Final Fantasy XVI is the latest game to spark an intense discourse, from debates around difficulty to whether it’s even a true Final Fantasy game. And producer Naoki Yoshida has grown absolutely tired of the negativity.
Read More: Final Fantasy XVI Shouldn’t Be This Divisive
In a mini-documentary aired in Japan and translated on Twitter by Audrey “aitaikimochi” Lamsam, CEO of the anime merch site Aitai Kuji and the one who found Sora’s IRL apartment, Yoshida reacted to Japanese players’ comments on the game. With his hands rubbing his cheeks in visible exhaustion, Yoshida remarked that he’s over all the negativity Final Fantasy XVI has received since launch.
“There’s a lot of people who just yell at you, people I’ve never seen, met, or talked to before,” Yoshida said. “It’s weird. What did we do to them? Perhaps they just write it from a place of negativity and malice. It’s tiresome.”
Editor’s note: I can relate — David.
It’s hard to know exactly what Yoshida is referencing here, but there have been plenty of examples of people raising concerns about the game which may, at times, have crossed the line from criticism into toxicity or personal attacks. Folks have argued that the game is far too easy even without activating its “insane amount of accessibility options.” Others have claimed it’s not a real Final Fantasy game but one that “uses the Final Fantasy branding” for marketing. And then, of course, the game’s hard pivot to straight-up-action à la Devil May Cry has left folks wondering where the “Golden Era” of turn-based Final Fantasy games has gone, one that prompted us at Kotaku to discuss what makes the series what it is. While the game’s gone on to receive generally favourable reviews, garnering a score of 87 on Metacritic and 88 on Open Critic, it’s been divisive all the same.
Kotaku reached out to Lamsam and Square Enix for comment.
Read More: Final Fantasy XVI’s Jill Should Be More Than Pretty
While critique and debate should be welcome and can push the medium forward, resorting to personal attacks because you don’t like a game ain’t it.
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