Wark Digest #146 - The Worth Of Its Assets
Welcome back to the Wark Digest, your weekly newsletter of new developments and historical insights from the Final Fantasy universe. I’m Chris, aka Hoogathy, and this week the past, present, and future are all on the docket, from what’s in store for Dawntrail, the benefits of Rebirth’s development model, to a sphere hunter’s unexpected journey.
This week’s newsletter is 2550 words, a 12-minute read.
Yoshi-P On Keeping FFXIV Fresh
With Rebirth now a week behind us (already?), it’s time to start shifting our gaze back toward Final Fantasy XIV—where director Naoki Yoshida has been speaking to Play Magazine about the next era of the beloved MMORPG.
What’s going on:
Yoshida isn’t so sure that Dawntrail necessarily signals the start of another epic story arc like the Hydaelyn & Zodiark saga
“I already have ideas potentially for 8.0 and 9.0 in my head, but when it comes to the question of whether this will become a long-spanning story arc, I think that depends on the reaction of the players”
For example, when A Realm Reborn was released, the game’s future was unclear—”So we went on to create Heavensward, and we were working on things in the background, but it was only when we were in the development of Stormblood that I came to the realization that we could […] develop on this idea of the battle between light and darkness and create something really big for the players”
“The ultimate aim that I have is just to create something that excites the players and eventually something that will be epic for our players”
The designs for the new female Hrothgar started in the same way as the male Viera, by giving the art team the lore behind the race and letting them run with it; in this case, there were about 8 general designs proposed, which were narrowed down to 3 by committee
“I was quite torn when I was thinking about which type to go for. There was one which was a little bit popular internally, which had a smaller type of build. This was more akin to—I wouldn’t say fairy-like—but it was quite cute and it looked quite good. But when I thought about the typical characteristics of a female Hrothgar, I thought there should already be some notion of them being strong and nimble. I eventually went for the current version, which you see now, and I chose something which had a more athletic build.”
And yes, they’re working on making hats compatible for all Hrothgar
When asked about the new Cosmic Exploration mode, Yoshida was cagy, but said “it’s similar to Ishgardian Restoration in the respect that everyone is working towards a target together on the same world,” albeit in a less straightforward way
The purpose of the game’s upcoming graphical overhaul is threefold:
Make the game appealing to potential new players: Comparing other new games to FFXIV (which is 10 years old in its current incarnation), FFXIV can look dated, which may give a false impression of the game’s overall quality
Renew veterans’ faith in the game’s longevity: the updated graphics show FFXIV “will still push on and it will still continue driving forward to the future”
Keeps the staff’s skills sharp, and improve backend efficiency: FFXIV is technically two generations behind now, so working with more current and advanced technology benefits the artists and engineers
When asked what advice he’d give his past self, Yoshida replied “you need to be careful about pacing”—MMORPG development is a marathon, not a sprint
What we thought:
Whether Dawntrail ends up being the first act of a brand new macro-level storyline, or more of a standalone moment between sagas, both approaches sound wise—the story could use the chance to push in a new direction without worrying about setting up 3-4 other expansions directly, but also, the post-Endwalker lull is stretching longer than usual, and it would be nice to start on a new epic story arc
Regardless, Dawntrail will surely set the stage narratively for the MMORPG’s next several years
Hopefully some of those other Hrothgar designs make it into the inevitable Dawntrail art book, because it would be interesting to see exactly what he meant by the almost “fairy-like” design
Cosmic Exploration has the potential to be a compelling counterpart to Island Sanctuary, both in gameplay and in tone, but we’ll have to wait a little longer to learn more about it
It’s reassuring to hear that the devs aren’t simply thinking of the graphical overhaul as slapping on a new coat of paint
It’s undeniably needed, regardless, but having deliberate intent behind it will make it all the more impactful
Yoshida’s comments about honing the staff’s skills sound familiar to recent remarks about Final Fantasy XI’s ongoing development—from a year ago, when Yoji Fujito was promoted to producer on that “other” MMORPG
“Rather than limit our developers to working exclusively with FFXI and its decades-old technology, I believe it would be better to allow them to gain experience in other development environments and bring back their learnings”
FFXIV’s developers will be staying on this game, not bouncing to other projects like some FFXI staff, but nonetheless Square Enix and/or Yoshida’s Creative Business Unit 3 are investing in their staff, and that’s a win for them, the company, and the players
What’s next? It was announced this week that this year’s spring events, Hatching-tide and Little Ladies’ Day, will be essentially combined; they’ll be available from March 14 until April 1, with decorations shifting halfway through. The event item is a horn that summons “Peatie, the goobbue maiden” as a mount.
Meanwhile, the full Xbox Series release of FFXIV will arrive on March 21st, for anyone who’s been waiting to bring their pre-existing Warrior of Light to this version.
What’s In Store For the R3make?
Rebirth is, indeed, only a week old, but already talk of the Remake trilogy’s third installment is causing waves—thanks to remarks by Yoshinori Kitase in an interview with the Washington Post.
What’s going on:
Kitase credited Rebirth’s relatively quick turnaround time (releasing four years after the previous game, in an age where a game of this scope can take 7 or more years) to four factors:
Employee retention, as over 80% of the dev team carried over
The use of assets built for Remake, including the main characters’ models
Director Naoki Hamaguchi’s leadership—setting both larger and mid-term goals, and having teams check-in with each other regularly to show their work
Focusing on a single platform instead of developing for 2-3 simultaneously
Kitase: “Had it not been on a single platform, the world map would not be seamless, and game design may have had to regress significantly”
Just as Remake’s assets made Rebirth’s development smoother, Rebirth has laid out a welcome mat for the third installment by building the vast majority of the world… but this work will have to be adjusted to make room for the Highwind
Hamaguchi wants to make a comparable Highwind experience for the third part as players had in FFVII, making the giant airship controllable and even landable on the map
The original version of the WP article mentioned that the third installment will also be a PlayStation exclusive, though it has since been clarified that no such exclusivity deal has been made/announced—though, let’s be honest… it almost certainly will be a PlayStation exclusive
What we thought:
A 4-year turnaround for a game of Rebirth’s scale and quality is…. pretty much unheard of today, and it owes everything to the unique nature of this project, carrying over the assets and engine of Remake
For all intents and purposes, this trilogy is essentially being treated as a single game, which is ideal; it makes a more consistent final product, even with the parts coming out several years apart, and the job is made that much easier
It’s controversial to some, but single-platform development makes sense initially
Expanding development to Xbox Series X means they also have to develop it for the Xbox Series S, which has notably less power than its big brother—and just like that, SE is making (and testing) three versions of the game at once
The multiplatform years were tumultuous for FF and many other series, potentially contributing to the rockier development of FFXIII and FFXV, but since SE has turned back to focusing on one platform at a time, the products (WoFF, FFXVI, Remake, Rebirth) have improved in quality and reception
Their exclusivity arrangements with Sony are timed, after all; they can focus their efforts better, make a more solid experience, then look into the (technical, and fiscal) feasibility of rolling it over to other platforms later
If Remake and Rebirth were PlayStation exclusives, it makes perfect sense that part three will follow suite when it eventually arrives; pivoting to multiplatform at that point would be counterintuitive
Late in Rebirth, I was looking closely at the environments and the world map, wondering how part 3 will incorporate the Highwind, and the prospect of tooling around this world aboard that iconic airship is incredibly tantalizing
The Tiny Bronco is a fun ride itself in Rebirth—now extrapolate that to a much bigger ship, with the full scope of the world… and I’ve got goosebumps
With so much uncertainty and rampant layoffs in the games industry, there’s something reassuring about seeing this dev team stick together so closely—fingers crossed that retention rate stays as high as it did before
What’s next? Kitase and Hamaguchi don’t even entertain the thought of hinting at a release window, but assuming they keep the same momentum and philosophy going into the third installment, we could see the finale of this trilogy in 3-4 years. After all, most of the world has been made, and just needs to be adjusted to allow for the Highwind and other similar considerations, so… a 2027 release date isn’t entirely off the table.
Final Fantasy X-2 Turns 21
It might seem bizarre from our modern perspective, after discussing the sequel to a remake, but once upon a time it was pretty much unheard of for a Final Fantasy to get a proper, direct sequel. That is, until Final Fantasy X-2 broke that seal 21 years ago…
Why it matters:
Final Fantasy X-2 was released on March 13, 2003 in Japan, followed in North America in November and Europe the following February
It was thus the last FF released by Squaresoft in Japan, and the first released by Square Enix in the west
It picked up on Yuna’s story two years after Final Fantasy X (ironically, releasing two years after the original game as well), finding that the peace she brought to Spira was shorter-lived than anyone expected
Yuna is working as a Sphere Hunter alongside Rikku and newcomer Paine when she discovers what seems to be a recording of Tidus—sending their trio on a quest that, surprise surprise, ends up inexorably tied to the fate of Spira
FFX had made waves by setting aside the Active Time Battle system for the slower Charge Time Battle system, but FFX-2 brought ATB back at breakneck pace and allowed the party to change jobs mid-battle
The idea to do a sequel to FFX came about in late 2001, even before the original game was fully launched worldwide, and like FFVII Rebirth, reusing assets greatly accelerated the pace of development
Nonetheless, this was the first time a FF had received any kind of sequel; every game prior had been a one-and-done scenario (except perhaps Final Fantasy V, if you’re willing to accept the Legend of the Crystals anime as a proper or canon sequel… which I am not)
“Jobs” became “Dresspheres;” the “Sphere Grid” became interchangeable “Garment Grids,” on which our heroines equipped said Dresspheres; and Yuna’s elegant staff and robes were replaced by… twin pistols and short shorts?
Its campier tone was polarizing, as was the notion of reopening this world after the fairly conclusive ending of FFX, but it reviewed very well (earning an approximated 85 score on Metacritic) and sold over 5 million copies on its own, before being repackaged and remastered alongside the first game in the PS3 era
What we thought:
At the time, I knew people who had enjoyed everything FF had offered, on the PlayStation at least… up to this point, when either the tone or the act of returning to a complete, rounded story put them off
Nonetheless, I adored FFX-2 at launch, throwing myself into its mission-based structure and considerable replayability
The battle system is legitimately one of the best cracks at the ATB system, unforgivingly fast and action-packed
The visible completion rate called people back for repeat runs, since the “perfect” ending requires a 100% score…which could be daunting
Square did an admirable job progressing the state of Spira post-Sin, and showing what the vast cast of NPCs has been up to in the time between—even Yuna has had to adapt, with the Aeons gone
Replace “dresspheres” with “jobs” in your mind and give the game a chance if you haven’t before, because it still remains one of the most fun active FF games today, IMO
After it broke the tradition and made Final Fantasy sequels a thing, we got the Compilation of FFVII, Final Fantasy IV: The After Years, and both Final Fantasy XIII-2 and Lightning Returns
You can draw several parallels between X-2 and XIII-2, actually
All that being said, I do have one gripe that hasn’t gone away after all these years: the “perfect” ending
Yuna goes on a beautiful journey of self-discovery and accepts what she’s lost… and the perfect ending threatens to throw it all out by the wayside
What’s next? Final Fantasy X-2 remains readily available today in the X/X-2 HD Remaster collection, available on all modern platforms. Since talk of a “X-3” project never fully goes away, it might be worth giving the original sequel a solid chance if you haven’t already.
Around the Union
It’s a “cloudy” week in the channel, starting with our “Ultimate Cloud Combat Guide” for FFVII Rebirth! Learn how to SOLDIER with the best of them with these general tips and tricks, and be sure to share this video with your friends if they’re struggling to master Cloud’s skillset!
And, if you happen to have finished the game already, we break down the implications of its finale in “Final Fantasy VII Rebirth: The Ending Explained.” In case the title wasn’t sufficiently clear, this video is chock-full of ending spoilers for Rebirth, so we all but insist that you save watching it until you’ve beaten the game for yourself.
And don’t forget, you can subscribe to our new premium newsletter, the Kupo Chronicle—where next week, we’re drilling into the details of the Final Fantasy VII we almost didn’t play…
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