MCV/DEVELOP News, events, research and jobs from the games industry
Japanese publisher and developer Square Enix has yet again defended its decision to go multi-platform with its upcoming RPG Final Fantasy XIII, whilst admitting that it would have liked to have got its title to the market sooner.
In July Square Enix announced that its hugely anticipated sequel would for the first time not be exclusive to PlayStation at launch, and would simultaneously arrive on Xbox 360. Bringing its title to more gamers is obviously good news for the industry, but this didn’t quell the inevitable internet fanboy rage.
Speaking to Kikizo, the publisher’s corporate director Shinji Hashimoto said of the decision: I’d rather they not think of this as a betrayal or disappointment. It’s not like we’re cancelling or delaying the PS3 version at all. It’s more of an added bonus for 360 fans. We won’t be putting them at a disadvantage in any way.”
Final Fantasy series producer Yoshinori Kitase added: I’d like to add I think that maybe because it’s going multiplatform that some fans are worried about the game’s scope being reduced to fit onto both consoles.
The fact is, the PS3 version is what’s in development right now, and the team is working to specialise that version to the very best of the PS3’s abilities. After that, we’ll do the 360 port and optimize it to that particular hardware. There will be no decrease in quality as a result of the game appearing across two platforms.”
Hashimoto went on to admit that the firm would have ideally liked to get its title to the market sooner than it has done: We would have loved to have had it ready sooner for the console, but with the development of new hardware, it’s become more and more complicated to develop software. The process has become far more time-consuming.”
