Final Fantasy 16 Rumor Warns of "Panic" at Square Enix

According to a new rumor, there is some "panic" at Square Enix in regards to Final Fantasy 16. More specifically, Square Enix, according to this rumor, are "slightly panicking" about the pre-order numbers of the game, which are supposedly lower than Final Fantasy 15's pre-order numbers. The report comes the way of industry insider Imran Khan, a source that has proven both reliable and unreliable in the past. According to Khan, the forecast takes into account the fewer platforms.

Adding to this, Khan relays word of Final Fantasy 7's sales, noting that while the remake sold "quite good" at first, its sales slowed down quicker than Square Enix forecasted. 

"I bring this up because I had heard recently that Square Enix is panicking slightly over Final Fantasy 16 preorder numbers, which are tracking behind Final Fantasy 15 even accounting for the lesser number of launching platforms. Granted, those are pre-order numbers and they're usually only useful to gauge guaranteed day-one sales (versus potential day-one sales), so the actual number could blow everyone away. But with the current tracking, I wonder if they want to remind people the next chapter of Final Fantasy 7's remake trilogy exists and give it more marketing time than they had planned. The initial sales of Remake were quite good, but it slowed down faster than Square Enix seemed to expect, so I imagine they really want Rebirth to sell as well as possible. Well, of course they do, but I imagine they're really, really hoping for an uptick in sales."

Is any of this true? Who knows. That said, even if it is this doesn't mean the game is in trouble. Pre-Order numbers can be useful for gauging day-one sales, but not much else. So far, Final Fantasy 16 looks poised to be a major success for Square Enix. More importantly, the game looks and sounds great, which is all that matters for fans.

Final Fantasy 16 is set to release worldwide on June 22, 2023. When it releases, it will be exclusive to the PlayStation 5, and will be exclusive to the platform for at least six months, if not longer, and potentially, much longer.