Final Fantasy 16 is the latest entry in Square Enix’s long-running fantasy RPG series. This time around, the game takes a more action-oriented approach and opens the series up to a much wider and arguably more casual audience in the hopes of bringing in newcomers. On its initial release, though, the game is only available on PS5. However, as some eagle-eyed fans have already noticed, there is a timed exclusivity period in place for Final Fantasy 16 on PS5. As such, some Xbox owners may be wondering is Final Fantasy 16 coming to Xbox Series X|S?
Final Fantasy 16 PS5 Timed Exclusive Window
At the very end of Final Fantasy 16‘s trailer at The Game Awards in 2022, a splash screen revealed that the game was PlayStation exclusive. However, in text just below this, it clearly stated: “Not available on other platforms until 12.31.2023.”
What this means is that Final Fantasy 16 will only be playable on the PS5 throughout the entirety of 2023, and even potentially beyond that. At the time of writing this post, Square Enix have not officially confirmed or announced any release date for the game to come to other platforms.
So, Is Final Fantasy 16 Coming to Xbox Series X|S?
The long and short of it is… maybe? Let me explain.
While it’s guaranteed that Final Fantasy 16 will not be coming to Xbox consoles in 2023, there’s no concrete information regarding what Square Enix plans to do in 2024 and beyond.
We could, theoretically, see Final Fantasy 16 stealth drop on the Microsoft Store at midnight on Jan. 1, 2024. We highly doubt that, but it’s a possibility, as that would be when the exclusivity deal with PlayStation would be up.
What’s more likely, but again, still very much not confirmed, is that Square Enix announces Final Fantasy 16 will come to PC and Xbox Series X|S at some point in 2024 or beyond. The exact release date is yet to be seen, and we won’t know that until the developer/ publisher makes that announcement.
There is good reason to believe that Final Fantasy 16 will come to Xbox Series X|S at some point, though. The last new, numbered entry in the series, 2015’s Final Fantasy 15, did come to the Xbox One. That being said, we’ve not had any news on a port of Final Fantasy 7 Remake for Xbox, and that released on PS4 back in 2020.
We’ll just have to wait and see what Square Enix announce. The promising news for Xbox fans is that Final Fantasy 16 is a timed exclusive on PS5, and not a permanent one.
When Square Enix announces anything regarding a Final Fantasy 16 Xbox port, we’ll update this post and let you know.
About the author
