Fujito 4gamer Interview

The characters, sans Zelda and Link, are completely disconnected and not even remotely the same people

One in six people with a PS5 bought it. If they'd had that ratio with the PS4 install base, they would have sold almost 18 million copies.

Like, the real reason to clown on SE is for them releasing a flagship title on a system no one *** has. This "no one bought it" narrative is just wrong, no matter how many times people trot it out.

SE makes tons of mistakes, y'all. You don't need to invent new ones.

We doing this again? Do we all get to say our opinions a second time

I dunno man, to me FF16 is the most classically "FF feeling" FF since 10.

-Giant avatars of destruction named Ifrit, Shiva, etc.? Check.
-Crystals? check.
-TALKING to crystals? CHECK!
-Making god angry? Check.
-Worldhopping adventure full of peril and magic? Check.
-Killing god? Check.

The tonality in general is darker, maybe more political (which, so was 12 which you cite as being consistent). It carries all of the original tropes and FF hangers-ons such as the summons, weapon names, overarching themes (crystals, elements, etc. etc.). The main sticking point is its combat which, to personal preference, may not be as good as older games. Everything else is purely final fantasy and, even its dark fantasy v high fantasy theme can be linked to older FF games (FF8, FF12, FFT). Unlike 13, which I agree does break from the FF mold far more than any other FF in a way that I didn't personally appreciate with the way it portrays common FF staples (until the sequels and Gran Pulse, really), 16 manages to remain thematically concurrent with every other mainline FF (besides 12, seeing as it's set in Ivalice which has its own set of tropes and themes), in a way that feels Final Fantasy. XV had a similar problem to 13 for me, though to a lesser extent. The fact that there's basically no player castable magic whatsoever? The fact that the summons are window dressing that you might see once a playthrough? Etc., etc.; FF16 doesn't have this problem.

If we continue the comparison to Zelda (which I don't think is a good one, but let's anyway): there are very few Zelda games that carry the same tonality, characters, and premise through to others in the series. Twilight Princess and Skyward Sword are as tonally disparate as 16 vs 9. The characters, sans Zelda and Link, are completely disconnected and not even remotely the same people. The items you get, the way you traverse the worlds, the way those worlds function at a basic, elementary level is completely different. All you keep between these two games is the Zelda name, the Master Sword, Link, and Zelda.

The argument of FF16 not being a Final Fantasy because it "isn't consistent" with previous entries or isn't thematically Final Fantasy isn't really based in fact, but basing it on comparisons to other franchises like this is just confusing and ultimately dissolves any point that is attempting to be made.

Anyway, that's my take on it.

I mean, I'm only here because a couple people thought the Report button was a "I disagree with this" button, but everyone else was repeating themselves, and when in Rome

I mean, I'm only here because a couple people thought the Report button was a "I disagree with this" button, but everyone else was repeating themselves, and when in Rome

The lack of creativity in media is pretty much all-encompassing. There are a few very rare diamondss in the rough (BG3 is pretty good), but all in all, in all forms of media, creativity has taken the back seat to corporate "reworking" of existing ideas and successes. FF is victim to this, yes, but so is everything else. It's annoying, it's banal, but ultimately it's what is selling, especially since to a lot of the new target audience (zoomers, etc.), it isn't a rehash: to them, this is the first time they're seeing this ***. To them, it's a brand new masterpiece. That's why it keeps happening.

I wish we'd see more creativity and new experiences from the AAA games and blockbuster hollywood movies, but these are the times we live in.

The lack of creativity in media is pretty much all-encompassing. There are a few very rare diamondss in the rough (BG3 is pretty good), but all in all, in all forms of media, creativity has taken the back seat to corporate "reworking" of existing ideas and successes. FF is victim to this, yes, but so is everything else. It's annoying, it's banal, but ultimately it's what is selling, especially since to a lot of the new target audience (zoomers, etc.), it isn't a rehash: to them, this is the first time they're seeing this ***. To them, it's a brand new masterpiece. That's why it keeps happening.

I wish we'd see more creativity and new experiences from the AAA games and blockbuster hollywood movies, but these are the times we live in.

You know, you could create a wall of shame.
Everytime someone reports a post because they disagree with it, and you objectively deem it as just them having their panties in a twist, you could publish their names. Scrap the most viewed players section on the front page and turn it into the "most hissy fits" or "FFXIAH Karen list"

Visit public bath houses for dubious reasons...

Oh wait... yeah..

Gotta venture into the world of indi-games and non-hollywood media. Had something in the industry explain it to me this way, after a certain budget size the product Must produce a large return, the bigger the budget the bigger the return the investors are expecting. Game studios know this and rather then risking less-then-acceptable returns, they will play it "safe" and go with what they know will sell. In house studios have a bit more breathing room, but are usually managed by the owning company in such a way that makes it hard for them to color outside the lines.

That is why we keep seeing the same stuff over and over again, no big budget producer / director wants to be "that guy" that failed to deliver. Eventually, some dude on some project takes a chance and we get something "new", that everyone then bandwagons to death.

Am I having Deja Vu? Didnt we already discuss why XVI's potential sales are limited due to its PS5 exclusivity?

Whats next, someones gonna bring up Dragon Quest XI?

personal slapfights

Oh dang is the Zuck/Musk fight back on?

I've been seeing it for years now in the music industry, was just a matter of time as it expanded to other forms of media- those who hold the pursestrings and make the decisions are not those who have the talent to produce what they choose among. We don't have programmers and gamers making budget decisions just like we don't have musicians and filmmakers picking what gets produced.

And I'm not even saying that companies like Columbia, Warner, or Square-Enix should have "the talent" running their shows....but I am saying there was an era where that talent and their opinions were valued by the decision makers, and those days are long gone.

It's all about that risk management, nobody wants to be the guy that costs the company 200 million USD. So instead of trying a new idea, they just decide to make another souls or skyrim clone. Before it was CoD clones or MGS clones, what's in vogue cycles out every 5-8 years.

The only game company that genuinely innovates these days is Nintendo.

The only game company that genuinely innovates these days is Nintendo.

So a retro sequel, a 16th, and an expansion to an MMO that literally uses previous titles as their story elements...

Thank you for verifying that you aren't reading other people's comments minds.

Furthermore, I used TOTK as a game with innovation that makes player want to buy the console to play it. The game was well received by OGs and new players. This totally defeats the "oh, but FF16 sales plunged because PS5". Of course, the plan back-fired. Sony thought FF16 was going to do to PS5 what TOTK did to Nintendo Switch. The opposite happened.

FF's had that consistency up until about FF12? (XI of course is an exception since it was their first MMO) FF8 felt a bit off (can't put my finger on it, but there was just something about 8 that felt off. Still a great game and FF enough for me). But ever since 12, it's been terrible. At least for me. I know some people who got into FF as a result of 13 and 13-2. Those games are an eye sore for me. The vehicle summons.. ufff,

How does it not? It says the problem is less one of the game itself (which, while I enjoyed it, is not without its issues) and more that the install base is small enough that unless it expands past the diehards, there's a hard ceiling on sales totals. The mistake was making it PS5 exclusive.

they will make all the cash they missed out on anyway.