The Rising Tide is the second and last piece of DLC for Final Fantasy XVI. Unlike Echoes of the Fallen, which was just a large (very good I might add) dungeon, The Rising Tide offers a brand new story line, side quests, and area. Before I get into the review this is your warning, there will be BASE game spoilers, there will be NO spoilers for The Rising Tide.
The Rising Tide takes place in Mysidia, a hidden area to the North, that hasn't been affected by the blight. Clive, Jill, Joshua and Torgal venture there to save Leviathan The Lost. We've seen Leviathan to some degree in the base game… well we see that it did once exist, and in this DLC you get to learn all about it!
Shula a new character in this DLC will be joining you on your travels through Mysidia. Wielding a large battle axe, she makes a welcome addition to the team! She isn't a stand out character or anything, but I did enjoy the time that was spent getting to know her.
With Leviathan being present, that obviously means new abilities. The new abilities are fun, and mostly focused on long range attacks, Clive's hand basically turns into a gun, it's pretty amusing!
There is also another set of abilities offered in this DLC but I can't talk about them since they are heavy spoilers. But those are also well made and enjoyable to use!
Speaking of combat, the boss fights in this DLC can be very challenging, so be prepared for that. The Leviathan battle was no joke, it gave me a run for my money on Final Fantasy mode. Super enjoyable fight mechanics however, difficulty is something the base game was lacking in my opinion, and both DLC's address that issue.
The Rising Tide's main story is enjoyable, it's nothing super special but I did enjoy finally getting to learn more about Leviathan, the side quests are on par with what we had in the base game. There's ten new side quests, eleven if you've beaten both pieces of DLC. They offer somewhat better rewards this time around, overall it's worth doing them, purely for the extra side quest at the end. Also that's how you get to encounter the Tonberries! Who have gotten a much darker makeover.
The Rising Tide also adds some new equipment and weapons which is nice, as well as a new mode called Kairos Gate. In this mode the objective is to clear twenty floors in one run. You can buy buffs and whatnot in between floors, if you fail or quit you have to restart from the first floor. It's decently fun and offers some nice rewards, but I don't see myself going through it again. If you manage to S rank every floor, you can unlock a secret boss!
Overall The Rising Tide is a very good piece of DLC. It offers a beautiful new area to explore, a new story, new equipment and weapons, as well as a new challenge mode. I would have liked Jill and Joshua to be more involved, but that's the only complaint I really have. If you liked Final Fantasy XVI you'll like this DLC. I highly recommend it as well as Echoes Of The Fallen.
I'd rate this DLC an eight out of ten. It was a beautiful addition to Final Fantasy XVI, I'm happy we got it, but I'm sad to see it end. Hopefully one day Square brings us back to that world somehow.
