Final Fantasy 16 Producer Drops Xbox Release Tease

It seems that on a long enough timeline, Final Fantasy XVI should end up releasing for Xbox Series X and S. Following its launch as a timed exclusive on PlayStation 5 this past year, Square Enix eventually confirmed that it was working on a version of the game for PC. For now, the Japanese publisher has yet to verify that the latest mainline Final Fantasy installment will come to other platforms such as Xbox, but a new statement all but confirms that this will happen. 

In a new conversation with Noisy Pixel, Final Fantasy XVI producer Naoki Yoshida was asked about how he felt about having to say goodbye to this world and characters with the release of The Rising Tide DLC, which will launch next month. In response, Yoshida said that this DLC won't really mark the end of the game's life as it will then end up being ported to PC. From here, those at Square Enix will then determine if the title should come to "other platforms" outside of PC. 

"It's not over in the sense that we have the PC version," Yoshida said. "Once the PC version is released, we're thinking about hopefully moving to other platforms as well. However, that's not really talking about the story; it's more about moving it onto different platforms. So, there is a sense that while the project is still going, there is not that sense of being sad and having to leave them yet."

Obviously, Yoshida saying that "other platforms" would be considered doesn't guarantee that Final Fantasy XVI will come to Xbox, but it's the most obvious destination for the game. Given that FFXVI is currently only on PS5, it's safe to assume that the game would be far too much for the Nintendo Switch to handle. This could end up changing in the future, though, as the Switch 2 (unofficial name) is rumored to be launching at some point in early 2025. Assuming that this hardware has far more power at its disposal, perhaps Final Fantasy XVI could be released on this console as well. 

For now, the PC iteration of Final Fantasy XVI doesn't have a specific release date at all, but it's likely to drop at some point in 2024. As for the aforementioned DLC, The Rising Tide, it will hit the PS5 version of Final Fantasy XVI on April 19.