Update, 16th January, 2018: This article was originally titled ‘The Final Fantasy XV system requirements are pretty reasonable’ but today, January 16th, 2017, Square Enix have announced the system requirements for 8k display output. Which is less reasonable.
Just what sort of behemoth are you going to need to run Final Fantasy XV on PC? (Behemoth, geddit? It’s an RPG joke.)
When we got wind of the Final Fantasy XV PC version, we were rather excited. It’s already a lovely game on consoles, but to play it on a high-end gaming PC, with Nvidia Flow, HairWorks and all the rest? It’s going to be stunning.
This was backed up by a 4K trailer of the PC version. It does indeed look scrumptious, but that then makes you worry what kind of rig you’ll need to play it.
Director Hajime Tabata, speaking at Gamescom this year said, of the GTX 1080 Ti-powered machines running the demo: “Supporting 60fps will be possible, but considering the spec you’d need to get that level-with native 4K, HDR, and a good 60fps-the machine we’ve got here couldn’t do that at the moment. That’s a GTX 1080 Ti, and even with that 60 frames is not possible.”
170GB of storage space was also mentioned at Gamescom, but Tabata later pointed out that was a mistake.
All of this begs the question: just what sort of monstrous rig are you going to need to play the game on PC? Well the wait is over; the Final Fantasy XV system requirements have been revealed on the Windows Store and they’re… not bad at all.
Minimum Final Fantasy XV system requirements – 720p target resolution
- OS: Windows 7 SP1/ Windows 8.1/ Windows 10 64-bit
- DirectX: Version 11
- Memory: 8 GB
- Processor: Intel Core i5 2500 / AMD FX-6100
- Graphics: GeForce GTX760 / NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 1050 / AMD Radeon™ R9 280
- Storage: Over 100GB
Recommended Final Fantasy XV system requirements – 1080p target resolution
- OS: Windows 7 SP1/ Windows 8.1/ Windows 10 64-bit
- DirectX: Version 11
- Memory: 16 GB
- Processor: Intel Core i7 3770 / AMD FX-8350
- Graphics: NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 1060 6 GB VRAM / Radeon™ RX 480
- Storage: Over 100GB
Keep in mind that Square-Enix haven’t clarified what the target resolutions and settings are for these recommendations.
Update, January 16th, 2018: They have now clarified the target resolutions. See above (for 720/1080p) and below for 4k (2160p).
We can probably expect the minimum Final Fantasy XV system requirements to be similar to the console version (900p, medium-to-low settings, 30fps). The recommended requirements are more likely to be 1080p on high or ‘ultimate’ settings, targeting 30fps or better. We already know the sort of card a 4K version will require, and it’s higher up the food chain than a GTX 1060.
Also conspicuous in its absence is any reference to download size or storage capacity required. The PS4/Xbox One versions of Final Fantasy XV are in the region of 65-70GB, and the PC version could well be even larger, in order to support higher resolutions. The Fallout 4 4K texture pack, for example, triples the size of the base install from 30 to 90GB.
It might not be 170GB, as originally rumoured, but whatever it is? It’s not going to be small.
Update, January 16th, 2018: They have now clarified the storage sizes. For the 720/1080p target resolutions (above) that’s over 100GB. For the 4k (2160p) resolution, it’s over 155GB – in line with the rumoured 170GB we reported on above.
“Max” Final Fantasy XV system requirements – 4k resolution target (2160p)
- OS: Windows 10 64-bit (with Fall Creator’s Update)
- DirectX: Version 11
- Memory: 16 GB
- Intel® Core™ i7-7700 / AMD Ryzen™ 5 1600X
- Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti
- Storage: Over 155GB
Those 4k system requirements are not insignificant, are they? Don’t forget that’s Nvidia’s top of the range graphics card, that’s going to set you back at least £750 for the most basic model. And where the system requirements for 720/1080p have been updated – to include AMD graphics cards, which weren’t listed on the provisional specs we had access to – there is no AMD card that Square Enix reckon will achieve that 4k, 2160p resolution for Final Fantasy XV.
And even then, there’s a caveat on the system requirements, stating:
Note that if the customer’s computer doesn’t meet the operating environment requirements, or even in the case that it does meet the environment requirements and recommended requirements, there will be cases where the operations may not function correctly due to the combinations or compatibility between each of the drivers, hardware and software.
With that in mind, Square Enix are releasing a benchmarking tool, to allow prospective players to see if their rig is up to scratch, or if they need to take their PC in to see Cindy for a tune-up.
