these major graphical showcases up to this point and were expecting that this time as well. I mean, the first gameplay footages of FFXV were INSANE back then in 2014, when compared to PS3/X360 and even other PS4/XONE games.

IMO XVI right now, looks like a really solid late PS4/XONE game. But the summon scenes looked next-gen to me, especially the post processing effects!

 

[Cloud_CR]

Gifs about gameplay mechanics of Final Fantasy XVI.

 

[SonOfEtro]

Gifs about gameplay mechanics of Final Fantasy XVI.

It does look fun in concept. Very FF Type-0.

Edit: I say that having now spent over seventy hours with that game.

 

[SerjAngelo]

I wonder though what route they're going to take when it comes to party members - will there be an ability to switch between characters fluidly like VIIR did or will it be more of commands issuing using bars like what XV did at release.

 

[SonOfEtro]

I wonder though what route they're going to take when it comes to party members - will there be an ability to switch between characters fluidly like VIIR did or will it be more of commands issuing using bars like what XV did at release.

They could also have pre-set AI behaviours like in XII, or role/formation-based action programming like XIII. But unless they're going for the sole protagonist thing again, character switching seems indicated. We only know of one protagonist, but that doesn't mean there won't be more in a party. If that happened, it really would be breaking FF trends.

 

[Ikkin]

The game isn't even ugly at all. I think that we were all used to FF games being these major graphical showcases up to this point and were expecting that this time as well. I mean, the first gameplay footages of FFXV were INSANE back then in 2014, when compared to PS3/X360 and even other PS4/XONE games.

IMO XVI right now, looks like a really solid late PS4/XONE game. But the summon scenes looked next-gen to me, especially the post processing effects!

I think FFXVI's biggest visual problem is FFXV, to be honest.

Case in point:

Spoiler: FFXV spoilers

The primary point of comparison isn't "a really solid late PS4/XONE game." It's a predecessor that pulled off real-time scenes as absurdly over-the-top as the CG Final Fantasy used to be famous for.

The difference in base asset quality is pretty stark, too. Here's the most one-to-one comparison available -- closeups of Titan:

XV's looks like an impressive approximation of a Visual Works asset; XVI's doesn't.

And the existence of FFXV Windows Edition really doesn't help matters, because we've seen what well-made 4K textures look like, and it's quite possibly better than what we've seen in FFXVI:

(It's also worth pointing out that the Prompto screen is of a LOD 0 gameplay model rather than a cutscene-specific model. IIRC, FFXV's LOD 0 gameplay models are its cutscene models because the Luminous Engine is just silly like that... but I'm not at all convinced that the same will hold true of FFXVI.)

 

[Storm]

Man, FFXVIs Titan is scary; that expression is sadistic.

 

[Cloud_CR]

Well, the producer thinks this..

Also the director is part of the FFXIV Team with Yoshi-P. Is pretty obvious what are their priorities.

https://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/215753/understanding_the_successful_.php?print=1

PD: And if the guy in charged of the gameplay is this guy, sure will be a lot of fun.

https://twitter.com/statuses/1269057893661388807

 

[Lulcielid]

Don't see why the focus on graphics should mean a detriment to everything else, like the storytelling. What do you guys tell me about games like FF7 (and FF8, FF9)? Said game pushed the graphics on the platform of its era (and so did its following successors) alingside keeping strong storytelling and else. Same thing with many western AAA games that came in the last 10-15 years that pushed graphics while being critically well received (storytelling being among their praise) like Red Dead Redemption, GTAV, The Last of Us, Uncharted 4 and so on. Pushing graphics at the detriment of other stuff is at most a correlation but, a correlation is not a causation.

While good news to have him I would still put some caution, Suzuki was only one of dozen battle designers in DMC5 (not even the lead) and while pretty good the combat of DMC5 was more flawed and less depth than the predecesor that came 10 years before.

 

[LogicalFal'cie]

So I don't really want to get into this petty bullshit back and forth about the visual fidelity when the game is at least two years out but ...

If I was them I would be sacrificing the visual fidelity in order to hit a certain 60fps. If they're actually serious this time about making an actual good action game that doesn't feel god awful to control then this is absolutely required.

I also think folks are completly missing the point as to why they pouched Suzuki from Capcom. He was a design lead on Dragon's Dogma, a game with a pure action (Capcom™) combat system married to an rpg matrix with a class system, and that also included npc party members. To me that sounds more relevent than his work on DMC 4 and 5.