Final Fantasy VII Rebirth will feature an ambiguous ending that will keep players wondering about the third and final part of the trilogy, according to the game's producer.
12.01.2024 - 16:49 / rockpapershotgun.com / Naoki Yoshida / Square Enix
The latest IAS Game Maker's Notebook Podcast (embedded in the full article below) is a chat between Sony's head of independent development Shuhei Yoshida and Square Enix producer, designer and director Naoki Yoshida, one of the big fish behind Final Fantasy 14 and Final Fantasy 16. In a lengthy discussion of the latter game, the two Yoshidas chew over the familiar topic of where Final Fantasy should go next. According to Naoki Yoshida, it might be time for an injection of new blood.
"I'm on the board of directors now so I really need to watch what I say here," Naoki Yoshida said, when Shuhei Yoshida popped the question as to whether he'll be directing the unannounced Final Fantasy 17. "For the moment, I'll just say nothing's been decided yet."
"That said, if I had to say anything about that, I've had the chance to work on two of these, XIV and XVI, so maybe it's time for someone new, you know," he went on. "Instead of having the same old guys handling the next one, I think in some ways it would be good to look to the future and bring in a younger generation, with more youthful sensibilities, to make a new FF with challenges that suit today's world."
Naoki Yoshida has been at Square Enix since 2004, and has had a dramatic impact on Final Fantasy's recent fortunes. He's the guy credited with "saving" Final Fantasy 14, now a highly successful and well-regarded MMO, after its catastrophic launch. Final Fantasy 16 has proven less of a hit - I found it to be a mixture of exciting and tedious and far too long - but the game has plenty of advocates, and Yoshida remains beloved among the Final Fantasy faithful.
Nowadays, Yoshida is also part of the Final Fantasy Committee of bigwigs who oversee the overall direction of this famously reinvention-prone series. What advice would he give a younger developer, taking a leadership position on Final Fantasy 17? "Well, basically, and this is the same for the father of the series, [Hironobu Sakaguchi], and for [Yoshinori Kitase], who's currently brand manager for the FF series - FF is about challenging what's been done before," Yoshida continued.
"And while I'm certainly not looking to pick a fight with the older games, we all make FF games thinking 'mine will be the most fun!' So my advice is to just dive in and first put down on paper what you believe would be the most enjoyable FF, before thinking too hard about it. Then, from there, you can think. 'since XVI was real-time action, my FF is going to have both real-time action and turn-based battles!'. Or, you could go to the other extreme and return it to it's fully turn-based, pixel art roots."
Final Fantasy developers are prone to thinking aloud in public about whether the games should be turn-based or
Final Fantasy VII Rebirth will feature an ambiguous ending that will keep players wondering about the third and final part of the trilogy, according to the game's producer.
The second instalment of Square Enix’s Final Fantasy 7 Remake trilogy is set to launch soon, but there are, of course, plenty of other fan-favourite instalments in the long-running series that many have been hoping to see remade in similar fashion. Final Fantasy 6 in particular has been heavily demanded by series fans- though according to Yoshinori Kitase – producer on the FF7 Remake trilogy and co-director of the original Final Fantasy 6 – developing a remake series for the SNES classic would be an even more herculean task than developing the FF7 Remake trilogy.
Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth players will get to experience an all-new storyline when they reach the Costa del Sol segment of the game. With the game releasing in about a month, Square Enix has been revealing new information about Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth to keep fans excited.
Final Fantasy 14 is giving all players a free Fantasia during Dawntrail to help them adapt to the new graphics update coming in the expansion. While the exact details are still being worked out, all Final Fantasy 14 fans can expect to get one of these cash shop items for free later this year.
Many people are looking forward to Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, and that’s not a shock at all. When Square Enix released the first entry of the “remake saga” back in 2020, gamers were stunned by how well the publisher had remade the original title despite focusing only on the Midgar storyline for the “first part.” The graphics were stunning, the voice acting was on point, and the updated combat system made it feel like an RPG while also being “upgraded” to fit modern times. However, a few flaws held it back, mainly in the party system.
Final Fantasy 14 Patch 6.55 added the new Asura Trial encounter from FanFest, but to unlock it, players must go through the Hildibrand questline from Endwalker. This Final Fantasy 14 boss battle can be easily missed by those who aren’t caught up with the iconic comical questline, so fans should be sure not to overlook this exciting fight.
When Square Enix announced the “remake saga” for their all-time classic RPG and then noted that the game would be “cut into sections” to ensure quality throughout, gamers were a bit concerned. The game was in “full form” back on the PS1 and obtained legendary status, so why wouldn’t it be “In full” here? Well, their gambit paid off, and the first title featuring the “Midgar Saga” was a hit, not just because of the graphical upgrade but also because of the new elements fleshed out that part of the story. So, with Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, gamers are expecting more of the same.
Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth director Naoki Hamaguchi reckons chocobo smell like horses.
Industry insider Shpeshal Nick believes Final Fantasy 16 is coming to Xbox Series X/S.
For the record, we didn’t plan two stories about items you can get for Final Fantasy VII Rebirth to come in back-to-back days. Life decided to have a little fun with us, and we don’t mind. Yesterday, we discussed how Square Enix Reward Program members could get a special glitter globe featuring the Gold Saucer from the upcoming RPG. It was cute and adorable, and we’re sure some of you have already subscribed to the program so you can get it or are cashing in points to ensure you get it. But, if you’re looking for something a bit more “substantial,” then perhaps Amazon is where you go to get the game.
When it comes to video games, many who play them don’t just want the “memories” of playing them; they want items in the real world that’ll help them remember those memories in a different way. Pre-order items are a big deal in this respect, as people will pay out the nose to get unique items that can only be bought through these special deals. Square Enix decided to up the ante with the upcoming release of Final Fantasy VII Rebirth by offering its Reward Members the chance to get a special glitter globe featuring the Gold Saucer from the upcoming title.
Voice artist Cody Christian, who plays Cloud in the forthcoming Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, thinks «shippers» who «overtly sexualise every relationship can ruin great story development».