[09/07] Final Fantasy XV Won't Be On Vita/3DS

[Sultan]

Square Enix has no plans to follow Dragon Quest IX's lead and move the main Final Fantasy series onto handhelds.
Final Fantasy XIII producer Yoshinori Kitase told Eurogamer that fans demand top-of-the-line visuals from the core series, leaving them no choice but to restrict the franchise to high definition machines.
"If you're talking about the main Final Fantasy titles, one of the strong focuses of the series is cutting edge graphics. That's what people enjoy and that's what people associate Final Fantasy with," he insisted.
"In that sense I would like to assure our users of this top quality artistic visual achievement. To do that we have to stick with high definition consoles."
Kitase added that Square will continue to concentrate handheld development on franchise spin-offs, such as the Tactics or Crisis Core series.
"Though the main Final Fantasy franchise has always been with top definition consoles, Crisis Core, for example, has been very successful on PSP. So those smaller projects we'll consider for PSP2 or 3DS."
The last entry in the franchise's primary timeline, the much-derided Final Fantasy XIV Online, launched last year, while Final Fantasy XIII-2 arrives for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 next year.
The main Dragon Quest series found huge success when it moved from PlayStation 2 to DS last year, with the acclaimed Sentinels of the Starry Skies shifting over six million copies worldwide since launch.


http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2011-06-08-final-fantasy-xv-wont-be-on-vita-3ds

____________________________________________________________


Anyone else sees what's wrong with this?


The fact that they'll have less chances selling on handhelds, that I'll concede to. But can't they make their next game in a visual quality that it compatible with the main consoles as well as the VITA? The VITA has excellent graphical capabilities, and it's good enough to express the visuals artistically. Sadly, they're heavily focused on what people want, graphics that are out of this world. Big deal, that's going to get topped 3 years from now anyways. They could be focusing on improved game mechanics instead of struggling with such an unwieldy engine. Think about this for a minute. How does Final Fantasy X's visuals compare to today? And how does Vagrant Story's gameplay compare to today?

 

[Martel]

I think it was fairly obvious that Square Enix weren't going to put Final Fantasy on the Vita or 3DS...given how poorly they've been performing, it'd be an extremely gutsy move to put the next instalment of their flagship series on a handheld, and they don't have the balls or the intelligence to pull it off. Gods forbid they actually make a video game, instead of an interactive movie, which is essentially what FFXIII was.

Final Fantasy XIII producer Yoshinori Kitase told Eurogamer that fans demand top-of-the-line visuals from the core series, leaving them no choice but to restrict the franchise to high definition machines.

Excuse me, what? Substance over form, for crying out loud. If Final Fantasy XIII proved anything, it is that high-quality visuals do NOT make a video game good. This is utter bollocks.

"If you're talking about the main Final Fantasy titles, one of the strong focuses of the series is cutting edge graphics. That's what people enjoy and that's what people associate Final Fantasy with," he insisted.
"In that sense I would like to assure our users of this top quality artistic visual achievement. To do that we have to stick with high definition consoles."

This is why the series has been in decline (at least, in my opinion) since it shifted to the PS1. All they give a damn about is the graphics. If people enjoyed only cutting edge graphics, there would be no market for handhelds, and the DS is outselling everything else. Visual achievement is all very well and good...if you're watching a CGI movie. Video games are primarily supposed to be playable, not watchable. Are they EVER going to grasp this? Yes, these games sell, but they would sell MORE if they weren't just pretty light shows.

Unfortunately, he is right on one count: these days, I associate Final Fantasy with high-quality graphics...and absolutely nothing else. Gone are the days when Final Fantasy was about telling an epic storyline, and an involving battle system. These days, it's about showing off the hardware its on and nothing else.

The main Dragon Quest series found huge success when it moved from PlayStation 2 to DS last year, with the acclaimed Sentinels of the Starry Skies shifting over six million copies worldwide since launch.

And this alone is proof that they're spouting utter bullshit. This has nothing to do with the fans expecting cutting edge graphics or anything like that. They just don't have the guts to move Final Fantasy onto a handheld, because the only universal praise (as in, even from those who dislike it) they have had for FFXIII and FFXIV are the graphics, so they figure they need to keep that in there.

They've clearly got their wires crossed here. There is an extremely high demand placed on graphics these days, yes, but at the expense of everything else? Of course not. As I said, handhelds like the DS wouldn't be outperforming consoles if this were the case, and Nintendo wouldn't be in the market at all, regardless of who their primary audience is. Graphics aren't important at all in the grand scheme of things and, as long as they continue to think that way, they're never going to perform as well as they did in the PS1/PS2 era and, for me at least, they will NEVER be what they were.

Honestly, I think that FFXV would be BETTER if it was on a handheld; they would spend more time focusing on what really matters - the gameplay - and the game would be so much better for it. Instead, with FFXV it's highly likely we're going to be treated to the same crap we were with FFXIII: all style, no substance. It's all they know how to do now, quite clearly.

 

[C i d]

As much as it's relieving for me that there will be less handheld FF games (I don't have any recent handheld consoles), something really bothers me...

"...one of the strong focuses of the series is cutting edge graphics. That's what people enjoy and that's what people associate Final Fantasy with..."

An optimist may perceive him as saying:
"If we want to make a new big game, we will make sure that it is presented well. This includes excellent graphics."

But of course, many classical FF fans may perceive it as:
"We strongly believe that players like final fantasy just because of the graphics. Good graphics is essential for their enjoyment. People buy our games because of the graphics." and so on...

As I still have some faith on Square Enix, I am trying to be an optimist in reading this article. But the statement really shouts "FF=Graphics, other aspects are secondary." I mean...just look at FFXIII and XIV... I know it is true that graphics attract. But they should really NOT focus too much on visual aspects while forgetting the other equally important aspects.

If they really have such belief, and continue to ignore what older fans really desire, I am afraid the franchise will not survive for long...

just my 2cents. I will probably only decide whether they have completely lost their touch after playing FFXIII-2.

 

[Ohri-Jin]

Im sorry but I am NOT a handheld type of gamer and I'm pretty sure there are more console owners than handheld owners... so there ya have it IMO....

Good thing what they could do is perhaps PORT it? Or is that too much hassle?
Anyways I have the strangest feeling FFXV will really really really end up on the freeking WiiU

 

[JWick]

Hmm. I would have been hugely surprised if it had been released handheld, it would have been too much of a departure from the FF main series trend I would have thought. Just because DQ did that, I didn't see any indication that FF would follow, or rather could gain anything by following.

As I still have some faith on Square Enix, I am trying to be an optimist in reading this article. But the statement really shouts "FF=Graphics, other aspects are secondary." I mean...just look at FFXIII and XIV... I know it is true that graphics attract. But they should really NOT focus too much on visual aspects while forgetting the other equally important aspects.

If they really have such belief, and continue to ignore what older fans really desire, I am afraid the franchise will not survive for long...

Yeah I was thinking that as well. Being an optimist concerning SE myself, I had kind of hoped they'd realised from feedback for XIII and XIV that graphics shouldn't be a substitute for a good battle system, a good story or a good game structure, but this interview says otherwise. Then again, those aspects shouldn't change in regards to being on a handheld or not, so I'll give him the benefit of the doubt in assuming he just said that out of the interview's context rather than suggesting that graphics were the primary focus of FF games.

 

[Hatifnatten]

Best news on the internet? Possibly.

Hatifnatten Mind the spam, please.