The best game of 2023 is also the most radical
On turning subtext into text, the chaotic nature of revolution, and why Final Fantasy 16 has historical importance
(For the remainder of my games of 2023 list, from 25-2, click here)
Last year, after playing Final Fantasy XV for the first time, I wrote this comment in my 2022 games review.
Hot take: I actually loved the FFXV setting more than the typical high fantasy fare we get from these games. The slightly modern twist and the relatable bonds between the core friendgroup kept me going, even as some elements of traversal were pretty grindy. … It was glitchy and buggy and felt unfinished, but it’s made me optimistic for FFXVI.
I had high expectations for FF16. However, it surpassed them - and impressed me more in terms of its combat and content than any game I can recall. The combination of gameplay mastery, characterization, and straight-up ballsy decisions made by EVERY person who touched this title made it the most unforgettable gameplay experience of the year for me. Not only that, I’ll go farther - this game feels historically important. It’s the kind of title that will have reverberating implications for years to come on the medium, the franchise, and the fanbase who played it. I don’t generally play games more than once - I beat FF16, in its entirety, twice (and may go for thirds in January prior to the release of Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth).
There’s just so much to say about this game, and why I loved it. I do have critiques, as no work of art is perfect. However, when ranking these games, I try to prioritize those that do the most good vs. tripping up in certain places. Ambition is rewarded over standard fare. And FF16 is anything but standard. Some spoilers may follow.
A Revolutionary Premise
FF16 starts with mercenary Clive Rosfield left stranded on a battlefield with naught but regret and belligerent mercenaries for company. He was a member of the Rosarian Royal family once, the Shield for his beloved brother, Joshua. After an ambush by the Empire of Sanbreque, it seemed as if Joshua, while embodying the Phoenix, was killed by an unknown Dominant creature. Now, Clive is cast aside, branded and forced to murder for hire.1
Clive is tasked with murdering the Dominant of Shiva, an abused woman forced to fight by the Ironblood Kingdom. In a moment of realization, Clive realizes this is his old friend, Jill Warrick. He spirits her away and both are approached by Clive’s faithful hound, Torgal, and the mysterious Cidolfus Telamon. And this is where the game truly begins.
Cidolfus (call him Cid) is a revolutionary who wants to destroy the Mothercrystals across the large continent of Valisthea in order to reorient the power dynamics in the world. He sees the Branded abused and cast aside, drained of their magic and forced to work for others, and wants to free them forcibly. Over time, he recruits Clive, Jill, and others to his cause, serving as an inspirational figure who constantly inspires his wards as they partake in battle after battle.
One pervasive theme in FF16 is the question of statehood against personhood - what is a state without the people who consist of it, and what nation is worth protecting if it means casting aside the lives of those who inhabit it. It’s brought up in battle after battle as leaders grapple and content with this question. Is the point of war and conquering to WIN? When is enough enough? I’ve said previously that I’m not the biggest fan of high fantasy, but something about Valisthea felt more modern than most other fantasy worlds. Cid, the iconoclast, is just there to speed up the process.
The most interesting part of the arc of Cid and Clive’s revolution is how messy it is. Revolution in a lot of stories is wrapped up in a bow pretty quickly after the final killing blow is levied. In FF16, things get way worse before they get better for EVERYONE - including those Cid and Clive are attempting to liberate. It offers an interesting point of contrast with the conquering done by the major nations throughout the main story. We see Cid and Clive as liberators, but what do the Bearers in Rosaria see? As the world crumbles around them, do they know that this is all FOR them? Do they care?
The revolutionary story told by FF16 is messy (especially the ending, which is a little convoluted), but I think that was the point Yoshi-P was trying to convey. This tale resonates, especially now as occupying forces in the world seek to flex military might in order to terrorize innocent civilians. It is a reminder that we should care more about people than a country’s flag or statist determination. It also evokes a simple fact - sometimes, stories don’t wrap up simply or succinctly in the moment, but that doesn’t mean you haven’t won - you just haven’t won YET. This pro-personhood, anti-war message is evocative throughout the story, which is why it resonated with me so deeply.
However, a story is nothing without great action and gameplay. Thankfully, FF16 thrives in those areas.
Ghosts and Gameplay
Final Fantasy 16’s boss battles, quite simply, are some of the coolest of all time. The Kupka/Titan boss battle? Incredible. The final battle? Amazing. Nothing, for my money, beats the Bahamut fight in the middle of the game - just the coolest, brain exploding, sparkly light shit. I think it’s a top three boss fight of all time in terms of sheer spectacle. It reminded me of the final Bayonetta fight…except there were still hours of game left to go.
More subtly, though, the Dominant system is what makes this work so well for me.
In 2020, I named Ghost of Tsushima my game of the year for three main reasons: the visuals/vibe, one side mission at Omi Village (about a grandmother succumbing to dementia) which I still think about from time to time, and the brilliant stance-changing battle system. Yoshi-P and the FF16 creators must have loved the stance system as well because they put their own twist on it via the Dominant system. While the incredible soundtrack (composed by Masayoshi Soken as he underwent treatment for cancer) and the stunning visuals lay a top-notch foundation, it is the action that really solidifies this game as top tier.
I had so much fun messing around with all the different Dominants and experimenting with their combat styles. Titan’s Wind Up, Ramuh’s Judgement Bolt, and Odin’s Zantetsuken were personal favorites. Figuring out the right ways to switch stances and stagger all of the attacks so they would hit enemies for maximum impact always led to thoughtful combinations and optimizations. They also made my second playthrough even more fun then the first - getting to use some of the later earned powers a bit more allowed for a fresh experience. The combat throughout this game was never a matter of mashing buttons randomly - it was the perfect blend of thoughtful allocation with high intensity, which I appreciated.
One element of this game I was worried about was the fast travel system - I actually liked the open-world elements of FFXV and was worried I would miss it. In hindsight, the system posed by the game generally works, and was not bothersome. The items and upgrades, similarly, worked fairly well and were standard.
If I had to give one piece of critique, it’s that the Odin boss battle felt underbaked against the rest. Compared to Clive Sonic-The-Hedgehog-running up Titan’s body and flying in the sky with rainbow cascades erupting in the background, the Odin fight didn’t hit the same way. I get the intent, it just could have been handled a little differently. Overall, though, battles in this game felt great. This was the most fun combat I had in any game this year.
The only thing better than slaying was who was doing it.
I Give A Shit About These Characters
From the moment Dion Lesage comes on the screen in FFXVI, the player knows that he means business.
Dion strides in, lance in hand, prepared to charge into battle as Bahamut to protect the Kingdom of Sanbreque from Odin. Upon receipt of the weapon from his right hand, Terence, he jumps into the fray and transforms into the massive dragon, casting a looming shade over the battlefield.
As I was playing FF16 for the first time (unspoiled), I was immediately drawn to Dion. I wanted to know his deal, his journey, his backstory. He definitely didn’t seem like a wholly villainous character, even though I knew we were doomed to eventually fight him (as with every Dominant). I continued to play.
And then, in a quiet scene after a battle, Dion kissed Terence on the lips .
I’m not going to harp on turning subtext into text, but Final Fantasy, and mainstream Japanese media as a whole, have not always had the best history of queer representation. Previous iterations have been either offensive (to the extent of the naked bathhouse men in FF7) or wink-nod but not explicitly stated (Vanille/Fang in FF13). For Yoshi-P, and FFXVI, to create a moment like this is groundbreaking. It is ballsy; I’ve worked with Japanese game companies before and I cannot state enough that getting this approved by higher-ups must have been an inhumanly arduous process. This is like Sisyphus finally making it to the top of the mountain or Prometheus breaking his chains without help. It’s an achivement of divine proportion.
Even better, Dion’s arc is incredibly interesting on its own (and he DOES eventually join your team toward the end of the game) - this is just one more element of his personality that helps to explain the reservedness of his demeanor, the desire to showcase his value, and the unwillingness to trust those around him. Dion’s existence, and presence, provide gravity to this story, and he stole the show as my favorite character of the game (and of the year, if I’m being honest).
My second favorite character this year? Miles Morales in Spiderman 2. However, Clive and Joshua Rosfield take the third and fourth place spots, respectively. I thought I’d dislike Clive and find him annoying, similar to my thoughts on Noctis in FFXV, but I was surprised. Clive feels like a genuinely good person in a bad situation - he’s emotional, driven, and headstrong, but sensitive. His brother, Joshua, is phenomenal as well. Scenes with him and Clive together can be dramatic (I cried at the end of the game because, as an older brother, I empathized with their plight), but there’s also a warmth in their interactions that can only come with love and a true shared history.
That love extends beyond just these three, too. Every character who inhabits the Hideaway wherein Clive hangs out between missions has a meaningful backstory. Vivian Ninetales, the historian, is an icon. Quentin, the leader of Lostwing, is an ex-papist who’s propensity for justice cost him his job and his loved ones. The apples grown at the Hideaway are named after someone who started the research process for them; her memory is evoked every time Clive finds a new one. Jill has a great arc - she’s received some criticism for being boring but her culminating moment is triumphant and rewarding. Even Torgal has secrets of his own for you to divine - and so does Ambrosia the Chocobo! We already talked about Cid, but there’s Otto, Harpocrates, Charon, Gavin, and so many others who we could discuss. Every character has a story and is portrayed with such nuance and care. When I first played FF16, I kind of sped through the side missions to get to the spectacle of the main story. My second time through, I devoured each one, and it made my experience SO much better. These are the best side missions of any game I’ve played outside of Cyberpunk 2077. They hit HARD.
I’m a sucker for character driven stories, and FF16 is one of the best I’ve ever played. This, more than anything, is what set it apart from other titles in 2023. In 5-10 years, I think current Gen Z are going to talk about Dion and Joshua like breathless millennials discussed Tifa and Aerith after they first played FF7. Not a single person will give a flying fuck about Hogwarts Legacy or Starfield ten years from now. I’m even a little skeptical about the staying power of TOTK and Baldur’s Gate 3, although I’m willing to hear arguments on the other side of those ledgers.
People will remember and care about FFXVI - and this, to me, is what sets it apart from the rest.
What’s Next
In just about two months, FF7 Rebirth will be released. Two DLCs have already been announced for FFXVI - and then, my guess is that we’ll be on to the development cycle of FFXVII.
I really, truly hope this is not the end of Clive, Joshua, Dion, Jill, and Torgal - at the very least, I want their spirits to be pervasive in future titles. There are a lot of bad actors on the internet who claim that FFXVI has sold badly and are using that as ammunition to snipe at the decisions made in the plotting and character development in the game - generally the data I’ve seen is more positive but is also pre-PC port. I think, once FF7 Rebirth and the PC port come out, people will sing a different tune about the success of this game.
Coming into FFXVI, I did not expect to adore this game as much as I did. Even without the amazing characters, the battles by themselves were enough to make this my Game of the Year. Finding stories like Quentin’s, and Gavin’s, and Martine’s, and ESPECIALLY Dion’s, were just the cherry on top.
Congratulations, Final Fantasy 16. Now, Square Enix, pay your god damn staff.
There are relevant and valid criticisms of the way FFXVI handles people of color and the Branded elements of the story. I don’t think it’s perfect. However, I do think that when the entire story of the game is viewed holistically, it is a fiercely “liberation” oriented-story that inspires revolution rather than staying entrenched in typical old political norms. Spiritually, to me, these are characters who evoke revolution and liberation rather than complacency. Feel free to disagree, but that is my take - no classic game has perfect politics and FF16 is no exception.