This article is part of a directory: Final Fantasy 16: Complete Guide And Walkthrough
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I was first introduced to the Final Fantasy series at a friend’s house when I was just a kid. The only thing that really stuck with me was, ‘teehee, you put the guy in a dress’, and I didn’t think much of it until I played my cousin’s copy of Final Fantasy 8 sometime later and fell utterly in love with it. To be fair to FF7, my friend didn’t exactly showcase its selling points in the brief time he kept showing me Cloud in a dress.

After pestering my parents for my own copy of FF8 for my birthday, a lifelong obsession with the series began, and I haven’t looked back. I relished each new installment, even if it meant having to beg, borrow, or rent a copy for weeks on end from Blockbuster. Still, I had just as much fun discovering the games that launched before I knew what a Chocobo was as I did the new releases.

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Though we get the odd sequel or spin-off, each main title in the series is a standalone story with a unique cast of characters for players to fall in love with, worlds to explore, and exciting adventures to undertake. It lets players lose themselves in these worlds at any time, in any order, just like I did. But despite being separate narratives, common threads run throughout the series to tie the games together, from recurring themes to re-imagined musical arrangements, or fan-favourite series staples in the form of beloved monsters, creatures, and mechanics.

Clive and two soldiers facing off against a Mobol in Final Fantasy 16
Screenshots are from a bespoke version of Final Fantasy 16 made for media to experience, and the contents may differ from the final version.

After two hands-on previews with Final Fantasy 16, I’m reminded that part of Final Fantasy’s enduring legacy stems from how the series pays tribute to its past, with fan service rippling through the entries. There’s a layered approach to references that mean different players will attribute nods to various games, depending on their own personal history with the series.

I discuss in my preview how the opening reminded me of Final Fantasy 11’s opening, but that doesn’t mean it’ll be the same for every fan out there. We also saw a dragoon standing atop a steeple in a classic pose that older fans will acknowledge as Kain Highwind’s pose from Final Fantasy 4. Others might pair this with more recent titles that use the same reference, such as Final Fantasy 14’s Heavensward expansion.

Neither person is right or wrong. It’s this chain effect fan service that I love the most. It’s so interesting to hear how things resonate with different players, reminding them of moments from their most beloved games in the series, hitting notes that I might miss because, for me, these references mean something else entirely.

Shiva and Titan in Final Fantasy 16.
Screenshots are from a bespoke version of Final Fantasy 16 made for media to experience, and the contents may differ from the final version.

As I navigated Clive through a canyon while the giant forms of Shiva and Titan raged war in the background, offering a dramatic sense of scale, it reminded me of more than one past title. We’ve seen characters in the shadow of giant summons before — Final Fantasy 13’s fal’Cie towered over the characters, and coming across the frozen body of giantess Shiva in Final Fantasy 15 feels the same.

Final Fantasy 16 is delivering on fan service and paying tribute to its legacy. We know Garuda’s minions Chirada and Suparna and Benedikta saying ‘Now fall’ are both a tribute to the Garuda trial in Final Fantasy 14. The latest preview showcased that Orchestrions are making a return too, and we’ve already been promised that it’s not just Final Fantasy 14 that will be getting all the love, but Final Fantasy 12, too.

While for some of us FF16 is alluding to its impressive back catalogue, for others, it will be making new history. For any series newcomer that joins at FF16, this Cid will be the Cid they always think of, even though there are countless Cids across the games. Summons will make them think of the term ‘Eikons’ more than anything else. When later games launch, they’ll see things that remind them of FF16, even if at the time, FF16 was paying tribute to an older title. For that player, it will be a throwback to the first time they saw it, and regardless of where the idea originated, it’s our own interpretation and how we relate to the games that give them meaning.

Cid against a firey background in Final Fantasy 16.
Screenshots are from a bespoke version of Final Fantasy 16 made for media to experience, and the contents may differ from the final version.

The series is taking a step in a new direction with Final Fantasy 16, becoming darker and more mature in a way we haven’t seen before. It’s not the first time that the series has evolved. For many players, classic Final Fantasy games come to mind when discussing turn-based combat, but Final Fantasy 15 was the first to forgo this tradition for action combat instead.

We can get too caught up in the idea that change is bad, but remaining the same could be just as risky - the series could become stagnant if it never attempts to push its limits. Through the revival of FF14 and the boisterous arrival of Final Fantasy 7 Remake, the series has shaken off accusations of staleness by becoming something fresh. Many things make a Final Fantasy game, and you can add, remove, or swap elements you might believe are ‘core’ components while still retaining that feeling of a true Final Fantasy.

Part of what makes Final Fantasy the series it is isn’t necessarily the combat, tone, or any other elements. After all, you can have a game without moogles and it can still feel like a Final Fantasy game. A large part of what makes the series is the feeling behind each game, and this sense of an ongoing legacy that transcends the separate titles. Final Fantasy 16 is the latest in this long legacy, and for a lot of players, it will also be the beginning.

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