This article contains spoilers for the Final Fantasy XVI sidequest, “Playthings.”
Final Fantasy XVI has been quite the ride. Clashing with demi-gods, dealing with political intrigue, and fighting against fate. I’ve enjoyed my adventure with Clive and Torgal thus far, though I have found the sidequests somewhat lacking compared to in other RPGs.
As I traveled towards Moore I began to notice the treatment of Bearers to noticeably dive. Every person I talked to openly stated their disdain for my very presence, and I saw more and more Bearers being abused for an endless number of supposed slights. I even came across a horrible father-son duo along the highway that was doing unspeakable actions to Bearers. I thought I had seen the worst this world had to offer.
People or Playthings?
Then I met Lisette. It seemed harmless at first; a little girl lost her pet, worrying that Chloe is missing, and it was her turn to feed her. You ask around about this pet’s possible location. Along the way, I found it strange that no one states explicitly what Chloe is. I assumed it was going to be one of those quests where it turns out the pet isn’t some harmless dog, cat, or bird. Instead, it would be a ferocious monster I’d bring to heel. It’s happened numerous times across numerous RPGs.
Then to my absolute horror, it turns out Chloe is a Bearer — or was a Bearer. Horrified by what I find, Lisette then scampers over. Lisette’s calm demeanor doesn’t change when she finds the petrified corpse. She actually begins to berate Chloe for sleeping too long. That “Chloe” was her favorite one because of her white hair. Both Clive and I had similar reactions; I was honestly dumbfounded.
I couldn’t believe this petite prejudiced person’s reaction. It was so matter-of-fact and was the racist red cherry on the xenophobic sundae that I put down the controller and looked back at my adventure up to that point. Final Fantasy XVI had slowly placed me in this pot, much like a frog, and I didn’t realize I was in this hot water until it was too late. I had taken much of this story for granted. This was likely due to the placement of Clive in the narrative. He was born in Rosalia, a place that is relatively progressive. By the time I reached Moore, I saw the everyday prejudice of this world.
It was masterful storytelling. With each new location, the tension surrounding the Bearer’s plight grew and grew, until this singular moment occurred. I found “Playthings” to be one of the sidequests to open up the world of Final Fantasy XVI and give some properly needed oomph to its slavery theme.
With “Playthings” done and dusted, I had to take stock of what had happened. I thought back to the graves of the victims of the father-son duo and how such blatant prejudice baffled me. The finality of the decisions these people made and the ramifications of their actions ripped me from this fantasy. Though Lisette “loved” Chloe, her complete and utter ignorance was equally as disturbing as the father and his son’s disdain for their own playthings.
This brings me to something about Final Fantasy as a whole. Whether they deal with humanity’s treatment of our environment or how we treat each other, it is always done in a masterful fashion. As I have walked the many roads of Valisthea, I have found that the plight of the Bearers is a powerful and potent narrative, and after slowly piling the misdeeds of countless “normies” on my back, “Playthings” was the straw that broke this particular camel’s back.
