Final Fantasy XI producer to keynote Austin GDC

Austin Game Developer’s Conference organisers CMP have named Final Fantasy XI producer Hiromichi Tanaka as the event’s international keynote speaker.

Executive officer at Square Enix, his talk will look at the challenges and triumphs of designing his MMO – one of the firsts MMOs to dethrone EverQuest before World of WarCraft appeared – for a multiplatform audience (the game appeared on PC, PS2, and 360).

“We are honored to have Hiromichi Tanaka, a leading figure in the online game developer community deliver the International Keynote at this year’s event,” said Jane Pinckard, Content Manager for Austin GDC.

"Tanaka’s presence at our conference is indicative of the event’s global appeal. The Austin GDC attracts both national and international attendees due to its historically laid back and intimate environment, and specialized industry topics covered via the show program."

The conference takes place from September 5th to 7th at the Austin Convention Center in Austin, Texas.