Final Fantasy 16's Naoki Yoshida says negative comments from trolls are "tiresome"

Final Fantasy 16 producer Naoki Yoshida has said negative comments from trolls online are "tiresome".

A special documentary on the developer was recently shown in Japan, which streamer and Final Fantasy fan Audrey of Aitai Kimochi translated for social media.

During the show, Yoshida stated he often checks social media for fan feedback during breaks between Final Fantasy 14 expansions and events. He was also shown watching fan videos ahead of the release of Final Fantasy 16 to understand fan sentiment.

When reading negative Japanese comments he said: "There's a lot of people who just yell at you, people I've never seen, met, or talked to before. It's weird. What did we do to them? Perhaps they just write it from a place of negativity and malice. It's tiresome."

Final Fantasy 16 has proven to be a divisive game. While many players have praised its cinematics and combat system (and - from me - its LGBT+ representation), others are less keen on the game's setting, lack of RPG systems, and claimed it doesn't feel like Final Fantasy (whatever that means).

Still, there has been plenty of discussion on social media and clearly Yoshida himself has been subject to comments from trolls.

It's also sad to hear when Yoshida is such a loved member of the Final Fantasy 14 team by its community. He is responsible for turning the game around into the success it is today and regularly connects with fans both through his Letter from the Producer video series and even directly in the game.

Despite the mixed reaction, Square Enix recently stated that sales for Final Fantasy 16 are "extremely strong" - the PS5 exclusive sold 3m copies worldwide in under a week. That's despite a Bloomberg article claiming sales had plummeted in Japan after its first week.