Final Fantasy 16 The Rising Tide is inching ever closer as we enter the DLC’s Spring 2024 release window. One of the biggest questions surrounding the PS5 RPG’s final piece of post-launch content pertains to whether it will offer up an alternative conclusion to Clive’s adventure. According to producer Naoki ‘Yoshi-P’ Yoshida, the answer is a resounding ‘no’, and be warned there are main story spoilers ahead.
Speaking to Game Informer as part of a fresh interview, Yoshi-P says that Clive obtaining Leviathan’s Eikonic might won’t affect the PS5 exclusive’s ending. However, “you will get a deeper understanding of how the world of Valisthea is and how the characters are in Final Fantasy 16.” By the sounds of things, we won’t be getting any further clarity on the fates of key characters following FF16’s finale.
While FF16’s gripping narrative left us bursting at the seams to know whether Clive and Joshua survived the epic showdown with Ultima, it looks like their continued existence is being left open to interpretation. This writer personally believes that Clive croaked on the beach, echoing the beautiful yet heartbreaking ending to another of the best RPG games, Persona 3 Reload. There’s also every chance his Phoenix-like constitution kicked in to save him and he’s taking a quick nap in the sand, but we guess we’ll never know for sure.
Though Leviathan won’t be enough to change Clive’s fate, the sea serpent promises to make for a thrilling encounter. “One thing I can say is that there’s going to be a lot of water involved – visually, graphically, there’s going to be a lot of attacks made from Levithan and that comes with a lot of water,” DLC director Takeo Kujiraoka explains in the same interview. “It’s going to look really different from past Eikon battles, and that’s one thing that players can look forward to.”
Leviathan is always a pleasure to face off against in Final Fantasy, and 16’s iteration appears to be taking notes from the highly mobile and incredibly cinematic bout featured in Final Fantasy 15. Hopefully, it won’t be nearly as chaotic this time around, and we’ll be able to pop the motion sickness tablets away. Based on what December’s DLC trailer teased, it’s bound to be a real spectacle befitting one of 2023’s best games.
For more of the latest news on the best PS5 games, check out the new Fortnite update that lets you hurl lightning like Zeus himself. Alternatively, peep the new mechs in Helldivers 2 that have finally gone live.