Final Fantasy XVI And Its Two Ifrits Teases Several Theories And Twists

The newest Final Fantasy XVI trailer ends with a short stinger featuring two Ifrits fighting each other, opening the door to many theories.

In Final Fantasy XVI‘s story, our protagonist Clive is seeking revenge against “The dark Ifrit” and its unknown Dominant. In case you’ve forgotten, Dominants in Final Fantasy XVI are humans who can transform into an Eikon, the title used for Summons in this entry.

So far, everything in Final Fantasy XVI‘s promo hints at the fact that the Dark Ifrit killed Phoenix, the Eikon of Clive’s little brother Joshua, and this is what set him on his path to revenge.

However, the second trailer also implies that the player controls an Ifrit during Eikon battles, seeing Ifrit’s HP bar is always green and on the left. Except during the Phoenix vs “Eidolon of Fire” fight, where it’s very likely the player is controlling Phoenix.

Clive And His Nemesis Are Both Ifrit Dominants

Somehow, Clive becomes an Ifrit Dominant himself at some point during his quest for revenge. The final scene in the second trailer has a unknown character say “Awaken, Ifrit” implying they’re the one who gave Ifrit to Clive. Personally speaking, I currently believe this is the Dark Ifrit’s Dominant, who somehow has the ability to make someone into another Ifrit Dominant. Setting Clive on his revenge quest could be all part of their plan.

The Dark Ifrit is the “second Eikon of fire” mentioned in Benedikta’s profile (This is slightly ambiguous in the English version, but extremely clear in the Japanese and French versions of her profile). In the first trailer at 2:32 we can also hear a soldier say “A second Eikon of Fire? But that’s impossible!”. This implies that the common belief in Valisthea, the world of Final Fantasy XVI, is that there cannot be two Eikons of the same element, and that Ifrit is an unknown Eikon, not registered in the world’s history so far.

What If Joshua Was Actually Still Alive?

Seeing the Phoenix Eikon is considered to be the Eikon of Fire instead of the unknown Ifrit, this could mean that Phoenix’s true property, rebirth, might be unknown in the world of Final Fantasy XVI. I personally don’t believe Joshua will only be a sacrificial lamb used in the game’s prologue to trigger Clive’s revenge quest. Especially seeing Square Enix went for an illustration of Phoenix and Ifrit facing each other for the Final Fantasy XVI logo, instead of two Ifrits.

Lastly, it’s interesting to note Clive is never seen using Ifrit’s powers during foot battles. Both the trailer and the screenshots we have show Clive equipping and cycling through most of the Eikons revealed so far: Phoenix, Shiva, Titan, Garuda, Ramuh, and Odin. In the second trailer, Clive is heard saying “I unite the Dominants… that we may bring an end to the strife… and found a new order to see us unto tomorrow.” And we already know that Dominants can share part of their Eikon’s power with others. However, we never see Ifrit’s icon on the UI outside of the Eikon battles, furthermore hinting that this Eikon works differently than the others.

Overall, Final Fantasy XVI is the first game in the series in years to pique my interest that much. While the game’s reveal trailer left me indifferent, the second trailer definitely got me hyped, and I’m looking forward to seeing more of it.

Final Fantasy XVI will be out worldwide on PS5 in Summer 2023.