Forspoken - What We Know So Far

Originally announced under the working title Project Athia, Forspoken is an upcoming narrative adventure game from Luminous Productions and Square Enix. Luminous Productions may sound familiar to Final Fantasy fans, as many of the developers worked on the Stadia version of Final Fantasy 15, with Square Enix veteran Yosuke Matsuda serving as the head of the new studio. Given the connection, several theories made the rounds following Forspoken's reveal, with some pointing to the project as Final Fantasy 16 in disguise.

Despite the rumors, both developer and publisher have continued to bill Forspoken as a fresh new IP that will combine "art and technology to create an experience like no other." It will serve as Luminous Productions' debut game, and will showcase the studio's proprietary Luminous Engine, which it previewed in 2020. So, with the developers leaving their Final Fantasy roots behind and setting off into new territory, what exactly can you expect from Forspoken? Here's what's been established so far.

Like many upcoming games, Square Enix is playing a bit coy with the Forspoken release date. When the title made its debut as Project Athia during Sony's PS5 reveal event, all prospective players learned was that it was in development. Then, during the CES 2021 digital press event the following month, Sony revealed that Project Athia was targeting a January 2022 launch window. The game may have already been delayed, however.

At the end of the official title announcement during the Spring 2021 Square Enix Presents, the words "coming 2022" appeared on the screen. It's unclear whether Forspoken will maintain the original January launch month, or if fans should expect to get their hands on it later in the year. Based on an interview with Luminous Productions studio head Takeshi Aramaki, it seems Forspoken entered active development at "the start of 2019." Given this and the footage already shown, Forspoken may already be pretty far along in the production process.

Either way, barring any unforeseen setbacks, Forspoken should launch sometime in 2022.

Square Enix provided a first look at Forspoken, then Project Athia, via teaser trailer back in June 2020. At just under a minute and a half, it mostly offers brief snatches of development footage spread across multiple locations within the game's fantasy world. A few of the setting's denizens make an appearance, including fiery wolves and a dragon. You also see Forspoken's sneaker-wearing protagonist in action, though you never get a clear shot of her face.

During the Spring 2021 Square Enix Presents, fans learned a bit more about Forspoken and its lead as part of the official title announcement. The dragon receives some more screen time in a brief cutscene, and the video also offers the first real look at the player character. After revealing the name, the trailer segues into another gameplay montage, complete with more fantastical creatures and flashes of the magical abilities players will have at their disposal.

Square Enix revealed Frey Holland, Forspoken's protagonist, as part of its Spring 2021 digital event. While much about the title's story and mechanics remain unknown, it seems you'll play as Frey, a courageous young woman who has set out to explore the land of Athia. As she uses her magical abilities to traverse this beautiful yet deadly environment, she'll encounter a number of dangerous creatures and other threats to her survival — including at least one rather impressive looking dragon.

"Frey as a character is real, she's raw, she's a girl who lost her way – both figuratively and literally – and is a character I immediately connected with," commented actress Ella Balinska, who will bring Frey to life via performance capture and voice recordings. Balinska made her film debut in 2019's Charlie's Angels. Forspoken will be here first video game role, and many fans seem excited by the energy Balinska has already brought to the project.

Though the promotional content has primarily focused on the central character and the creatures she'll encounter, the male voice heard during the title announcement made it clear that Frey won't be completely alone on her journey.

Xbox users hoping to explore the world of Athia are in for a bit of disappointment: it seems Forspoken will be a timed PlayStation 5 exclusive. During the December 2020 PS5 showcase, Sony made it clear that Forspoken would serve as one of its new machine's selling points, and that it would not come to other consoles "until at least 24 months after release date." Given that phrasing, and the fact that Square Enix has said multiple times that the game was "created specifically for PlayStation 5," Forspoken may never jump to another system — even after the two year wait period ends.

Not all is lost, however. Luminous Productions is developing Forspoken for PS5 and PC and it looks like the platforms will get a simultaneous release in 2022. While the title probably won't receive a Nintendo Switch or even PlayStation 4 port, it appears Sony may be committed to its revised strategy of launching PlayStation exclusives on PC. While this might be a small comfort to Xbox and Nintendo devotees, at least these dual launches offer a bit more flexibility when choosing how you want to play your games.