[18/06] More on Worlds of Final Fantasy
Vastly overshadowed in the Sony E3 2015 conference by the juggernaut that is the FFVII remake announcement is World of Final Fantasy, a spinoff game that decides to completely eschew the grittier, overly dramatic styles of more recent entries for a cuter, more whimsical direction.
As explained by producer Hiroki Chiba in an interview with GamesBeat, the game will feature a plethora of fan favourites for the long-term fans of the series, while also aiming to be a fun, accessible adventure for newer and younger players.
Battle system
The game will use a form of the classic ATB system, but Chiba vaguely added that he has incorporated a spin on it to bring it more in line with the current generation of games. It isn't known what he means by this, so details will likely follow in the future.
The signature feature of the game are the siblings' ability to change sizes on the fly. The protagonists can grow and shrink at will, which will drastically affect the dynamics of gameplay. Growing allows you to stack monsters on top of you, whereas shrinking to overly adorable chibi form will allow you to ride on monsters. This grants considerable flexibility in battles where formations change up the toolkit of abilities and stats offered to you, and it allows players to freely build their monster towers as they wish.
Chiba is hesitant to say that the game's battle system will be drastically simplified in light of the main target audience. Instead, he insists that World of Final Fantasy will borrow a lot of elements from pre-FFX games, but battles will be a little more intuitive.
Naturally, with monsters forming an integral part of a player's toolkit in battle, there will be a need to battle them in the wild before you can befriend them. Most monsters will be attained from battling and using an undisclosed capture system, while some can only be unlocked after completing certain side stories. Only six character/monsters/units can be deployed in battle at once.
World and story
Chiba states that they have named the game "World of Final Fantasy" for a reason. The world of Grimoire is like a theme park, filled to the brim with elements featured in other Final Fantasy games. Take for instance, the castle in the trailer, which is called Cornelia Castle, named after the first starting kingdom of the original Final Fantasy game.
The available information on the story is understandably thin on the ground. The dual protagonists are a brother and a sister, who hail from a world full of properly proportioned human beings. They magically find the means to enter this strange world called Grimoire where they can alter their sizes and body proportions at will. Judging by the name of the world, it is possible that Grimoire is a world accessible through a book, much like Ivalice in Tactics Advance.
This will not be a game thin when it comes to plot. Chiba emphasises that he worked on Final Fantasies VI, VII and VIII, so his aim is to incorporate an original story just as plentiful as what those games offer.
Old characters may well receive their own stories that players can explore in sidequests. A variety of returning characters will make an appearance in the main story, of which the only confirmed entrants are Cloud and the Warrior of Light. Chiba adds that he has had to reject character choice suggestions, insisting that the ones who have made the cut are in the game for more specific story reasons, or simply because they fit in the story more than others.
Soundtrack
Masashi Hamauzu is the man in charge of the soundtrack for the game. Hamauzu is first and foremost famed for his work on the Final Fantasy XIII trilogy. He will be composing all the new, original tracks for the game, as well as re-arrangements of older, familiar themes.
Platform choice
GamesBeat links the fanservice aspect of this game with other love letter Final Fantasy spinoff games such as Final Fantasy: Record Keeper on mobile. So why choose PS4 and PSVita for this installment?
Chiba replies that both platforms have the technical power to allow a substantial range of monsters to collect, while the PSVita complements what he feels to be an on-the-move play style. Collecting monsters can take time, but simultaneously it should not restrict players' play styles. The advantage of PS4 and PSVita cross-save functionality is also a significant boon.
Also...
At the end of the interview, Chiba coyly alludes to further games in the "Type-" sub-series. While he cannot disclose anything, he invites us to pay attention to the fact that the company trademarked "Type-1", "Type-2" and "Type-3"...
GamesBeat
Vastly overshadowed in the Sony E3 2015 conference by the juggernaut that is the FFVII remake announcement is World of Final Fantasy, a spinoff game that decides to completely eschew the grittier, overly dramatic styles of more recent entries for a cuter, more whimsical direction.
As explained by producer Hiroki Chiba in an interview with GamesBeat, the game will feature a plethora of fan favourites for the long-term fans of the series, while also aiming to be a fun, accessible adventure for newer and younger players.
Battle system
The game will use a form of the classic ATB system, but Chiba vaguely added that he has incorporated a spin on it to bring it more in line with the current generation of games. It isn't known what he means by this, so details will likely follow in the future.
The signature feature of the game are the siblings' ability to change sizes on the fly. The protagonists can grow and shrink at will, which will drastically affect the dynamics of gameplay. Growing allows you to stack monsters on top of you, whereas shrinking to overly adorable chibi form will allow you to ride on monsters. This grants considerable flexibility in battles where formations change up the toolkit of abilities and stats offered to you, and it allows players to freely build their monster towers as they wish.
Chiba is hesitant to say that the game's battle system will be drastically simplified in light of the main target audience. Instead, he insists that World of Final Fantasy will borrow a lot of elements from pre-FFX games, but battles will be a little more intuitive.
Naturally, with monsters forming an integral part of a player's toolkit in battle, there will be a need to battle them in the wild before you can befriend them. Most monsters will be attained from battling and using an undisclosed capture system, while some can only be unlocked after completing certain side stories. Only six character/monsters/units can be deployed in battle at once.
World and story
Chiba states that they have named the game "World of Final Fantasy" for a reason. The world of Grimoire is like a theme park, filled to the brim with elements featured in other Final Fantasy games. Take for instance, the castle in the trailer, which is called Cornelia Castle, named after the first starting kingdom of the original Final Fantasy game.
The available information on the story is understandably thin on the ground. The dual protagonists are a brother and a sister, who hail from a world full of properly proportioned human beings. They magically find the means to enter this strange world called Grimoire where they can alter their sizes and body proportions at will. Judging by the name of the world, it is possible that Grimoire is a world accessible through a book, much like Ivalice in Tactics Advance.
This will not be a game thin when it comes to plot. Chiba emphasises that he worked on Final Fantasies VI, VII and VIII, so his aim is to incorporate an original story just as plentiful as what those games offer.
Old characters may well receive their own stories that players can explore in sidequests. A variety of returning characters will make an appearance in the main story, of which the only confirmed entrants are Cloud and the Warrior of Light. Chiba adds that he has had to reject character choice suggestions, insisting that the ones who have made the cut are in the game for more specific story reasons, or simply because they fit in the story more than others.
Soundtrack
Masashi Hamauzu is the man in charge of the soundtrack for the game. Hamauzu is first and foremost famed for his work on the Final Fantasy XIII trilogy. He will be composing all the new, original tracks for the game, as well as re-arrangements of older, familiar themes.
Platform choice
GamesBeat links the fanservice aspect of this game with other love letter Final Fantasy spinoff games such as Final Fantasy: Record Keeper on mobile. So why choose PS4 and PSVita for this installment?
Chiba replies that both platforms have the technical power to allow a substantial range of monsters to collect, while the PSVita complements what he feels to be an on-the-move play style. Collecting monsters can take time, but simultaneously it should not restrict players' play styles. The advantage of PS4 and PSVita cross-save functionality is also a significant boon.
Also...
At the end of the interview, Chiba coyly alludes to further games in the "Type-" sub-series. While he cannot disclose anything, he invites us to pay attention to the fact that the company trademarked "Type-1", "Type-2" and "Type-3"...
GamesBeat
