Concept Art for the Final Fantasy 14 Team's Next-Gen Game Emerges
We've got castles, we've got dragons.
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Some new info on Square Enix Japan's employee recruitment page suggests the studio is going full steam ahead on its major "next gen" project, and there's a chance said project might be—nay, is hopefully—Final Fantasy 16.
A small blurb and some concept art can be found on Square Enix's employment information page for its Third Development Division. (Thanks to Nova Crystallis for the translation.) A blurb near the bottom of the page reads:
Following Final Fantasy XIV, we have launched a new core project and have begun the challenge for the next generation. This project has already completed its initial development, has completed environment development and is now moving into a full-scale large-scale development phase.
The blurb is illustrated with what appears to be concept art for the project in question. It features a large castle on a cliff overlooking a medieval-style town by a sea. Near the front of the picture there's a silhouette of a person and a small dragon. If this picture does indeed belong to Final Fantasy 16, it's intriguing: It could signal a return to the series' fantasy roots after its long stint with sci-fi.
Square Enix's Third Development Division is headed by Naoki Yoshida, who's also known by his nickname Yoshi-P. Word got out last spring that Yoshida is working on a "big new project," and the rumor mill latched onto the possibility of it being Final Fantasy 16. Yoshida is currently the director of Final Fantasy 14, a project he righted with a reboot following a disastrous launch. Final Fantasy 14 continues to perform well, especially in the wake of the new Shadowbringers expansion. If Yoshida is indeed helming Final Fantasy 16, I imagine there'd be few objections.
It'll be some time before Square Enix is ready to share anything definitive, but for now we invite you to look forward to Final Fantasy 7 Remake, which is coming in March 2020. Make sure to visit our Final Fantasy 7 Remake guide if you want to read up on everything we know about the game.