Final Fantasy 16was the main subject of a recent State of Play that takes players to the magical, war-ridden land of Valisthea, where they will have to carve out their place in the world alongside a small group of allies. Clive Rosfield takes point as the protagonist, and is joined by a friendly mercenary band led byFinal Fantasy 16’s Cid. With his pet wolf Torgal and adopted sister Jill, Clive is on the hunt for the people that ravaged his childhood home, all while dealing with the breakdown of peace plaguing the land.
It’s a lot to take in, but fortunately there are mechanisms to help keep track of it all.Final Fantasy 16’s action combat is equipped with plenty of accessibility options to ensure anyone can see the game through, and the world outside combat may be even more convenient. Multiple characters are present at Cid’s Hideaway to regale the player with information about the past, the present, and plenty of other things.Final Fantasy 16’s hideout hubis equipped with just about everything a player could ask for, but one particular detail about sidequests stands out not only withinFinal Fantasy,but for RPGs as a whole.
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Final Fantasy 16 Provides Instant Sidequest Access
Sidequests dot the slightly open, butgenerally linear world ofFinal Fantasy 16. Clive can access a list of every available sidequest via the Alliant Reports in the Hideaway, but given these sidequests need to be accepted in person, Reports provide instant fast travel to any NPC quest giver.
Sidequest Fast Travel is a Fundamental Change for Final Fantasy 16
For years, RPGs have stuck to a rigid system of progressing through sidequests: The player needs to either go to a quest giver or quest hub, followed by an NPC somewhere else. Once the player has completed the quest, they check back in with either the quest giver or the quest hub to turn it in. Some games have offered warps back to one of these areas after the deed is done, but most don’t. For especiallydense games likeFinal Fantasy 12orMorrowind, finding each part of a quest can be an adventure all on its own.
The need to explore the world has not been removed fromFinal Fantasy 16, but taking on optional content in older areas has been streamlined.FF16seems to defy even its own existing fast travel system by placing Clive directly in front of a desired quest giver, which may get in the way of accepting and turning in sidequests en masse, but could work wonders in a game with a light amount of detailed optional content. Ultimately, players will have to determine if this change proves helpful, butrevisiting older titles afterFinal Fantasy 16will make some miss this particular convenience.
Final Fantasy 16launches on June 22 for PS5.
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