Square Enix Final Fantasy DS Interview
We sit down with the creators of Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fates and Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings for an in-depth chat about their new DS games.
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Kikizo: How is the stylus implemented into gameplay? It seems like you're obligated to use the stylus somehow when making a DS title.
Kawazu: Well, we didn't want to force people to use the stylus. The touch features are mostly in the menus, but even then, we designed it all in such a way where you can use your thumb instead of the stylus if you so prefer. It's an action game, so in-game, the stylus doesn't really work too well.
Mitsuru Kamiyama, Director of Ring of Fates, Square Enix
Kikizo: Could you tell us more about the character tribes in this game?
Kamiyama: You can basically play through as whatever character you prefer, but you may find, say, a part of a dungeon that's only accessible via a certain means that a particular character type can utilize. The Selkies, for example, may have an easier time clearing a dungeon with their jumping skill than the other tribes. You can go through the game with a varied team, with a challenge team - say, all members of a particular tribe - or even on your own, if you prefer. There are a few instances where, depending on your party's make-up, the various gimmicks inside the dungeons will change, as well.
P L E A S E V I S I T O U R S P O N S O R :
Kikizo: What are your thoughts on the visual elements of the game? The GC version was the subject of a lot of criticism for looking too "kiddie" when compared to the characters in the regular FF series, but it seems like the DS game is opting to keep this look.
Kamiyama: We didn't really intend for Ring of Fates to look cartoonish, but taking into consideration the smaller display of the DS and the system's overall capabilities, that's how it wound up. We wanted to put emphasis on the characters' faces, which required we make them take up a larger proportion of the characters' bodies. The visuals might give off that "kiddie" vibe, but we hope the players will be able to see through that to the gameplay lying underneath.
Kikizo: What do you see the future of RPGs on handheld consoles being like?
Kawazu: Being on a handheld console really doesn't affect the core elements that makes an RPG what it is. It just presents them in a different format, one that the player can carry with them, open and close, etcetera.
Kikizo: Several of Square-Enix's recent DS offerings put a lot of emphasis on multiplayer elements. However, RPGs have typically been a solitary experience. Do you see this shift as sort of the next "evolution" of the traditional RPG genre?
Kawazu: Ever since the release of FFXI, we've been wanted to explore more and more the multiplayer RPG experience. When we decide to make games for a handheld, we want to take advantage of everything the hardware has to offer. In this case, the DS supports many multiplayer capabilities. However, that's not to say that we're trying to base all of our RPGs around multiplayer gaming. It's not really our focus.
Kikizo: It just comes with the territory of the hardware, then.
Kawazu: Yes. We've already made several DS games with multiplayer aspects, but we also want to look more into implementing single-player WiFi features in the future as well.
Kikizo: We look forward to it - thanks so much for your time.
FF XII Revenant Wings is out now everywhere, while Ring of Fates just recently hit the US and will release in Europe on March 21.
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