Final Fantasy XVI: Deluxe Edition

Featuring fast, reflex driven, action heavy combat, Final Fantasy 16 is certainly a departure from what fans may expect out of a Final Fantasy game, but its excellent story, characters, and world building are right up there with the best the series has to offer, and the innovative Active Time Lore feature should set a new standard for how lengthy, story-heavy games keep players invested in its world.

FFXVI is a bold shift in both gameplay and narrative, yet captures the Final Fantasy magic in stunning fashion, earning a place within the pantheon of incredible entries in the beloved franchise.

A smart combat system straining under the weight of a characterful but ponderous pseudo-medieval soap opera, with some of the grandest bosses and dullest sidequests in FF history.

Perhaps a bit too divergent from the Final Fantasy formula, but rich characters and spectacular combat still make it an impressive sequel.

Final Fantasy 16 is incredible when it doesn’t try to say anything meaningful

It's the kind of gamble that Final Fantasy has happily made in the past so that the series may reinvent itself to execute the type of story its creatives want to tell. Time will tell if Final Fantasy 16 pays off, but history certainly supports it.

When I look back at my time with Clive, his friends, his enemies, and Valisthea, it’s those highs that I vividly remember. FFXVI is very different from its predecessors, but in many ways, very familiar; And it’s still a Final Fantasy, through and through, reminding me why I love this series so much.

A more mature and realistic tone, stunning performances, a rounded likeable hero and a fully realised world make up for moments when this epic 40-hour game becomes a chore

Final Fantasy XVI remains an eloquent, sturdy work that achieves almost everything its creators hoped. It is not the most innovative Final Fantasy ever made. It’s just one of the best.

Final Fantasy has never played better, and 16’s cast is destined to be fan favourites. We just wish that when they are outside of the Hollywood blockbuster-tier adventures of the main quest, they were given some more interesting adventures to pursue.