Twist of Fate: Final Fantasy 16 Developers' Surprising Top 3 Picks

The main developers of Final Fantasy 16 have recently shared their top three favorite games from the legendary JRPG franchise. With over 35 years of history, these developers have either played or worked on some of the titles, making their opinions all the more informed and passionate. While the franchise's more recent releases have failed to achieve the same level of acclaim as those from the 90s, the team behind Final Fantasy 16 is dedicated to recapturing the magic of those beloved classics. In the meantime, they're reminiscing about the franchise's greatest hits.

Final Fantasy 16's developers recently shared their favorite games from the franchise with IGN. Director Hiroshi Takai chose Final Fantasy 5, 6, and 10, citing the battle system in FF 5 as his reason for selecting it. Creative developer Kazutoyo Mehiro also chose FF 5, along with Tactics and 12, praising the inspiring battle system in FF 5. Meanwhile, combat director Ryota Suzuki's top picks were FF 3, 10, and 5. He particularly enjoyed FF 3 for its job-changing system, which encouraged him to explore more RPGs.

During interviews, several developers were asked to name their favorite Final Fantasy games. Naoki Yoshida, the producer, chose Final Fantasy 1, 3, and 7. Art director Hiroshi Minagawa selected 3, 5, and 12, while localization director Michael-Christopher Koji Fox picked FF 5, 11, and 14. Interestingly, Final Fantasy 5 was mentioned by every developer, leading to speculation about its possible influence on the development of Final Fantasy 16, which none of them chose to include in their list. Players can get a glimpse of the developers' work by trying out the Final Fantasy 16 demo, which is available for free download to all PS5 owners. The demo allows players to test Clive's abilities and play for up to two hours before deciding whether to purchase the full game, which is due for release next week.

Final Fantasy 16 will release on June 22 for PS5.​​​​​​​

Source: IGN