According to reports from Insider Gaming, Final Fantasy XVI pre-orders are set to be available on either December 7th, 2022, or December 8th, 2022. The timing of this release coincidently falls in with The Game Awards 2022 live show so unless Sony or Square Enix has their own live show planned for either of the dates, pre-orders are likely to drop during the show if Insider Gaming’s sources are to be believed.

Final Fantasy XVI was initially announced back on February 5th, 2021. The game will also have a six-month exclusivity deal on PlayStation 5 before releasing on other consoles. Final Fantasy XVI is currently scheduled to be released in mid-2023. With the possibility of pre-orders going live soon, it could be possible that the announcement, should it be at The Game Awards, might include a more definitive release date.

The latest entry in the Final Fantasy series is planned to be set in Valisthea. Valisthea is a large continent complete with six different factions on the brink of war due to the spread of a malady called the Blight. Final Fantasy XVI is currently being produced by Naoki Yoshida along with Hiroshi Takai as the game’s main director and Kazutoyo Maehiro as the game’s creative director and writer.

Valisthea’s people used to live in peace due to the surrounding mountains of crystals known as Mothercrystals. The game’s six factions include the Grand Duchy of Rosaria, the Holy Empire of Sanbreque, the Kingdom of Waloed, the Dhalmekian Republic, the Iron Kingdom, and the Crystalline Dominion.

According to what’s been revealed so far the major element of the plot will focus on the Eikons, creatures that can be summoned or manifested through humans known as Dominants. The three main characters of the cast include Clive Rosefield, Joshua Rosefield, and Jill Warrick. The game is set to focus on melee-based combat with Clive being shown to use a combination of both melee-based sword combat and magical abilities in Final Fantasy XVI‘s PlayStation 5 showcase.

Fans will be excited to hear of any new developments on the project given it went into production towards the end of the Final Fantasy XIV: Heavensward expansion in 2016. Takai, Maehiro, and Gondai were committed to creating “the foundational design” of the title before bringing on new staff to develop the game fully.

Final Fantasy XVI is set to release on PlayStation 5 in mid-2023.

Source: Insider Gaming