There is a new rumor going around that a Final Fantasy 16 demo will be going live soon.
All the way back in April, Square Enix revealed that they would be hosting a Final Fantasy 16 pre-launch event in Los Angeles on June 11, 2023, one of many non-E3 events happening on E3 Week. You can read the full details here, but that date is actually this coming Sunday.
As this reddit has revealed, that pre-launch event will be where the demo will be revealed, and it will also go live on that date, presumably immediately after the livestream for the event.
We know about this because several streamers who are being sponsored by Square Enix revealed that they would be playing said demo too early. Of course, in the streaming business streamers do want to announce their streaming dates and times early, so that their fans are ready to tune in.
In this case, they spoke out too early about getting to play Final Fantasy 16. But even then they could have still kept mum about the demo existing for everyone, as fans could have assumed they were given an early copy of the game.
The reddit names Ludwig and Blittzz as some of the streamers who revealed this information way too early.
As for the demo itself, it will only let you play the first two hours. If you pick it up for your PlayStation 5, you can use the save you have and import it to the full game after you buy it.
Those first two hours will definitely not be enough time to really share anything substantial about Final Fantasy 16. It should be enough playtime so that streamers and player could get a grip on its gamefeel, and perhaps the most rudimentary of mechanics.
Maybe this is a last minute decision for Square Enix, though it could also be that they planned it well in advance. If there’s any case for it being a recent choice, it would be because of the rumor that the company is slightly panicking that Final Fantasy 16 has significantly less pre-orders than Final Fantasy 15.
Of course, we ourselves don’t know Square Enix’s decision making, or whatever information they are privy to that is not disclosed to the public. But it seems they didn’t properly warn these streamers about leaking the demo, and that suggests that the demo was put together in the spur of the moment. Whichever case, this demo is just one more thing for PlayStation 5 owners to look forward to.
Final Fantasy 16 is releasing exclusively on the PlayStation 5 on June 22, 2023.
