Ton of New FFXV Details via Famitsu: Massive World To Explore Thanks To PS4/Xbox One Power, Combat S

[UNKLE]

Tabata on taking over Nomura as director:

• He joined the project in July 2012, Wada personally asked him and the Type-0 team to help out on the Versus XIII project. They also decided at that point to change platforms and rename the game to FFXV, changing the direction of the project.
• About half a year after he joined the project, the tech demo they were working on for FFXV got the greenlight (sounds like a vertical slice), and the project moved full steam ahead.
• He didn't take over the project as director suddenly, since he has been working on this project for a while now. He has had many discussion with Nomura and the development team about the characters and world setting, the meaning of a numbered FF, the best way to make a good game with satisfying content, etc.
• He feels that there is no downside at all to the change in director for the development of the game. He understands fans who have been waiting for a long time might be uneasy, so they had a playable stage demo at TGS along with the trailer, and furthermore if people are still doubtful, there's a playable demo coming next year.
• Tabata's personal vision for the game is the design incorporating the themes of "friendship" and "the journey" into every aspect of it. The story scenes and the battles will all show Noctis and his friendship with the party.

Tabata on FFXV Battle System:

• The battle system will feature very flashy moves and abilities, and feel like an action packed flow of moves. There will be warping and magic attacks, and there will be combination attacks with party members which are generated automatically based on context.
• He also mentions that because this is a RPG, you can also play more strategically, and that during combat you can pause the game into a menu and adjust party behavior, change weapons, etc.
• The weapon system in the game is treated like a deck. You set weapons on the deck in the menu, and during combat the most appropriate weapon in the deck will be used based on the situation.
• The evasion in the game is executed by "defensive movement" which is a stance the player goes into when holding down the defense button. This allows the player to move around defensively avoiding attacks.

Tabata on FFXV Day/Night cycle:

• There is a day/night cycle in the game, and at night more aggressive monsters will show up. In day time the monsters will be passive and won't attack the player automatically.
• They might change it in future, but currently one day in the game time is about 30 minutes of play. You can fight the Adamantoise seen in the trailer, but it might take 30 in-game days to beat it.

Tabata on Share and Remote Play:

• The demo will support Share features, but they're not sure if Remote Play will be in. For the actual game both features will be supported.

NeoGaf user Mpl90 has translated the details from the interview and here is the full rundown of the interview. Prepare yourself guys, Final Fantasy XV is looking promising:

• Final Fantasy XV's director has been changed, now the game is in Tabata's hands. Nomura will work only on KHIII
• The trailer's not extended, but the scenes showed confirm it's about the upcoming demo
• Tabata (I suppose): "There are great expectations for this game, and we're not forgetting this saga's roots while creating new elements (see the final part of the trailer)"
• The combat system starts as "action" a-la-KH, lots of things changed since then but the action nature is still there. Not a classic JRPG, for sure
• Episode Ducsae is confirmed for March 2015, included in Type 0 HD
• Ducsae is a region in FFXV's world
• The demo will be about a period not too far from beginning of the game, but no spoilers, don't worry, Tabata reassures. It's all to let the player comprehend the new combat system
• The demo's length is far bigger than normal, with 3-4 hours and possibly of playing exploration and dungeon phases
• No classic Final Boss in the demo, but the final impression will be incredible for FF fans
• There will be many exploration phases, the player can freely drive the car or let the CPU drive it through Auto Drive, so he can see see secret zones
• Tabata: "The combat system's modifications have been applied correctly, and the development team feels the game much more like a "Final Fantasy" since it became a main title
• ...but this doesn't mean the end of the action nature! The combat system's basis will stay that, but it won't be confusionary. We want the player to control fully what happens
• There will be many new elements, and most I can't talk about. But I can tell you Noctis can dodge enemies by keeping pressing the "Block" button; there will be also Auto-Attack and the Warp button
• Every character/ally will fight with his/her own style; by knowing how Noctis can perform different combos with them the player will be encouraged to search for them on the combat field in order to make a turning point in the battle. In specific moments, only a specific ally can be used against specific enemies, and the command will be visible only near the enemies. This is what makes our work on FFXV magic. We're very satisfied"
• Tabata praises next gen's power, by underlining the beauty of the real-time day/night cycle
• Tabata: "Open world? Yes, FFXV will have a massive world to explore, all thanks to next gen consoles
• The demo is 70-80% complete. March's version will be better.
• We've worked hard on how each character is characterised. Everyone's going to have his own character (laughs...). You'll love them all.
• Prompto is the typical exuberant boy full of vitality, while Noctis the one who "knows", he's not the once-reserved-lonely boy anymore
• Aesthetically, Ignis has been changed too
• SE would like to expand the FFXV's universe on PSVita and mobile phones, i.e. it would be great to connect outside of the TV screen
• The story retrace the Fabula Nova Crystallis' myth from FFXIII and Type 0, in a different world. The plot is simple: the boys have to get back a crystal stolen by an enemy country
• During the interview, some names were mentioned, like King Aegis, Emperor Aldercapt, Luna, the city of Altissia...any news on the matter? Tabata: "No comment".
• Not even Luna? Tabata's answer: "The others are no comment, while Luna is...tabula rasa" (laughs...), then "I'd love telling you more, but right now I can't, still she'll be a key character like Notcis!"
• New details on plot and characters in future events, Jump Festa 2015 especially.

http://www.gamepur.com/news/16308-t...e-world-explore-thanks-ps4xbox-one-power.html

 

[UNKLE]

"Tabata's personal vision for the game is the design incorporating the themes of "friendship" and "the journey" into every aspect of it."

So this game will be light themed? not dark themed like versus 13 was originally planned? i still not understand.

 

[Tornak]

I quote myself from the other thread:

I'm going to be seriously pissed off if we only get to play as Noctis. Seriously pissed off, it would diminish my excitement A LOT.

What's that crap? If they've (in my opinion wrongfully) gone back from a more KH style to a more "hold X to awesome" just to make it more FF-ish, why the would they remove such thing as simple and iconic as switching/controlling party members? And it's not that they even have a huge cast, so I don't see why would they do that.

Seriously, I hope they explain the battle system much better, because that sounds awfully worrying, with the all the contextual and automatic things.

And please, let the Noctis thing being only a mistranslation or even only for the demo, because man, I can't believe how in two days, my hype has gone from the roof to the ground because of them dramatically changing and removing features that were there from the beginning and that were a big part of the reason why we were so excited.

And it seems like Nomura didn't like the renaming thing, and that this new direction has been basically forced on him (regardless of his skills/lacks of skills as a director).

I know I'm overreacting (it's only a game!), but man, I don't like this shit. No, no.

I can't believe they're actually doing this. I hope they explain it better, because it all sounds that they're dumbing down the game and changing a fuckton of things already assumed/shown to be in the game (PARTY SWITCHING, the battle system...)

Now I'm afraid they've changed big aspects of the story and such. Maaan, how can one's hype been hit like that (and I wasn't even expecting the best game ever, just what had been promised).

 

[UNKLE]

Maybe square enix lied to us again? man i wish agnis philosophy was a real game i bet that would be great game i love middle east themed game/movies.

 

[Tornak]

I hope they at least step up and clarify the party member (lack of) switching thing. If that's only a mistranslation or something for the demo, alright (even if the automated battle system is still worrying as fuck).

And I'm almost sure now that they've tons of things Nomura wanted to do before, even if we didn't know them. That could either good (Nomura can be... Nomura) or bad. But sad nonetheless

Man, what a roller coaster of emotions this TGS lol.

 

[Tornak]

Lol, I'm sorry, but I can't believe in Square Enix anymore. I can be excited (as I am even now). But trust? No, not at all. Not after XII being the only FF I truly liked since IX. And that game had lots of problems, likely because of these very same reasons.

I know people (including me) are overreacting over things that might have been badly explained. But I think we have TONS of legit reasons to be worried about:

1. Basically, the bullshit of (seemingly) not being able to switch members. That's such a bullshit that no justification will ever suffice. If that holds true for the final game, this goes from my most awaited game ever to... I don't know, but certainly not the game I'm passionate about. And as I said many times before, I wasn't even expecting a masterpiece. Just a nice game that has the things we had been promised.
   
2. The battle system. This part is the one that we really have to wait to see what is like, but the sounds of it couldn't be more worrying. Now, even if it proves to be a great BS, it's still a big dissapointment for those who have followed the game over the years. And I wasn't even the biggest fan of this having a copy-paste KH battle system, but man.
3. Nomura's vision. Let me explain this: I love Nomura, but I also know he has tons and tons of flaws, and so I dislike a lot of his work (FFX designs, KH's overall plot...), but we were excited about his vision on a mainline FF. And now it looks like this is Tabata's and the executives' vision of it. FF XII all over again?

Of course, I'm really overreacting (and this hasn't been a good day so far, so there's also that lol), but this is the worst piece of news I could ever have heard about this game. Even worse than the months and months of utter silence.

I feel, though, that if the switching party members thing is still in, my hype could go to similar levels than before. So, hopefully they clarify this asap.

 

[UNKLE]

Square is doing this redefine the JRPG gameplay. It may sound bad based off an explanation and description but I believe Square knows what they're doing. I'm now back to getting excited and looking forward to XV.

I have said this many times and many times before but for those who are new or have somehow lost some faith to Square....
This is what I say..... BELIEVE and BELIEVE IN THEM.

In general...... BELIEVE.

sorry but i lost faith in SE. they lied us again? or no? time will tell.

 

[Tornak]

Well, before getting too mad (late for me lol), let's see how everything fares out.

Because the thing I'm most upset about (even more so than the battle system's apparent automatization and the departure from Belt and zippers-sama's vision) is the "Noctis only playable thing", and that seems the most likely to be just a misinterpretation or something only present in the demo.

But well, I think it's more that I'm really invested in this game as a concept than in the series right now (even being FF my favorite series ever). Basically because XIII was pretty mediocre, XII I loved but had lots of flaws and X was, in my opinion again, the beginning of FF's decline, with the ridiculous character design and the linearity among other things (I really enjoyed it, though).

But I tend to have pretty black and white opinions and overreactions as you've seen, so

 

[yeah_93]

Square is doing this redefine the JRPG gameplay. It may sound bad based off an explanation and description but I believe Square knows what they're doing. I'm now back to getting excited and looking forward to XV.

I have said this many times and many times before but for those who are new or have somehow lost some faith to Square....
This is what I say..... BELIEVE and BELIEVE IN THEM.

In general...... BELIEVE.

I BELIEVE they are going the wrong direction.

 

[BladeRunner]

I still hope there was some kind of mistranslation/miscommunication issue and we'll actually be able to switch party members.
I'm gonna hold off my judgement of the combat system until we get some more in depth presentation of it but I can't hide that all that automatic bullsh*t worries me.

 

[Fin]

Does anyone have the original Japanese text for the "can't switch out party members" thing?

Personally I don't care if the gameplay isn't just like KH because I do not like KH. But I don't want it to be all flash and no substance either.

The thing that shocked me most is 15 hours to beat the Adamantoise?? Wtf who has that kind of time that's crazy.

 

[Tornak]

I've read that he was laughing after talking about the Adamantoise, so I guess it's a joke, that's an insane amount of time. I could see it being a huge battle talking several in-game days.

About the switching thing... I don't know (and I sure as hell don't know a word of Japanese); some people say that he's talking as in "when you control this character, the others will be AI" or that he's talking exclusively about the demo (maybe we only get to control Noctis at the beginning of the game, and that's why, maybe the other characters aren't ready to be shown...)

However, it's worrying that we haven't seen (like in past trailers) nothing more than Noctis, Noctis and Noctis. Seriously, if they don't have switching members, that'll be the biggest dissapointment ever, I'd be done.

And I also hope this isn't style over substance, like it might looks to be like. I have the feeling that they really want to have Advent Children-ish battles, and they don't care if they have simplify the battle system to get that :s

 

[Slickyslacker]

Does anyone have the original Japanese text for the "can't switch out party members" thing?

Personally I don't care if the gameplay isn't just like KH because I do not like KH. But I don't want it to be all flash and no substance either.

The thing that shocked me most is 15 hours to beat the Adamantoise?? Wtf who has that kind of time that's crazy.

http://www.4gamer.net/games/260/G026084/20140917119/

4Gamer：
　バトルの操作方法はどんなものになるのでしょうか。

田畑氏 (Tabata)：
　コマンド選択ではなく，アクションバトルでオフェンスとディフェンスを切り替えながら戦います。プレイヤーが操作できるのはノクトだけですが，ほかのキャラクターは，プレイヤーが出した作戦に基づいて，自律的に行動します。もちろん戦闘中でも，設定画面を呼び出してパーティ全体に対する作戦や個別の武器を変更することはできます。

Tabata responds with: "Pureiyā ga sōsa dekiru no wa Nokuto dake desuga", which pretty much means "the player can only operate Noctis". This is also the same statement in which he goes on to say that other character are controlled by AI and set tactics.

 

[Takoyaki]

Though it's good to mention regarding character control...

"I checked out the 4Gamer interview, and regarding the playable character thing...

When Tabata says that the player only controls Noctis and the other characters have AI commands, it sounds more like he's describing how the system works as it is. In the demo shown so far, the only playable character in Noctis. It could be that they have removed character swapping, but it could also just be him describing the fact that as an action RPG you only control a single character. At the same time, he does talk about how the game is very much about Noctis and his friends "helping each other", so that might be why only Noctis is playable.

The important points he highlights is that there will be AI settings in the menu which can be changed, and the player will have a degree of control over the battle flow.

 

[Mistwalker]

Tabata has said that the battle system was modified successfully because 'now this is a numbered Final Fantasy' and that the game now feels more like a Final Fantasy game. Being so, why is there all this fear to be able to play only as Noctis? By what I read I feel like this game will have a battle system similar to what FFXII offered, where you could use every character as your party leader. I think we are assuming too much here. We lack some info, and we are running just too fast with the little info that has surfaced since the last TGS.

If it 'feels more like a Final Fantasy game' then there SHOULD be party-leader switching. FFXV would be the first numbered FF to not do so if you can only control Noctis, that's why I think it won't happen that way and that you'll be able of controlling every one.

At least that's my opinion.

 

[Fin]

Hmm so they have an a.i. menu that pops up in battle if you want to change tactics, but you can't set direct commands, so it doesn't sound as advanced as the gambit system from XII.

That's rather disappointing, especially if other characters have move sets and play styles I'm more interested in. But I guess they built up the teleporting feature as this really cool thing and you have to control Noctis for that.

I remember not liking that Versus was going to be an action game back when it was announced, but I'll try to be optimistic. It's possible that the battle system has way more features beyond "attack" and "block" but they're only showing the basics first. They still have a few more appearances to show off the game before the demo comes out.

And if all else fails I have Xenoblade X to fall back on, cause that is some wonderful gameplay. FFXV may be one of those games I'd play for the story and not the system...

 

[Tornak]

Tabata has said that the battle system was modified successfully because 'now this is a numbered Final Fantasy' and that the game now feels more like a Final Fantasy game. Being so, why is there all this fear to be able to play only as Noctis? By what I read I feel like this game will have a battle system similar to what FFXII offered, where you could use every character as your party leader. I think we are assuming too much here. We lack some info, and we are running just too fast with the little info that has surfaced since the last TGS.

If it 'feels more like a Final Fantasy game' then there SHOULD be party-leader switching. FFXV would be the first numbered FF to not do so if you can only control Noctis, that's why I think it won't happen that way and that you'll be able of controlling every one.

At least that's my opinion.

That's the thing: they change the battle system (something most have been excited about for 8 years) to make it more FF-like. If they really are going to make us only stick to Noctis, that defeats the purpose of this being retooled as a more suitable title to the series, it's just stupid that they give a seemingly small party (with similar abilites) and they force you to only control one character.

That's why I want to believe that he was just describing the demo (in which only Noctis is controlled) and not the entire game. That shit had been promised and shown from the beginning, and I feel like they simply don't care about the people that have been excited and passionate about the game for so long.

I have enough with not having a KH-like battle system and instead this (whether it turns out to be better or worse, I don't care. This stinks of executive meddling so bad).

 

[BladeRunner]

The thing that shocked me most is 15 hours to beat the Adamantoise?? Wtf who has that kind of time that's crazy.

I think it's because Adamantoise is supposed to be a high level superboss (like in FFXIII) and in the demo characters will be low level. You can try taking it down if you want, but it'll be like fighting Ruby with lvl 1 Cloud.

I'm more and more certain that Tabata was just giving a general description of the system which was misunderstood and everyone went batshit.

 

[Myrodis19]

Do you all think the story will not be that dark now? Thats my concern. I was looking forward to the dark story.

 

[Mistwalker]

One worry I have about this game is its theme. When the project started back in 2006, Nomura said that Versus XIII wasn't a numbered Final Fantasy because it was a darker game than every numbered title ever was.

Spoiler

you know, like the destruction of the world in VI never happened and like Celes didn't attempt to commit suicide then

Now that the project has shifted to a numbered Final Fantasy and now that the director has also changed, will there be any possibility of having this game be as 'dark themed' as it was intended in the beginning? Will we finally a M-rated Final Fantasy game? Or will we continue with T-rated games? (Because, seriously, I'd love to play a Final Fantasy with a plot as dark --and bloody-- as other CRPGs, WRPGs and JRPGs I've played out there).