Final Fantasy XVI – Devil May Clive

RPG luddites are quick to point at the obvious silliness of Final Fantasy and its numbered entry system. How can a fantasy be final when you are sixteen entries deep (and then some) for Christ’s sake? It’s a fair cop, and joining any gaming franchise with a great big “XVI” slapped on the end is an intimidation too far for some.

Truth is, not only are the Final Fantasy games not connected to each other in any narrative sense, they have drifted so far from their RPG roots that each entry might as well drop the naming convention altogether. So, with that being the case, instead of Final Fantasy XVI let’s make things easier and call this one Devil May Clive.

The plot is typically brain melting and, for the first time since Final Fantasy X kinda almost sticks together. You are Clive, the rugged topiary haired hero who loves his daddy as much as his mummy hates him. This leads to “issues” which leave Clive enslaved, forced into mercenary duties for a cause he does not believe in. Clive embarks on a mission to upend this predicament, leading him to being the salvation for all humanity. Oh, and he does this whilst swinging a sword about, throwing fireballs and taking objects from one place… to another.

As you may have guessed, Devil May Clive is not a turn-based RPG but a slick AAA action adventure shooter that, despite all the heart and soul, overstays its welcome for about 15 its 30 hours of play through.

And it is a shame to be honest. The highs are seriously high, with some astounding set pieces, a fun battle system and hard-hitting story beats. The opening hours, for example, are heart racing stuff, but ultimately the game goes too hard too soon, buckling under the weight of its own expectation.

The motion capture and voice work during the main quest cutscenes are some of the greatest committed to PlayStation with Clive written well enough for you to care during the more heart wrenching moments. But if you take a stroll off the beaten track, the quality falls through the floor. On occasion, flat, lifeless dialog is delivered by NPCs with entirely static faces. Jarring, it most certainly is.

There are also complete systems of crafting and leveling that seem to exist just to make things more “Final Fantasy”. I’m pretty sure you could mainline the game without touching any of it, and weirdly the game never asks you to either.

It’s 50% the greatest game ever made and 50% like playing Shenmue on the Dreamcast.

After taking a step back from the game for a day or two, I think Devil May Clive might be a harbinger of what we can expect in the AAA space where consumer expectation outweighs any sensible development budget. Sony and Microsoft have given us these behemoths of games machines, but only the wild and the crazy will deliver on the potential they provide. 

Like I say, I feel almost sorry for all the people that clearly worked hard to get the game to market, but I feel Clive will quickly be forgotten once Cloud rolls back into town for Final Fantasy VII:Rebirth.