Support NeoGAF

[Mitsurugi Reiji]

any chance, developers will add a new difficulty for new game?

 

[TheDarkPhantom]

"and thus the power of Ifrit
burned away
all those engaged
in Hatery
with the power of
eternal Fantasy"

- The Book Of Clive

I will begin by saying that I'd been on media blackout for over a year with FFXVI, it was Final Fantasy, that's all I needed to know. This is important because I had no idea what to expect really, everything was a surprise and if my expectations were high it was simply because this was the newest entry in one of my all-time favourite game franchises. After 75 hours clocked, every sidequest/hunt complete, all lore entries read and every NPC spoken to I can say FFXVI is Final Fantasy as *fuck* and my current GOTY frontrunner.

Not all is sunshine and rainbows in the land of fantasy though and I think I'd like to kick things off with where this game stumbles. First of all, I have zero interest in MMOs and thus haven't bothered with either XI or XIV. It's unfortunate that FFXVI employs some of that design language in it's sidequests, grab some wood 20 meters away for this carpenter, really? This first impression did not bode well for what to expect from the side content. Nonetheless, I did it all, 25% was worth doing, the rest we could have done without. While I did appreciate doing sidequests as a breather between the bombastic story set-pieces it could have and should have been a lot better. In it's defense it does serve the world building and fleshes out some of the characters, some of these quests are absolutely essential.

It is in these moments another issue stands out: wooden animation. To be clear, when it comes to combat and cutscenes FFXVI has some of the most impressive animation in the industry, I just wish that extended to these sections too. Thinking about it though is any Bethesda RPG much different? Mass Effect series? As much as I love those games glassy eyed characters and robotic movement was par for course. A game like Horizon: FW is on such another level (read: budget) that it deserves it's own category. I do wish the lip sync was better though, at times it was mildly distracting.

This speaks to another flaw in FFXVI's visual inconsistencies. At times this is the most beautiful game I've ever played, at times it's...not. There is something with the lighting in particular that feels "off", especially after a late game plot development that fucks with it even more. I need to call out the performance too. I remember when the devs announced a couple of months ago there would be no day 1 patch, FXVI was polished and ready to go. Well, clearly not if I'm running around and the game keeps wavering between 40-60 fps in performance mode. Despite this that mode was still the way to go because it kept 60 where it counted most: combat.

Now we get to the good stuff. Let me be crystal clear, the combat in FFXVI is absolutely sublime. Kinetic, varied, flashy, engaging, satisfying, fluid, gorgeous and - when it comes to the Eikon battles - nothing short of jaw-dropping. Cycling through my Eikons in battle, Clive yelling out "Ti-taaaaaan!", perfect blocking, the guttural sound effects, camera cuts, dashing in, chaining abilities, finding synergies, calling on Torgal to mix things up further, mixing in magic bursts, perfect dodges, taking things to the air, it's all awesome.

Eikon battles? On a whole other level. Once upon a time we'd enjoy the spectacle of Square's famous FMV sequences. Now? You're *playing it*. Some of these battles rank amongst the most impressive I've ever experienced in a videogame and speak to exactly what is so special and unique about this medium we love. Eye-popping and impactful, over-the-top in the best possible ways. And once you throw in that music? Man oh man, it's going to the stratosphere (quite literally in a couple of cases!).

The OST in FXVI is second to none. Perhaps this should be expected from a series known for having some of the best soundtracks the gaming industry has ever produced but it deserves it's praise nonetheless. Waxing and waning from operatic and grandiose to somber and tranquil, almost every track a joy to the ears (I say almost because there is one misstep during Titan's battle but I'm sure it has it's fans too). I love the music so much that I already have the Collector's Edition pre-ordered, can't wait to add it to my vast music collection.

Finally we come to the story and it's characters. I love this world with all my heart and FXVI has one of the most memorable casts in any game I've ever played, nevermind Final Fantasy. Clive, Joshua, Cid, Benedikta, Kupka, Gav, Dion, Annabella, Sylvestre, Barnabas, Charon, Byron, I could go on and on. It's heroes matched by it's villains, it's main protagonist one of the best FF has ever produced and an instant contender for my favourite FF lead. Stalwart, steadfast and true, a man who believes in his convictions and who is truly righteous.

A focus on two brothers was genuinely something different but there was so much more going on in the overarching narrative from classicism to humanity's overuse of natural resources, a medieval meditation on modern times? The main villain may seem like a trope but to me it speaks to the central question of life: why/how are we here? Where did it all come from? Is there fate? Can we break the chains of destiny? The entire game is rounded out by stellar voice work top to bottom from the main characters to literally the most random, inconsequential NPC, it's fantastic stuff!

I could write another 20 paragraphs but I'll leave it there. I've been doing this gaming thing a loooooong time and over all these years I've never become cynical like so many others from my generation seem to have become, my passion for gaming burns bright and FFXVI made the flame all the brighter, fire references very much intentional lol. Can't wait to see what *big changes* the franchise makes next, I'll be there day 1 forever and always, Final Fantasy for life!

 

[Heaven Angel]

I just got to say this is a fantastic game. Everything is extremely high detail, getting close to walls and surfaces reveal a ton of detail and it's mind boggling seeing how much of it is often on display in the same area. The lighting & shadows is some of the best I've seen in any game. And some of the forests in the game look basically photorealistic. Loading times is almost instantaneous. I feel like this is the first truly next-gen title, offering similar visual quality to Demon's Souls, but done at a much larger scale with huge open environments and tons of detail in every direction. It's extremely impressive.

The characters are really interesting and the story complex and nuanced, I'd be surprised if it doesn't grip you from the start. All of this is beautifully presented through cut-scenes that look like something straight from a Hollywood CG film. The acting, both visual and vocal is perfect, and of course, it's a Final Fantasy game, so the music is on point as well. Combat is stellar, A simple battle gives so much adrenaline if you manage to perfect each combos and amplified abilities gives immense satisfaction. The Eikons fights are on whole another level, its insane. For me my 70$ is well spent.

 

[FeralEcho]

Jesus christ the whole bahamut fight, the lead up to it and the cutscenes after... i cant. How is this not the end??? Never seen anything crazy like this and it looked fucking unbelievable on OLED. I need a break now, sorry otto and mid, i cant do chores after this.

You saved the whole world by stopping a raging Bahamut? Well that's great Clive,now please go get us some peppio nuts,we are fresh out of them and everyone is busy with more important chores than you.

 

[Roufianos]

Watched Skill Up's review. It's crazy, I agree with almost every point he made, especially the dreadful pacing.

Yet, I'm still excited to see the game through to completion and I think I'm approaching the final quarter now.

Game is a real mixed bag, incredible 10/10 highs but deeply flawed on so many levels. I think this could have been one of the all time greats with some better direction.

 

[Thief1987]

Watched Skill Up's review. It's crazy, I agree with almost every point he made, especially the dreadful pacing.

Yet, I'm still excited to see the game through to completion and I think I'm approaching the final quarter now.

Game is a real mixed bag, incredible 10/10 highs but deeply flawed on so many levels. I think this could have been one of the all time greats with some better direction.

If you are playing the game why you need to watch reviews lol? Confirmation bias?

 

[Roufianos]

If you are playing the game why you need to watch reviews lol? Confirmation bias?

Because I'm interested in the discourse surrounding a game I'm playing? Why do I post in this thread or this whole forum? What a fucking weird question.

 

[Heaven Angel]

any chance, developers will add a new difficulty for new game?

I hope they do it soon. I'm 50% in game and planning to do a Final Fantasy difficulty run as well but I don't mind beating the game 3rd time on the highest difficulty. I hope they give an extra trophy too in the higher difficulty update which negates all the accessibility combat rings. Combat is awesome in this game.

 

[jorgejjvr]

VRR gamma flicker is a known issue and is usually a problem with the display, not the game.

The game's HDR has a very low paperwhite point. It's camera has it's exposure set to a pretty low level, it's likely graded on a dim OLEDs in a dark room. This sux for us with high end HDR microLED TVs that can really push HDR to the next level. Fortunately my Sony TV can stretch out the dim luma range with the Brightness Prefered tonemap option. Also the game is graded more in a "realistic" manner, with restrained colors and less contrast in general. So yeah, I'm not a fan of the HDR in this game.

I don't have the screen flickering with very on in other games

I see, I'll turn it off and see how it looks, or increase brightness. But it might just be bad HDR

 

[orimagdos]

Finished the game, i think its nice but nowhere near a masterpiece as the scores indicate. I wont go into details cause many have emphasized on those things before me.
But a special note has to go to the loot...i got to a point where i jokingly said to myself that it has to be a byproduct of a programming error or something..that the devs accidentally copied/pasted the same loot throughout the whole game and noone took notice...

 

[Valonquar]

I think anyone who played XIV had much lighter expectations of side quests. That game had like 20+ quests that were essentially "bring me some wine."

 

[fart town usa]

There was nothing "technical" about the old final fantasy. It was all spaming your most power attack. FFVI? all about spaming Sabin skill, Ebagr tools, ultima. FFVII, highest tier spell, strongest summon. FFVIII? just junction. FFIX, same thign strongest skill and summon.

I love how a common theme in this thread is that if anyone calls out issues with XVI, some of you have to go and drag the rest of the series. Maybe defend XVI on its own merits rather than dump on other games that are decades old.

 

[Agent_4Seven]

20 hrs later, my biggest problem with the game so far is leveling, bad loot, useless crafting and EXP rewards for killing enemies and barely usefull skills when it comes to damage.

Leveling in the game is as bad as in TESIV Oblivion, you barely feel powerful during combat and feel progression over times and the more you progress, useless crafting and gear you can buy in the shops do nothing to change this in any way. You also don't feel anything after upgrading gear and it's mostly just boring +3-5 to everyting with each upgrade. To be honest, all of this feels like it was slapped on the the game during the last month of development. I mean, okay, but what about skills and stuff you can do beyond swinging the sword? Surely you can feel progression here as well? No, you don't, unless you're fighting like very basic enemies, but if you're fighting huge monsters and stuff, it takes forever to take them down and all the skills you can use in the combat is only usefull to deplete the will gouge, where as DMG output from the is extremely low and big enemies have a crap ton of HP, even you're alies can't do much to bring these enemies down much faster. As for experience, you'll get like 15-20 EXP for fighting minor enemies and pathetic 40 EXP for fighting big enemies for like 3-4 min! WTF? There's also ZERO status effects from fire and stuff so you can't even count on this to do damage overtime.

I think this game needs a complete ballance and skills overhaul, and also when it comes to the later, there must new moves and stuff with each upgrade of the skill and not just the same stuff but just a tiny bit better. Don't even get me started on some skills that don't even have damage and damage to will bonuses when used even after upgrading and mastering, so what's even to point in upgrading them? They need to change the ballance, change skills systen and make skills feel powerful and usefull when it comes to damage, there must be status effects and damage over time added for each elemental damage, they need to change EXP gains to be more rewaring, make each new sword and gear to be more powerful etc. Also, the dog's healing spell is abysmal, it can barely heal you or help you in combat, how about fixing that as well?

Spoiler

Don't get me wrong, the combat itself is great, it looks fantastic and feels great to use, but as of right now it's being dragged down by the issues I've mentioned above, which hopefully will be adressed in the upcomming patches. I mean, I can't be the only one who've noticed these issues, right:?

 

[Nankatsu]

Regarding Titan's ability of charge punching. Can anyone tell me which zone of the circle does more damage?

The larger red zones or the yellow tiny ones?

Common sense would be on the yellow ones, since they're more difficult to pull, but I seem to get more output damage from red zones.

 

[fart town usa]

Just did the Titan fight.

That was the epic thing so many people are raving about? You just run forward and spam charged triangle shots and dodge easily avoidable hands. The music, WTF was that all about? Corny techno beats on loop, out of place and no melody, just nothing. This game is pure empty spectacle.

I lol'd when Ifrit says, "fuuuuck". This game is just so damn goofy.

Oh my lord. I just made a clip in the video editing software on PS5 of Ifrit yelling "fuuuck", and when I booted back into the game, it loads me into the cutscene before the Titan fight. I gotta do this whole fight over again, lmfao. That's what I get for talking shit.

 

[danklord]

how ? did u skip all cutscenes ? watching and reading everything, all hunts, all chronoliths, took me 70+ hours to finish this game.

cutscens alone ll take 11 hours, all 76 sidequests ll took at least 13 hours to complete if u read and watch everything, hunts at least 2 hours, it left you with 0 hours to finish the game, if u skiped all the cutscenes and dialogues its doable, but then u wouldnt know how incredible the game is.

I had to check again, total playtime was 54 hours so that's much more reasonable. Whoops!

I used a guide for monster hunt locations and blazed through some of the sidequest dialogue,

Spoiler

when it was clear it was just rationale to go defend the town from Akashic.

I tend to read subtitles faster than the VO.

I'm still a little surprised that people are sinking 30 more hours in before New Game+ but different roads I suppose!

 

[sendit]

how ? did u skip all cutscenes ? watching and reading everything, all hunts, all chronoliths, took me 70+ hours to finish this game.

cutscens alone ll take 11 hours, all 76 sidequests ll took at least 13 hours to complete if u read and watch everything, hunts at least 2 hours, it left you with 0 hours to finish the game, if u skiped all the cutscenes and dialogues its doable, but then u wouldnt know how incredible the game is.

The best way to play this game; during side quest dialog, hit pause, followed by a triangle hold until the skip option proceeds.

Actually surprised someone sat through side quest cut-scenes/dialog.

 

[Lokaum D+]

The best way to play this game; during side quest dialog, hit pause, followed by a triangle hold until the skip option proceeds.

Actually surprised you sat through side quest cut-scenes.

I paid 70 bucks for this, i ll sat though everything for the first playthrough.

Playing ng+ now and skipping everything.

 

[Aenima]

Just got the Platinum trophy. This is my favorite Final Fantasy since the PS2 games.

I dont really care if they decide to go with turn based or action combat for the next game, but if they go for action, i hope they use the same combat system, but instead of having 1 char use all the diferent skills, have a party of playable character each with they elemental skill and fighting style. Just keep the basic (Dodge, Parry, counters, etc) Combat felt amazing to me and after 140h of gameplay i was still having fun with the combat.

 

[Phalk]

I love how a common theme in this thread is that if anyone calls out issues with XVI, some of you have to go and drag the rest of the series. Maybe defend XVI on its own merits rather than dump on other games that are decades old.

If people are using its predecessors to criticize XVI, it's only fair to also consider those predecessors to demonstrate that the criticisms may not hold true.
If we examine the mechanics of previous Final Fantasy games, it becomes evident that they were never overly complex, and the games were often relatively easy or susceptible to being exploited.

 

[linko9]

Regarding Titan's ability of charge punching. Can anyone tell me which zone of the circle does more damage?

The larger red zones or the yellow tiny ones?

Common sense would be on the yellow ones, since they're more difficult to pull, but I seem to get more output damage from red zones.

It's the smaller red one between the yellow ones. Why? Who knows. Terrible design language.

 

[fart town usa]

If people are using its predecessors to criticize XVI, it's only fair to also consider those predecessors to demonstrate that the criticisms may not hold true.
If we examine the mechanics of previous Final Fantasy games, it becomes evident that they were never overly complex, and the games were often relatively easy or susceptible to being exploited.

XVI is hollow and shallow by any standard, regardless of how prior titles in the series played. There's zero reason to drag the entire franchise because the hot new game is mediocre. We got people saying XVI is Final Fantasy as F, while also saying that the old games were just as linear, just as easy, just as empty etc. So does the entire franchise just blow then? You can't use the old games to prop up the new one and then trash the old games when you need to defend XVI.

 

[fart town usa]

Anyone else get Chris Benoit vibes from Blackthorne?

 

[Phalk]

XVI is hollow and shallow by any standard, regardless of how prior titles in the series played. There's zero reason to drag the entire franchise because the hot new game is mediocre. We got people saying XVI is Final Fantasy as F, while also saying that the old games were just as linear, just as easy, just as empty etc. So does the entire franchise just blow then? You can't use the old games to prop up the new one and then trash the old games when you need to defend XVI.

If that's how you see it, then yes. For me, neither the old games nor FFXVI are hollow or empty.

 

[DiGiTMerc]

As always for the non PS5 owners, we have to wait at least for a year, maybe two, to be released eventually on the PC as well.

 

[KBii]

As always for the non PS5 owners, we have to wait at least for a year, maybe two, to be released eventually on the PC as well.

Don't forget a potential 6-month or more likely EGS exclusivity agreement as what happened with FF7R. Square needs all the moneyhats it can get after all.

 

[Madflavor]

Clive can't be Jon Snow. He actually shows affection for his doggo.

 

[James Sawyer Ford]

XVI is hollow and shallow by any standard, regardless of how prior titles in the series played. There's zero reason to drag the entire franchise because the hot new game is mediocre. We got people saying XVI is Final Fantasy as F, while also saying that the old games were just as linear, just as easy, just as empty etc. So does the entire franchise just blow then? You can't use the old games to prop up the new one and then trash the old games when you need to defend XVI.

No the franchise is good

Maybe your tastes have changed

Seems like people want to turn FF into a souls game or something. Just because something is easy doesn’t mean it’s hollow or shallow

 

[Grildon Tundy]

Guys, I'm sad about this game. Pre-release, I tried out the demo on a whim, and was blown away by the production value and story. Now that I'm maybe halfway through the game, the story I thought it was going to tell is nowhere to be seen, and I'm having a very hard time giving a crap about the machinations of 20 different factions warring over fantasy land. I wanted a more intimate, character-driven story with the folks introduced in the demo, and that's not what it is. Bummer.

 

[jorgejjvr]

Wow game looks so much better with HDR off

 

[adamsapple]

Anyone else get Chris Benoit vibes from Blackthorne?

Blackthorne probably got the scar on his face from one too many flying headbutts.

 

[Luipadre]

Wow game looks so much better with HDR off

What lol. This game has the best HDR graphics i've ever seen.

 

[fart town usa]

No the franchise is good

Maybe your tastes have changed

Seems like people want to turn FF into a souls game or something. Just because something is easy doesn’t mean it’s hollow or shallow

I'm not even a die hard fan of the franchise and haven't mentioned anything that it should be like a Souls title. XVI is in a league of it's own in 2023 and comparing any game against it is an injustice to whatever game people are trying to throw under the bus to help XVI save face.

XVI has you running from checkpoint to checkpoint, fighting the same enemies, the occasional boss (which is fun), watching rigid NPCs talk incessantly about the most mundane things. I'm doing favors for people (some of them main quests) that involve buying garlic, finding an apprentice baker, food for my dog, etc. The "EPIC" Eikon fight sections are largely cut scenes with the occasional QTE. There is zero verticality in the environments. Like give me something to climb, let me stand atop something high and look out over the great looking environments. Why is there a jump button during exploration but no run button? Jumping is pointless because Clive will automatically vault over small ledges or anything you can actually hop over. Exploring areas leads to dead ends or finding crafting materials that you already have excessive amounts of. The water looks great but why can't I wade in it a bit? Why are there no fish in it? Maybe fish don't exist in this world but for as pretty as the water is, especially in the desert area, it's just there. I can't be stopping to admire the visuals of an empty non-interactive world. There is nothing in the game that makes me want to stick around, I'm just trying to get on to the next decent fight as quickly as I can.

The abilities don't seem to matter, it's just whichever you prefer or are used to. I don't need to give any thought to maximize my damage output because I plow through everything in my way. I'm not even good at DMC style games (and don't play them) but I haven't died a single time in XVI, I gotta be close to 2/3 of the way through. The actual AAA set pieces involve running into a room, cutscene showing enemies arrive, go into the next room, cutscene showing enemies arrive, etc. The gameplay loop is embarrassing for a PS5 exclusive in 2023.

XVI is a completely empty game that has a thin layer of flashiness to it. It is a game filled to the brim with terrible gameplay mechanics that were considered stale 10-20 years ago. The game feels like a bad joke at times. I'm honestly stunned that people so quick to defend this game. I'm happy for the people who love it but sheesh, there are so many things I'm a huge fan of but also recognize their faults. There's nothing wrong with recognizing something is a turd but you still proudly enjoy it and actually talk about why you like it rather than putting down everything you want to compare it to. I know I'd be enjoying the game more if it scored lower. The GOTY talk and 10/10 just make the issues stand out tenfold. Granted, I'm out of touch with big tentpole releases in modern gaming. I haven't played any of the heavy hitters so maybe XVI really is what AAA games are like these days. If so, I am not missing out on much of anything.

 

[jorgejjvr]

What lol. This game has the best HDR graphics i've ever seen.

Nope. Very dark and washed out. Turn off HDR on PS5 system settings, you'll see all the color you're missing lol

 

[DenchDeckard]

I just did the Kupka Titan fight...

What happened to him as a character and then who got ninja theory DMC to do the boss fight...wish they had actually got Noisia to do the tune...

Lol

That fight was so over the top I kinda loved it and just laughed at how shit it was but also great... lol

 

[Luipadre]

Nope. Very dark and washed out. Turn off HDR on PS5 system settings, you'll see all the color you're missing lol

Something wrong with your settings than. This game looks incredible in HDR. Deep blacks, amazing colors and highlights. Its truly one of the best HDR game out there.

 

[fart town usa]

Wow game looks so much better with HDR off

Might depend on the quality of your TV and the HDR settings within the actual PS5 system settings. I thought HDR looked like ass too but my buddy clued me in that because my TV screen so quality, I should lower the brightness in the PS5 settings because when I'd actually follow the brightness prompt, the image would be washed out cause of the natural brightness quality of the TV screen. Basically, the HDR brightness was way too high.

Once I tweaked the various HDR settings, I finally saw the value in HDR. Still not completely sold on it but it's definitely made a massive improvement for certain games.

 

[SlimySnake]

This guy made a mistake in his original FF16 HDR settings video and brought out a new tool to capture the best settings.

Basically turn off HGIG, use dynamic tone mapping, in game brightness to 2 and PS5 system level HDR settings 5-6 clicks from the bottom for the first two settings. he had recommended 11 clicks before.

 

[Luipadre]

This guy made a mistake in his original FF16 HDR settings video and brought out a new tool to capture the best settings.

Basically turn off HGIG, use dynamic tone mapping, in game brightness to 2 and PS5 system level HDR settings 5-6 clicks from the bottom for the first two settings. he had recommended 11 clicks before.

I use HGIG and 5 ingame settings and the game looks amazing and looks how it should look imo

 

[fart town usa]

I just did the Kupka Titan fight...

What happened to him as a character and then who got ninja theory DMC to do the boss fight...wish they had actually got Noisia to do the tune...

Lol

That fight was so over the top I kinda loved it and just laughed at how shit it was but also great... lol

Potential Titan fight spoilers.

 

[James Sawyer Ford]

XVI has you running from checkpoint to checkpoint, fighting the same enemies, the occasional boss (which is fun), watching rigid NPCs

So basically the same as plenty of games? I could say the same thing of Hogwarts and ToTK....or basically any open world.

XVI is a completely empty game that has a thin layer of flashiness to it. It is a game filled to the brim with terrible gameplay mechanics that were considered stale 10-20 years ago. The game feels like a bad joke at times. I'm honestly stunned that people so quick to defend this game. I'm happy for the people who love it but sheesh, there are so many things I'm a huge fan of but also recognize their faults. There's nothing wrong with recognizing something is a turd but you still proudly enjoy it and actually talk about why you like it rather than putting down everything you want to compare it to. I know I'd be enjoying the game more if it scored lower. The GOTY talk and 10/10 just make the issues stand out tenfold. Granted, I'm out of touch with big tentpole releases in modern gaming. I haven't played any of the heavy hitters so maybe XVI really is what AAA games are like these days. If so, I am not missing out on much of anything.

I'm stunned that you manage to think the flaws FFXVI has are exclusive to FFXVI. I don't see any terrible gameplay mechanics. The combat is superb. Is it easy? Yes. Are most ARPGs these days easy (I can literally name all of them, Ass Creed, Witcher, God of War, etc).

Sounds like you're just being overly harsh for some reaosn, or maybe you don't play ANY of the games I mentioned. The combat is better than any of those other titles so to say its got terrible mechanics is flat out false.

So I think it's more that you're greatly exaggerating the flaws this game has. I recognize its flaws, but it by no means has made me think of any of the thoughts you've placed in that post.

If you don't play AAA games, what do you consider a GOTY title? Sounds like you are out of touch. I can see how people would claim FF16 is a 7 or 8 if they REALLY dislike the low points the game has, but if you don't mind them I can easily see how someone would also consider it their personal GOTY or 9.5/10 title as well. To claim it's some 3/10 terrible abysmal game like you paint is just nonsense to me.

 

[fart town usa]

So basically the same as plenty of games? I could say the same thing of Hogwarts and ToTK....or basically any open world.



I'm stunned that you manage to think the flaws FFXVI has are exclusive to FFXVI. I don't see any terrible gameplay mechanics. The combat is superb. Is it easy? Yes. Are most ARPGs these days easy (I can literally name all of them, Ass Creed, Witcher, God of War, etc).

Sounds like you're just being overly harsh for some reaosn, or maybe you don't play ANY of the games I mentioned. The combat is better than any of those other titles so to say its got terrible mechanics is flat out false.

So I think it's more that you're greatly exaggerating the flaws this game has. I recognize its flaws, but it by no means has made me think of any of the thoughts you've placed in that post.

If you don't play AAA games, what do you consider a GOTY title? Sounds like you are out of touch. I can see how people would claim FF16 is a 7 or 8 if they REALLY dislike the low points the game has, but if you don't mind them I can easily see how someone would also consider it their personal GOTY or 9.5/10 title as well.

I probably just am wildly out of touch but all the same, I still play PS3 titles, Wii U, PSX, PSVR2, I play it all. For me if you want actual epic spectacle, get a VR headset. I know that isn't feasible but there is nothing that epic about XVI, it's just cutscene spectacle and character model swaps that force a perspective change on a flat screen. You're basically just zoomed in and fighting a bigger enemy. Something like Farpoint on PSVR is actually epic. When you're fighting a 100 story alien monster, you're there and actually staring up at it. Playing older generations of gaming also gives me a wider perspective on what XVI actually offers. I am telling you, there is nothing in XVI that is more impressive than something like Lords of Shadow. LOS has better environment layout, has actual platforming, delivers lore in a more effective way. The combat has more options, the SOTC-inspired bossfights in LOS are impressive and much more interactive. You're actually doing the epic stuff rather than watching a cutscene. Maybe people forgot what games have done in the past and just assume that XVI is something cutting edge.

I don't play enough new games each year to comment on what should be GOTY but seeing the programming wizardry of TOTK, I'd say that game will probably get it unless something more impressive releases in the Fall.

 

[James Sawyer Ford]

I probably just am wildly out of touch but all the same, I still play PS3 titles, Wii U, PSX, PSVR2, I play it all. For me if you want actual epic spectacle, get a VR headset. I know that isn't feasible but there is nothing that epic about XVI, it's just cutscene spectacle and character model swaps that force a perspective change on a flat screen. You're basically just zoomed in and fighting a bigger enemy. Something like Farpoint on PSVR is actually epic. When you're fighting a 100 story alien monster, you're there and actually staring up at it. Playing older generations of gaming also gives me a wider perspective on what XVI actually offers. I am telling you, there is nothing in XVI that is more impressive than something like Lords of Shadow. LOS has better environment layout, has actual platforming, delivers lore in a more effective way. The combat has more options, the SOTC-inspired bossfights in LOS are impressive and much more interactive. You're actually doing the epic stuff rather than watching a cutscene. Maybe people forgot what games have done in the past and just assume that XVI is something cutting edge.

I don't play enough new games each year to comment on what should be GOTY but seeing the programming wizardry of TOTK, I'd say that game will probably get it unless something more impressive releases in the Fall.

I got a VR headset and enjoy it but the spectacle in FF16 is some top tier stuff....lords of the shadow? really?

I dunno, just strong disagree on your commentary.

 

[jorgejjvr]

Something wrong with your settings than. This game looks incredible in HDR. Deep blacks, amazing colors and highlights. Its truly one of the best HDR game out there.

I would agree with you if this were something like horizon forbidden West, holy shit is hdr amazing there, but for some reason it's washed out in this game. HDR works great in most games btw

So it's a this game thing.

 

[Luipadre]

I would agree with you if this were something like horizon forbidden West, holy shit is hdr amazing there, but for some reason it's washed out in this game. HDR works great in most games btw

So it's a this game thing.

As i said my game doesnt look washed out at all.

 

[jorgejjvr]

This guy made a mistake in his original FF16 HDR settings video and brought out a new tool to capture the best settings.

Basically turn off HGIG, use dynamic tone mapping, in game brightness to 2 and PS5 system level HDR settings 5-6 clicks from the bottom for the first two settings. he had recommended 11 clicks before.

This basically proves my point. It's grabbing the wrong information it seems. Without knowing and doing exactly what he says in this video, it will look washed out.

Thank you. I will try for myself

 

[jorgejjvr]

So yeah I kept watching the video and other videos. For THIS game you have to make specific ps5 HDR adjustments just to get the correct peak brightness. For most games doing the correct steps that the ps5 tells you (hide the sun), it works fine. So it's not really something you could just know

 

[fart town usa]

I got a VR headset and enjoy it but the spectacle in FF16 is some top tier stuff....lords of the shadow? really?

I dunno, just strong disagree on your commentary.

Disagree all you want, it's objectively true. Go play LOS again or don't comment on it at all because you don't know what you're talking about if you think that LOS is some scrub game that XVI dwarfs.

 

[Nankatsu]

The parallelisms this game has with game of thrones...are a bit too much.

The scene showing why Dion goes insane before going full rampage bahamut...

Spoiler

Kingslayer, bruh.

I mean the buildup is amazing, but if you watched Game of Thrones it goes from an amazing to a "Yeah, right, I got that reference".

 

[Madflavor]

I just did the Kupka Titan fight...

What happened to him as a character

Nothing out of the ordinary for him. His love for Benedikta was established more than once within the first 10 hours of the game.