PSA: Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth Spoilers are Already Out in Force, YouTube Thumbnails are a Nightmare | Push Square

Ahead of (or maybe alongside, we're not sure) the release of its second expansion, Final Fantasy 16 will be getting a free update that includes some rather positive-sounding changes. Patch 1.30 was detailed during the developer's PAX East panel, so we've gone ahead and sorted the additions and improvements as bullet points:

A new PS5 patch is available now for Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth which makes further improvements to the title’s presentation. Despite being critically acclaimed, many have been disappointed with the quality of the sequel’s visuals – especially in Performance Mode, which targets 60 frames-per-second. In addition to improving the graphics, the update adds a ‘Sharp’ and ‘Soft’ filter, allowing you to finetune the title’s looks.

One of the big stories this year so far has been Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth’s relative underperformance in its home territory of Japan. Historically one of the region’s most popular franchises, the Square Enix sequel couldn’t even outsell fellow PS5 console exclusive Final Fantasy 16 in its first week on the market – a surprise considering its strong critical reception.

It’s a truth universally acknowledged that no great RPG can be complete without a quality collectible card game, and Square Enix brought the heat with Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth and its exceptional Queen’s Blood. The mode has proven a welcome distraction for adventurers working their way through the PS5 console exclusive, and word is there may be more on the way.

We've said it once and we'll say it again: direct sequels are a harder sell than most people realise. The latest Japanese sales numbers are in, and Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is the big talking point. Unsurprisingly, the RPG has immediately topped the charts with 263,000 copies sold — but that total, which may seem fairly impressive at first, puts the game well behind the opening figures of its predecessor, Final Fantasy 7 Remake.

Pre-orders for physical copies of the PS5’s upcoming Stellar Blade have opened in South Korea, and the goodies are stunning. As spotted by a Shift Up fan account, buyers can choose between a vinyl soundtrack or a themed USB stick, with the former sporting some particularly fetching artwork. In fact, we’re not sure why this isn’t the box art, because it looks absolutely incredible.

Several Final Fantasy 14 players took to the streets of Ul'dah to pay respects to the late Dragon Ball creator Akira Toriyama, with campfire vigils and outfits based on characters that Toriyama drew over his career. These vigils in Final Fantasy 14 are ongoing at the time of writing and are being held across several data centers, such as Aether and Crystal in North America.

What are the best character builds in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth? In this Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth guide, we're going to cover all of the game's playable characters, explaining their key roles during combat, along with recommendations on Materia, weapon abilities, and weapon skills.

Update: The author of the original article from The Washington Post has clarified that the entire Final Fantasy 7 Remake trilogy is not confirmed to be completely exclusive to PlayStation. Said article was amended after we had reported on it.

Much like Final Fantasy 7 Remake, the freshly released Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth has its fair share of frankly jarring graphical issues. As noted in our review, the game as a whole can be very pretty — especially when you're looking out across the countryside or watching one of the title's many amazing cutscenes — but dig a little deeper, and it's certainly not what you'd expect from a PS5 exclusive.

Early signs suggest that Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth will struggle to match Final Fantasy 7 Remake in terms of commercial success. Although admittedly, we don't have much data to work with right now. According to Games Industry's Christopher Dring, who often outlines key sales info, the recently released sequel is down 30% on its predecessor's launch week figures. It did still manage to top the UK charts, mind.

Sony has quietly dropped a pretty tempting sale on the PS Store this weekend, with over 100 games plunging to seriously low prices – especially if you’re a PS Plus subscriber. The deals expand to some pretty major PS5 and PS4 games, including The Crew Motorfest for £34.99/$34.99 and Need for Speed Unbound for just £6.99/$6.99.