Final Fantasy 15 will have multiple sequels
Director Tetsuya Nomura has confirmed that Square Enix expects to produce a number of follow-ups to Final Fantasy 15, and hinted that we may see the publisher's plans for episodic releases come into play sooner than anticipated.
"While Final Fantasy 15 will have one climax, as a story, we plan to continue it further," Nomura told Famitsu, as translated by Siliconera.
The developer said knowing the setting would continue beyond just one game eased the pressure to fit in everything the team had conceptualised, and that future episodes would be delivered much more quickly than Final Fantasy 15 itself, which was in limbo for eight years.
"Having you wait a long while for a next title isn’t something we would desire," Nomura said.
"Also, we’ve been exploring online compatibilities ever since the shift towards the next-generation hardware was decided."
If that doesn't mean "episodic releases of smaller scope projects", in line with recent comments from executive Yosuke Matsuda, there'll be a lot of nacho hat eating in the VG247 office.
On a similar theme, Nomura apologised to fans for the long wait, something Matsuda recently described as "dishonest"; it's hard not to re-interpret the executive's comments in light of the recent revelation that the long-awaited RPG would be jumping ship from PlayStation 3 to next-gen, as well as dropping out of the Final Fantasy 13 Fabula Nova Crystallis sequence in favour of spinning off its own canon.
"I deeply apologize for having you wait for so long. I hope that our latest announcement has been able to meet all of your expectations," Nomura said.
"From this point on, the quality will only be getting better. There are many of you who feel that Japanese developers have fallen behind those from the West in the current generation. I believe that this title will show you otherwise for the next generation."
Hit the source link above for a few other details from the article, including word that Nomura only agreed to change the title once he was sure he could keep Final Fantasy Versus 13's unique systems and story rather than fit in with the general trends of the franchise; the possibility of DLC and other online features; and the potential for smartphone or Vita tie-ins.
Final Fantasy 15 is due on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One sometime after March 2014. Some of the cast have been introduced, and a ballin' gameplay trailer surfaced yesterday. The cinematic E3 trailer is pretty good, too.