During a new showcase for the PAX East 2024 panel, Square Enix announced that The Rising Tide DLC for Final Fantasy 16 will release on April 18th. The Rising Tide will cost $19.99 USD.
The panel featured producer Naoki Yoshida, DLC director Takeo Kujiraoka, and Localization Director Michael-Christopher Koji Fox.
Square Enix also showcased new footage for The Rising Tide. The devs teased a variety of new heroes and Tonberries, a boss fight, Leviathan abilities, and the new area Mysidia.
There will also be new End Game content called “Kairos Gate”, featuring 20 stages of escalating battles. Players need to complete both the main game and The Rising Tide DLC to unlock it.
Square Enix first announced The Rising Tide DLC last December, at The Game Awards 2023. It follows up on the Echoes of the Fallen DLC, which launched to mixed reviews.
Some fans praised the creativity and difficulty of the boss fights. Both DLCs add fresh chapters that continue the story from the main game.
Square Enix elaborated on the Rising Tide story coming to Final Fantasy 16. The devs revealed that the Dominant of Leviathan needs to be rescued. This sends Clive and other heroes to the “hidden land” of Mysidia.
The story also adds new allies like Shula, who does join Clive during battle. Square Enix teased that the final icon vs. icon battle will be “especially challenging”. The panel suggested that players brush up on their Ifrit abilities.
Square Enix also confirmed a free update is coming to the base game with QOL improvements and 40 new Orchestrion rolls.
Last week, producer Naoki Yoshida informed fans that a PC version of Final Fantasy 16 is in “the final stages of optimization”. A demo is also on the way, and it “won’t be too distant in the future; it won’t be a year”.
For more of the latest gaming industry news, you can read about Capcom apologizing to Dragon’s Dogma 2 fans and teasing new updates.
