Final Fantasy 16 producer wants summons to "go wild and destroy the map"
Eikons already have a huge presence in the game
Final Fantasy 16 producer Naoki Yoshida has revealed a few personal ambitions for the new action-RPG.
Today on July 14, Famitsu Weekly published a brand new issue featuring an interview with Final Fantasy 16 producer Naoki Yoshida. While some snippets have previously appeared, one new detail to emerge is that Yoshida wants summons to impact the in-game map.
"I want a story of a hero who saves the world, because this is Final Fantasy," Yoshida says in the recent Famitsu interview (thanks, VGC). "I want a summon to go wild and destroy the map. I want to release this game as soon as possible. I cannot release this game in parts," the producer continued.
Arguably the most eye-catching detail revealed in that section is that Yoshida wants summons (known as Eikons in Final Fantasy 16) to "destroy the map." Final Fantasy 16 isn't open world, but is instead split into smaller areas for players to explore at their leisure, not dissimilar to a Monster Hunter game.
Therefore, it's reasonable to expect a summon to wreck one of these small open areas completely. That's if Yoshida got his wish, but considering the producer has had a huge hand in shaping Final Fantasy 16 from its inception at Square Enix, it's likely on the cards for the final game.
Last month in June, GamesRadar+ was able to reveal brand new details about the aforementioned Eikons in our Final Fantasy 16 interview with Yoshida. It turns out protagonist Clive will be able to perform a number of unique moves tied directly to the powerful summons, and some will have moments you won't be able to find anywhere else in the game, like transforming into third-person shooters.
With these powerful Eikons playing a huge part in Final Fantasy 16, and bringing back returning summons like Garuda and Titan, we could well see parts of this new world decimated by them. Final Fantasy 16 launches next Summer in 2023 exclusively for the PS5, and it's certainly one of the most hotly anticipated games out there right now.
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Hirun Cryer is a freelance reporter and writer with Gamesradar+ based out of U.K. After earning a degree in American History specializing in journalism, cinema, literature, and history, he stepped into the games writing world, with a focus on shooters, indie games, and RPGs, and has since been the recipient of the MCV 30 Under 30 award for 2021. In his spare time he freelances with other outlets around the industry, practices Japanese, and enjoys contemporary manga and anime.