Final Fantasy XVI Trailer Hints At The End Of A Saga

The Final Fantasy series is one of the very few JRPGs that have become a global hit for decades but the recent years haven't exactly been kind to it. The latest main title in the franchise was launched in 2016 after many delays though that pales in comparison to the delays of just the first installment of the Final Fantasy VII Remake. Now Square Enix is once again going against the odds with the first teaser of a new mainline Final Fantasy game that could mark the end of a series within a series.

The trailer, which is receiving mixed reactions even from fans of the franchise, showcases both in-game battles as well as cinematics. You'll see the usual elements that make up a Final Fantasy game, from "guardians" to political intrigue.

The video also talks about how the legacy of the crystals has shaped history far too long. With nary an actual crystal in sight, it could be referring to the Fabula Nova Crytallis, a series of unrelated Final Fantasy games that started with Final Fantasy XIII in 2009 up to Final Fantasy XV in 2016. Although not directly related in narrative (except for the three installments that revolved around the character Lightning), the seven games in this series shared common themes around the role that mystical crystal played in shaping creation and history.

The trailer touches a bit on the gameplay when it comes to battles and suggests it will adopt the new real-time mechanic that FF XV introduced. Curiously, it only showed a single character dishing it out against monsters but that hardly means you will only have a party of one.

That's because this is just the first in a series of teasers but don't get your hopes up seeing anything new soon. The next teaser drop won't be coming until 2021, which raises the question of when Final Fantasy XVI will even launch on the PlayStation 5.