[First Interviews Highlights]
Maximilian Dood:
- Old maps from Rebirth will definitely look different
- The exploration is indisputably more expansive than Rebirth
- Chocobo can fly around freely to explore vertically
- We are operating within the same combat system for WEAPONs battles, but we have unique mechanics and gadgets included in the battle
- Each character has four FITS available, and a skill tree is also included
- Chocobo breeding is going to be different this time. We are helping Pico grow, which will allow you to explore and reach new areas
- The day/night cycle story will be focused on story progression
- Reunion was not on the list of three titles being considered. Nomura chose Revelation from the three candidates
- The title Revelation is for 'Answer all the questions that players may have.'
- Old Sephiroth VA is unable to come back, so they have picked up a new one, new Sephiroth EN VA Travis Willingham
Restart:
- Black materia activated at the beginning of FF7RV
- Chadley has a base & conducting research on Meteor
- Chadley has an important part related to main story
Gamespot:
- Vincent is able to transform beast mode anytime + range attacks
- Cid is excellent in aerial/airbase attacks
- Building upon the existing foundation and then evolving on what we've created; ability to customize & play character as the player wishes
- Minigames optional, more light
- Epic homage WEAPONs how to present and scale them
- Remake Series Concludes with Revelation
- We heard fans wanting to explore the side stories of other characters and/or other parts of the story, it's interesting but we wanted to conclude this as soon as possible and efforts are focused on that.
Automaton #1:
- Trailer focuses much more on the game's systems and what we're trying to express through the game itself. What you can do in the game and how deep the gameplay goes.
- "Open-world" spanning the entire planet, depending on what a player chooses to engage with first, the way their adventure unfolds can differ significantly.
- Entire world is connected from the start. Fly Highwind anywhere.
- Hamaguchi games to reference/draw inspiration: The Witcher 3 Wild Hunt, Hogwarts Legacy, Horizon series, Crimson Desert
- FF7RV includes all of the continents from FF7RB
- Each area contains its own unique activities, gameplay mechanics, and interactive elements
- Depending on where player choose to go first, their experiences can end up being quite different
- Weapons has caused major changes across the world: due to that old maps are different from the previous game (even though visual identity, atmosphere and setting remain familiar and world map is preserved)
- You'll travel alongside Pico, your Chocobo companion. As Pico grows, the way you explore the world changes as well
- Parachute from the Highwind and interact with the environment in more vertical ways
- Job-inspired FITS System: allow players to customize the characters, for example turning Cloud into a more mage-oriented character; outfits available since start
- No restriction on game design due to multiplatform
- Weapon battles as a natural extension of the regular combat system
Automaton #2:
- Trilogy's finale theme: Resolve and Choice
- More sections in the game where players' choices are so crucial that they can alter not only how they progress through the game but even the direction of the storytelling itself
- Experience changes based on your choices, yet things ultimately converge toward a single conclusion
- Experiences that could completely differ from one player to another
- Definitive conclusion, no multi-ending game
- Choices players make on the journey toward the conclusion will affect their individual experiences as well as the stories told through side content
- You don't have to engage with minigames if you don't want to
- Minigame rewards are now largely unrelated to combat progression, instead they offer things like character skins & customizations options
- Minigame difficulty settings added
- Battle progression and the like are tied more closely to combat-oriented side content
- You obtain the Highwind fairly early on, and from that point yo essentially go wherever you want and play however you like
- You might wander into a place out of curiosity and immediately get demolished by powerful enemies
- North Crater becomes inaccessible for a period of time because a Weapon has appeared there
- There are still locations you can't access because of story-related reasons
- Vertical exploration
- You might pick up a quest in one location the travel to another area to progress it
- If you've already visited an area you can use fast travel to reach it
- Final polishing stage
Famitsu:
- The title implies that hidden truths will be revealed
- The key unifying term for the team is "resolve", representing both the determination of Cloud and the other characters, and the developers’ commitment to bringing the series to a proper conclusion
- The game features an even larger world where the experience itself changes depending on the player's choices
- New locations include Rocket Village, Wutai, Mideel.
- Areas that appeared in FFVII Rebirth are slightly changed; the terrain has been altered to reflect tectonic shifts caused by the revival of the WEAPONs
- Exploration expands as Pico grows, allowing players to explore also vertically, including in areas such as the Grasslands
- Highwind enables seamless travel around a continuous world map, where reaching one edge brings the player out on the opposite side
- Players can descend from the Highwind via parachute
- Fast travel becomes available after a location has been visited for the first time
- Highwind serves as a base of operations for Cloud and the party; features both a flying mode and an indoor mode
- Items collected throughout the adventure are displayed inside the Highwind
- The Buggy does not return, but similar truck-like vehicles are available
- Rocket Village is filled with precision machinery, for that reason a "No Chocobos" sign is seen
- Vehicles can be used in Rocket Village instead of Chocobos
- Vincent primarily fights using ranged gun attacks, switches to melee combat while in Beast Mode
- Vincent's Beast Mode can be activated and deactivated freely during battle
- Cid is a spear user inspired by the Dragoon; he excels at aerial combat and possesses a variety of powerful techniques
- Cid specializes in teleporting attacks and stabbing attacks; he is also effective at wide-area attacks
- Battle Director Endo proposed the addition of the FITS System, which is inspired by job/class systems
- Four outfits are available as soon as you get the FITS unlocked
- Outfits affect character parameters, and add skills and abilities; effects tailored to each outfit's unique characteristics
- Outfit growth rates are shared among all characters
- Character skin feature allows players to keep a character's original appearance while using FITS outfit
- Additional character skins can be collected throughout the journey
- Weapon skin feature allows players to select preferred weapon appearance
- WEAPON battles include unique mechanics and gimmicks layered on top of the standard combat system
- WEAPON encounters are designed to feel distinct from battles against regular enemies
- Minigames now include selectable difficulty levels. Also, if you fail, you can skip it
- Knights of the Round will be available
- Player choices affect the overall game experience
- Your choices result in different game experiences. The way you complete quests, the events you see, and even the overall flow of gameplay can all change
- There's only one ending
Denfaminicogamer:
- Nomura decided the title
- Final stage of development
- Considering playable demo at TGS or around that time
- You use a parachute to descend and can fast travel back to the Highwind immediately returning to flying mode
- Interior of Highwind will be updated according to your progress; crew's conversations will change and give you even quests
- In the story, after each story arc ends, a briefing is held on Highwind to discuss what's next
- You can fly freely everywhere, including various islands (of course there are areas offlimits but basically you can fly anywhere)
- Kept all previous areas
- You'll be traveling with a single Chocobo named Pico; towards the end Pico will be able to glide and fly anywhere
- Vertical exploration is possible now. You can fly from above with a parachute instead of using a chocobo, is up to you
- You can enjoy exploring various locations right from the start; side content can be tackled at any time if you decide so
- WEAPON that are not involved in the story can be challenged at any time
- There are of course some moments where we say "For now, please follow the story on this continent," so the structure there is similar to the previous game."
- In this game, however, once you get the Highwind early on, you can freely explore all the areas using the Highwind
- You might find that one area is easy, but the next one is incredibly difficult
- The idea is to pick and choose what you want to do in each area as you go along
- The amount of content is equal to or greater than that of the previous game
- No time limit for Vincent's Beast Mode; single button switch
- Cid is an attacker who excels at aerial combat and somewhat strong in support roles
- There are four types of outfits in total, and all four types are unlocked at once for all characters, and you can delve deeper into the outfits in conjunction with the skill tree
- Zack will make appearances at key points in the game
- Other Guest Characters will join Zack as playable characters
- Zack screen time greater than before to convey and tell the story of slightly different worldview and setting compared to the original version
- Wutai has a very politically charged storyline
- Midgar area will also be featured; Deepground & people involved with it might appear there
- Rocket town will be possibile to visit towards the end of the story
- Underwater world will also appear in the story
- KOTR will be available
- Single conclusion, the end of FFVII Remake series
- Affection level system this time the focus isn't solely on him but the side content prioritize "which character each user wants to delve deeper into and learn more about"
- Minigames number will not be reduced; can be entirely skipped; can select easy mode
- Minigames not linked to battle progression and trophies
- Character skins that aren't related to battle strategy. Conversely, we grouped the battle elements that players really want to do into battle-oriented side content to create a clear distinction
- Tifa vs Scarlet slap fight will be present
