As the release date for Final Fantasy 16 comes closer and closer, more questions are starting to be asked about the technical side of the game, too. A YouTube channel called Skill Up asked what engine the game would be running on, but only found out that it wasn’t Unreal or Luminous.
This leaves exactly what graphics engine the game is using a mystery for now, at least until Square Enix actually wants to say, but the absence of either is odd, considering the powers of each. Unreal Engine has been used in previous Final Fantasy games (4 was used in the Final Fantasy 7 Remake for instance) while Luminous was used in two past Square Enix games, Final Fantasy 15, and Forspoken.
At the same time, however, Square Enix didn’t say which version of Unreal Engine the game wouldn’t be running on, so it’s possible that Unreal Engine 5 might be used, especially considering how powerful it is. Luminous also put out two very pretty-looking games, even if those games weren’t well received, so it’s possible that Square Enix may be changing it up and re-naming it to work with Final Fantasy 16.
But various other developers are also making their own in-house engines, so that might be what Square Enix is using in regards to Final Fantasy 16. At the same time, however, some are suggesting that the studio may be using Crystal Tools, the same graphics engine used in Final Fantasy 14.
While this would make sense, considering that Yoshi P is directing the game and has brought many of the writers from the game on board, the graphics are clearly a huge step up from Crystal Tools, unless they’re using a modified version intended for use on the Playstation 5.
We’ll likely learn what engine the game is using at some point as the game gets closer to its release date. Failing that, the game engine will probably be shown as part of the opening titles. Either way, Final Fantasy 16 will be releasing on June 22 of this year exclusively on the Playstation 5.
