Square Enix has begun detailing the endgame activities that Final Fantasy 16 players will be able to look forward to after they finish the main story, and they include New Game+ and the game’s most difficult challenges.
As reported by Game Informer, one of the biggest draws of New Game+ is the addition of a new harder difficulty setting called Final Fantasy Mode. Alongside allowing you to bring over all of your abilities and gear from your first playthrough like most New Game+ modes, this new difficulty setting will also change monster placement and will see them showing up in different parts of the game to keep you on your toes.
“The main design philosophy is that the first playthrough is about learning Clive, learning the controls, and then enjoying the story,” Final Fantasy 16 combat director Ryota Suzuki says. “The second playthrough, we want to shift that focus – because the story hasn’t changed – to the action. For example, in Story Mode, while players may encounter waves of enemies, a lot of times, enemies don’t attack at once to allow players to be able to handle everything. In the harder modes of the game, we have removed these limitations so that you have multiple enemies all attacking Clive at the same time.
“Basically, what we’ve done with [Final Fantasy] Mode is give players controlling Clive the sense that they’re always in danger, that death is around the corner, and that you’ll need to really, really pay attention to be able to clear the content.”
The Most Difficult Challenges in Final Fantasy 16 Wait for Players in the Chronolith Trials and Ultimaniac Mode
Final Fantasy Mode will also let players upgrade their weapons beyond what was possible in the first run through the story, will let them upgrade accessories for the first time, and will let them try out the Final Chronolith Trials.
As for what these Chronolith Trials are, they are the “most difficult challenge in FFXVI,” according to Final Fantasy 16 creative director Hiroshi Takai. Players will need to make it through multiple stages that feature four waves of enemies that will each be harder than the last. The final round will pit a terrifying boss against the player.
If that wasn’t enough, these trials are timed and will see players attempting to earn more time by performing certain moves and combos and completing objectives. Oh, and there is no healing in these trials besides the healing that comes with activating a Limit Break.
Continuing with the big focus that Final Fantasy 16 places on Eikons, these Chronolith Trials will each be based on one. Game Informer got to see Phoenix’s Trial by Fire, and it only gave players access to Phoenix’s Eikonic abilities. This obviously makes things more tricky as normal battles let you mix and match abilities from all those you’ve gained from the Eikons you’ve encountered.
Arcade Mode will also get a difficulty bump in New Game+’s Final Fantasy Mode. For those unfamiliar, Arcade Mode allows for previous stages to be replayed with an on-screen score calculator and combat grader. If Final Fantasy Mode’s challenge isn’t enough for you, there will also be an Ultimaniac Mode that is even tougher.
Arcade Mode’s global leaderboard will only be active in either Final Fantasy Mode or Ultimaniac Mode, and the global leaderboard for the Chronolith Trials will only be active in Final Fantasy Mode.
If a harder difficulty isn’t your cup noodles, you’ll be happy to know you can simply play Final Fantasy 16’s New Game+ in the standard Story or Action modes for a less stressful experience.
Final Fantasy 16 will be released on PlayStation 5 on June 22, 2023. For more, check out our most recent hands-on preview, our breakdown of the Final Fantasy 16 Showcase, and how Final Fantasy could potentially get rid of numbers from its titles.
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Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.