Game profile
Final Fantasy XVI
A grim power struggle over thrones, wars and gigantic summoned beings called Eikons stands at the center of this action heavy installment. Combat resembles character action games, punctuated by spectacular titan sized duels between Eikons.
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What kind of game this is
At its core this is JRPG / Action, set in a fantasy world. Visually it is going for realism, and the overall tone stays dark throughout. The structure is guided rather than open, so you are moved along instead of dropped into a map. It rewards long uninterrupted stretches more than quick check-ins.
The difficulty is moderate and fair, demanding attention without punishing you for it. The narrative carries the whole thing, and the mechanics serve it. It is a single player experience from start to finish. It runs on 3 platforms. It sits in the mid price bracket.
What stands out
- Dark fantasy narrative
- Spectacular Eikon battles
- Action heavy combat
This fits you if
- you want to live through a story, not just play a system
- you are after a proper adrenaline rush
- you can sit down for a proper long stretch without interruptions
- the writing matters more to you than the mechanics
- you play alone and want a complete experience without other people
- you prefer a darker, heavier tone
Look elsewhere if
- you skip cutscenes and want to get to the gameplay
- you only ever get short bursts of play time
- you want something light and easy going
- you specifically want an open world to roam
How long is Final Fantasy XVI?
About 45 hours in total. At three evenings a week and two hours each, you will be busy for roughly 8 weeks, or 23 sessions.
How the rating ranks
Critics settled on 92 out of 100, which puts it above 93 percent of the 1276 games here and at rank 71 overall. That is a strong score, comfortably above what most releases manage.
For comparison, JRPG averages 85 points across the database, so this one sits 7 points above its own genre. The figure rests on 227 collected ratings.
Released in 2023 and 3 years old. Recent enough to look and run modern, old enough to be patched and often discounted.
The facts
- Release year
- 2023
- Genres
- JRPG, Action
- Playtime
- approx. 45 hrs.
- Difficulty
- Moderate, fair
- Story weight
- Carries the whole game
- Play with
- Solo
- Setting
- Fantasy
- Visual style
- Realistic
- Price bracket
- Mid price
- Platforms
- PlayStation, PC, Xbox
- Critic rating
- 92 / 100
Direct comparison
| Genres | Release year | Playtime | Critic rating | Price bracket |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Final Fantasy XVI | 2023 | approx. 45 hrs. | 92 | Mid price |
| Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade | 2021 | approx. 40 hrs. | 92 | Mid price |
| Tales of Arise | 2021 | approx. 45 hrs. | 87 | Mid price |
| Kingdom Hearts III | 2019 | approx. 37 hrs. | 90 | Mid price |
If you liked this, try these
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- 87/100 Tales of Arise Shared: JRPG, Action, Fantasy
- 90/100 Kingdom Hearts III Shared: JRPG, Action, Fantasy
- 86/100 NieR: Automata Shared: JRPG, Action
- 83/100 Granblue Fantasy: Relink Shared: JRPG, Action, Fantasy, shorter
- 82/100 NieR Replicant ver.1.22474487139... Shared: JRPG, Action, Fantasy, shorter