Future 'Final Fantasy 15' DLC may focus on Ardyn's past

The “Final Fantasy 15” hype has yet to die down, especially with the release of its first official downloadable content (DLC) expansion called “Episode Gladiolus.” With the release of the game’s first DLC comes talks of future expansions, including one that would explore the story from its antagonist’s point of view.

Hajime Tabata, the game’s director, recently spoke to Game Legends regarding what else is planned for the future of the story. After confirming that each DLC episode will solely focus on one character at a time, Tabata revealed that more on Ardyn Izunia (the game’s antagonist) and his past will later on be divulged sometime in the future. This may manifest in the form of Ardyn’s own DLC episode.

Ardyn first made his appearance in the “Final Fantasy 15” universe with the game’s feature film, “Kingsglaive: Final Fantasy XV.” He pulled the strings for the expansion of Verstael Besithia’s magitek infantry and deals with Emperor Iedolas Aldercapt’s political operations for the Niflheim Empire.

The prospect of Ardyn getting his own DLC expansion is an interesting one, considering the current DLC episodes that are set to be released all focus on other protagonists. “Yes, we plan on doing something like that, so you can look forward to seeing it,” Tabata said regarding his ideas on expounding Ardyn’s past within the story.

Seeing as “Episode Gladiolus” focuses on Gladiolus’ perspective, it also provides players with gameplay and battle tactics unique to the character. With that said, it is presumed that the same approach will be applied to other upcoming DLC episodes, such as with “Episode Prompto” and “Episode Ignis” that Square Enix has in store for fans. Specific release dates for the aforementioned expansions have yet to be revealed, but fans have been definitely anticipating them following their respective announcements. Should an “Episode Ardyn” come into fruition, it will be interesting to see how gameplay will roll out with the story’s antagonist as the main playable character.

Formerly known as “Final Fantasy Versus XIII,” the game was first released worldwide on Nov. 29, 2016. Since then, the title's hype has only continued to grow, as the latest addition in the “Final Fantasy” franchise received a whole slew of positive reviews and critical acclaim. “Episode Gladiolus,” which was released on March 28, has only further intensified the hype, thus proving that the game will be staying for much, much longer. “Final Fantasy 15” is now available for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.