I've had my Zelda open world, hyper innovative, and creative gameplay experience. Now I'm ready for my FFXVI cinematic, well structured, and focused storytelling experience.
John thank you so much for putting the the time and effort to make this review as spoiler free as possible! I avoid everything at all costs when there's a game I truly care about. I haven't watched anything other than the first trailer of the game and this helped me get enough of an idea without giving away anything. I appreciate this kind of stuff so much! Awesome content as always. Thank you!
Music in this game is top notch. Climbing the path in garudas storm and the piano music starts to swell and then the boys fight starts and the choirs kick in. And there's this place you go when you're going to find a character named Martha and the locations are just breathtaking. Even if it's not "open world" the smaller but still open areas are packed with beautiful vistas. This game hasn't got me emotionally yet but everything else is top notch. Go buy it for sure.
I agree, I loved the music in this game, especially how some levels had the soundtrack in piano later on in the game - the piano version of Rosaria gives me a great feel of nostalgia, whereas a certain King has an incredibly badass theme that is very epic. The hideaway theme and Dalamil theme are just so easygoing and relaxing. I'm so glad I bought and finished this game, had if not been for the demo, I'm not sure I would have got it - Hat's off to the Square Enix crew. Excellent characters (both the protagonists, especially Clive and the agonists are well designed), captivating battle system and an interesting work design. After 68 hours played, I just can't accept that the game is finished. I hope Square Enix consider doing some DLC. If anyone is reading this and having thoughts about the game, get yourself the demo and play it - it's what sold the game for me.
John is no shill. He’s played more RPGs than most of us ever will, so his opinion carries a lot of weight, which means that we’ll give this one a fair shake.
@@FirstLast-yc9lq We have issues with FFXV but loved it overall and platinumed. Fishing seemed like a chore but even that became very addictive. Pitioss was fun but the controls weren’t really built for that sort of gameplay.
What?! This game would have been significantly better if it had been done ff6 style with text bubbles because the voices were just absolutely AWFUL!! Clive, Jill and Joshua have ZERO changes in their voice for the entire game. Clive ups the volume at the end, but it’s still the exact same tone. They were the most one dimensional characters I can remember in a mainline FF.
Finished the game 2 times already, one of the best games I’ve ever played in all my life hands down. Pure adrenaline emotion and passion accompanied me throughout the whole journey.
@@MTGHedgefund SPOILERS!!!!!! CID just died. This game isn’t good. They tried to make GOD of WAR , DMC Final Fantasy game and FAILED. Instead of just trying to be one of those games and being really good they got greedy and tried appealing to the widest demographic possible. This is coming from someone who thought 15 was actually really good ( minus the main story )
I was going to buy it anyway, but hearing you speak highly of it is definitely reassuring. You're one of the rare middle aged youtubers that can appreciate retro and new stuff. So many others just get blinded by nostalgia and bash anything new or different. A true gamer.
@@asdfghjkllkjhgfdsa8725 I'm older and did not like it, 10/10 spectacle. Way to linear, shallow action combat. I barely got hit in the demo, was bored by the end.
@@jesseross639 completely agree. My assessment was basically identical. Mash square and dodge occasionally. Barely got hit and when I did it barely did anything to me... boss animations felt unrefined and unsophisticated. Also like to add that on top of the linearity many times I would walk 15 feet doing nothing interesting and run into another cutscene leaving me to ask, why did I even get control of the character for a 20 second walking section... Then the level is filled with stupid qte stuff and the icon fights were just on rails sections... list goes on. I hate the nostalgia argument. They will use it to dismiss everything we point out and tell us we are incapable of playing the new and old right now and judging them objectively
I’m going through a rough time in my life. And today I’m in bed with a bad sinus infection. Feeling down and out. I scroll TH-cam and see that Happy Console Gamer has a new review up, and immediately click on it and it lifts my spirits instantly. This channel is a tonic and an antidote to life’s inevitable hard times. I can’t wait to play this game when I’m feeling better. Thank you for this channel and for your infectious enthusiasm and joy. You remind me of why I play games. Much love to you, your channel is so awesome. You are a force for good.
I share my games with my buddy but in this case I double dipped and bought it twice so we could both play it together and share the experiance. It's because of him I fell in love with the franchise.
Same. My older brother got me into the series and he doesn't have a PS5. Been really thinking about buying him one and this game because I know how much he wants to play it.
Wow I'm so excited to play it this Christmas :D just got a ps5 and this game on black Friday but gotta wait until Christmas day since it was a gift :) Final Fantasy 10 was the first Final Fantasy I properly got invested in on the PS2 so the fact that you've said it's up there with FF 10 has gotten me hyped :D
It's reassuring to hear your usual positivity! I already have it pre-loaded and I'm definitely still going to give it all I have despite my concerns. I still can't tell the outcome for me but regardless if I end up liking (hopefully), loving (even better) or hating it (hopefully not), I still think it's great that people are excited about a new FF in 2023, especially considering the negative backlash at first when they announced it was centered around a single character.
EDIT: just finished this, it was amazing. 10/10. Finally getting to this title. So far, it’s been exceeding all of my expectations. Like you, I feel like I’ve been having too many open world games lately, and the more linear progression felt fresh. Im only about 20 hours in. Excited to see how it all plays out.
The release of the demo was a great choice. Final Fantasy 16 felt like it was being talked about and thought about by most a lot less than other releases from the series. The demo changed that.
16 was victim of 13 and 15 tbh. Those games really killed of hype of mainline series and rise of Persona and Xenoblade really quenched thirst for RPG gamers. 13 and 15 weren’t bad but for the amount of money Square put in it does not hold candle to Personas and Xenoblade series. I think FF16 might be my top FF series so hope it keep selling
this was my return to FF as a series and i went into this one blind except for some friends telling me to try it. and I am so glad i did and glad i went in blind. i haven't had this much FUN playing and experiencing a FF game in ages.
Exactly the same for me. I didn't even play the demo! I'm 18 hours in and really digging it so far! I'll say the beginning had a bit too much cutscenes vs exploring/combat ratio, but it started to balance more after a while and that's when I started to get way more invested :)
I’ve been looking for a game that scratches the itch that FF16 gave me and haven’t found it yet. From the OST, to the characters, the bosses, voice acting… nothing has come close. I’m just gonna have to wait for the DLC
I have been so excited for this game, and knew it was going to be good because it was Yoshi-P and a lot of his team from FF14 (which is why they gave him such an amazing budget). But, I am so happy to see such a good review for the game and that people are enjoying it!! 🎉
You are the 1 of the best game reviewers. I like that when you say no spoilers really means no spoilers. Other channels say no spoilers but they are still going into details of the story and setting and how many maps and chapters and it really pissed me off. You are the to go to game reviewer. Thanks.
Same here, I wasn’t expecting wrap up of the story since nowadays developer trying to milk out everything they can so they leave something open but it was clean and done story which I appreciate.
The NPR review kind of summarizes my feelings towards this game: "The more I play, the more my heart fills with a childlike joy. I tell my wife, "Sweetheart, I can't believe I'm playing this game right now."" I also nag my wife constantly about my expectations towards FF XVI. Thanks for bringing that cheer up again.
It's nice to have an entry in the series that's not middling. It's the first single player FF in over a decade that I can just say, 'yeah, it's good, play it' to my friends.
I loved this game so much that I typed up a 2,200 word essay review about it, but to condense that, I'll just post the opening and ending paragraphs here. Final Fantasy XVI is one of the most divisive games in the franchise to date, but is also one of the absolute best as well. A game that on the surface looks like it has almost nothing in common with Final Fantasy of old due to its "M" rating, graphic violence, Game of Thrones influenced dark fantasy setting and Devil May Cry styled action combat, but as you advance deeper into the game, peeling these layers away, you reach the heart of Final Fantasy XVI which is one of the purest Final Fantasy experiences in over 2 decades that in many ways captures the soul of the SNES era of Final Fantasy (Especially IV and VI) and feels like a massive love letter to the series roots while adding its own modern and mature flair to it as well. When all is said and done Final Fantasy XVI is truly an epic journey from start to finish in every sense of the word, excelling in every single possible element the game has to offer providing one of the best narratives I've ever experienced in a video game with an incredibly detailed and immersive world to learn about starring a rich cast of well written and realistic characters in no small part thanks to its incredible side quests and masterclass voice acting performances. All topped off with an enjoyable combat system and mind-blowing boss fights which is all only enhanced thanks to the truly next-gen visuals, sound and production values overall alongside a masterfully composed OST too. Some people say XVI isn't a true Final Fantasy and to that I will just say that Final Fantasy XVI reminded me what a mainline Final Fantasy at its best has always been about. A mind-blowing, generation defining experience that will stick with you for life.
This game is definitely an over the top cinematic experience. Absolutely incredible. I started it on my 82 inch sorround sound and I will NOT play it on my other gaming TV just because this game 100% needs that cinematic set up.
This is my 1st Happy console gamer Review and I’m happy about your stance of no spoilers. I appreciate that so many reviews kinda spoiled ff16 esp with bosses and characters
All I need to hear was some areas are open I now will commence ff16 radio silence until completion of the game! Thanks @HappyConsoleGamer I can always rely on you to not spoil a game for me :) glad to hear you enjoyed it I am so excited!!
I think this is a masterpiece. It easily has the best action combat system of any Final Fantasy game I’ve played. The story is really epic and has a lot of layers to it, as well as some really cool characters. The soundtrack is breathtaking, and it hits all the right notes at the right moments. The design is kind of formulaic like you said, but it nails the formula. It is linear but not to a fault like XIII where you feel like you’re running down corridors, and it’s not open and empty feeling like XV, it finds a really good balance between the two.
@@AKABoondock19 hmm let’s see: Crisis Core, Dirge of Cerberus, Type 0, XV, VII Remake, Strangers of Paradise all had action systems, Im sure there’s a couple I’m missing that came out before this too. 🤔
@OfficialLastLine Did you guys forget they used to have interesting level and world design? Seems square forgot. Do you think there is no option besides empty open world and linear hallways? They made a poor open world so now you should accept mediocre linear design? I refuse to. These games are a disgrace to the games they made 30 years ago.
@@asdfghjkllkjhgfdsa8725 I’m curious what games you’re talking about? Most of the games are pretty linear. Many of the dungeons have useless dead ends or treasure in very obscure places to encourage you to scour every inch even though most of it is unnecessary. Some of us want some of the fat trimmed from our games.
This is probably the most honest review we are going to see on this game. Everytime a new FF game comes out every reviewer usually says something along the lines of "this is the greatest game ever made". I am a little upset that square has completely abandoned turn based battles because I suck at action games but I am still excited for it.
Don't worry if you suck at action games, this game is extremely easy even on action mode and even without the timely rings. Like seriously, you have to make an effort to die in this game. And if somehow you do find it difficult, you can always switch to story focused mode at any time, and / or use the timely accessories. This basically makes the game play itself. So don't worry about that, the game will be a breeze. I actually wish there was a harder mode.
@@MarkHogan994I have no clue what everyone is talking about with the low difficulty. I've played all of the God of Wars, Ninja Gaidens, Devil May Crys ect, and the Midnight Raven kicked my ass the first battle. Seems plenty hard to me.
If you're looking for an even more honest review you should check out skill ups review, spoiler alert... he wasn't impressed. But at least he clearly explains what he doesn't like.
@@michaelstorer9567 Skillup has a massive ego, and thinks his opinion is the only one that matters. I wouldn't trust a word that guy has to say about anything. Fighincowboy has way more subscribers and he loved the game.
I honestly don't like this Final Fantasy. For me it is way too linear. Go in a straight line wait for the circle to fight. Rinse and repeat. The side quests are boring. Go from point A kill monsters go back to point A. Then the continuing Uber eats delivery quests. Even the main quest quests feel like side quests until you finally get to that real main quest, and trust me you know when it's the vreal, real main quest. Which is great the combat is great. But other than that it's not doing it for me. Shout out to the people who are enjoying it tho.
Losing the party mechanics is too severe a downgrade for me. I don’t find carousing the world as a lonely lad to be nearly as compelling… There’s really no substitute for party mechanics and intrapersonal capers.
I really wonder how many of these reviewers actually finished the game, because at this point the people who say it is fantastic from beginning to end clearly do not have even a basic understanding of how a video game should function or what downsides are. Combat becomes beyond stale due to limited ability use and bloated AP costs for later skills, enemies are repeated constantly, crafting is useless, the MAIN QUEST has literal FF14 side quest design in a single player game....
The amount of people that were "underwhelmed" by horizon forbidden west but then say FF16 is amazing and game of the year (some even say one of the best ff ever 🙄) its sus
I pretty sure that SE probably gave a few TH-camrs a quick hundred or so for some good publicity. Their DLC for this game is around the corner.....and I've been seeing a resurgence of....."reviews"
I just finished this game and my god. It was so damn good! I'm also just really happy that Square feels like they're back. After like 15 years of unfinished games they finally did another great one. I was very happy with all of the callbacks in terms of music and easter eggs to earlier FFs as well as just the overall feel of the world and the gameplay. One aspect I didn't really love was the sidequests for the most part but that's basically every modern game. Also the NPCs just don't have the same artstyle as the main characters which is an issue with FFVIIR as well. I hope they can find a way to fix that aspect because it takes me out of it a little. The Game of Thrones thing really threw me for a loop at first too but after a little while I embraced it and just rolled with it and I'm glad I did!
I'm not a hardcore Final Fantasy fan as I started from FF7, then played 8 and 9. I didn't revisit the series until FF 15 then 7 remake and now 16 which i have completed all of. No matter what FF you play, the soundtrack is the best I have ever heard. Every game delivers and really gets you going emotionally. I thought FF7 remake couldn't be toppled, but FF16 has done that for me. God knows what FF7 part 2 is going to be like. I treat every FF game as it's own experience, which is why i have enjoyed them all. 16 is so good in so many areas and i love the emotional feel to it. There is a section which is basically some fetch quests which is annoying as these should be a thing of the past since The Witcher 3 about 7 years ago. Aside from that if you just play it, embrace it, enjoy the storyline, graphics, the most epic boss fights ever and the soundtrack you're in for a real treat.
I'm about 7 hours in, and have been completely blown away the entire time. It's so nice to see everyone talking about Final Fantasy in a positive light again
@@kr1me2000 🤣 check again buddy. The reviews are overwhelmingly good. Basement dwelling review bombers like you tried, but you couldn't quiet the voices of true FF fans.
I’m not sure why there’s a lot of flickering on my screen when I’m playing the game. I’ve played around with the settings but I haven’t been able to fix it. It’s quite distracting at times.
My largest concern for the games story is that I hope everything is revealed to the player, not provided as expositional dumps in the active time lore. For example they talk about a volcano that sits off the coast of rosaria where i guess the iron blood nation is from. I want to be able to GO THERE. I want to see and do everything that is written in the lore. I do not want the active time lore to supplement the plot in ways that we will never discover. That really is my only concerns in terms of the plot. I want to be very dense and almost like an evolving MMORPG.
@@eleven9286 From what I heard it is dense though and its packed full of many varied locations and interesting environments, including different settlements each with there own cultures, idea's and written naratives. That stupid ass rumor before the game came out were people were saying that it was only going to have one hub location is so untrue, i don't even know how to say it. But of course ya all know that now after having played the game. Speaking of which my game FINALLY arrived, after supposedely being delayed and stollen from the box lol. So now i can play it. It sounds like a really good game and a full FF experience through and through which is what i hope to expect from it.
@@Artimes. Two months later, what was your facit? I finished it myself, and I still find it funny how actually on point the "one hub area" actually was. There were a lot of nice backdrops, but since every shop sold the exact same things, every major city was off-limits and I honestly couldn't point out any "cultures". Or, well, the fact that the Active Time Lore feature does a lot of the heavy lifting when it comes to exposition. I've seen it getting a lot of praise, but personally it felt like missing most episodes of GoT and having to read up on them on the wiki. Oh well.
Johnny is the best. I have to say though, I feel like he has more criticisms than usual in this review? Sounds really good but also a little monotonous? I’m buying it tomorrow, regardless. I’m excited.
Thanks for this. I know what you mean about a long wait between FF games. I sometimes wonder how many more FF games I get to play in the remainer of my life, whatever that might be. But I think DQ12 will be announced next year (Sugiyama's final work).
If you believe in heaven, can you really call it heaven if you can’t play the final fantasies that came out after your death? I think not! So either you get to play them all, or heaven doesn’t exist and there won’t be a soul to be disappointed!
No crashes, some hitches here and there because I was in graphics mode but overall they released a finished polished game. Story was excellent and the game was basically a single player version of Final Fantasy 14 which is more or less what I was expecting and hoping for. The combat towards the end got a little bit stale but it was fine overall. The side quests tasks were a bit meh but I cared about the world and the characters so I wanted to do them to see how it progressed the side quest character and area. Excellent game 9.5 out of 10 for me (Elden Ring is a 10/10 RPG for me). Glad most people that aren’t hung up on the “it’s not my final fantasy” are enjoying it great review HCG.
Only problem is GoT got worse the season went on while this game actually had great story progress. After Garuda fight I didn’t see much of GoT reference and felt more like traditional fantasy.
GOT with the Power Of Anime Ffrirndship ;) I enjoyed it, but I was happy to see the back of it as the pacing brought it down. I can't believe how many character driven side quests (and like 75% of the character driven side quests) dropped right before the final mission. I played 4-5 hours just clearing up new side content right before the final mission.
Awesome review man! You've always been one of my favorite youtubers! Mannnn! I preordered the collector's edition and havent wait till tomorrow. I kinda wanna get the normal version at some midnight release cuz i can't wait hahaha
I'm very excited for my copy to arrive. As a massive fan/10-year veteran of Final Fantasy 14, this game is an absolute must-play for me... They had me at Yoshi P and Soken lol.
Not my favorite Final Fantasy, however when I have kids and grandkids and they find this game buried in my library, I know that they know they found a gem of a story and I think it will be a legendary game, one of those that are more underappreciated now but will be a treasure for them to experience as a "retro game" in the future.
The problem would be that its a very cinematic game with a load of characters that dont go well with an open world. Final fantasy could be open world but the story structure have to change than.
My god the demo was so boring though... way to button mashy, linear, feels like DMC. Pretty game though. Great music and voice acting. But i was bored by the end of the demo, barely even got hit. The summon battles were pointless. I do not get the hype.
@@jesseross639 i looked at it like it was a prologue and when shit went down i felt emotional for ALL of the characters so i very much liked it BUT every game is subjective. I know someone who thinks every game that is not souls like is bad. I kbow someone that hates everything that anime like or made by japan. I myself hate every story driven first person shooter like Doom, Halo, Far cry etc. For me if its not an another player that im shooting its pointles and boring and repetitive.
@@fseiba6718 Thats the thing, I love most games and I even make games as a hobby on the side. If you strip away all of the beautiful artwork, voice acting and music all you have left is a shallow gameplay experience. Linear hallways, QTE's, one character to play as, repetitive action combat which takes no strategy to play. Fifty or so hours of that sounds horrible.
@@jesseross639 I guess that is why demos are usefull. U can decide if a game fits you or not. I think cus of the price of the games all should have a demo before release so it does not feel like u throw out 70$ for a game that u dont even like.
The only opinion I was interested in hearing. The journalists gave the game an 88-90 on average, but Johnny's passion for the series and the genre as a player makes his opinion really important to me, even if I disagree with him on some points. Thank you Johnny! P.S. We haven't seen Rob in such a long time! So many significant games have been released, including the Resident Evil 4 remake and the new Zelda, and now Final Fantasy XVI! It would be cool to hear his thoughts on all these Japanese games as well. Incredible six months!
I HATE Open World RPG; it is boring & waste of time to me. I just want a GOOD STORY that executed well so I won't get stuck in an open space 1000 hours not knowing what the heck is going on.
So nice to see such a positive outlook on AAA games in 2023. This year has been abysmal for games, but FF16 and Zelda seem to be turning that around. Cant wait for the PC release!
to touch on what you said at the end about waiting, luckily for me, I'll have the entirety of FF14 to play if I love that team's work on this game as much as I think I will. I still can't stop thinking about the prologue and can't wait to get off work and install my copy assuming UPS doesn't let me down (steelbook order since I've always wanted the steelbooks of the FF games I grew up on)
I remember about a year ago when the first trailer was released, nobody was really hyped about it, it came and went. But now that it's here and hearing all the hype about it now I'm excited and can't wait to finally play it!
I’m so excited I cannot contain myself I’m playing this at midnight when it releases, hearing you gush about the game just made me even more amped to play! I can’t wait!!! Thank you for the awesome review!
I'm going to be completely honest. Square hasn't released a 'Great' Final Fantasy game since XII. The titles from 13 onwards have been good and alright. But the last FF title that left a mark on me was 12. The story, graphics, and voice acting in XVI is good, but i just found the majority of it to be a Devil May Cry, potion, hackfest. especially the Eikon cinematic fights, which were just dressed up, button-mash sessions. I played through the game twice and never died once or came close to it. 7/10 at best for me.
This is a great review but having played the game, i think i want to temper peoples expectations, coz this game really doesnt feel like an RPG in the classical sense. It has skill trees like most action games, has level up, and crafting, but the classic rpg mechanics are nowhere near typical ff games, and even less extensive than god of war or horizon type games. Its really bare bones. Unfortunately this makes the game and the world feel less alive, open areas, while beautiful, are devoid of exciting items u can pick up or unpredictable events and are nothing but large areas to hold enemies. It reallly makes u feel like ur only playing a video game. Still, theres lots to love in the game, there are tooons of unique NPCs and characters and assets, and the epic boss battles, so theres def lots to see, but the simplicity really makes me feel like im playing FF1 but with greater graphics, which may not be a bad thing. Story and writing and dialogue are the fing good esp compared to past titles, so that fact alone makes me happy with this game, considering how bad and cringy and too anime like the previous games were w their story and dialogues.
@@sheercold26 lols the first mark i encountered caught me unawares as well and i died :p it was ahriman, still hunts w a hunt board are always part most open world games, what i meant w unpredictability is that event that are not part of a system, which makes the world feel more alive, say like finding a playable darts game in one of the towns, or non sidequest events, or secret/hidden unmark passage ways etc. But i get it
You mention cluple of timww it's an RPG. But listening to other reviews and playing the demo myself I didn't feel that. It was just an action game with very light RPG mechanics.
Yeah something my friends and i noticed too and agree with you on is the rinse and repeat nature of things. It gets pretty formulaic and you do start to notice it. Like go here, do this, keep going, fight tougher and tougher enemies until the boss, after that you get a cutscene and then you start all over again. I was making sure i did all the side stuff and that kind of enhances the issues. Its nothing i cant look past but it's definitely noticeable, i have to play a bit and take a break as to not get bored of the loop.
I think one reason they felt comfortable not making this game open world is because if you want a world to *live* in, they've already got that world in FFXIV. (Seriously, players live there. Housing crisis and all.) With that pressure removed, they could focus on keeping a tight narrative in a more linear space with the understanding that most people will play it once and be done, and those who are replaying it will do so for the challenge of combat or for completionism, not for relaxing side content. Regarding the profanity: I am a savage raider in FFXIV and this is.... a wholly normal amount of profanity when you get bad players in Party Finder to us.
It seems you must’ve missed the comments by Yoshi-P all year long so far, as he has specifically gone out of his way to make the point that the game is not an open world game, and that he believes that not every game has to be an open world game.
This is such a frustrating argument to see cropping up. You do realize that there is a happy middle ground between "open world" and "hallway simulator", right? Lots of games aren't open world but still have good, complex level design, with worthwhile exploration. Think of Dark Souls, Resident Evil, Metroidvania games in general, or the recent God of War games. There is no excuse for hallway design, which is what FF16 seems to have.
I would've like to hear something about the party dynamics. thats pretty much what makes a FF game for me, but its been kind of difficult to find a straight answer on how your companions actually work and how much i'll be able control/customize them
@@m5coate thanks, can you tell me anything about choosing party members or customizing them in the traditional rpg kind of ways, or is that all decided for you too?
8/10 Great combat Great story Great graphics - too much cutscenes - no puzzles to solve in main story, always having a marker & go talk to someone 😑 - not many likeable characters like ff7 or ffx - no minimap
@@Robert-vo3ohnow now. Let the fan be skeptical. The brand hasn't necessarily had the greatest reputation over the past decade. CBU III has been working hard to restore the name to its former glory.
@Robert-vo3oh I mean the series has been going through a lot of identity shifts and with 15 being disappointing, its hard not to be skeptical, especially if you were attached to the action turn based combat that has been rid of.
Last thing I'll input is... if they took the fight mechanics from the ff7 remake that was a great balance of action and ff tactics with a new game these fays ... it would be amazing
I played every FF from 1 to 15 and 16 rates lower than 13 to me. It was awful. Repetitive DMC button mashing, bland voice acting, 5th-grade Game of Thrones plot, Unreal 4 2018 graphics, bland/formless symphonic noise in the background, hold button to open doors, and flat, shallow world with no depth. The main innovation is cussing. I got about 1.5 hours into it and had to quit before I fell asleep as about 1.4 hours of that was cutscenes. I watched a long play to see if it picked up later and got bored even faster. I sincerely hope the franchise dies. It's earned a good rest. FF16 is a love/hate game. No one is on the fence about it. I will have to rely on Dragon Quest for real JRPGs that aren't Devil May Cry with sparse RPG elements.
Maybe a good game, but not an "RPG" and not a Final Fantasy game, no party members in combat or out of combat, no ATB, no assortment of iconic FF gear, skills, spells to pick from, etc etc ... this is just an action game/DMC with a Final Fantasy skin, really disappointing. They should have went with combat from Final Fantasy 7 Remake as a blueprint and build upon that, because that's the best combat system in a Final Fantasy game that's ever made, engaging and modern while keeping all the important parts of the combat from older FF games. Also the reasoning behind choosing pure action combat is pretty horrible, it literally boils down to "kids these days...blah blah blah" ... like WTF?
I've had my Zelda open world, hyper innovative, and creative gameplay experience. Now I'm ready for my FFXVI cinematic, well structured, and focused storytelling experience.
Is it hyperinnovative if 90% is recycled stuff?
maybe he is talking about TOTK and BOTW together
Same here, just beat tears of the Kingdom about 2 hours ago and I’m hyped for a new final fantasy.
@@jannemakela8107have you played totk corn dog??
@@jannemakela8107yes. You can literally make an infinite number of different things in the game only restricted by your own imagination.
FF16 = Game of Thrones + Godzilla. It is my favorite game of the year.
MINE TOO!!
A Great take on this game you gave.
Playing the PC version now about 3/4 done with the game.
I want to play this game so bad I broke down and bought a PS5.
This is the way
W
I'm so sorry...
L
Welcome brother
John thank you so much for putting the the time and effort to make this review as spoiler free as possible! I avoid everything at all costs when there's a game I truly care about. I haven't watched anything other than the first trailer of the game and this helped me get enough of an idea without giving away anything. I appreciate this kind of stuff so much! Awesome content as always. Thank you!
Then don’t watch reviews. It’s that simple…
Spoiler alert… his name is HappyConsoleGamer if he chooses to post a review, he likes the game. I know John is not the bashing type. 😎 ✌️
I thought he was called AngryConsoleGamer so the positivity was quite confusing.
@@sukamadik5983 😂 thats 90% of the other channels out there
What about SadConsoleGamer
@@FF-tp7qs 🤣 😢
What about DepressedConsoleGamer
Music in this game is top notch. Climbing the path in garudas storm and the piano music starts to swell and then the boys fight starts and the choirs kick in. And there's this place you go when you're going to find a character named Martha and the locations are just breathtaking. Even if it's not "open world" the smaller but still open areas are packed with beautiful vistas. This game hasn't got me emotionally yet but everything else is top notch. Go buy it for sure.
The music put me to sleep. Generic, the battle theme absolutely doesn't match the combat at all.
@@kevinbonin6173
Okay, this comment is clearly trying to hate the game just to hate it lmao.
I agree, I loved the music in this game, especially how some levels had the soundtrack in piano later on in the game - the piano version of Rosaria gives me a great feel of nostalgia, whereas a certain King has an incredibly badass theme that is very epic. The hideaway theme and Dalamil theme are just so easygoing and relaxing. I'm so glad I bought and finished this game, had if not been for the demo, I'm not sure I would have got it - Hat's off to the Square Enix crew. Excellent characters (both the protagonists, especially Clive and the agonists are well designed), captivating battle system and an interesting work design. After 68 hours played, I just can't accept that the game is finished. I hope Square Enix consider doing some DLC.
If anyone is reading this and having thoughts about the game, get yourself the demo and play it - it's what sold the game for me.
@@kevinbonin6173 tell me you never played the game without telling me
John is no shill. He’s played more RPGs than most of us ever will, so his opinion carries a lot of weight, which means that we’ll give this one a fair shake.
@@FirstLast-yc9lq😂 I've played all final fantasy games 😂the 15 slander is always juvenile. Shutup
@@FirstLast-yc9lq We have issues with FFXV but loved it overall and platinumed. Fishing seemed like a chore but even that became very addictive. Pitioss was fun but the controls weren’t really built for that sort of gameplay.
Hes Gavin McGuiness
I played the demo and it definitely moved my meter from 'interested' to 'very hyped' but I still waited for reviews to drop before buying. Stoked.
This is some of the best Voice Acting I have ever seen in a video game. The english cast is so good, I almost couldn’t believe it.
I just wish they had something to talk about
What?! This game would have been significantly better if it had been done ff6 style with text bubbles because the voices were just absolutely AWFUL!! Clive, Jill and Joshua have ZERO changes in their voice for the entire game. Clive ups the volume at the end, but it’s still the exact same tone. They were the most one dimensional characters I can remember in a mainline FF.
Finished the game 2 times already, one of the best games I’ve ever played in all my life hands down. Pure adrenaline emotion and passion accompanied me throughout the whole journey.
I’m 7 hours in and think it’s awful. Combat is literally one button. They somehow made currency completely useless. Side quests are some of the worst
@@grahfkarate1799 the combat gets better afterwards when you unlock more stuff
@@yannispirou101 idk, it’s just not my FF. I’m happy for people that like it but I can’t get into it.
@@grahfkarate1799oh GOD if I hear that phrase one more time I swear. I encourage you to give it more than 7 hours if you're a true FF fan.
@@MTGHedgefund SPOILERS!!!!!!
CID just died. This game isn’t good. They tried to make GOD of WAR , DMC Final Fantasy game and FAILED. Instead of just trying to be one of those games and being really good they got greedy and tried appealing to the widest demographic possible. This is coming from someone who thought 15 was actually really good ( minus the main story )
I was going to buy it anyway, but hearing you speak highly of it is definitely reassuring. You're one of the rare middle aged youtubers that can appreciate retro and new stuff. So many others just get blinded by nostalgia and bash anything new or different. A true gamer.
So if an older gamer doesn't like something it has to be nostalgia and/or an inability to appreciate new video games? 🤦
@@asdfghjkllkjhgfdsa8725 I'm older and did not like it, 10/10 spectacle. Way to linear, shallow action combat. I barely got hit in the demo, was bored by the end.
@@jesseross639 completely agree. My assessment was basically identical.
Mash square and dodge occasionally. Barely got hit and when I did it barely did anything to me... boss animations felt unrefined and unsophisticated.
Also like to add that on top of the linearity many times I would walk 15 feet doing nothing interesting and run into another cutscene leaving me to ask, why did I even get control of the character for a 20 second walking section...
Then the level is filled with stupid qte stuff and the icon fights were just on rails sections... list goes on.
I hate the nostalgia argument. They will use it to dismiss everything we point out and tell us we are incapable of playing the new and old right now and judging them objectively
@@AverageSerpentEnjoyer no sir. There are a number of modern masterpieces. I can play both old games and new games and judge them objectively...
@@AverageSerpentEnjoyer I think Zelda totk is amazing so your argument seems irrelevant.
Playing a linear game with great visuals, story and gameplay is what i need now
@@AKABoondock19 We had those already… It is time to evolve the JRPG genre and FFXVl does a really good job at that
I’m going through a rough time in my life. And today I’m in bed with a bad sinus infection. Feeling down and out.
I scroll TH-cam and see that Happy Console Gamer has a new review up, and immediately click on it and it lifts my spirits instantly. This channel is a tonic and an antidote to life’s inevitable hard times. I can’t wait to play this game when I’m feeling better. Thank you for this channel and for your infectious enthusiasm and joy. You remind me of why I play games. Much love to you, your channel is so awesome. You are a force for good.
I share my games with my buddy but in this case I double dipped and bought it twice so we could both play it together and share the experiance. It's because of him I fell in love with the franchise.
Game share is your friend
Same. My older brother got me into the series and he doesn't have a PS5. Been really thinking about buying him one and this game because I know how much he wants to play it.
Why don’t y’all just gameshare
I'm currently playing through like everyone else and I do have to say I am loving the story, best for me since 10
Wow I'm so excited to play it this Christmas :D just got a ps5 and this game on black Friday but gotta wait until Christmas day since it was a gift :)
Final Fantasy 10 was the first Final Fantasy I properly got invested in on the PS2 so the fact that you've said it's up there with FF 10 has gotten me hyped :D
It's reassuring to hear your usual positivity! I already have it pre-loaded and I'm definitely still going to give it all I have despite my concerns. I still can't tell the outcome for me but regardless if I end up liking (hopefully), loving (even better) or hating it (hopefully not), I still think it's great that people are excited about a new FF in 2023, especially considering the negative backlash at first when they announced it was centered around a single character.
I enjoy your show and reading the comments too! You have a huge well deserved audience and it shows every time I watch! As always, love your show man!
EDIT: just finished this, it was amazing. 10/10.
Finally getting to this title. So far, it’s been exceeding all of my expectations. Like you, I feel like I’ve been having too many open world games lately, and the more linear progression felt fresh. Im only about 20 hours in. Excited to see how it all plays out.
The release of the demo was a great choice. Final Fantasy 16 felt like it was being talked about and thought about by most a lot less than other releases from the series. The demo changed that.
16 was victim of 13 and 15 tbh. Those games really killed of hype of mainline series and rise of Persona and Xenoblade really quenched thirst for RPG gamers. 13 and 15 weren’t bad but for the amount of money Square put in it does not hold candle to Personas and Xenoblade series. I think FF16 might be my top FF series so hope it keep selling
@@AkagiRedSun I remember a big criticism of 13 is that it was linear. Now it is celebrated. I find that a little funny.
this was my return to FF as a series and i went into this one blind except for some friends telling me to try it. and I am so glad i did and glad i went in blind. i haven't had this much FUN playing and experiencing a FF game in ages.
Exactly the same for me. I didn't even play the demo! I'm 18 hours in and really digging it so far! I'll say the beginning had a bit too much cutscenes vs exploring/combat ratio, but it started to balance more after a while and that's when I started to get way more invested :)
The combat may be repetetive, but the story is sooo good. Its the best FF story since X in my opinion.
I’ve been looking for a game that scratches the itch that FF16 gave me and haven’t found it yet. From the OST, to the characters, the bosses, voice acting… nothing has come close.
I’m just gonna have to wait for the DLC
I have been so excited for this game, and knew it was going to be good because it was Yoshi-P and a lot of his team from FF14 (which is why they gave him such an amazing budget). But, I am so happy to see such a good review for the game and that people are enjoying it!! 🎉
yes! Yoshi was in charge so i was so excited for this game!
First review I’m watching. I value your views.
EDIT: Your seal of approval gave me a sigh of relief. Cant wait to play it!
Second that
The demo absolutely sold me on this game
About ten hours in and all I can think is Square Enix can 100% trusted to make the Neon Genesis Evangalion game we have always deserved.
Why square enix and why NGE? are they related somehow?
@@shinjireference3568 lol, they will be if square makes the game.
“I love the combat, the animations are amazing…this game is awsome…i love this game”
You are the 1 of the best game reviewers. I like that when you say no spoilers really means no spoilers. Other channels say no spoilers but they are still going into details of the story and setting and how many maps and chapters and it really pissed me off. You are the to go to game reviewer. Thanks.
And surprisingly its more brutal than the previous FF games, love it ❤
Throughout the years.... I have realized that the very best games tend to be slightly repetitive.
It's all about the gameplay loop
I just finished it myself last night and oh my god, that ending. Loved it from start to finish
Same here, I wasn’t expecting wrap up of the story since nowadays developer trying to milk out everything they can so they leave something open but it was clean and done story which I appreciate.
The NPR review kind of summarizes my feelings towards this game: "The more I play, the more my heart fills with a childlike joy. I tell my wife, "Sweetheart, I can't believe I'm playing this game right now."" I also nag my wife constantly about my expectations towards FF XVI. Thanks for bringing that cheer up again.
NPR?
@@Vanmoireit’s a magazine/website
It's nice to have an entry in the series that's not middling. It's the first single player FF in over a decade that I can just say, 'yeah, it's good, play it' to my friends.
are you doing some live streams mr Happy Console ! :D
@@somerandomchannel382 I'm confused
I loved this game so much that I typed up a 2,200 word essay review about it, but to condense that, I'll just post the opening and ending paragraphs here.
Final Fantasy XVI is one of the most divisive games in the franchise to date, but is also one of the absolute best as well. A game that on the surface looks like it has almost nothing in common with Final Fantasy of old due to its "M" rating, graphic violence, Game of Thrones influenced dark fantasy setting and Devil May Cry styled action combat, but as you advance deeper into the game, peeling these layers away, you reach the heart of Final Fantasy XVI which is one of the purest Final Fantasy experiences in over 2 decades that in many ways captures the soul of the SNES era of Final Fantasy (Especially IV and VI) and feels like a massive love letter to the series roots while adding its own modern and mature flair to it as well.
When all is said and done Final Fantasy XVI is truly an epic journey from start to finish in every sense of the word, excelling in every single possible element the game has to offer providing one of the best narratives I've ever experienced in a video game with an incredibly detailed and immersive world to learn about starring a rich cast of well written and realistic characters in no small part thanks to its incredible side quests and masterclass voice acting performances. All topped off with an enjoyable combat system and mind-blowing boss fights which is all only enhanced thanks to the truly next-gen visuals, sound and production values overall alongside a masterfully composed OST too. Some people say XVI isn't a true Final Fantasy and to that I will just say that Final Fantasy XVI reminded me what a mainline Final Fantasy at its best has always been about. A mind-blowing, generation defining experience that will stick with you for life.
This game is definitely an over the top cinematic experience. Absolutely incredible. I started it on my 82 inch sorround sound and I will NOT play it on my other gaming TV just because this game 100% needs that cinematic set up.
True. I did the same too
If you don’t have at least a 55 inch tv for this game you are doing yourself a disservice!
This is my 1st Happy console gamer Review and I’m happy about your stance of no spoilers. I appreciate that so many reviews kinda spoiled ff16 esp with bosses and characters
I love this channel so much. Love from Australia
All I need to hear was some areas are open I now will commence ff16 radio silence until completion of the game! Thanks @HappyConsoleGamer I can always rely on you to not spoil a game for me :) glad to hear you enjoyed it I am so excited!!
Been waiting on the review. Even if all your reviews are positive, the way you convey that games negatives are always honest and appreciated.
I played the demo and bought the game yesterday. So far, I am enjoying it really well.
I think this is a masterpiece. It easily has the best action combat system of any Final Fantasy game I’ve played. The story is really epic and has a lot of layers to it, as well as some really cool characters. The soundtrack is breathtaking, and it hits all the right notes at the right moments. The design is kind of formulaic like you said, but it nails the formula. It is linear but not to a fault like XIII where you feel like you’re running down corridors, and it’s not open and empty feeling like XV, it finds a really good balance between the two.
It’s exactly like 13 runningdown corridors. 7 remake had the same problem.
@@kjh4496 not really, there are some split paths and open areas. But anyway I’m okay with that over a big world that doesn’t have a lot going on
@@AKABoondock19 hmm let’s see: Crisis Core, Dirge of Cerberus, Type 0, XV, VII Remake, Strangers of Paradise all had action systems, Im sure there’s a couple I’m missing that came out before this too. 🤔
@OfficialLastLine Did you guys forget they used to have interesting level and world design? Seems square forgot. Do you think there is no option besides empty open world and linear hallways? They made a poor open world so now you should accept mediocre linear design?
I refuse to. These games are a disgrace to the games they made 30 years ago.
@@asdfghjkllkjhgfdsa8725 I’m curious what games you’re talking about? Most of the games are pretty linear. Many of the dungeons have useless dead ends or treasure in very obscure places to encourage you to scour every inch even though most of it is unnecessary. Some of us want some of the fat trimmed from our games.
This is probably the most honest review we are going to see on this game. Everytime a new FF game comes out every reviewer usually says something along the lines of "this is the greatest game ever made". I am a little upset that square has completely abandoned turn based battles because I suck at action games but I am still excited for it.
Don't worry if you suck at action games, this game is extremely easy even on action mode and even without the timely rings. Like seriously, you have to make an effort to die in this game. And if somehow you do find it difficult, you can always switch to story focused mode at any time, and / or use the timely accessories. This basically makes the game play itself. So don't worry about that, the game will be a breeze. I actually wish there was a harder mode.
@@MarkHogan994there is, is called final fantasy mode
@@MarkHogan994I have no clue what everyone is talking about with the low difficulty. I've played all of the God of Wars, Ninja Gaidens, Devil May Crys ect, and the Midnight Raven kicked my ass the first battle. Seems plenty hard to me.
If you're looking for an even more honest review you should check out skill ups review, spoiler alert... he wasn't impressed. But at least he clearly explains what he doesn't like.
@@michaelstorer9567 Skillup has a massive ego, and thinks his opinion is the only one that matters. I wouldn't trust a word that guy has to say about anything. Fighincowboy has way more subscribers and he loved the game.
Final Fantasy X's music is iconic for sure, and a a true masterpiece imo. Silence Before The Storm is one of the greatest tracks ever created
I love X’s music but I think XVI got the soundtrack beaten for me at least
I'm absolutely blown away with this game. Surprisingly, this is actually my favorite FF game.
only bot could say this
@@ps4games164Its literally better than FF7 Rebirth, story-wise.
I honestly don't like this Final Fantasy. For me it is way too linear. Go in a straight line wait for the circle to fight. Rinse and repeat. The side quests are boring. Go from point A kill monsters go back to point A. Then the continuing Uber eats delivery quests. Even the main quest quests feel like side quests until you finally get to that real main quest, and trust me you know when it's the vreal, real main quest. Which is great the combat is great. But other than that it's not doing it for me. Shout out to the people who are enjoying it tho.
Losing the party mechanics is too severe a downgrade for me. I don’t find carousing the world as a lonely lad to be nearly as compelling… There’s really no substitute for party mechanics and intrapersonal capers.
I really wonder how many of these reviewers actually finished the game, because at this point the people who say it is fantastic from beginning to end clearly do not have even a basic understanding of how a video game should function or what downsides are. Combat becomes beyond stale due to limited ability use and bloated AP costs for later skills, enemies are repeated constantly, crafting is useless, the MAIN QUEST has literal FF14 side quest design in a single player game....
The amount of people that were "underwhelmed" by horizon forbidden west but then say FF16 is amazing and game of the year (some even say one of the best ff ever 🙄) its sus
I pretty sure that SE probably gave a few TH-camrs a quick hundred or so for some good publicity. Their DLC for this game is around the corner.....and I've been seeing a resurgence of....."reviews"
I just finished this game and my god. It was so damn good! I'm also just really happy that Square feels like they're back. After like 15 years of unfinished games they finally did another great one. I was very happy with all of the callbacks in terms of music and easter eggs to earlier FFs as well as just the overall feel of the world and the gameplay. One aspect I didn't really love was the sidequests for the most part but that's basically every modern game. Also the NPCs just don't have the same artstyle as the main characters which is an issue with FFVIIR as well. I hope they can find a way to fix that aspect because it takes me out of it a little.
The Game of Thrones thing really threw me for a loop at first too but after a little while I embraced it and just rolled with it and I'm glad I did!
I'm not a hardcore Final Fantasy fan as I started from FF7, then played 8 and 9. I didn't revisit the series until FF 15 then 7 remake and now 16 which i have completed all of. No matter what FF you play, the soundtrack is the best I have ever heard. Every game delivers and really gets you going emotionally. I thought FF7 remake couldn't be toppled, but FF16 has done that for me. God knows what FF7 part 2 is going to be like. I treat every FF game as it's own experience, which is why i have enjoyed them all. 16 is so good in so many areas and i love the emotional feel to it. There is a section which is basically some fetch quests which is annoying as these should be a thing of the past since The Witcher 3 about 7 years ago. Aside from that if you just play it, embrace it, enjoy the storyline, graphics, the most epic boss fights ever and the soundtrack you're in for a real treat.
I'm about 7 hours in, and have been completely blown away the entire time. It's so nice to see everyone talking about Final Fantasy in a positive light again
The reviews are very bad.... the game is VERY bad but Diablo 4 remain the worst game of 2023 !!
they talk positively about them all dude
@@zacatkinson3926 5,5/10 for a final fantasy game is a disaster
@@kr1me2000the morons who gave it a 5’s main gripe is “muh diversity” so those lemmings don’t deserve to be listened to anyway
@@kr1me2000 🤣 check again buddy. The reviews are overwhelmingly good. Basement dwelling review bombers like you tried, but you couldn't quiet the voices of true FF fans.
I’m not sure why there’s a lot of flickering on my screen when I’m playing the game. I’ve played around with the settings but I haven’t been able to fix it. It’s quite distracting at times.
My largest concern for the games story is that I hope everything is revealed to the player, not provided as expositional dumps in the active time lore. For example they talk about a volcano that sits off the coast of rosaria where i guess the iron blood nation is from. I want to be able to GO THERE. I want to see and do everything that is written in the lore. I do not want the active time lore to supplement the plot in ways that we will never discover. That really is my only concerns in terms of the plot. I want to be very dense and almost like an evolving MMORPG.
Well, why would you expect it to be dense like an evolving MMORPG, when it's not that?
You will go to said island in the story, and it is an epic chapter, the whole game is epic really.
@@eleven9286 From what I heard it is dense though and its packed full of many varied locations and interesting environments, including different settlements each with there own cultures, idea's and written naratives. That stupid ass rumor before the game came out were people were saying that it was only going to have one hub location is so untrue, i don't even know how to say it. But of course ya all know that now after having played the game.
Speaking of which my game FINALLY arrived, after supposedely being delayed and stollen from the box lol. So now i can play it. It sounds like a really good game and a full FF experience through and through which is what i hope to expect from it.
@@Artimes. Two months later, what was your facit?
I finished it myself, and I still find it funny how actually on point the "one hub area" actually was. There were a lot of nice backdrops, but since every shop sold the exact same things, every major city was off-limits and I honestly couldn't point out any "cultures". Or, well, the fact that the Active Time Lore feature does a lot of the heavy lifting when it comes to exposition. I've seen it getting a lot of praise, but personally it felt like missing most episodes of GoT and having to read up on them on the wiki. Oh well.
Johnny is the best. I have to say though, I feel like he has more criticisms than usual in this review? Sounds really good but also a little monotonous? I’m buying it tomorrow, regardless. I’m excited.
The game is pretty great, I really enjoyed the story and building my character with all my favorite abilities. Took me about 80 hours to finish
Glad to see your review up on the day of the review embargo lift! I'm glad to hear that you enjoyed your time with it.
I absolutely love linear games. Im VERY tired of open world games
This was my third Final Fantasy Game ( after FF15 and 7 Remake ). I really enjoyed it. The Ending was insane
Thanks for this. I know what you mean about a long wait between FF games. I sometimes wonder how many more FF games I get to play in the remainer of my life, whatever that might be. But I think DQ12 will be announced next year (Sugiyama's final work).
If you believe in heaven, can you really call it heaven if you can’t play the final fantasies that came out after your death? I think not! So either you get to play them all, or heaven doesn’t exist and there won’t be a soul to be disappointed!
@@BartvG88 Haha yes, cloud gaming - games come to you wherever you go, they say. I'll hold them to that.
No crashes, some hitches here and there because I was in graphics mode but overall they released a finished polished game. Story was excellent and the game was basically a single player version of Final Fantasy 14 which is more or less what I was expecting and hoping for. The combat towards the end got a little bit stale but it was fine overall. The side quests tasks were a bit meh but I cared about the world and the characters so I wanted to do them to see how it progressed the side quest character and area. Excellent game 9.5 out of 10 for me (Elden Ring is a 10/10 RPG for me). Glad most people that aren’t hung up on the “it’s not my final fantasy” are enjoying it great review HCG.
Love this game! They went full on “GOT” on the story! Intriguing , brutal, and exciting! I looooveee it!!!!
Only problem is GoT got worse the season went on while this game actually had great story progress. After Garuda fight I didn’t see much of GoT reference and felt more like traditional fantasy.
GOT with the Power Of Anime Ffrirndship ;)
I enjoyed it, but I was happy to see the back of it as the pacing brought it down. I can't believe how many character driven side quests (and like 75% of the character driven side quests) dropped right before the final mission. I played 4-5 hours just clearing up new side content right before the final mission.
They really didn't though? Politics and even most character relations completely stop mattering halfway through, have you even finished it?
Respect, didn't think anyone could finish the game in that amount of time.
Awesome review man! You've always been one of my favorite youtubers! Mannnn! I preordered the collector's edition and havent wait till tomorrow. I kinda wanna get the normal version at some midnight release cuz i can't wait hahaha
I thought I was at the end of the game three times. Great game great review!
I'm very excited for my copy to arrive. As a massive fan/10-year veteran of Final Fantasy 14, this game is an absolute must-play for me... They had me at Yoshi P and Soken lol.
Not my favorite Final Fantasy, however when I have kids and grandkids and they find this game buried in my library, I know that they know they found a gem of a story and I think it will be a legendary game, one of those that are more underappreciated now but will be a treasure for them to experience as a "retro game" in the future.
To be honest im glad to hear its not a massive open world game, makes me wanna jumpmin more ✌️
The problem would be that its a very cinematic game with a load of characters that dont go well with an open world.
Final fantasy could be open world but the story structure have to change than.
My god the demo was so boring though... way to button mashy, linear, feels like DMC. Pretty game though. Great music and voice acting. But i was bored by the end of the demo, barely even got hit. The summon battles were pointless. I do not get the hype.
@@jesseross639 i looked at it like it was a prologue and when shit went down i felt emotional for ALL of the characters so i very much liked it BUT every game is subjective.
I know someone who thinks every game that is not souls like is bad.
I kbow someone that hates everything that anime like or made by japan.
I myself hate every story driven first person shooter like Doom, Halo, Far cry etc. For me if its not an another player that im shooting its pointles and boring and repetitive.
@@fseiba6718 Thats the thing, I love most games and I even make games as a hobby on the side. If you strip away all of the beautiful artwork, voice acting and music all you have left is a shallow gameplay experience. Linear hallways, QTE's, one character to play as, repetitive action combat which takes no strategy to play. Fifty or so hours of that sounds horrible.
@@jesseross639 I guess that is why demos are usefull.
U can decide if a game fits you or not.
I think cus of the price of the games all should have a demo before release so it does not feel like u throw out 70$ for a game that u dont even like.
How cutscene heavy is full game compared to demo?
The only opinion I was interested in hearing. The journalists gave the game an 88-90 on average, but Johnny's passion for the series and the genre as a player makes his opinion really important to me, even if I disagree with him on some points.
Thank you Johnny!
P.S. We haven't seen Rob in such a long time! So many significant games have been released, including the Resident Evil 4 remake and the new Zelda, and now Final Fantasy XVI! It would be cool to hear his thoughts on all these Japanese games as well. Incredible six months!
I just started playing this today and IM liking it a lot. And my name is Cliva so its easily to love the main hero.
I HATE Open World RPG; it is boring & waste of time to me. I just want a GOOD STORY that executed well so I won't get stuck in an open space 1000 hours not knowing what the heck is going on.
Devil May Fantasy 16: Bullet Sponge Edition: featuring AI potatos that follow you around
It's killing you to not mention the ending and I respect u for that. Solid review. Less than a minute before I can play. U earned a sub.
This is a must-have PS5 game
So nice to see such a positive outlook on AAA games in 2023. This year has been abysmal for games, but FF16 and Zelda seem to be turning that around. Cant wait for the PC release!
to touch on what you said at the end about waiting, luckily for me, I'll have the entirety of FF14 to play if I love that team's work on this game as much as I think I will. I still can't stop thinking about the prologue and can't wait to get off work and install my copy assuming UPS doesn't let me down (steelbook order since I've always wanted the steelbooks of the FF games I grew up on)
I remember about a year ago when the first trailer was released, nobody was really hyped about it, it came and went. But now that it's here and hearing all the hype about it now I'm excited and can't wait to finally play it!
One thing I thought was pretty funny about this game is that archers apparently do not exist in the FF16 world at all. lol
They have magic I guess lol
@@pogoacct8611 Or they just throw axes!
I’m so excited I cannot contain myself I’m playing this at midnight when it releases, hearing you gush about the game just made me even more amped to play! I can’t wait!!! Thank you for the awesome review!
To me, it is the best FF instalment ever.
I'm going to be completely honest.
Square hasn't released a 'Great' Final Fantasy game since XII.
The titles from 13 onwards have been good and alright.
But the last FF title that left a mark on me was 12.
The story, graphics, and voice acting in XVI is good, but i just found the majority of it to be a Devil May Cry, potion, hackfest.
especially the Eikon cinematic fights, which were just dressed up, button-mash sessions.
I played through the game twice and never died once or came close to it.
7/10 at best for me.
Glad to hear how much you liked it. I feel confident I will too. TY!
Loved the demo, looking forward to it arriving tomorrow. I have been a big fan since the Original on the NES!
I playing the demo atm and so far i am finding easy to pick up and the visuals look incredible
This is a great review but having played the game, i think i want to temper peoples expectations, coz this game really doesnt feel like an RPG in the classical sense. It has skill trees like most action games, has level up, and crafting, but the classic rpg mechanics are nowhere near typical ff games, and even less extensive than god of war or horizon type games. Its really bare bones. Unfortunately this makes the game and the world feel less alive, open areas, while beautiful, are devoid of exciting items u can pick up or unpredictable events and are nothing but large areas to hold enemies. It reallly makes u feel like ur only playing a video game. Still, theres lots to love in the game, there are tooons of unique NPCs and characters and assets, and the epic boss battles, so theres def lots to see, but the simplicity really makes me feel like im playing FF1 but with greater graphics, which may not be a bad thing. Story and writing and dialogue are the fing good esp compared to past titles, so that fact alone makes me happy with this game, considering how bad and cringy and too anime like the previous games were w their story and dialogues.
"unpredictable events" I disagree.
Some of my.fav moments in the game are when I was minding my business and stumbled into a Hunt
@@sheercold26 lols the first mark i encountered caught me unawares as well and i died :p it was ahriman, still hunts w a hunt board are always part most open world games, what i meant w unpredictability is that event that are not part of a system, which makes the world feel more alive, say like finding a playable darts game in one of the towns, or non sidequest events, or secret/hidden unmark passage ways etc. But i get it
You mention cluple of timww it's an RPG. But listening to other reviews and playing the demo myself I didn't feel that.
It was just an action game with very light RPG mechanics.
Just wanted to say thank you for not being a spoiler, This is the only review I need. Thanks Johnny!
Yeah something my friends and i noticed too and agree with you on is the rinse and repeat nature of things. It gets pretty formulaic and you do start to notice it. Like go here, do this, keep going, fight tougher and tougher enemies until the boss, after that you get a cutscene and then you start all over again. I was making sure i did all the side stuff and that kind of enhances the issues. Its nothing i cant look past but it's definitely noticeable, i have to play a bit and take a break as to not get bored of the loop.
I think one reason they felt comfortable not making this game open world is because if you want a world to *live* in, they've already got that world in FFXIV. (Seriously, players live there. Housing crisis and all.) With that pressure removed, they could focus on keeping a tight narrative in a more linear space with the understanding that most people will play it once and be done, and those who are replaying it will do so for the challenge of combat or for completionism, not for relaxing side content.
Regarding the profanity: I am a savage raider in FFXIV and this is.... a wholly normal amount of profanity when you get bad players in Party Finder to us.
omg I love your collection, and your whole vibe, totally subscribed
Welcome aboard! John's a great person, and the community here is great too
It seems you must’ve missed the comments by Yoshi-P all year long so far, as he has specifically gone out of his way to make the point that the game is not an open world game, and that he believes that not every game has to be an open world game.
Dude I cannot get over how likeable you are. Hearing you talk I just wanna be friends with you. :) Very fitting channel name too. Keep it up!
I’m a little worn down on open world games. So happy to have more games that are more level focused with lots of action!
This is such a frustrating argument to see cropping up. You do realize that there is a happy middle ground between "open world" and "hallway simulator", right? Lots of games aren't open world but still have good, complex level design, with worthwhile exploration. Think of Dark Souls, Resident Evil, Metroidvania games in general, or the recent God of War games. There is no excuse for hallway design, which is what FF16 seems to have.
This game made me cry, and I rarely cry
I would've like to hear something about the party dynamics. thats pretty much what makes a FF game for me, but its been kind of difficult to find a straight answer on how your companions actually work and how much i'll be able control/customize them
there is none, you can only give torgal basic commands but any other party member with you is fully ai driven
@@m5coate thanks, can you tell me anything about choosing party members or customizing them in the traditional rpg kind of ways, or is that all decided for you too?
@@CSick27 all decided
@@m5coate thank you very much
@@CSick27 that being said the party members actually do damage and use abilites and take aggro from enemies. overall ai seems very good
8/10
Great combat
Great story
Great graphics
- too much cutscenes
- no puzzles to solve in main story, always having a marker & go talk to someone 😑
- not many likeable characters like ff7 or ffx
- no minimap
Great review been skeptical on the game even as a huge FF fan. Will be picking this up now!
@@Robert-vo3ohlol
@@Robert-vo3ohnow now. Let the fan be skeptical. The brand hasn't necessarily had the greatest reputation over the past decade. CBU III has been working hard to restore the name to its former glory.
@Robert-vo3oh I mean the series has been going through a lot of identity shifts and with 15 being disappointing, its hard not to be skeptical, especially if you were attached to the action turn based combat that has been rid of.
Last thing I'll input is... if they took the fight mechanics from the ff7 remake that was a great balance of action and ff tactics with a new game these fays ... it would be amazing
Agreed
I haven't played the demo but I was looking forward to this review
My copy just arrived today... gonna jump in and start it in just a few mins. Can't wait!
I played every FF from 1 to 15 and 16 rates lower than 13 to me. It was awful. Repetitive DMC button mashing, bland voice acting, 5th-grade Game of Thrones plot, Unreal 4 2018 graphics, bland/formless symphonic noise in the background, hold button to open doors, and flat, shallow world with no depth. The main innovation is cussing.
I got about 1.5 hours into it and had to quit before I fell asleep as about 1.4 hours of that was cutscenes. I watched a long play to see if it picked up later and got bored even faster. I sincerely hope the franchise dies. It's earned a good rest.
FF16 is a love/hate game. No one is on the fence about it. I will have to rely on Dragon Quest for real JRPGs that aren't Devil May Cry with sparse RPG elements.
I doubt you played this game
Maybe a good game, but not an "RPG" and not a Final Fantasy game, no party members in combat or out of combat, no ATB, no assortment of iconic FF gear, skills, spells to pick from, etc etc ... this is just an action game/DMC with a Final Fantasy skin, really disappointing.
They should have went with combat from Final Fantasy 7 Remake as a blueprint and build upon that, because that's the best combat system in a Final Fantasy game that's ever made, engaging and modern while keeping all the important parts of the combat from older FF games.
Also the reasoning behind choosing pure action combat is pretty horrible, it literally boils down to "kids these days...blah blah blah" ... like WTF?