Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth's not-quite-open world was inspired by one of the PS4's best RPGs

Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth differs from its predecessor in that it's somewhat open world, and it turns out its world is inspired by none other than The Witcher 3.

Where Final Fantasy 7 Remake was a bit of a linear experience, Rebirth will be bigger, bolder, better, and a lot more open, even if it's not a true open world game (in fact, it'll be about three times bigger). Earlier this month, French outlet FF Dream spoke with co-director Naoki Hamaguchi about the game, including its open world (thanks, GamesRadar). According to Hamaguchi, in the first instance Final Fantasy 15 helped set the groundwork as it gave the team the experience it needed to make Rebirth's open world.

Final Fantasy 7 REBIRTH Gameplay Preview: We've played it, it rules

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Interestingly, though, Hamaguchi also noted he's a big fan of The Witcher and Horizon series, two obviously massive RPGs with big, sprawling open worlds. He spoke of how they looked at what worked about the respective games' open worlds, while still making sure to bring their own touch to make it unique to the Final Fantasy 7 universe. Whether Hamaguchi is talking about Horizon: Zero Dawn or Forbidden West, but the latter will obviously have seen some improvements to its open worlds, though only launched last year.

Rebirth is looking like it's shaping up to a fairly substantial sequel, and is even honing in on some incredibly subtle differences - take for instance the fact that pretty much every quest in the game has two different versions, depending on when you complete one particular story beat. The sequel is also bringing back characters like Vincent Valentine, who's voiced by none other than Critical Role's Matt Mercer. And of course, the hunky Sephiroth is returning, this time in playable form, though creative director Tetsuya Nomura isn't exactly sure why we're all so thirsty for him.

Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is launching February 29, 2024, on PS5.