Square Enix may reveal Final Fantasy XVI at upcoming PlayStation 5 showcase

By Aaron Mamiit Published April 25, 2023

Final Fantasy XVI may finally be officially announced at the upcoming PlayStation 5 showcase, according to a series of clues spotted by fans of the franchise.

Square Enix, which found success this year with the Final Fantasy VII Remake, has reportedly been working on the next entry in the long-running RPG series after Final Fantasy XV, which was launched in 2016. Final Fantasy XVI was supposed to be unveiled in Sony’s The Future of Gaming event, but the announcement was postponed, according to Twisted Voxel.

Sony has another PlayStation 5 showcase in the works, set for September 16. Square Enix producer and Final Fantasy brand manager Shinji Hashimoto retweeted the announcement for the showcase, but then abruptly deleted it. This adds to the speculation that Final Fantasy XVI will be revealed at the event, as it may be too soon for Final Fantasy VII Remake 2.

In addition, an official Twitter account for Final Fantasy XVI was recently spotted. The account is currently set to private, but its email recovery settings apparently confirm that it was created by Square Enix.

Meanwhile, a tweet by Kinda Funny co-host Imran Khan provided more fuel to the speculation of an upcoming Final Fantasy XVI reveal.

Seems like it would be a good time for it, yeah.

— Imran Khan (@imranzomg) September 12, 2020

It remains unclear if Khan has insider knowledge that Final Fantasy XVI will be at the PlayStation 5 showcase, or if this is simply a guess.

Square Enix previously revealed Project Athia in Sony’s June event for the PlayStation 5, but it is expected to either be a new game or a spinoff of Final Fantasy XV. It remains to be seen if the mysterious project, in addition to Final Fantasy XVI, will be at the upcoming PlayStation 5 showcase.

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