Square Enix and Rockstar, two major third-party publishers, have shown their commitment to PC gaming despite facing delays in releasing their highly anticipated games. While Square Enix’s Final Fantasy 7: Rebirth has been receiving rave reviews, PC gamers are still waiting for any news on the release of Final Fantasy 16, which was launched eight months ago. This delay has left PC gamers feeling frustrated and perplexed.
Final Fantasy 7: Rebirth has garnered an impressive 92% rating on Metacritic, with reviewers praising its open-world design and the revitalization of the FF7 world. However, some critics have pointed out that the game feels overstuffed and lacks significant plot development. Ed Nightingale from Eurogamer mentioned that “not a lot happens” due to a push-pull between moving the plot forward and stalling for the series finale. Similarly, Tamoor Hussain from GameSpot argued that a substantial portion of the game becomes filler content.
Despite these criticisms, fans of the original FF7 Remake are eagerly awaiting the continuation of the series. However, they are not thrilled about the prospect of waiting for an extended period and dealing with technical issues upon its release. The original FF7 Remake was launched on PC as an Epic Store exclusive after a 20-month delay, accompanied by shader compilation stutter.
Adding to the frustration is the lack of information regarding the release of Final Fantasy 16 on PC. Although it has been confirmed that the game will require an SSD, there have been no updates on its availability for PC gamers. This delay seems unnecessary, especially considering that Square Enix is not a subsidiary of Sony. While console exclusives make sense from a self-interest perspective, it is unclear why Square Enix would choose to delay PC releases.
Despite these grievances, fans of Square Enix’s games, including myself, will continue to eagerly anticipate their releases. The allure of the Final Fantasy series and the unique storytelling it offers keeps us coming back for more, even if it means enduring delays and technical issues. Square Enix and Rockstar’s commitment to PC gaming is commendable, and we hope that they will address the concerns of PC gamers in the future. Until then, we will eagerly await the arrival of Final Fantasy 7: Rebirth and hope for a smoother release than its predecessor.
