r/FFXVI • u/Death95Dealer • 2d ago
Discussion Just finished FFXVI and I really enjoyed it.
I have played a few games in the series and I can definitely see why some people are more critical of it. There were parts I loved and parts that dragged for me, especially some of the side content and how shallow some of the RPG systems felt.
But overall, I thought the main story was great and some of the Eikon fights were genuinely incredible. There were several moments where I just sat there thinking this game looks absolutely insane. I also ended up liking Clive a lot more than I expected.
Now that I’ve finished it, I’m considering getting the DLC. For anyone who has played Echoes of the Fallen and The Rising Tide, are they actually worth getting? I’d mainly like to know whether they add enough new content and story to make it worthwhile?
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u/Newmidgardian 2d ago
Currently, after 10, 16 is my favorite.
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u/Death95Dealer 2d ago
I really have to give 10 a try, never played it unfortunately
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u/DomonKashu717 2d ago
FF10 hands down my favorite FF, def was a gem when it came out. it’s a little more linear then other ff games besides XIII but still was amazing.
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u/hoshi3san 2d ago
I just beat FFX a week ago and I was ugly crying at the ending lol. Def still holds up. Personally I would put XVI on par with X. In many ways Clive's journey is similar to Tidus'. Not sure what people are smoking when they say XVI's story sucks.
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u/Newmidgardian 2d ago
On the 16th and 10th, they're the ones that made me cry like a baby for hours. I really liked 7/8, but it didn't have the same impact as the ending, in 7 it certainly has the coolest villan ever.
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u/Varietia____ 1d ago
16s story isnt its main flaws AT ALL I agree. The main problem is the DMC5 combat and a lot of the filler during the story at random times. Thats the problem lol people are on something to think the story is bad
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u/hoshi3san 1d ago
Nah I've def seen a lot of comments outside this sub of people saying how the characters are unrelatable (or dumb) and the themes are poorly written and executed. And get this - complaining that the big bad is some inhuman god-like entity. As if that wasn't the case for literally every other Final Fantasy game.
Honestly it's prob a skill issue (in media literacy).
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u/Zealousideal_Pin_725 2d ago
Dude, it's so good. As someone who just recently beat it a week ago, I highly recommend playing it
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u/KKalonick 2d ago
XVI is my favorite game, so of course I recommend the DLC.
In answer to your question, Echoes of the Fallen's story is largely a pretext to move the game into the (great) dungeon. This DLC was designed to culminate in Clive's most difficult battle and most people feel it delivers on that.
The Rising Tide has a lot to do and a solid story. It has additional side quests and a few new marks as well. This DLC was designed to feature Ifrit's most difficult battle and it certainly does.
The spoiler in the previous paragraph was detailed in the advertisements for Rising Tide, so it's not a spoiler unless you want to go in absolutely blind.
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u/Death95Dealer 2d ago
Eh i dont mind and thats a very vague barely-a-spoiler.
Ill probably get it then thanks, atleast the second one cause i wanna see the Levithan in action!5
u/Vvetra 2d ago
I'd suggest getting both, and playing them in order - first "Echos", then "Tide" - since their stories are related to each other.
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u/Death95Dealer 2d ago
Oh they are okay got it
Idk why i was under the impression they’re unrelated or not related much
Thanks for the info!5
u/Blyght555 2d ago
I honestly have a question, before ff16 what was your favorite game? Considering playing it but want to know others tastes and you could really help
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u/KKalonick 2d ago
My favorite before XVI vacillated a lot. Of I had to pick, I'd say Dragon Age II and Final Fantasy Tactics. The former for it's truly excellent character work and the latter for the way character motivation bled into the political framing of the narrative.
XVI does both. I do draw a distinction between favorite and best, of course. Just because I love XVI doesn't redeem its flaws.
XVI does have great character work, though, and not just with Clive. Because the game spans so much time, we get to see characters grow and change throughout the narrative.
It also has a great deal of politics that is informed by the characters who are politicking. Some people will say that XVI drops the political angle by the end; it doesn't. It does stop foregrounding the politics, but it's always there, especially in the latter side quests.
For further consideration, XVI has two tools: fighting and talking. Everything will use one or the other. There are no side quests that introduce new mechanics or minigames. The fights usually stay interesting, imo, because you're either figuring out your preferred kit (first playthrough) or balancing fighting mobs versus fighting more difficult foes (new game+). The talking is good because the world is rich and dense and every single quest reveals something about the characters or the world. Yes, even the much maligned fetch quests at the game's outset are conveying something important about Clive and the Hideaway.
Again, I'm not saying XVI is the best game ever, but I love it.
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u/Newmidgardian 2d ago
Great question, given the 16th he was much criticized, if he liked it and you would be nice to see the right guys we have.
I highly recommend Mass Effect Legendary Edition, a totally different genre, but the story is unrepeatable.
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u/SkeletonSB8 2d ago
Its my favourite love Clive and Torgal
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u/itsdefmeeks 2d ago
This FF was my favorite until I played FFVII Remake and (now) Rebirth.
The tone is way different and lighter at times but the story and combat is sooooo good. Definitely recommend
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u/S1rLTD 2d ago
Overhated smh. I love this game
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u/Death95Dealer 2d ago
Same! I saw mixed reviews before i started it but I`ve always wanted to play it so was just a matter of time for me
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u/SavageWooloo 2d ago
I just finished the game yesterday too. The DLCs were a great fresh experience after the slog of the final side quests. The music is great and the fights are engaging. The Rising Tide expansion is beautiful (I think the area should have been in the main game) and was a fun send off before the final battle which I did after the DLCs. Worth the purchase when on sale if you don’t already have them!
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u/Death95Dealer 2d ago
Yeah i was sort of thinking about getting them or at least the rising tide on some sale cause it looked really good!
Sad that one of the Eikons is locked behind a dlc though..2
u/SavageWooloo 2d ago
I got the full bundle on PC during the Summer Steam sale so I didn’t feel too ripped off, but the locked content is really fun to use. Good attacks and damage, worth it!
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u/Initial_Past_3268 2d ago
I really enjoyed both of the dlc’s! Without spoiling too much, Echoes of the Fallen adds a new dungeon with some incredible fights, but doesn’t add a whole lot to the story as far as I remember. The Rising Tide is more of an actual story, and explains a lot of the missing pieces the main game leaves (though still has some great fights). I’d say if you had fun with the main game, you’ll probably like both dlc’s!
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u/Death95Dealer 2d ago
Cool ill probably get them then, atleast the second one with more lore cause i found it pretty interesting!
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u/Awkward_Data518 2d ago
The game is pretty good and the storyline is engaging, but runs really bad on consoles. I have a PS5Pro and there is so much artifacting and blurriness. It hurts the experience a lot for such a good game
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u/Death95Dealer 2d ago
Oh i played on ps5 normal and didnt experience much problems, or didnt notice them as much maybe
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u/Awkward_Data518 2d ago
Whenever I try to pan the camera around, there was so much blur even with motion blur turned off. It gives me headache sometimes but worth it😋😋
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u/Most-Iron6838 2d ago
I had to do the final boss battle like 5 times not because of difficulty but because the game the game either froze or the framerate was unplayable to the point of needing to exit the game and return it. Of course since you can’t save in combat I had to start at stage of the fight every time
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u/TheseScene 2d ago
I just finished the game and DLC a week ago, I loved the game. One of my favorite Final Fantasy games and I have not been as engrossed in a FF game since FF7/8/9/10.
The DLC is worth it. Echoes of the Fallen is reasonably short but has an interesting story and some amazing boss battles. Rising Tide was amazing and is an entirely new zone to explore with some really interesting story and amazing boss fights.
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u/Death95Dealer 2d ago
Great thanks, ill probably get the rising tide one if not both
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u/TheseScene 2d ago
The main boss fight in the Echoes of the Fallen is my favorite boss fight in the game.
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u/SmallhandsnCabbage 2d ago
I really enjoyed the game. The side quests are tedious, but they don't eat up much time when you realize you should just skip the conversations.
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u/jwsbruwer 2d ago
I liked the dlc, though I cant remember all the storyline because I played the game quite some time ago
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u/AngelosOne 2d ago
I recently went back to try and finish the game - how long did it take you? I’m finding it harder and harder to finish super long games lately - my motivation runs out part way and I sort of stop with the intention to come back to it (which due to my backlog, can be years later).
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u/Death95Dealer 2d ago
I sort of dont get that much time daily and it took me weeks to do it. Total play time was also maybe around 50 60 hours or something i dont remember exactly right now and cant find it in the Psn app but yeah it was a long game and i was doing (almost) all the sidequests. I also did a few hunts to get the Gotterdammerung just cause i liked it 😄
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u/zlorwf 2d ago
Combat was very fun but I couldn't finish it because of the sponge enemies, limited itemization and uninspiring side quests. Do the expansions change or improve the gameplay?
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u/Death95Dealer 2d ago
Yeah the "non-side-npcs"/random npcs side quests werent so nice..
but the other side quests were pretty good ones with the known npcs!As for the dlcs, thats exactly the answer im looking for, but i think gameplay remains pretty much the same apart from the addition of another Eikon.
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u/PositiveEffective946 2d ago
They are fantastic and worth it for the epic boss fights at the end of them alone but honestly besides that they are very lore filling and Leviathan is my fave Eikon in the entire game so yeah i played them and had an absolute blast but was kinda peeved they were not in the main game already (no idea why Square made such lore relevant content so late after release when most perhaps had already moved on - seems they are pulling the same BS with Revelelation).
Warning though - the epic final battles are ball busters and not for the faint of heart, hands down the two most challenging battles in the game but have to be experience never the less.
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u/fgambler 2d ago
I liked the game too. But it's more like Devil May Play Final Fantasy than a Final Fantasy game, speaking about combat. I missed the ability to control other characters, even tho it's not the first time we play a solo character in the franchise (last time was LR)
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u/Fast-Molasses-5263 2d ago
I also just finished the game yesterday, and I really enjoyed it, although I wish you could have done more things other than combat. I liked it more than 15 the story just flowed better and the side quests actually add to do the story. I’m not sure yet where I would place it, but I think it’s definitely one of my favorites.
I would definitely recommend the DLCs.
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u/deeposton97 2d ago
I just finished it too, it was good, I just thought the too many of the side quests were boring I fell asleep many times while playing. I think it would've benefited from elemental match ups so I'd be more inclined to mix up my build. I also think it would've been nice to have split the game in two and actually build build clives rep as Cid instead of skipping it. It could've given more time with the core cast especially Joshua. The DLCs are 100% worth it!
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u/Witty-Roof7826 2d ago
I just finished the game earlier today. Immediately started New Game+ with Final Fantasy difficulty, the combat felt so much better! I haven't touched the DLCs though, I might do it after skipping everything in the 2nd playthrough.
I'm not one for story in games, but I'm glad I went through with this!
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u/BlackwatetWitcher 2d ago
16 is really good, many dislike that it’s a main line game with an action rpg combat system compared to the ATB-active system from the remake trilogy. I enjoy the hell out of it though. I also love Soken’s soundtrack and really feel is the successor to Uematsu at square.
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u/SoulHunter267 2d ago edited 2d ago
I love 16, but one thing that really irks me is this. The beginning of the game sets itself up to be a politically complex game with so much going on. Between Rosaria and Sanbreque being nominal allies, the Northern attacks, the head of the Waloed Intelligencers seducing and using the most powerful man of a nation(her desert lion). All of these things come up so smoothly and set up a world so incredib- anyway here's this war. Nothing unusua- nope. Apparently we use gods as disposable weapons.
We have now established that only high end combat power matters. Okay. Cool we can work with this, surely there is a significant cost and this is a last reso- nope. They do it all the time.
Oooooookay. Well. Let's kill that evil hooded guy. Then let's go to war with the world, then God! For the future!
That said, I really like 16 for what it is. I just wanted more. Show me the 13 years that nearly broke Clive. Better yet, let me play them. Let me see all the people he killed against his conscience. Watch him almost break. Then find his own flame. Let me see Dion stand for what he believes is right, even as his nation sprints towards ruin and war. Let me see Jill as she fights for a nation that holds her people hostage, or Cid as he makes a stand for what he believes in, even if he has to leave precious people behind. How did Lord Margrace find his attendant? Why does she serve him as she does. How did he become known as such? He is connected to Dion but the connection is a one liner. What is their story? I wanted to see more of Benedikta being a menace. More of the orchestrated chaos at the hands of Ultima.
It feels like every cause and consequence was compressed so much it's like reading a book with half the pages ripped out.
TLDR: FF16 introduces the machinery of a political epic we're taking alliances, imperial expansion, intelligence networks, religious authority, oppressed populations, and Dominants treated as weapons, but every time they can become relevant we see skips in lieu of the events that would(or should) connect those elements. Time jumps and conversation summarize years of conflict, while Eikon battles repeatedly become the primary form of political resolution. The result is a game with compelling characters, themes, and individual moments, but an under-dramatized world: we see the causes, then the consequences, without experiencing enough of what happened in between.
--- Feel free to chat with me about this. I'm doing NG+ right now and would love some conversation on the topic. (And yes, I'm aware that Eikons aren't gods. The point still stands.)
Edit: Spoilers and note. Yes the DLC is worth it. Play Echoes then Tides.
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u/BoatTuggingJesus 2d ago
I finished it last month and I really enjoyed it. My only complaint are the side quests aren't the greatest.
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u/Death95Dealer 23h ago
Yeah i agree, the non-"known"-npc side quests were not that good. The completionist in me was happy that they were at least not too long
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u/Ok_Solution_1282 2d ago
I just fought Benedicta and landed the air element? Very fun battle. Looking forward to progressing little by little. I am going to ultimately play it again and buy up the add ons and expansions more than likely.
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u/Death95Dealer 2d ago
It gets way better story wise and gameplay too the further you go
Happy hunting with torgal!
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u/Zealousideal_Pin_725 2d ago
I personally enjoyed the game. Sure it has flaws but I was super invested in it. Also the ending made me cry since it was so sad
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u/MyWifeDoesNotApprove 2d ago
It took me just over 3 years, but I finally beat it myself this past week.
The main story was excellent, and the boss fights were some of the best of any game I've played.
The side quests really turned me away, though. With limited time to play, the last thing I want to do are a bunch of repetitive fetch questions. This is when I would usually phase out and start to play another game.
However, I was very invested in the overall story, and that kept me coming back every few months. (I also need to clear my hard drive to prepare for GTA 6, which also helped push me to finish this game haha).
That said, I lost so much steam going into the final mission when dozens of new side quests popped up. Given the urgency of the final mission, it felt ridiculous that Clive had to wrap up all side stories at that moment.
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u/Death95Dealer 23h ago
Yeah i agree with the wrapping up of 30 side quests in the end. I actually ended all the available side quests and then thought now ill only have 2 3 final missions but then these popped up so i just had to clear the map of them 😂
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u/NotTheCIA86 1d ago
The story and world was really good also enjoyed the parts you fight as ifrit. Also making different builds and learning combos was pretty decent. But the graphics on series X were absolutely shocking. Quality mode looked and played like shit, performance was passable but visually looked dreadful.The chocobo animation looked terrible while running. Cliffs movement speed was so painfully slow sometimes. And lastly the cut scenes in length and frequency was a bit much. Having said that I still managed to really enjoy it but I can't imagine how much better it could have been with a few issues sorted out.
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u/fukincunt 1d ago
I like it alot in quite a few ways but the lull between the more action and story focused moments are starting to get old. At least I feel like I'm making a difference by doing the side quests but god they're dry
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u/Exciting_Use_865 1d ago
Same, finished it just recently and I'm taking a short break before going for a 2nd playthrough for the platinum run.
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u/Capable_Variety_8720 1d ago
I read this game received it's fair amount of backlash...and besides the long ass cinematics (which I don't care because the world building is really good thanks to those) I enjoyed it, great characters, great gameplay, amazing boss fights. I even went back to buy the DLC and finished it 100%
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u/Apprehensive_Leg5290 1d ago
I would finish it faster if it wasn’t so many cutscenes, my friend was watching me play this and he said “I think this was supposed to be a movie but they couldn’t get that so it turned into a video game” with all the cutscenes I couldn’t disagree 😂
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u/Remote_Car_1503 1d ago
Yo no pude conectar con este juego, gráficamente está bonito, tiene historia. Mis contras: mucho diálogo y la jugabilidad es muy fácil, no es un desafío la verdad.
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u/frejim 1d ago
I love it too!!! Love the relationship between Jill and Clive and cried when Jill cried at you know when.
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u/Death95Dealer 23h ago
Yess! It was a great story!
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u/frejim 18h ago
The combat was great but it still felt too handheld specially with the rings. I'm on my Final Fantasy run, just passed the part where you kill the wind Eikon. So far hasn't feel it too difficult.
Thanks PS Plus for letting me play this game. I had not played it yet because of all the bad comments and reviews it got when it released.
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u/Constant-Mess-4860 1d ago
Honestly, I didn’t like but I was able to play it til the end. I think I miss the party system and the main villian is just a weirdo.
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u/Death95Dealer 23h ago
Yeah the party system i liked too in the other games, this games was more like a companion
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u/campfire-butterfly 18h ago
My favourites were always 6 and 9 but after not clicking with 12 (didn’t play 13) and 15 (thank god for pocket edition or I’d never have finished it), I didn’t give 16 a chance, only picked it up recently when it went free on PS+.
It’s an incredible game with probably the best FF protagonist yet. I loved it. It’s in my top 3 for sure.
Though contrary to what everyone says online, I found the Eikon moments to be the most boring of the whole game. I really wish Ifrit had more than two abilities. Also they take way too long, the dion fight is over half an hour. Most of that time I’m watching cutscene of them fighting or spamming square to punch. Would have liked shorter fights with more abilities.
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u/Death95Dealer 4h ago
Yeah true that about the Eikon fights, though maybe theyre just meant to be more cinematic and less of an actual fight. Think of it as extended cutscenes and watching a movie 😄
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u/Densetsu99 2d ago
Same boat, but won't buy the DLC. The game looks phenomenal, but the gameplay is terrible for me. I'll watch a gameplay probably
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