Wark Digest #109 - Clive Has Arrived
Welcome back to the Wark Digest, your weekly newsletter of new developments and historical insights from the Final Fantasy universe. I’m Chris, aka Hoogathy, and this week Final Fantasy XVI is finally here. Let’s see what the early reactions say, try to wrap our heads around some bizarre marketing initiatives, and take a quick detour to War of the Visions.
This week’s newsletter is 1535 words, a 7-minute read.
Final Fantasy XVI Reviews
The big day has come at last, and Final Fantasy XVI is now available. Maybe you’re taking a break from your trek through Valisthea to read this newsletter—or maybe you’re still on the fence about the game. Here’s what critics are saying, as well as our own thoughts after completing this epic quest…
Critical consensus and early impressions:
At the time of this writing, Final Fantasy XVI ranks…
88 on Metacritic (93 positive, 7 mixed, 0 negative)
90% Top Critic Average on OpenCritic, earning the “Mighty” label
There’s a little cognitive dissonance with the action-RPG elements—while many critics think it lives up to the series name, there are still detractors who question how “Final Fantasy” it is
However by and large, judging by comments on social media and Discord, it seems like the majority consensus among fans after the first day is… pretty positive!
Eikon battles are a big hit, as are Clive and Torgal
What Chris thought:
Despite how different combat and character building are from the Final Fantasy baseline, I haven’t felt this enthralled with a brand new FF since X or X-2
While the western influences (like Game of Thrones) are prevalent, it hits so many classic FF themes with a modern touch
The “roller coaster” analogy Yoshida has used is fitting, for the most part: major plot points like Eikon battles are the exhilarating drops, while the side quests between make the escalation to those points all the more potent
All told, I was hooked for my entire 60-hour playthrough thanks to its malleable battle system and rich presentation, and I can’t wait to see what you all think (and the different move combinations you come up with)
What Darryl thought: We’re actually on a pretty similar page on this one—check out the link to our extensive Final Fantasy Union review at the bottom of this issue to hear his full thoughts!
What’s next? There’s going to be plenty to discuss over the next few weeks as the community progresses through the game and unravels its mysteries—just don’t forget that this is a huge game, and mind you don’t spoil anything for people who haven’t played as far as you! (In the meantime, you can check out my full Final Fantasy XVI review at CGMagazine.)
Launch Week Lightning Round
The last days before Final Fantasy XVI’s launch saw some interesting (and sometimes unexpected) promotions. Here’s a roundup of the weirder ways the game was promoted + other things of note around the larger Square Enix community this week.
A replica of Clive’s sword Invictus is on display at the Tower of London until July 19th alongside the UK’s national collection of arms and armour—the first time a video game sword has been displayed alongside historical gear worn by real kings
…which is an achievement I never expected to see
Square Enix has also partnered with fashion designer Edmond Luu and Pièces Uniques, who created eight outfits inspired by the Eikons and Dominants
Luu appears in a surprisingly heartfelt commercial for the collab, talking about his history with the series
Renowned artist BossLogic produced an official piece of artwork for the game (seen above), while a new piece from character designer Kazuya Takahashi was also released this week (further above)
Channeling that Torgal good boy energy, SE partnered with the Australian RSPCA to (what else) dress up dogs as Eikons
From around the FF social media scene:
FFVIIR’s account sent their “warm regards” to the FFXVI team with a fun mockup screenshot of Ifrit, featuring unique commands
Ray Chase passed the protagonist torch with a congratulatory message: “So happy for the team at Square Enix and all the phenomenal reviews coming in for Final Fantasy XVI! The tradition for FF to be a standard-bearer holds strong. Walk tall, my friends.”
The godfather himself Sakaguchi has received his own PS5 + FFXVI bundle—and we hope he’ll livetweet his thoughts as he did for FFXIV
In other news, a new remaster of Super Mario RPG has been announced for Nintendo Switch, and it appears Square Enix may be involved in some capacity—but to what exact extent remains unclear
At least composer Yoko Shimomura has confirmed she’s involved
Will Culex return? And will his music remain the same? Time will tell
Star Ocean: The Second Story R, a HD-2D remake of the PS1 classic, was also announced; while it’s not directly related to Final Fantasy, as Star Ocean was an Enix IP, it’s interesting to note the unique spin the remake is putting on the familiar HD-2D approach—could we see something like this in future FF projects?
War of the Visions Gets Influential
Last week saw influencer Addison Rae added as a new collaboration unit in War of the Visions: Final Fantasy Brave Exvius, and Square has been talking about how this unlikely team-up came to be.
What’s going on:
Until October 31, WOTV players can receive the “Addison Rae (Neo Vision)” unit for free via a login bonus, alongside the components to awaken it
The sprite was designed by legendary pixel artist Kazuya Shibuya
There’s both a “starter quest” to test out her powers, and a story questline where Rae enters the world of WOTV and adventures with the cast
Rae will also appear on the WOTV YouTube channel today, June 23, at 11PM EST, while Square Enix has also published an interview with Shibuya and Rubi Asami (who illustrated the Vision card) about how they approached the assignment
What we thought:
This collab was first brought up back in November, and now that it’s truly here… it still feels really weird
Partnering with musicians like Katy Perry and Arianna Grande for mobile games is one thing, as they have a broader reach; partnering with an influencer feels a little more… pessimistic, or like a shameless cashgrab
I’m still not convinced of the crossover potential, though admittedly, I still don’t do TikTok and had no idea who Rae was until the original announcement
I will also admit, I’ve been skeptical of Gumi’s business practices since long before they partnered with Square Enix for the original Brave Exvius, as they tend to lean into the more predatory side of gacha
How many of Rae’s followers are truly going to download WOTV and play it for more than a few minutes? And how many FF fans are going to (re)download it for a cameo unit? That’s both a rhetorical and genuine question, I’d love to know how beneficial it is to WOTV and Square Enix
However I will say, as an outsider to the game, that WOTV appears to have done an admirable job integrating Rae into it via actual story missions, deep dives into the process, and even recruiting Shibuya
It would be easier just to slap a new limited-time unit into the game sans explanation and call it a day, but putting any effort into relating her into the story (even if it’s not canon) helps alleviate my cash-grabbing concerns a little
The initial announcement mentioned that Rae is a longtime fan of the series—but it would be nice to hear a little more about that
It seems condescending to say “we’re putting her in the game because she’s famous and a fan” without elaborating any further
As fans, who doesn’t love hearing other people (maybe especially famous or Tiktok-famous people) talk about something that we love?
What’s next? Who knows, maybe this is actually working from a revenue perspective? Per current data from app tracking site Sensor Tower, each version of WOTV (Android and iOS) earns over $600k/month, while the bafflingly-lucrative FFXV apps War for Eos and A New Empire each do about $500k. For comparison, Record Keeper (JP) still earns about $300k, while Opera Omnia has slumped to about $200-300k per platform.
Around the Union
The first mainline game in 6.5 years is a momentous occasion, and thus several new videos to help you get up to speed!
First up, as previously mentioned, we have Darryl’s full, extensive review of Final Fantasy XVI, spoiler free! If you’re still on the fence, perhaps this could help sway you to a resolution.
For those of you who are taking the plunge and would appreciate some pointers, check out our “Ultimate New Player Guide!”
And stay tuned this weekend for our first guide for the game, focused on the Phoenix’s abilities!
Meanwhile, Lauren had the chance to sit down with Ben Starr himself for The Games That Made Me on Ginx TV—check out the full hour-long talk above, or on your podcast service of choice!
Now you’re up to speed! From the whole team at Final Fantasy Union, thank you for subscribing. Please let us know what you think of our coverage, and what you’d like to see covered in our weekly installments. As ever, if you’ve enjoyed our work, please share it with your friends!
Find us on social media: Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Discord
Until next time, kupo!