Final Fantasy 16's intro pays homage to the very first game in the franchise, borrowing an iconic tune that debuted in Final Fantasy 1. The sixteenth main series entry in the ever-popular RPG series from Square Enix has finally released after much anticipation. The reception of Final Fantasy 16 has been incredibly positive, with the game paying homage to the earlier entries.
The very first Final Fantasy game is considered a groundbreaking achievement that helped spawn the franchise fans know today. It also introduces elements that would become staples of the franchise, such as the four elemental Crystals, the Job classes, and the prelude theme. This first game's Prelude sequence in particular is considered such an iconic moment that happens after the player has beaten the first boss and the world opens up, with the title appearing once the player crosses the bridge. Final Fantasy 16 replicates this moment in a small way with its intro sequence.
This moment was commented on by original Final Fantasy creator Hironobu Sakaguchi, where he posted a screenshot of Final Fantasy 16's intro on his Twitter account. According to a translation by industry insider Genki, he comments on how Final Fantasy 16 opens with the iconic prelude theme, just like in Final Fantasy 1. The sixteenth game's rendition of the theme has a more melancholic tune to it, with fans noting that it's likely played in minor key. This rendition is used to set up how much darker the story is compared to the first game's idyllic and adventurous opening.
The reason why Final Fantasy 16 opens this way is due to its producer, Naoki Yoshida, or Yoshi-P. He had stated in the past that his favorite game in the RPG franchise is the first one, so it makes sense that he would want to pay tribute to one that is so beloved. Not only that, the title screen of Final Fantasy 16 appearing after two hours of gameplay was also inspired by the first game. In the original Final Fantasy, it would take a player roughly two hours to get through the opening segments before the title card appeared.
There's plenty of other references to past Final Fantasy games present in Final Fantasy 16, such as the enemies, various names, and even the traditional recurring character Cid. Despite the massive amount of changes to this mainline Final Fantasy, a lot of the franchise's DNA is still present throughout.
Final Fantasy 16 is available now exclusively for PlayStation 5.
