Final Fantasy 16 sales have been "extremely strong", says Square Enix

Square Enix has commented on the sales of Final Fantasy 16, claiming they have been "extremely strong".

As previously reported, the PS5 exclusive sold 3m copies worldwide in under a week. However this sparked debate online in comparison to the company's previous two mainline Final Fantasy games: Final Fantasy 15 and Final Fantasy 7 Remake.

Square Enix has now issued a statement to IGN, pointing out the difference in install base between the PS4 and PS5.

"With 38m PS5 consoles shipped globally (as of March 31, 2023), sales of Final Fantasy 16 surpassed 3m units worldwide several days after its release on June 22, 2023," said Square Enix.

"Taking into consideration the sales figures of the acclaimed Final Fantasy 7 Remake and the difference in size of the install base of the PlayStation 4 at the time of this title's release, we can see that the attach rate of Final Fantasy 16 is considerably high, given the PS5 install base.

"Square Enix considers the initial sales results of Final Fantasy 16 to be extremely strong, and we will continue to carry out a wide range of initiatives to encourage even more people to play the game."

By comparison, Final Fantasy 7 Remake sold 3.5m copies in four days and hit the 5m mark after four months, but was released towards the end of the PS4's lifecycle. Final Fantasy 15, meanwhile, sold 5m copies in its first day, but this was a multiplatform release.

It's also worth noting this is the first Final Fantasy game with a Mature rating, which may have impacted sales.

Square Enix is infamously critical of its sales and often sets inflated targets. Earlier this year in a finances presentation, the company claimed not only that Forspoken sales were "lacklustre" but this was a trend across many of the games launched last year.

Before that, the company feared its Western studios "cannibalised" sales of its Japanese games, resulting in the sale of those studios.

As for the future of Final Fantasy 16, producer Naoki Yoshida has stated the team is "thinking about" DLC - and he'd love to see playable Cid.