Why Final Fantasy XV will be a different Final Fantasy game

Even ahead of this year’s Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3), many had already been talking about the latest game in the Final Fantasy franchise, Final Fantasy XV.

What was once a spin-off of sorts to Lightning’s Final Fantasy XIII, Final Fantasy XV has become a full stand-alone game with a lot of promise to attract a younger generation of gamers while keeping Final Fantasy veterans satisfied.

During a round-table discussion with Final Fantasy director Hajimete Tabata and Final Fantasy XV: Kingsglaive movie director Takeshi Nozue, we learned more about what fans can look forward to in this much-awaited game.

A modernized Final Fantasy

If you think this Final Fantasy looks different from the rest, it’s because Tabata and his team chose to adapt modern gameplay mechanics and introduce new ones to this Final Fantasy game.

“The whole nature of the game, not just the extra things on top of it, but the construction of the game and the way it’s made as well is aimed at a much wider audience,” Tabata said.

One of these new gameplay mechanics is the Wait Mode, a new battle system that allows players to pause the fight to aim at targets, select magic spells, view and choose teammate’s abilities and access other possible choices for battles.

Also, whereas the battles in previous Final Fantasy games are turn-based, Final Fantasy XV offers a more fluid and fast-paced way of combat.

Tabata and his team believes that with the new gameplay mechanics, they can meet the expectations of newcomers to the series as well as Final Fantasy veterans.

“There was one thing we really paid more attention to that was really very important for Final Fantasy XV and that was having it so that when you hand the controller to a new player they will immediately be able to pick up the controls of the game,” he explained further.

Open world with 200 hours of content

Final Fantasy XV is a huge game, and it will take a lot of your time to not only finish the game but also to play the sidequests and explore the entire world itself. Tabata gave a rough estimate that it will take players around 40 hours to finish the main quest and an additional 200 hours to complete side quests as well as doing other activities in the world.

There are multiple ways for you to travel around the world of Final Fantasy XV. Your epic road trip with your friends, for example, can be taken to the skies. Noctis’ car can fly, and you can definitely go around the vast open skies with it. Tabata did note that players cannot fly around and land anywhere they pleased. Players will need to find locations with roads to properly land the car.

A story we can relate to

Prior to E3, we’ve seen bits and pieces of the story of Final Fantasy XV. We’ve seen a trailer where Noctis and his friends are on an epic road trip. We’ve seen a trailer where Noctis’ father is carrying him when he was a boy. And we’ve also seen a trailer where Noctis’ is all on his own.

Without revealing more details, Tabata explained that above all else Final Fantasy XV is a story that shows the powerful bond between a son and his father. It could be the main reason why Noctis’ is on this journey.

“One of the others things that we’re doing which will hopefully make the game more satisfying to people who know Final Fantasy and those new people in Final Fantasy who have never played the game before is that we’ve selected a more universal theme for the game itself and the story, and that is the bond between a parent and a child.”

Like most of the Final Fantasy games, Final Fantasy XV is also about friendship and how valuable it is in facing life and its obstacles. Noctis’ is accompanied by Gladiolus, a sworn protector of Noctis’ family, Prompto, a rebellious childhood friend, and Ignis, the smart and logical companion.

The all-male cast is due to Tabata’s want of creating a story that’s close to reality and it is likely that he has pulled some inspiration from his own life. He explains that as a younger man he rarely saw a road trip shared by both men and women, and that he would always go on road trips with his other male friends.

This idea of setting relatable themes is also applied to the main character, Noctis. It was revealed prior to E3 that Noctis is not the stereotypical cool and silent character like most male protagonists of Final Fantasy games are. Noctis, like many male teenagers or young men are, may seem serious but is actually friendly, playful, and sometimes awkward. According to the Final Fantasy XV anime and the bio, Noctis hates vegetables and loves beating high scores in video games.

More about Kingsglaive

One of the other main talking points during the round table is Takeshi Nozue’s movie, Final Fantasy XV: Kingsglaive. So much supporting material has been released even before the game. It already has its movie and its own anime.

Kingsglaive, which stars prominent actors Sean Bean, Lena Heady and Aaron Paul, will feature the story of Noctis’ father King Regis of Lucis and his elite army, the Kingsglaive. The King and his Kingsglaive must do everything in their power to protect the kingdom of Lucis and their crown prince Noctis from their rival Nilfheim.

Nozue explains that the reason and inspiration for creating Kingslaive are “to create ways of reaching out to more people and also to create a more deeper and more exciting experience for people who already bought into it.”

“We felt in order to achieve those goals, we have to release the film before we release the game,” he explained further.

Final Fantasy XV will be released on September 30, while Kingsglaive will show in selected movie theaters on August 19. – Rappler.com