Review - Final Fantasy XVI: Echoes of the Fallen

Upon completing these prerequisites, a purple mission marker will appear on the Hideaway. Just talk to Charon and choose the icon to start the sequence of events that begin Echoes of the Fallen.

Recommendations for playing Echoes of the Fallen

The expansion takes Clive to a mysterious tower of the Fallen, known as Sagespire. There, hide powerful enemies and some of the most challenging battles that Final Fantasy XVI has ever provided. Check out some of our advice and recommendations for tackling this challenge.

In practice, Echoes of the Fallen works like a new, long side quest. Its duration is around two and three hours, and involves following a sequence of objectives to discover the origin of the Dusk Shards, purplish crystals whose trade has expanded on the illegal market. Although they also conjure magic through the ether, this new variant of crystals has a much lower durability.

As Clive searches for the origin of these shards, new characters and conflicts are introduced and take him to a mysterious Fallen ruins in Rosaria, the Sagespire, where he uncovers the secrets of this ancient civilization while facing formidable enemies.

But, after all, what new features does the expansion bring to its audience? One of the main criticisms from fans with Final Fantasy XVI is the absence of the endgame dungeon, where rare items and powerful enemies await those looking for a great challenge. Echoes of the Fallen provides this content and lives up to the level of difficulty that players are accustomed to in this tradition.

Another highlight of the expansion is the lore building to the continent where Final Fantasy XVI takes place, Valisthea. As pointed out during the plot and explained by the chronicler Harpocrates, an ancient civilization known today as The Fallen had enormous technological advancement to the point of lifting ships into the sky and defying the gods. They were annihilated by Ultima in the event known as The Fall of Dzemekys, where the region's Mothercrystal was also destroyed.

The history and progress of civilization in Valisthea is very well detailed in the book Ultimania, but its details are very hidden within the game. Clive passes through some of the Fallen ruins, faces automatons, and there are airship parts and other machinery everywhere on the continent, to the point that even the Hideaway was built in what used to be one of their ruins.

However, FFXVI gives very little away about whom the Fallen were and what their culture was like. Echoes of the Fallen brings new details about the ancient civilizations of Valisthea, demonstrates how their technology worked and even the way they treated other lifeforms, revealing an empire whose structure and essence is no different from the tyranny that Clive and Cid oppose, and whose destructive power would be capable of leading the continent - or the world - to ruin.

While the mysteries of the Fallen are one of the biggest attractions, the same cannot be said of the new characters: a group of three merchants directly involved in the Dusk Shards trade. It almost feels like their sole purpose is to cause problems for Clive in his search and, consequently, guide the hero to the ruins.

The expansion's narrative even seeks to give more details about their background and their origins, but the dialogue between them and the situations they find themselves in make them seem like a failed attempt at comic relief, whose attitudes - as demonstrated by Clive himself - are more annoying than funny.

Another low point of Echoes of the Fallen is its writing: most of its dialogues do not follow the quality standard of the main story and are, in fact, closer to what we find in less relevant side missions.

There is too much exposition in some of the supporting characters' lines, and not even Ben Starr's still impeccable acting can save some of the scenes. There are some interesting moments where the unity between Clive, Jill, Joshua and Torgal is evident, especially in the way they complement each other's reasoning.

Another problem with the DLC's writing is exposed from these dialogues: Jill remained in the background. She interacts much less than Clive and Joshua, and most of her lines are expository and/or add very little to the general context of the events. As a central figure in Final Fantasy XVI, it is uncomfortable to see Jill stuck in the supporting role in dialogue, and she deserves a more active participation in The Rising Tide.

The Sagespire is protected by some of the most advanced technologies of the Fallen and monster species dating back over 1500 years. While some follow attack patterns already known from their contemporary versions, others are formidable opponents with their own attacks and guarantee a good challenge in battles. In addition to the common enemies, Echoes of the Past brings new exclusive bosses, each with a distinct strategy and diverse and never seen before patterns.

The highlight among them is the DLC's final showdown, Omega, a recurring super-boss in the Final Fantasy franchise, commonly seen as the toughest opponent in the games where it shows up. In FFXVI, Omega is as powerful as its predecessors under the rules that the title proposes, with a lot of mobility, a high damage output, a series of long-range attacks and several surprises during a battle comparable to the famous Eikonic battles.

Given all the points above, the following pros and cons are noteworthy in Echoes of the Fallen:

Pros

Cons

Is Echoes of the Fallen worth buying?

With all pros and cons considered, as an expansion, Echoes of the Fallen deserves a 7 out of 10.

If you liked Final Fantasy XVI and want an extra challenge and/or a reason to spend more time with Clive and Torgal, this product will give you what you're looking for. However, it doesn't add anything very innovative to the game to the point of improving one of the inherent flaws that the title already has.

Its price is on par with the product delivered, and the absence of bugs or inherent problems on its launch demonstrates CBU3's care for the game. However, unless you are already hyped about The Rising Tide's proposal, there don't seem to be many reasons to buy the Expansion Pass instead of just the DLC.

Once completed, Echoes of the Deep leaves players wanting more. Therefore, expectations for The Rising Tide, scheduled for spring 2024, are already very high.

As revealed by Takeo Kujiraoka, director of both expansions, in an interview on the Square Enix website, The Rising Tide will be around ten hours long and will take Clive to a new region in Valisthea known as Mysidia where, for mysterious reasons, the sky remains blue and clear despite the consequences the Primogenesis brought to the rest of the continent.

The second DLC will also reveal some of the main mysteries of Final Fantasy XVI, like what happened to the Leviathan and the reasons why its Dominant didn't awaken for a long time. As demonstrated in the trailer, a confrontation between Ifrit and Leviathan will take place and Clive will have access to its powers for combat.

Finally, being a brand-new region, Mysidia will have its own scale of side quests, fauna and flora. For example, Tonberries, iconic creatures from the series, exist in this region while they are not found anywhere else in Valisthea.

That's all for today.

Final Fantasy XVI brings another excellent experience with its first DLC, and promises to deliver much more with the second expansion in 2024. Now, we want to hear from you: what were your impressions of Echoes of the Fallen, and what are your expectations for The Rising Tide?

Thanks for reading!