Square Enix has shaken things up with its portrayal of summons in Final Fantasy 16 by changing the established tropes in the series. Summons in other Final Fantasy games are portrayed as distant figures who appear to offer aid in the heat of battle and leave soon after, like in Final Fantasy 15, where Noctis will summon Astrals to deliver one powerful attack before disappearing. For FF16, Square Enix has decided to take a different spin on summons by increasing summons' importance to the story and giving them engaging combat.
FF16 will follow the story of Clive Rosfield, who lives in a world that is shaped by the Eikons and their Dominants. Final Fantasy 16's website and trailers have revealed a lot of details regarding the state of Valisthea, and it seems that a major war is on the verge of breaking out with the Eikons and their Dominants at the center of the oncoming storm. Clive will doubtlessly be dragged into the conflict as he tries to find and kill the perpetrators of his brother’s death, in what looks set to be a dark Final Fantasy adventure.
Summons Will Have Major Roles In Final Fantasy 16's Story
FF16's story will heavily focus on the Eikons, especially since many of the game's major characters are Dominants who can wield the power of the Eikons, turning them into weapons of mass destruction. Unfortunately, in Final Fantasy 16, Dominant summons have to play a devil’s bargain because they must sacrifice their life span to use the Eikons' power. Clive will have to face this dilemma because he will be forced to use his Eikon's power many times to defeat his enemies, and he has to decide if his revenge is worth cutting his life short.
Final Fantasy 16 Will Feature Kaiju-Style Summons Battles
Unlike in many Final Fantasy games where players cannot control the summons' action, FF16 will feature kaiju-style battles between the Eikons. FF16's trailers have shown several instances where the Eikons clash and use their god-like powers in order to defeat each other. Some even compare Final Fantasy 16 with Attack on Titan because both of them feature battles between giants.
Unfortunately, it seems that players will not be able to turn Clive into an Eikon whenever they wish because the Eikon battles will be story-bound. Luckily, however, players can still use a fraction of the Eikons' power during the rest of the gameplay. Clive has been seen using several Eikons powers, such as Phoenix, Titan, Garuda and more. Final Fantasy 16 will be released next year, and players can finally witness the summons-focused story and control the Eikons in battles of epic proportions.
Source: PlayStation/YouTube