SG: Zenos is probably one of the most amazing enemies the Final Fantasy series has ever seen. Scary, powerful, cruel, but not least charismatic. How could such a character come out of the scene so soon?
NY : I can only tell you that there is a reason.
FI : There is a reason, but we can not tell you exactly where we are in history.
NY : But I agree with you about being a beautiful character. I think Stormblood’s story will take a turn that you can not imagine, wait and see.
SG: Let’s talk about Omega and Deltascape now. We loved the idea of facing the bosses from the Final Fantasy V universe, especially that of v4.0. So boys talk about Ex-Death! The question is, without obviously making a spoiler, will you use this concept for the upcoming Deltascape plans? Will we see new bosses of Ex-Death caliber coming from other chapters of Final Fantasy?
NY : You must first know that Hishikawa-san here is the person behind the script and the Omega scenario.
FI : Raids fights, however, chose Yoshida-san, and just because Omega comes from the old chapters of Final Fantasy, there was the idea of introducing special fights against the most important monsters and creatures in the series.
NY : Omega comes from Final Fantasy V and its origins are based on an ancient civilization or even from space. With these premises we had to understand what a creature of that kind could have done within Hydaelyn’s ruins, and the solution was: anything.
With Omega we wanted to make a sort of Final Fantasy Universe Festival, so as a team we took the liberty of not engaging too much in trying to create something unique, but we opted for the idea of pasting from the past. This Deltascape then started with V, wait to see what will come next.
Globally, the feedback received was pretty positive and we’re really happy that you have so far liked it.
SG: In Final Fantasy XI there is a feature that allows players to gain the confidence of the most important NPCs (those related to plot events) and to make them fight at their side. Have you ever thought about introducing something like Final Fantasy XIV? Or maybe even be able to engage in relationships with them, it would be cool!
NY : (laughs) So, for starters, from 4.1 you can recruit your Grand Company mates, train them, and fight them alongside you in dungeons as a real party member. So thanks to this new content we will introduce with the next patch you will finally be able to play together with NPCs, as far as sentimental relations are concerned, you have to talk to Ishikawa-san.
FI : As far as your Warrior of Light has a relationship with a specific character in history, it’s a bit difficult, because that character is also tied to so many other players. Rather, we could give you options where you can become friends with NPS based on a specific list, but drawing up a list of which NPCs to select would be really challenging as each player has his preferences. However, it is a feature we will take seriously into consideration.
NY : We can start with appointments in the Gold Saucer (quotation FFVII!), It was an idea that had flashed in our head for a while.
SG: A personal question at Yoshida-san: Have you ever thought about your future in Square-Enix? Do you think the man will remain at FFXIV’s command or do you have plans for a possible new project all yours?
NY : Unlike many other developers, I do not have a strong desire to make video games. If I had not done Final Fantasy XIV, I would have left Square-Enix. Obviously, I have ideas on possible new projects, but I do not necessarily feel the need to concretize them.
As long as the players and the company want me to guide FFXIV I will be more than happy to continue with my work. I have so many ideas about the game and goals I want to accomplish, with the same determination when I started.
If, on the other hand, players and business want to see me on a new game, I’d be happy to do it. How did I do, however, if the new project did not fall into my ropes or impose a policy I did not share then I would leave Square-Enix (laughs)
FI : Please, if you let the company let you know before (laughs)
NY : Quiet, I hold too much to the FFXIV team.
SG: Last Question Yoshida-san: In Hamburg you said that after the release of FFXII The Zodiac Age we would have heard something about “Return to Ivalice”, the new raid. The game has come out, but we still do not know anything about it. You can tell us just a little bit, we’re all incredibly curious.
In the second week of September we will have a livestreaming for the fourth anniversary of the game. During the show we will definitely say something about it, so I did not lie to you because the news we announce will actually come after the FFXII release The Zodiac Age (laughs) We will invite the same Matsuno-san, the creator of the universe Ivalice, to participate in the live and also he will talk about Return to Ivalice
