We know Final Fantasy 16 is widely regarded – and critically rated – as one of the best PS5 RPG games of all time, but that doesn’t mean it’s the perfect game. Of course, the characters are all delightfully portrayed by the Final Fantasy 16 cast and there’s quite a lot to get stuck into when it comes to Valisthea and the map. However, one part of Final Fantasy 16 disappointing players is the weapon upgrade system; specifically, the fact that you can’t really upgrade Clive’s iconic sword Invictus once you get your hands on it – which, in a matter of minutes, becomes sort of worthless.
If you’re still working your way through Final Fantasy 16, you’ll be pleased to know unlocking Clive’s Invictus is an unmissable moment in a mid-game quest – and, thankfully, it’s the best weapon you can get your hands on up until this point. This iconic weapon boasts both 165 damage and 165 stagger, which means it will pair quite nicely with the best abilities each Eikon offers.
Although, as mentioned above, there’s quite a big catch – and it’s frustrating fans. As a rare purple-grade weapon, you can’t actually upgrade and improve upon the stats Invictus has to offer. The stats it has, when it comes to damage and stagger, are the best they’re going to be – plain and simple.
At first, when you get your hands on it, this isn’t too much of an issue. It looks great and it hits hard. If you were to jump into a battle against one of Final Fantasy 16’s bosses there and then, it would put in a good shift and deal decent amounts of damage. However, in less than half an hour of gameplay beyond this point, it’s possible to unlock and equip a better weapon. This makes using Invictus a little pointless and Clive’s iconic sword rather obselete. In fact, you could go as far as to say it’s a bit of an insult to fans who have been waiting to see this blade in action.
As highlighted in the comments of this Subreddit thread criticizing the fact that you can’t upgrade Invictus to keep it relevant to the loot you find in-game, user ‘NOMUMON’ has explained that you can get your hands on “Flametongue less than 30 minutes [after unlocking Invictus]” – a weapon that deals 180 damage and 180 stagger. This might seem like a small increase from Invictus’ stats, but it’s an increase nonetheless.
This isn’t a guaranteed weapon like Invictus, however. You’re going to need to craft Flametongue using a Flame Shard from an Infernal Eikon. You should have what you need to get your hands on it once you’ve played for a little longer, though, so it isn’t exactly a hard weapon to get access to. That also doesn’t take away from the fact that it makes the game’s most iconic weapon rather pointless.
Content creator ‘TheUntouchableWolf‘ also highlights this in an “ultimate guide” to using Invictus below – and you can actually see that they also have the ability to unlock Flametongue when they get their hands on it. There are ways you can boost your weapon damage universally, but the fact that this isn’t tied directly to Invictus still means it’s obselete in the face of later-game loot items. They do recommend you keep any rare purple-grade weapons you unlock, though – as they’re useful in crafting legendary weapons later down the line. So, Invictus isn’t totally useless – which, we suppose, is something.
You might be able to take a look at this iconic weapon in the Tower of London in England, but don’t expect to see much of it in-game when you finally earn it – unless you want to play at something of a disadvantage. You will be able to upgrade other weapons in Final Fantasy 16’s Hideaway, though, so it’s well worth checking back there regularly.
If you’re preparing yourself for a New Game Plus playthrough, however, you should check out this explainer on the ending and take a look at this epic AP farm. Unlocking all the abilities in-game can be a chore, so this should speed things up a little bit.