Episode Ardyn, the last DLC episode for Square Enix’s Final Fantasy 15, is now available for Xbox One, PS4, and PC. It sees players take control of Ardyn Izunia, the antagonist of Final Fantasy 15’s campaign. Check out the launch trailer below, which talks about the “truth” of the Lucii.

Taking place 35 years before the base game’s story, Ardyn has had a tough life. He’s been imprisoned for 2,000 years and swears vengeance against the royal family of Lucis. Taking place in Insomnia, Episode Ardyn will introduce new characters like Aera Mils Fleuret, the first Oracle, and Somnus Lucis Caelum, Ardyn’s brother. If the base story wasn’t enough indication, things don’t exactly end well for our “hero”.

Along with new locations, players will also have daemon powers to unleash against foes. These include an ability that can immediately kill after nailing five hits in a row. Head here to check out the animated Prologue film for Episode Ardyn, explaining some of his motives in greater detail. Sadly, there won’t be any more DLC episodes for Final Fantasy 15 – director Hajime Taba resigned in November 2018, resulting in the cancellation of Episodes Lunafreya, Aranea, and Noctis.

Square Enix’s final downloadable episode for Final Fantasy 15, Episode Ardyn, will release on March 26th. An animated Prologue film has also been released, providing some context as to why Ardyn became the villainous figure we know him as, and why he opposed Noctis’ party. Check it out below.

Episode Ardyn occurs 35 years before the main story. After spending 2,000 years in prison, Ardyn has been released and seeks revenge against Lucis in the Crown City of Insomnia. We learn more about Aera Mils Fleuret, the first Oracle and love of Ardyn’s life, and his brother Somnus Lucis Caelum who imprisoned him in the first place. Noctis’ father, Regis Lucis Caelum, makes an appearance as well.

Ardyn has some unique daemon powers to use, like Shadow Moving at high speeds to different locations. He can also convert foes into daemons, one-hit kill with a special attack after landing five consecutive hits, and Shadow Move to flank behind. Stay tuned for more information on the episode en route to its launch.

What was meant to highlight the future of Final Fantasy 15 on its second anniversary quickly turned into something sadder. Director Hajime Tabata has announced his resignation from Square Enix. Furthermore, all future DLC Episodes aside from Episode Ardyn have been cancelled. Episode Ardyn is still due to release in March 2019.

During the stream in question, global brand director Akio Ofuji said that the DLC cancellation was due to the development team moving to a different triple-A title. He said: “A new company called Luminous Productions was formed, centered around the staff who had previously been developing the main game as part of BD2, and they have continued to work on the project since.

“The main purpose of establishing Luminous Productions was to create a studio that can deliver a completely new AAA title to the global market. The desire is to deliver this new AAA experience to everyone even a day [sic] sooner, and due to this directional change, the company decided to focus our resources on the development of this AAA title.”

As for the multiplayer-esque Comrades, it will have standalone releases on Xbox One and PS4. These editions will have new bosses, and if you already own the multiplayer expansion, the standalone version will be free. It launches on December 12th, 5 PM PST. PC players in the meantime can still download updates for the Comrades expansion.

There will also be a crossover event with Final Fantasy 14: A Realm Reborn called “Adventurer From Another World”. Noctis will team up with Miqo’te and battle the primal Garuda. Completing this quest will unlock different Final Fantasy 14-themed outfits. The update will be free to current owners of Final Fantasy 15 and goes live on December 12th as well. Check out teasers and trailers for all of the relevant announcements below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iy7-AsUzevA