Whenever Final Fantasy XVI hits our gaming consoles, one thing is for certain. It will not be directed by Final Fantasy XIV director Naoki Yoshida.
Rumors have been swirling around that the director of Square’s most epic MMO RPG would be returning to the director’s seat once more to man the next big numbered Final Fantasy title. But Yoshida was quick to shoot those rumors down personally.
When asked by a fan during a recent Final Fantasy XIV stream if he would be directing the next Final Fantasy, Yoshida responded while also venting some frustration at the rumor.
“Looks like some kind of big fake news came out,” he said. “I’ll say it clearly, it’s annoying. I’m still going to continue being in charge of Final Fantasy XIV for more years to come as long as I don’t die from sickness or accident. So please ignore any non-official announcements. It’s so bothersome.”
Rumors of Final Fantasy XVI have been ongoing since a job posting back in 2019 indicated that Yoshida’s Third Development Division and Square were seeking qualified candidates to work on “a new core project following Final Fantasy XIV.”
It went on to note that Square was beginning the challenge of developing for the next generation. This could be a reference to next generation consoles like the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X, which are due out this holiday season.
The job listing also stated that the initial development of the project was complete and that it was heading into full-scale development moving forward.
The last bit of content for Final Fantasy XV was released in February 2019, so naturally all eyes began to turn to Final Fantasy XVI. It is possible that we might get some information as to the development of this game when next generation consoles are revealed.
Sony was slated to fully reveal the PlayStatio5 on June 4, but they have postponed the event in the wake of worldwide protests over the murder of George Floyd in the United States.
The most recent Final Fantasy title to be released was 2020’s Final Fantasy VII Remake. This game is a complete retelling and recreation of the original 1997 PlayStation 1 classic turn based RPG.
That game released back in April to rave reviews, becoming a huge financial success for Square. Of course, Final Fantasy VII Remake was only the first chapter in what has been designed to be a multi-game franchise.
The second installment of Final Fantasy VII Remake is currently under production, so it will be interesting to see whether we get Final Fantasy VII Remake chapter two or Final Fantasy XVI first.
