As 2021 comes to a close, the gaming year for 2022 is beginning to take shape. Release dates for major AAA releases such asStarfieldhave been revealed, and huge delays have also informed how the industry will look next year. The most recent of these major delays comes from Square Enix regarding itsnext highly anticipated main entry in the long-runningFinal Fantasyseries,Final Fantasy 16. This puts one of the studio’s biggest titles for next year,Forspoken, in an interesting position, as it seems like it has the daunting task of being Square Enix’s lone AAA Japanese release for 2022.
WhileFinal Fantasy 16was never given an official release window, a recent post from producer Naoki Yoshida revealed that the game has been internally delayed by roughly six months, leading to a major shift in when the team expects the game to be ready. This leaves the likelihood ofFinal Fantasy 16releasing in 2022 at an absolute minimum, leaving Square Enix’s release slate for the year looking pretty clear, save for a few unexpected surprises like the reveal ofMarvel’s Guardians of the Galaxyjust four months before its release.Forspokenis slated for May 2022, making its release all the more important.
RELATED:Everything Revealed About Forspoken So Far
Forspoken, But Also Unproven
Forspokenis the first original game from Luminous Productions, thedeveloper ofFinal Fantasy 15, and some absolutely stunning tech demos courtesy of its Luminous Engine. The game is aiming to appeal to both Japanese and Western markets, hence whyCharlie’s Angelsactress Ella Balinksa is set to star as the protagonist, Frey.
The game’s writing comes from the likes of Garry Whitta (Rogue One: A Star Wars Story,) Allison Rymer (Shadowhunters,) and Todd Stashwick (Visceral’s canceledStar Warsgame, codenamedRagtag.)UnchartedandLegacy of Kainwriter Amy Hennig is said to have been attached to the project, but according to recent reports, her contributions to the games narrative were during the early conceptual phase and not to the core narrative present in the final version.
Needless to say,Forspokenis new territory for Square Enix.Forspokendefinitely has an uphill battle of accomplishing all its lofty goals of being a successful new IP worldwide, on top of being a two-year PlayStation 5 console exclusive. Couple this with the fact that it is coming from Luminous, with its last project having more than its fair share of controversies given its long, tumultuous development and ultimately large amount of canceled content, including three planned DLC episodes. It’s understandable thatSquare Enix might not have initially planned to delayFinal Fantasy 16and hedge all of its bets on such an ambitious title.
RELATED:Forspoken Preview: Details on the Open World, Frey’s Character, Combat, & More
Forspoken’s Unfair Expectations
There is another element to the concern surroundingForspoken, however, and it’s that there have been many elements of the game that fans have been quick to raise caution towards. One element of the game that recent previews of the game were critical of was the writing.Forspokenfollows a “Isekai” storyline, whichanime fans will know from the likes ofSword Art OnlineandKonoSubaas revolving around a person from the real world being trapped in either a fantasy or video game world.
InForspoken’s case, it is aFinal Fantasy-like fantasy world. The lack of originality in Frey’s reactions to the world around her inForspokenhas left many unimpressed. While the ins-and-outs of the story are far from a known quantity so far, the elements ofForspoken’s narrative revealed so far have failed to impress in the way that Square Enix games are known to.
None of this is to say thatForspokenis doomed to be a failure. Many elements of the game are fascinating, such as its sprawling, gorgeous open world and addictive traversal system, something more open-world gamesseem to be taking note of thanks to games likeMarvel’s Spider-Man. The game’s combat also looks engaging, with its emphasis on ranged magic abilities over a traditional RPG battle system, or even an action-based one similar toStranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin. Forspoken looks like it could be a great start to a new franchise, but in the shadow of a titan likeFinal Fantasy 16, it might have to be more than that to really earn its place in the upper echelon of Square Enix AAA titles.
As alluded to earlier, however, it may not be the case thatForspokenwill be Square Enix’s only big game for 2022. While the studio is likely to go big on other titles likeStranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy OriginandStar Ocean: The Divine Force,Forspokenis clearly one of the most elaborate and expensive projects the studio has revealed for a while.
Not having the comfort of knowing when to expectFinal Fantasy 16could hurt the game in the long run, as fans couldcompare it to some of Square Enix’s bigger recent efforts likeFinal Fantasy 7 Remake. Hopefully that’s not the case, because for now,Forspokenis looking to be one of the most interesting games of 2022.
Forspokenrelease on June 10, 2025, for PC and PS5.
