While speaking to Final Fantasy XVI producer Naoki Yoshida in Square Enix’s Tokyo, Japan, offices last year for Game Informer’s cover story on the game, he told me there was currently no plans for DLC. However, a few months after the game’s June release during The Game Awards 2023, Square Enix revealed FFXVI would be getting two DLCs.
The first – Echoes of the Fallen – was a combat-centric DLC released that same night. The second – The Rising Tide – is a more expansive, story-focused DLC about the Leviathan Eikon curiously missing from the main game. While we still don’t know when to expect The Rising Tide other than this spring, I spoke to Yoshida and DLC director Takeo Kujiraoka about what players can expect and more, and you can read about that in my preview here.
I also asked the duo if the team, known as Creative Business Unit III within Square Enix, is interested in more DLC for FFXVI. After all, the reason Echoes of the Fallen and The Rising Tide exist is because “[after] seeing that positive reception, the positive comments from fans, towards the world of Final Fantasy XVI, towards Valisthea, we felt that this may be a good opportunity” to revisit the game, Yoshida tells me.
While Yoshida won’t say never, leaving the door just ever-so-slightly open, players probably shouldn’t expect more DLC for FFXVI.
Ifrit versus Leviathan
“That’s a difficult question,” Yoshida tells me through a translator when I ask about more DLC. “My honest answer is, ‘I don’t know at the moment,’ but at the same time, the possibility isn’t entirely zero. I don’t want to bar out any real possibilities at this time. The reason being is that we did spend a lot of effort […] and time creating this game […] and we put a lot of cutting edge technology into this game.
“And because of that, we were able to gain a lot of experience, a lot of learnings, that we can possibly apply to our next project or title. So my honest feeling is that the team does want to take on a new challenge and move on to a different project – maybe it’s a completely new game, perhaps in a completely new form of entertainment. I feel like ultimately, that might be the best route for not just the players, but for us as well, too. But again, to reiterate, the possibility of more DLC content for Final Fantasy XVI is not zero.”
And there you have it. As a big fan of Final Fantasy XVI – you can read my Game Informer review of it here – I’d love another reason to revisit this world. I’d take more DLC, a sequel, or even a movie tie-in a la Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children, to be honest. But my takeaway from this interview is the team is ready to move on, and I can also respect that.
For plenty more about the game, head to Game Informer’s Final Fantasy XVI coverage hub for exclusive behind-the-scenes features, video interviews, and more.
Do you want more Final Fantasy XVI DLC? Let us know in the comments below!
