Recent comments in a Game Informer interview suggest that Hajime Tabata, director of the upcoming Final Fantasy XV, is looking to go for the gut with the game’s ending. He states in the April 2016 issue that:
“I want to create a very emotional ending to the game and want to make as many people cry as possible…You’re spending so many hours playing the game, so when I finish a game and it ends on a sour note and it doesn’t move me, it gets me disappointed. At least make me cry or give me some emotion! I want to give a moving ending for the consumers who invest so much time.”
He went on to talk about how the team has been using VII as a benchmark for their goals with Final Fantasy XV. Many were part of that development process, says Tabata, and he believes the self-imposed challenge to be a “great motivator”.
Some of gaming’s most iconic dramatic sequences can be credited to the Final Fantasy series, so it is encouraging to see Tabata acknowledge that legacy. He did not specify, however, whether he wanted those tears served happy, sad, or somewhere in between. On a personal level, I hope that Square Enix aims to strike the same bittersweet chord that made the ending to Final Fantasy IX so perfect.
In other Final Fantasy XV news, on March 30th a major event is being held in Los Angeles at 7 PDT titled Uncovered: Final Fantasy XV. Square Enix boasts that the event “will offer new information on the game as well as key surprises that speak to the full entertainment experience.” It is at this event that we should be learning about the game’s release date, so stay tuned.
