[13/07] Tetsuya Nomura Final Fantasy Versus XIII Interview

[Steve-O]

As promised, FINAL FANTASY Versus XIII was featured in this week’s Famitsu. The magazine caught up with director Tetsuya Nomura for a brief look at Square-Enix’s most mysterious title.


FINAL FANTASY Versus XIII is under intense development right now, which could help explain the game’s six month media blackout gap. Most of the information Nomura shared this time focused on cutscenes.


In Versus, there exists both pre-rendered and real-time cutscenes. This is typical of most games, however, the real time events will be controllable by the player in this case. Nomura says the reason for this is, he wanted to keep the gameplay going. He claims that the scenes will feature more natural expressions, unlike the more game-centric ones from previous titles. A new system will be present as well, and is something Nomura feels has never been done before to his knowledge, but will remain secret for now. He says that the scenes will feel more like a FPS than a RPG, in that the flow of the game will remain uninterrupted.


Regarding the character models, the team has spent a lot of effort to minimize the difference between the low and high quality versions. Because of this, both versions of the models are largely the same, except the hair quality is a lot better in the higher quality ones. This allows for a much more unified look when it comes to cutscene and gameplay transitions.

Combat in Versus XIII will be dynamic, complete with changing situations to keep gameplay interesting.


Nomura had three screenshots on-hand to show to the Famitsu editors. Unfortunately, these are top secret and will not be shown to the public at this time.


The first screenshot featured an Italian city we’ve seen in some of the early trailers, complete with beige walls and a glass arcade. Noctis is seen looking up at a behemoth, ready to attack it. The Famitsu editors made comment that they couldn’t believe that this scene was in real time. The other two shots, show Noctis on the side of a highway in the afternoon, and the other in the same location in the evening to show off the game’s day/night cycle. The signs on the road read ‘Meguro’ which is an area in real life Tokyo.


The inclusion of Takeshi Nozue of Advent Children fame, and his knowledge of pre-rendering, has also improved the lighting technology for the game’s real time scenes. Even areas that have been shown in the past, have since been upgraded to the new lighting engine, to which Nomura says we will also have to wait to see.


Nomura revealed an interesting feature that will be present in FINAL FANTASY Versus XIII: the ability to take photos. Noctis will have his own smartphone, and will have the ability to take pictures anywhere he, or rather you the user, wants to.


As for the game’s development status, Nomura says that because there are so many new challenges, development remains focused on the core staff members, however preparations to enter mass production are proceeding.


Voice recording is also gradually being done. There are several scenes with the four male characters (Noctis, Ignis, Gladiolus, and Prompto) all talking to each other at once in a natural conversation, with voices overlapping. These sessions are recorded with all the actors in the room simultaneously, rather than on a single person basis typical to most other games.


As for the next time we will learn about FINAL FANTASY Versus XIII, Nomura says that the date has been set, but he declined to say when exactly that was. He apologizes for the extremely long wait that fans have had to endure, promising that the next update will come with some substantial information.

Source: http://ps3.rpgsite.net/news/1165-te...m_campaign=Feed:+RPGSite+(RPG+Site+News+Feed)

 

[Martel]

FINAL FANTASY Versus XIII is under intense development right now, which could help explain the game’s six month media blackout gap. Most of the information Nomura shared this time focused on cutscenes.

...no doubt because Final Fantasy XIII was so damn poor, and Square Enix probably had to revise their plans and actually add some content to Versus XIII before releasing it, because they knew another title in similar format would send a large percentage of their fans over the edge and into blind rage.

In Versus, there exists both pre-rendered and real-time cutscenes. This is typical of most games, however, the real time events will be controllable by the player in this case. Nomura says the reason for this is, he wanted to keep the gameplay going. He claims that the scenes will feature more natural expressions, unlike the more game-centric ones from previous titles. A new system will be present as well, and is something Nomura feels has never been done before to his knowledge, but will remain secret for now. He says that the scenes will feel more like a FPS than a RPG, in that the flow of the game will remain uninterrupted.

The "natural expressions" thing bothers me. Since when have video game characters looked even remotely natural? Graphics these days are good, yes, but they're not good enough to actually display proper expressions on human characters, they always end up looking ridiculous.

Controlling cutscenes seems to defy the point of having them, really. So what, we'll be able to walk around in cutscenes whilst characters just talk at us, or something? I'll be able to make Noctis face the wall whilst he laments about how bad his life has become or something? It sounds interesting, but "interesting" from SE these days always prompts the alarm bells in my head.

As for a new system, I'll believe it when I see it. Nomura's knowledge is likely incomplete, for there is no such thing as a new system these days. Originality is dead and, coming from Square Enix of all people, it'd be nothing short of a miracle.

Regarding the character models, the team has spent a lot of effort to minimize the difference between the low and high quality versions. Because of this, both versions of the models are largely the same, except the hair quality is a lot better in the higher quality ones. This allows for a much more unified look when it comes to cutscene and gameplay transitions.

This is good. It won't be as high-quality as it could be, but it'll feel more natural. Having enhanced cutscene graphics has always bothered me, because if they can do it for the cutscenes, why not the rest of the game? Keeping it constant is a good way to go.

Combat in Versus XIII will be dynamic, complete with changing situations to keep gameplay interesting.

Bold claims.

The first screenshot featured an Italian city we’ve seen in some of the early trailers, complete with beige walls and a glass arcade. Noctis is seen looking up at a behemoth, ready to attack it. The Famitsu editors made comment that they couldn’t believe that this scene was in real time. The other two shots, show Noctis on the side of a highway in the afternoon, and the other in the same location in the evening to show off the game’s day/night cycle. The signs on the road read ‘Meguro’ which is an area in real life Tokyo.

The Famitsu editors have long since lost their ability to view games objectively, as can be seen from the ridiculously high scores they've been giving games over the last few years. I'm not inclined to put stock in anything they say at this point.

The inclusion of Takeshi Nozue of Advent Children fame, and his knowledge of pre-rendering, has also improved the lighting technology for the game’s real time scenes. Even areas that have been shown in the past, have since been upgraded to the new lighting engine, to which Nomura says we will also have to wait to see.

So this game is going to be like Advent Children?

Nomura revealed an interesting feature that will be present in FINAL FANTASY Versus XIII: the ability to take photos. Noctis will have his own smartphone, and will have the ability to take pictures anywhere he, or rather you the user, wants to.

*insert "I hope I can catch Stella in the shower" comment here*

As for the game’s development status, Nomura says that because there are so many new challenges, development remains focused on the core staff members, however preparations to enter mass production are proceeding.

Didn't he say something like that last year, and the year before that?

Voice recording is also gradually being done. There are several scenes with the four male characters (Noctis, Ignis, Gladiolus, and Prompto) all talking to each other at once in a natural conversation, with voices overlapping. These sessions are recorded with all the actors in the room simultaneously, rather than on a single person basis typical to most other games.

Woop dee doo. Good voice acting is hardly a new thing...although for Final Fantasy it is. FFXIII had terrible voice acting. One hopes that they've learned their lessons. But this is a very inconsequential thing to draw attention to.

As for the next time we will learn about FINAL FANTASY Versus XIII, Nomura says that the date has been set, but he declined to say when exactly that was.

...because he knew if he did there would be public outcry, and the expectation that the game would be released on that date, which probably won't happen.

He apologizes for the extremely long wait that fans have had to endure, promising that the next update will come with some substantial information.

...the next update to come this time next year, which will contain a little more information and some vague promises.

That they're drawing attention to little things that you'd expect a game that has been in development this long to have - like voice acting - and rolling out the big claims of "OMFG DYNAMIC GAMEPLAY THIS WILL BE AWESOME" etc etc has me worried. We've heard it all before. It's never turned out well in the end. Less claims, more proof.

 

[Hatifnatten]

That's how a game should be. Barely any info, a sense of exciting mystery and enigma - just like in the old days. I'm finding new respects for Nomura.
Not this modern shit when you can see whole game on every step of development, million of screenshots and trailers every months, whole plot and mechanics laid out on a silver plate. Versus is like a direct opposition of a western public-whoring XIII-2.

 

[Rey]

I have to admit I am interested in the part where we get to control characters in real time cutscenes. I just wonder how it will be like though. I guess we will just have to wait and find out... and that will seem like forever. More like an First Person Shooter for the scenes? Meh... that could be interesting.... or not. I am going to have to agree that the next update will not be seen for a long time. Not date was given... thus... it will not happen for awhile. Short interview is short but at least we got some details. here and there.

 

[Linnaete]

As promised, FINAL FANTASY Versus XIII was featured in this week’s Famitsu. The magazine caught up with director Tetsuya Nomura for a brief look at Square-Enix’s most mysterious title.

I still want to know which bright genius decided that announcing this way back in 2006 when FFXIII itself, let alone Versus, hardly had anything deemed near playable produced yet. At least with Duke Nukem Forever there were internal development issues. For a development process that isn't troubled like Duke's, it's very jarring to contemplate that 5 years later after its reveal it's still this elusive and mysterious.

In Versus, there exists both pre-rendered and real-time cutscenes. This is typical of most games, however, the real time events will be controllable by the player in this case. Nomura says the reason for this is, he wanted to keep the gameplay going. He claims that the scenes will feature more natural expressions, unlike the more game-centric ones from previous titles. A new system will be present as well, and is something Nomura feels has never been done before to his knowledge, but will remain secret for now. He says that the scenes will feel more like a FPS than a RPG, in that the flow of the game will remain uninterrupted.

Ah, responding to the people who have whined about long cutscenes. Surely if you've been playing since FFVII you'd be used to them by now. I don't really mind lengthy cutscenes as long as they're good cutscenes and not 20 minutes straight of standing around with boring banter and ropey dialogue.

I wouldn't mind having this greater sense of interactiveness though, though seeing as I haven't played many FPSs, I don't exactly know what it would be like. What I don't want though is for cutscenes to be warped into something that hardly resembles a cutscene at all, otherwise I'm imagining FFXIII where Lightning is running around and the other characters are chatting to themselves in the background.

Combat in Versus XIII will be dynamic, complete with changing situations to keep gameplay interesting.

As long as it's more than mindless X-button bashing and constant cannon-firing for 50 hours then. Though knowing Nomura, he'll throw in some bizarre little gameplay element that will irritate me more than anything. I mean, who else could have thrown in the Gummi Ship segments in Kingdom Hearts?

Nomura had three screenshots on-hand to show to the Famitsu editors. Unfortunately, these are top secret and will not be shown to the public at this time.

Why not?! You owe us something to look at for God's sake!

The first screenshot featured an Italian city we’ve seen in some of the early trailers, complete with beige walls and a glass arcade. Noctis is seen looking up at a behemoth, ready to attack it.

Does Noctis have to put on some robes and scale up the side of a building to assassinate this behemoth?

The other two shots, show Noctis on the side of a highway in the afternoon, and the other in the same location in the evening to show off the game’s day/night cycle.

This I like.

Nomura revealed an interesting feature that will be present in FINAL FANTASY Versus XIII: the ability to take photos. Noctis will have his own smartphone, and will have the ability to take pictures anywhere he, or rather you the user, wants to.

In one sidequest, Noctis gets a part-time job as a news reporter working for the Daily Fal'Cie newspaper - I mean uhh, what? What would I want to take in-game photos for? I've been wondering that when I was playing GTA: San Andreas. This does sound like a good chance for the player to say such good things about the game's graphics doubtlessly. THE GRAPHICS ARE SO AMAZING, THEY LOOK SO REAL! I WANT TO TAKE PHOTOS OF IT!

As for the game’s development status, Nomura says that because there are so many new challenges, development remains focused on the core staff members, however preparations to enter mass production are proceeding.

No pressure guys, it's not like you've anything to lose if this game turns out to be bad, right? Still, it cannot possibly be worse than FFXIII and this already sounds a lot more appealing, so they're in a much better position than Kitase and Toriyama already. But when can we expect the first inevitable delay?

Voice recording is also gradually being done. There are several scenes with the four male characters (Noctis, Ignis, Gladiolus, and Prompto) all talking to each other at once in a natural conversation, with voices overlapping. These sessions are recorded with all the actors in the room simultaneously, rather than on a single person basis typical to most other games.

The fact that there's so few female characters so far is noticeable. Maybe Nomura likes yaoi? There'll be plenty of Noctis/Ignis/Gladiolus/Prompto stuff floating around the internet when more of the game is shown, so Nomura will get his fanart.

As for the next time we will learn about FINAL FANTASY Versus XIII, Nomura says that the date has been set, but he declined to say when exactly that was. He apologizes for the extremely long wait that fans have had to endure, promising that the next update will come with some substantial information.

Spring.




























































































2020.

 

[Rapture]

FINAL FANTASY Versus XIII is under intense development right now

Sure it is I'm really glad to know its development is intense right now as opposed to non-existent like it most likely has been the past five years.

In Versus, there exists both pre-rendered and real-time cutscenes. This is typical of most games, however, the real time events will be controllable by the player in this case. Nomura says the reason for this is, he wanted to keep the gameplay going. He claims that the scenes will feature more natural expressions, unlike the more game-centric ones from previous titles.

The only thought I can get out of this is that they've realized that people were irritated with the fact that in XIII the movie, I mean game...had a TON of cutscenes. Maybe a game that has a ton of cutscenes in it that allows the player to have something to do during them would be a better idea ...and natural expressions...say what I don't know how natural a video game character's expressions can be but it seems like they are really going for realism in this game. The characters already look so much more real in the new trailer than the last so...we've yet to see how they are going to pull this off.

A new system will be present as well, and is something Nomura feels has never been done before to his knowledge, but will remain secret for now. He says that the scenes will feel more like a FPS than a RPG, in that the flow of the game will remain uninterrupted.

Versus a 'la CoD?

Combat in Versus XIII will be dynamic, complete with changing situations to keep gameplay interesting.

This is actually nice. I got really sick of all the pre-set situations in XIII.

Nomura had three screenshots on-hand to show to the Famitsu editors. Unfortunately, these are top secret and will not be shown to the public at this time.

... we'd hate for them to see too much

The first screenshot featured an Italian city we’ve seen in some of the early trailers, complete with beige walls and a glass arcade. Noctis is seen looking up at a behemoth, ready to attack it. The Famitsu editors made comment that they couldn’t believe that this scene was in real time. The other two shots, show Noctis on the side of a highway in the afternoon, and the other in the same location in the evening to show off the game’s day/night cycle. The signs on the road read ‘Meguro’ which is an area in real life Tokyo.

This is one of the reasons I do like this game. The scenery I think is going to be pretty decent, as well as the environments...I like the direction they are taking of a Final Fantasy game that depicts some of the places that we see today. It makes it believable...as opposed to the pretty yet in my opinion overly focused on graphics in XIII.

Nomura revealed an interesting feature that will be present in FINAL FANTASY Versus XIII: the ability to take photos. Noctis will have his own smartphone, and will have the ability to take pictures anywhere he, or rather you the user, wants to.

Say what ...why? Ohhh yeah...so we can make our own Versus scrapbook of Noct and all of his "good times." ...really I will admit I laughed ...it just seems like a silly add-on.

As for the game’s development status, Nomura says that because there are so many new challenges, development remains focused on the core staff members, however preparations to enter mass production are proceeding.

I'm sure things will (insert hope) get moving after XIII-2 is released.

Voice recording is also gradually being done. There are several scenes with the four male characters (Noctis, Ignis, Gladiolus, and Prompto) all talking to each other at once in a natural conversation, with voices overlapping. These sessions are recorded with all the actors in the room simultaneously, rather than on a single person basis typical to most other games.

They've been working on the voice-acting for awhile now. They just gave us Noctis's Japanese voice in January...and they are still working on this 7 months later...that in my opinion is not a good sign. Which makes me wonder if they even have the script down and set in stone if its taking this long.

As for the next time we will learn about FINAL FANTASY Versus XIII, Nomura says that the date has been set, but he declined to say when exactly that was. He apologizes for the extremely long wait that fans have had to endure, promising that the next update will come with some substantial information.

...at the TGS. IF we are lucky I'm sure.

 

[Ohri-Jin]

The cutscenes will probably be like the controllable scenes from FF8, while in the FF8 ones you could only move Squall for limited time obviously and within a tight space. Remember that scene where Squall took over that aircraft/hoover and in the background tons of people fighting , now thats the type of cutscene that I would love to see back!

They wont corrupt the flow so seemingly fit in like a perfect glove and irt? Now that would be awesome as long as normal cutscenes are also mixed in..If they balance it rightfully this could be delicious..

They should ditch the moving portraits,IMO too distracting..

So far taking pictures ACE!!! Hopefully it'll be a FULL HD GAME! and not 720p..I'll be taking pictures non stop...hihi.....I reckon it'll be the only time you can use 1st person view like in FF12 bit limited.

Interesting facts and this have to go boooming. Also remember the trailer where Noctis could go two seperate ways and the way he took had fire boulders falling from the sky or where he was at the party when a earthquake destroyed the glass etc..I hope that was just triggered events and not the actual cutscenes referred in this article xD....

 

[Gingerbread Lesbian]

FINAL FANTASY Versus XIII is under intense development right now

however preparations to enter mass production are proceeding.

This is the main thing I took out of this whole interview. Contradiction much? It's under intense development... but it's yet to enter full development. You might as well just add a couple of years onto the release date. Whoever decided to announce this game in 2006 needs shooting, seriously.

 

[TheRealTrxd]

Tbh guys, if you are having trouble waiting for Versus then that is your problem not the developers, I'll let Square Enix take as long as they want, I would HATE for them to release it earlier or compromise it in any way because of the fans impatience. The development has obviously took a very long time because they have been experimenting since day one, fair enough, they don't owe you crap so why should they have to compromise for it? [/rant]

 

[Rey]

Tbh guys, if you are having trouble waiting for Versus then that is your problem not the developers, I'll let Square Enix take as long as they want, I would HATE for them to release it earlier or compromise it in any way because of the fans impatience. The development has obviously took a very long time because they have been experimenting since day one, fair enough, they don't owe you crap so why should they have to compromise for it? [/rant]

No no and no. It is not any of our problems. This game has been announced at e3 of 2006. This game has been in development far too long to say it is our problem. It is really quite sad that Final Fantasy XIII-2 will come out before Final Fantasy Versus XIII. It is 2011 now.. and they announced it in 2006. Now that is a really frickin long time. I am sure many forgot about it by now and do not even follow the information. It is pretty shit to make us wait so long for a stupid piece of shitty info. I am sorry but if we are going to wait 4 months or so just for a crappy update, might as well not. This makes me sad in the sense that other franchises already have two sequels out and all. I mean like Uncharted, Mass Effect, etc. Versus is ONE game and it is STILL in development. Clearly we have a problem there! An example of really long development time was Gran Turismo V.... and Versus XIII is in development still. GT V was released. If they make a GT VI before Versus I will seriously laugh so much. If versus is not out by 2018.. we can sincerely say that Versus is nothing more than a myth/legend. They do want to make it the best FF ever... I do understand that but my god is it taking long. Chances are people will not care with all the franchises coming out. Also.. when Versus DOES release, it better not be shit. Not saying it will be shit, as it looks lovely so far. However, we have such small information it is too early to judge if it will be shit or not. This is probably the longest game in development and I swear it better be the best game that we can possibly ask for from Square Enix.

 

[Linnaete]

It's not so much that the game is taking ages to make that's bothering me (unless you're using much of that time purely on the visuals while compromising other areas of the game), just that some genius decided to announce it back in 2006 when FFXIII hardly had anything close to playable or representative of the final product produced yet at the time, let alone Versus. If they saved the announcement for much later, then the recurring internet comments and jokes that make Versus like Duke Nukem Forever would have been easily avoided.

 

[Martel]

Tbh guys, if you are having trouble waiting for Versus then that is your problem not the developers, I'll let Square Enix take as long as they want, I would HATE for them to release it earlier or compromise it in any way because of the fans impatience. The development has obviously took a very long time because they have been experimenting since day one, fair enough, they don't owe you crap so why should they have to compromise for it? [/rant]

FFXIII has shown us one thing: just because it is in development for a long time does not necessarily mean it is going to be especially good, or even any good at all. And FFXIII-2 is being released just over a year afterwards - what kind of time frame is that? If Square Enix believe they can deliver us a good quality game in that space of time, why has it taken them so long to get Versus XIII right? I think there comes a point where fan impatience becomes justified, and waiting over five years for a game is definetely past that threshold. There is being overly enthusiastic and unduly impatient for a game's release, and then there is being impatient because it is taking longer the average time it takes a game in development to be completed - which seems to be about two years in this day and age - and there is a distinct lack of information to suggest why this is. Versus XIII definetely falls into the latter category: all we have had is a few gameplay videos that ultimately tell us very little about the game, and some vague promises. Now, they're starting to draw attention to things you would expect to be in a game like this.

In a way, I agree with you: I would rather they took their time on it as well, rather than just releasing it early and ballsing it up, like they do everything else. But vague promises and the occasional video over a five-year period does not give us any reason as to why the process is taking so long, and I don't think it is unreasonable or impatient to expect a little more in the way of solid information. That is just my personal opinion, though.

 

[TheRealTrxd]

No no and no. It is not any of our problems. This game has been announced at e3 of 2006. This game has been in development far too long to say it is our problem. It is really quite sad that Final Fantasy XIII-2 will come out before Final Fantasy Versus XIII. It is 2011 now.. and they announced it in 2006. Now that is a really frickin long time. I am sure many forgot about it by now and do not even follow the information. It is pretty shit to make us wait so long for a stupid piece of shitty info. I am sorry but if we are going to wait 4 months or so just for a crappy update, might as well not. This makes me sad in the sense that other franchises already have two sequels out and all. I mean like Uncharted, Mass Effect, etc. Versus is ONE game and it is STILL in development. Clearly we have a problem there! An example of really long development time was Gran Turismo V.... and Versus XIII is in development still. GT V was released. If they make a GT VI before Versus I will seriously laugh so much. If versus is not out by 2018.. we can sincerely say that Versus is nothing more than a myth/legend. They do want to make it the best FF ever... I do understand that but my god is it taking long. Chances are people will not care with all the franchises coming out. Also.. when Versus DOES release, it better not be shit. Not saying it will be shit, as it looks lovely so far. However, we have such small information it is too early to judge if it will be shit or not. This is probably the longest game in development and I swear it better be the best game that we can possibly ask for from Square Enix.

So that's basically "But its been SO long!". If people are driving themselves crazy because the project is taking years, it ain't Square Enix's problem.

FFXIII has shown us one thing: just because it is in development for a long time does not necessarily mean it is going to be especially good, or even any good at all. And FFXIII-2 is being released just over a year afterwards - what kind of time frame is that? If Square Enix believe they can deliver us a good quality game in that space of time, why has it taken them so long to get Versus XIII right? I think there comes a point where fan impatience becomes justified, and waiting over five years for a game is definetely past that threshold. There is being overly enthusiastic and unduly impatient for a game's release, and then there is being impatient because it is taking longer the average time it takes a game in development to be completed - which seems to be about two years in this day and age - and there is a distinct lack of information to suggest why this is. Versus XIII definetely falls into the latter category: all we have had is a few gameplay videos that ultimately tell us very little about the game, and some vague promises. Now, they're starting to draw attention to things you would expect to be in a game like this.

In a way, I agree with you: I would rather they took their time on it as well, rather than just releasing it early and ballsing it up, like they do everything else. But vague promises and the occasional video over a five-year period does not give us any reason as to why the process is taking so long, and I don't think it is unreasonable or impatient to expect a little more in the way of solid information. That is just my personal opinion, though.

There is nothing wrong with wanting solid information and asking for it, but demanding it, and putting down the developer because they aren't giving enough of it, is just childish.

People generally expect games to be released a few years after they are shown, but SE didn't promise a thing, you'd think they promised it would be out soon by the way people are reacting. Just because fans have seen it and are excited for it doesn't give them the right to demand anything from it, if a game that doesn't have a release date takes years, then that's just too bad, but complaining is pointless, and demanding is stupid.

Even in terms of giving out information, they're allowed to show what they want when they want, I'm sure there are a lot of things in the game that they don't feel comfortable showing because it could change drastically or they don't feel like it is polished enough for reveal yet.

Wanting - Fine. Demanding - Not Fine, sick of people acting as though they deserve something or that they know what to do with development better than the people who have been making it for the past seven years.

 

[Martel]

There is nothing wrong with wanting solid information and asking for it, but demanding it, and putting down the developer because they aren't giving enough of it, is just childish.

Speaking for myself, I'm putting the developer down because their track record in recent years has proven to me that they have absolutely no idea what the hell they are doing anymore and they're just aggravating the fans by releasing bugger all information. But that's just me.

I don't see how it is childish, either - people have nothing else to go on other than what they've been told. If they haven't been told enough...well, how do you expect them to react?

People generally expect games to be released a few years after they are shown, but SE didn't promise a thing, you'd think they promised it would be out soon by the way people are reacting. Just because fans have seen it and are excited for it doesn't give them the right to demand anything from it, if a game that doesn't have a release date takes years, then that's just too bad, but complaining is pointless, and demanding is stupid.

Well, as was pointed out earlier, they're contradicting themselves. They say it is still in development, but there are already plans for it to be put into mass production. Which is it? The problem with all the news is that it reveals NOTHING, and Square Enix have already established that they've got enough of the game made to start the process of releasing information about the gameplay, etc. Now they're contradicting their earlier statements. This is how it appears to me, at least.

Complaining may be pointless, but people have the right to do it and, in this case, they have more than enough reasons. Nobody said you had to agree with it, read it, or even like it. But that doesn't give you the right to insult them for it. You think it's stupid, childish...fine. Nobody was asking you to agree with them.

It IS too bad if it takes another three years or whatever for them to release it, but with absolutely no information whatsoever, how do you think people are going to react? They're going to talk about it, we're going to wonder. Demands are made out of frustration. So what? You think Square Enix will actually pay attention? You can't blame people for being frustrated when they've been circle-jerking us about this game for five years and now, when they'd finally released some solid information beforehand, they're slapping us in the face with a "lol, we're still developing, but we're getting ready to mass produce" comment that makes no sense whatsoever and just leaves everyone confused.

Even in terms of giving out information, they're allowed to show what they want when they want, I'm sure there are a lot of things in the game that they don't feel comfortable showing because it could change drastically or they don't feel like it is polished enough for reveal yet.

They are, but they're being sporadic and inconsistent, where every other company isn't. There is an expectation that they'll release information in a consistent and detailed manner, and it isn't an unreasonable one.

Wanting - Fine. Demanding - Not Fine, sick of people acting as though they deserve something or that they know what to do with development better than the people who have been making it for the past seven years.

I believe Versus XIII has been in development for five years, and not seven~

 

[Gingerbread Lesbian]

There is nothing wrong with wanting solid information and asking for it, but demanding it, and putting down the developer because they aren't giving enough of it, is just childish.

No, no it's not. If I plan on forking out good money for one of their games after the disaster that was Final Fantasy XIII and Final Fantasy XIV then as the customer I have every right to demand information I know, it's not childish putting the developer down either, they're nowhere near the quality of AAA developers nowadays and I've not played a good Final Fantasy title since the merger with Enix.

People generally expect games to be released a few years after they are shown, but SE didn't promise a thing, you'd think they promised it would be out soon by the way people are reacting. Just because fans have seen it and are excited for it doesn't give them the right to demand anything from it, if a game that doesn't have a release date takes years, then that's just too bad, but complaining is pointless, and demanding is stupid.

It -IS- Square-Enix's fault, some bright spark didn't realise announcing a game in 2006 at one of the game biggest expos when it was less than 1% complete isn't a good idea. Then there's an influx of information the odd trailer and you don't hear from them again for a good year or more. If you go down your route of logic then you'd have to call every fan wanting an FFVII remake based on the tech demo childish.

Even in terms of giving out information, they're allowed to show what they want when they want, I'm sure there are a lot of things in the game that they don't feel comfortable showing because it could change drastically or they don't feel like it is polished enough for reveal yet.

Because they made the mistake of announcing it 4/5 years too early.

Wanting - Fine. Demanding - Not Fine, sick of people acting as though they deserve something or that they know what to do with development better than the people who have been making it for the past seven years.

Like I've said above, I'm the customer, and after Square-Enix's disasters over the last couple of years I demand to know what the game will be like before I fork out more money into their company.