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Thursday, December 1st, 2011
Posted by Reeve at 12:57 AM EST
Yoshinori Kitase Discusses Remakes Again
The Official Xbox Magazine recently interviewed Square Enix producer Yoshinori Kitase, who is currently working on Final Fantasy XIII-2. During the interview, the prospect of remaking some of the earlier Final Fantasies is brought up. About that, Kitase had this to say:
(I)f we were to take one of the past Final Fantasy titles and make a sequel to it, I think that would be a lot more challenging because when they were on PlayStation and PlayStation 2 their actual game volume was a lot bigger, kind of. Graphically they weren't as advanced as they are now, but there were lots of towns and worlds and cities and whatever. So if we were to recreate the same kind of game - sequel or not - with the same volume, but give it a much higher level of graphical quality, it would us take three times, four times, even ten times longer to make such a game.Of course, Final Fantasy VII is brought up by the interviewer in the next section. Kitase says:
(...) (W)e know that the hundreds of fans would like to see a hi-def version of Final Fantasy VII. But if we were to achieve the modern graphical quality at the same time putting in exactly the same world and everything, I think it would take ten times longer as compared to the time we took to produce XIII, for example.Kitase also addresses living up to fan expectations in terms of adding new elements to a remake:
So if we were to pursue the same graphical quality, somehow we would have to make adjustments about game volume in the world, we'd have to cut down certain areas, but if we did that our fans would probably be not very happy, so we have to achieve both goals so that if we ever decide to either remake VII or make a sequel for hi-def consoles, we're going to have to be very, very careful.
If I may speak as a game creator, if we were to produce a remake of VII, for example, I would be really tempted to delete things and add new elements, new systems or whatever because if we were to make exactly the same thing now, it'd be like a repeat. It'd be an issue of repetition and not as much fun to make such a game. So I'd be really interested in rearranging games or reshaping games into something slightly different even though it's supposed to be the same game. But if we did that, the fans might be disappointed or "this is not what I was expecting" so in that sense maybe some might say that it's better to let memory be memory.Those who've known me for awhile know that I have been against an FFVII remake for years. That said, I'm thankful that Kitase has the same concerns about an FFVII remake that I do: that if something is added or changed, it may sour the experience for the most devoted fans.
When we play the games we made years ago, sometimes we think "oh, that is not really cool" or "that probably should have been a bit better than that" and that sort of thing. But on the other hand, those slightly negative features and bits, some of the fans - really enthusiastic fans of these titles - that gives them an extra flavour or personality or whatever, so maybe they would rather we didn't do anything about it and we just leave it in as it is, so it's very difficult to decide what we should we keep in and what we should take out.
As for his first point about development times, Kitase made this same argument back in February 2010, so it seems to be something he still feels strongly about.
The entire interview is well worth reading for FF fans. Check it out here.
Tuesday, November 15th, 2011
Posted by Reeve at 01:49 PM EST
Theatrhythm Release Date Announced
Theatrhythm Final Fantasy will come out in Japan on February 16, 2012, for the price of ¥6,090 (tax inclusive). If you're planning on importing, please keep in mind that the 3DS is not region-free.
Source: Andriasang - Release Date Set for Theatrhythm Final Fantasy
Sunday, November 13th, 2011
Posted by Reeve at 02:07 PM EST
Aerith Unlockable as Playable Character in Theatrhythm
One of the latest details to be revealed about 3DS rhythm game Theatrhythm Final Fantasy is the presence of "sub characters". These are additional playable characters that can be unlocked by collecting Crystal Fragments. FFVII's Aerith is making an appearance as one of these sub characters; some others include Faris (FFV), Vivi (FFIX), and Snow (FFXIII).
Another new detail is that summons, including Odin and Bahamut, can be called upon to help during battle.
Source: Andriasang - Aerith, Snow and Summons Appear in Theatrhythm Final Fantasy
Thursday, September 15th, 2011
Posted by Reeve at 02:02 PM EST
Theatrhythm Hands-On at Tokyo Game Show
With this year's Tokyo Game Show underway, impressions of Theatrhythm Final Fantasy for 3DS, which is playable at Square Enix's booth, have started to hit the internet. So far, these impressions have been mostly positive.
Check out these links for details on Theatrhythm's gameplay, music, difficulty, features, and more:
- GameLife - Hands-On: Theatrhythm Makes a Game of Gorgeous Final Fantasy Tunes, by Chris Kohler
- IGN - TGS: Final Fantasy's Glorious Theatrhythm, by Richard George
- 1UP - TGS: Theatrhythm Final Fantasy is Cute, Fun, in Need of a Little Polish, by Jeremy Parish
- Destructoid - TGS: Theatrhythm Final Fantasy is the best thing ever, by Dale North
Tuesday, September 13th, 2011
Posted by Reeve at 01:43 PM EST
Theatrhythm Gameplay Video, New Screenshots
Among the many upcoming games shown at yesterday's Nintendo press conference in Tokyo was Theatrhythm Final Fantasy. A new video with gameplay footage is available here, at Andriasang, as are some screenshots. As you can see, not only will music and characters from past FF games be featured, but also some of the FMVs.
Other Square Enix games shown at the event include the Nintendo collaboration Fortune Street (Itadaki Street Wii), a whole new RPG called Bravely Default, and Slime MoriMori Dragon Quest 3 (aka Rocket Slime 2). There were other rhythm games as well: a new Taiko Drum Master for Wii, and Project Mirai, featuring the popular Vocaloid Miku Hatsune, for 3DS.
Additional sources:
GameLife - Nintendo Unleashes Monster Hunter 4 And More For 3DS
Andriasang - This is Hatsune Miku on 3DS
Monday, July 11th, 2011
Posted by Reeve at 12:56 AM EST
Theatrhythm Final Fantasy - More Details Surface
Andriasang has a bunch of new articles and content concerning Theatrhythm Final Fantasy, the 3DS rhythm game that was announced last week. Here's some of the most interesting information.
- The character designs are by MonsterOctopus. This artist was responsible for the avatars in Kingdom Hearts Mobile, which these new designs most closely resemble.
- The Japanese official site has opened. Revealed on said site is the game's developer, which is indies zero. This studio is no stranger to the music genre; one of their previous works is the excellent and unique DS title Electroplankton. They have also worked on Retro Game Challenge, Personal Trainer: Cooking, and the Final Fantasy Art Museum series of collector's cards.
- The game's story apparently once again concerns the tensions between the gods Cosmos and Chaos. This time around, the luster of the crystal must be restored through the power of music.
- Finally, here's some gameplay details. Individual titles from the Final Fantasy series can be selected. In addition, each title is separated into three sections—field, battle, and event. These three modes each have their own play style. Other features include a four-member party system, multiple difficulty settings, some sort of character leveling system, music and movie collections, and of course, many favorite musical pieces from the FF series, including FFVII's own "One Winged Angel".
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