Final Fantasy XVI launch trailer released, playable demo set for June 2023
The latest PlayStation showcase brought more footage from Final Fantasy XVI, in the form of a new, story-focused launch trailer. The Final Fantasy XVI Salvation trailer was centered around characters other than protagonist Clive Rosfield, and featured new lines of dialog and narrative from the wider cast.
Check it out below. Note that some of the story scenes shown may constitute narrative spoilers. Screenshots can be found in the gallery.
The trailer itself gives the most detailed look yet at Final Fantasy XVI's larger narrative. Players who've followed previous coverage of the game (including RPG Site's latest, lengthy preview) may be familiar with some of the early story beats and how the game is structured around multiple periods in Clive's life. However, the new trailer lays out the crisis facing Clive, his allies, and Valisthea itself in more detail, through lines of dialog. Valisthea is dying slowly due to the spread of the Blight, and this slow destruction sows chaos in the lands built around its Mothercrystals. That chaos includes violent disagreement on how to end the crisis, with some lines of dialog suggesting that Valisthea's Mothercrystals themselves may be related to the land's decline. Not everyone welcomes Clive's assistance or believes in his cause, least of all the Dominants that are allied to the various great nations. The trailer also features glimpses of the different Eikons in action, alongside snippets of combat gameplay and the cinematic flair of the Eikon battles.
Besides the trailer, Square Enix also confirmed that a playable FFXVI demo will be made available in June 2023. According to a statement from producer Naoki Yoshida given to 4gamer, the demo should last a couple of hours and allow players to carry over save data into the full game. The demo should release about two weeks before the game's June 22, 2023 launch date, which would put its debut around June 8, 2023.
Final Fantasy XVI will launch on the PS5 on June 22, 2023.
