Final Fantasy XVI arrives on PC September 17, requires 170 GB, demo is now available

[Daniel Sims]

Something to look forward to: Square Enix has been hinting at a PC release for Final Fantasy XVI since before its initial launch on PlayStation 5 last year. Now, the company has confirmed that the port will arrive in less than a month. Users can test how well their PCs will handle the game by downloading the free demo and checking the system requirements.

Pre-orders are now open for the PC version of Final Fantasy XVI, which will be available on Steam and the Epic Games Store starting September 17. A free demo is currently available on both platforms.

The demo allows users to benchmark the game's performance and explore PC settings. Square Enix has also provided basic system requirements, noting that the full release will require a substantial 170 GB of storage space – considerably more than the increasingly common 100 GB titles.

Other system requirements are on par with those of recent high-end games. Final Fantasy XVI requires a minimum of 16 GB of memory and 8 GB of video memory to achieve 30fps at 720p resolution.

For that performance level, Square Enix recommends GPUs like the AMD Radeon RX 5700, Intel Arc A580, or Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070. To reach 60fps at 1080p, you'll need at least an RX 6700 XT or GeForce RTX 2080. The recommended CPUs are an AMD Ryzen 7 5700X or an Intel Core i7-10700.

While system specs for 1440p or 4K gameplay aren't provided, Final Fantasy XVI supports DLSS 3, FSR frame generation, and XeSS, which can help achieve those higher resolutions. The RPG also supports DLAA and a maximum framerate of 240fps. Square Enix is offering the base game for $50 and a complete edition with two expansion packs for $70.

The original PlayStation 5 edition of Final Fantasy XVI sold below the publisher's expectations, but director Hiroshi Takai recently assured Rock Paper Shotgun that the future of the long-running franchise is secure. Despite Square Enix's market cap falling by 30 percent last year, stable revenue from its successful MMO, Final Fantasy XIV, helped offset some of the losses.

There is speculation that Final Fantasy XVI may have disappointed some fans due to its focus on action-based combat, which is a departure from the franchise's traditional RPG roots. Additionally, the PS5's relatively limited install base compared to previous platforms that hosted Final Fantasy games might have contributed to its initial sales performance.

Takai explained that a simultaneous PC release was never feasible, even if Square Enix had not signed a six-month exclusivity deal with Sony. The studio responsible for developing the game began work on the PC port only after the PS5 launch.

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Final Fantasy XVI arrives on PC September 17, requires 170 GB, demo is now available

 

[i like foxes]

Well , I have a game over 300GB but never played it . That game is not to my liking

 

[hazphan]

Always happy when a PS exclusive comes over to PC! I've resisted buying a PS5 for so many of them.

 

[DanteSmith]

Sounds decent.

 

[nitebird]

Not going to pay full price for a 1 year old game, hate exclusives.

 

[Atmajaya2020]

Wow, 170GB..
it's quite big, it will take me quite some time to download it..

 

[VitalyT]

They soon will run out of Latin numbers for the game, and should have called it Recurring Fantasy, there's nothing Final about it.

 

[dangh]

They soon will run out of Latin numbers for the game, and should have called it Recurring Fantasy, there's nothing Final about it.

They are still far away from M
And the game is really good, played it on ps5 already so probably wont take it again. At least the price is very good, already cheaper than it was on console. For the content provided it is totally worth it.

 

[passingposeidon]

The move from 'proper RPG' to action-slashy based combat is for sure bad. If they released a BG-3 style RPG but in the FF universe it would sell like hotcakes. But do we really want another hack and slashy game with a very average story? Why is this worth 50 hours of our time? There are just better games out there.

 

[kira setsu]

Played the demo pretty much all night, I was skeptical about the combat but imho it works really well, and the story from what I saw actually has me itching for more, I knew it would be wise to wait, and even though its not the most rock-solid port I've played recently its still alot better than most looks friggin insane @4k, when sept 17th hits I'll be dropping 70 smackers on it soon as I wake up.

 

[EdmondRC]

Hopefully better performance than FFXVII Remake saw on PC. I might consider picking it up on sale in the future if performance is there. The FF series though has lost a lot of its appeal with Square deciding that Western audiences really want Westernized games from Japanese studios instead of just sticking to what they did best.

 

[i like foxes]

EdmondRC , I cannot agree . FF VII Remake is a good example of good game . Game must be interesting and well done , which cannot be said for all FF games , at least for me .

 

[EdmondRC]

EdmondRC , I cannot agree . FF VII Remake is a good example of good game . Game must be interesting and well done , which cannot be said for all FF games , at least for me .

I personally liked FFVII Remake and Rebirth. In fact, these are the only reasons I own a PS5. However, Remake on PC had poor performance issues, which is the only reason I mentioned Remake. However, both of those games shoehorned in some Western social values, albeit somewhat in the background (except of course the musical number in Remake). I did not buy FFXVI on PS5 because I figured I would wait until it came to PC, since I primarily play PC games. It didn't ruin the games, but it certainly earned a grimace or two as I was playing them.