Final Fantasy XVI Demo to Arrive in Early 2023

Final Fantasy XVI producer Naoki Yoshida (commonly referred to as “Yoshi-P”) has confirmed in an interview with Dengeki Online that the newest entry in the acclaimed JRPG series will be receiving a playable demo as early as three months before the full game’s launch.

Final Fantasy

“If we release information too early, we will not be able to maintain the excitement until the game is released, so I think we will start releasing information in a flurry about three months before the release. There is so much entertainment out there nowadays, so we want to keep things fresh.”
Naoki Yoshida interview with Dengeki Online

The demo will be a part of this “flurry of information,” though it’s unclear exactly what else the studio will include to build hype for the upcoming game.

Final Fantasy XVI is sporting a brand new combat system that’s designed by the acclaimed Ryota Suzuki, known for his work on Dragon’s Dogma and Devil May Cry 5. The fighting is more focused on performing combos in real-time rather than the classic turn-based combat system. Summonable monster battles have also been teased as being a major part of the title, with these behaving more like a one-on-one fighting game; an ideal demo will give gamers a taste of both to assuage any concerns and (hopefully) win them over to the developer’s side.

Demos for the Final Fantasy series aren’t a new thing, as Final Fantasy XV is noteworthy for having numerous playable demos that also served as preludes to the full game. It’s interesting to think that the demo for XVI may act in the same way, offering players an experience that’s separate from what the final build, and can possibly offer bonuses for those that carry their save data over to the base game.

Currently, there is no firm release date set for Final Fantasy XVI, but it is listed as coming “Summer 2023.”

What are your thoughts? Have you been concerned about the combat gameplay from what we’ve seen, and are you itching to give it a real go? Leave us your thoughts in the comments below, and on our social media platforms!

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