Recent Famitsu Final Fantasy XV Interview Reveals More Juicy Info

Still reeling from the Final Fantasy XV trailer reveal at TGS? I know I am. As is often the case with Japanese blockbuster RPGs, gaming magazine Famitsu has the scoop on what everything we learned at TGS ultimately means. In this case, an interview with the game’s director Hajime Tabata is the main source.

The translated info comes via NeoGAF — you can check out the summary below.

– Final Fantasy XV’s director has been changed, now the game is in Tabata’s hands. Nomura will work only on KHIII
– The trailer’s not extended, but the scenes showed confirm it’s about the upcoming demo
– Tabata (I suppose): “There are great expectations for this game, and we’re not forgetting this saga’s roots while creating new elements (see the final part of the trailer)”
– The combat system starts as “action” a-la-KH, lots of things changed since then but the action nature is still there. Not a classic JRPG, for sure
– Episode Ducsae is confirmed for March 2015, included in Type 0 HD
– Ducsae is a region in FFXV’s world
– The demo will be about a period not too far from beginning of the game, but no spoilers, don’t worry, Tabata reassures. It’s all to let the player comprehend the new combat system
– The demo’s length is far bigger than normal, with 3-4 hours and possibily of playing exploartion and dungeon phases
– No classic Final Boss in the demo, but the final impression will be incredible for FF fans
– There will be many exploration phases, the player can freely drive the car or let the CPU drive it through Auto Drive, so he can see see secret zones
– Tabata: “The combat system’s modifications have been applied correctly, and the development team feels the game much more like a “Final Fantasy” since it became a main title
– …but this doesn’t mean the end of the action nature! The combat system’s basis will stay that, but it won’t be confusionary. We want the player to control fully what happens
– There will be many new elements, and most I can’t talk about. But I can tell you Noctis can dodge enemies by keeping pressing the “Block” button; there will be also Auto-Attack and the Warp button
– Every character/ally will fight with his/her own style; by knowing how Noctis can perform different combos with them the player will be encouraged to search for them on the combat field in order to make a turning point in the battle. In specific moments, only a specific ally can be used against specific enemies, and the command will be visible only near the enemies. This is what makes our work on FFXV magic. We’re very satisfied”
– Tabata praises next gen’s power, by underlining the beauty of the real-time day/night cycle
– Tabata: “Open world? Yes, FFXV will have a massive world to explore, all thanks to next gen consoles
– The demo is 70-80% complete. March’s version will be better.
– We’ve worked hard on how each character is characterised. Everyone’s going to have his own character (laughs…). You’ll love them all.
– Prompto is the typical exuberant boy full of vitality, while Noctis the one who “knows”, he’s not the once-reserved-lonely boy anymore
– Aesthetically, Ignis has been changed too
– SE would like to expand the FFXV’s universe on PSVita and mobile phones, i.e. it would be great to connect outside of the TV screen
– The story retrace the Fabula Nova Crystallis’ myth from FFXIII and Type 0, in a different world. The plot is simple: the boys have to get back a crystal stolen by an enemy country
– During the interview, some names were mentioned, like King Aegis, Emperor Aldercapt, Luna, the city of Altissia…any news on the matter? Tabata: “No comment”.
– Not even Luna? Tabata’s answer: “The others are no comment, while Luna is…tabula rasa” (laughs…), then “I’d love telling you more, but right now I can’t, still she’ll be a key character liek Notcis!”
– New details on plot and characters in future events, Jump Festa 2015 especially.

A more recent clarification reveals that the 70-80% remark actually refers to the game’s visuals, meaning that at the time when the demo is released, there will still be a 20-30% boost to the game’s graphics remaining before the final version is complete. Considering how nice Final Fantasy XV looked in its TGS trailer, that is surprising and fantastic news.

Final Fantasy XV currently lacks a release date, but holiday 2015 certainly sounds like a window Square Enix would love to hit. Then again, when a game has been in development for the better part of decade, rushing in the final stretch is the last thing a company should do.