Final Fantasy VII Remake for PS4 to be Annouced at E3 2015
Siliconera claims that a legit Final Fantasy VII remake will be announced for PS4 at E3 2015. Siliconera does seem quite the reputable source when it comes to Japanese gaming. It is currently unknown whether the announcement will come during Sony’s E3 2015 press conference or Square Enix’ own briefing.
There is a possibility that Sony is funding the project, as Square Enix has previously stated that it would be too expensive for them to do it on their own. The remake is being done to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the game.
Final Fantasy series producer Yoshinori Kitase, speaking about a potential remake in February, stated:
“I can honestly tell you I would love to do that,”
“If you simply ask me if I personally would like to do that, yes I would. Definitely. There’s no lie about it. But you must believe me when I say it would take a lot to happen. Even if I casually say I would like to do that, because it would be a huge project I would have to motivate myself to the level that I really am prepared to take on this huge responsibility,”
“I don’t know if those three things will happen simultaneously. It has to tick lots of very big boxes. I won’t rule out the possibility, but it would take a lot to make it happen. But should I ever take it on, it would have to be the biggest project I’ve done. My life work. So I would have to be as highly motivated as that to end up with something I’m very happy with. It’s a huge thing for me.”
The Final Fantasy VII remake is considered a rumor
This is still a rumor, so until we get an official announcement during either Square Enix’ or Sony’s press conferences, it’s better not to get our hopes up. Still it would certainly be something if it turns out to be true, as fans of the original have been looking forward to a proper remake for some time.
Square Enix released a teaser video of its E3 2015 line-up, which lists Final Fantasy XIV: Heavensward, Just Cause 3, Deus Ex: Mankind Divided, Dragon Quest Heroes and Life is Strange. Plenty of surprises are being teased as well.
Deus Ex: Mankind Divided, which was introduced with a magnificent cinematic trailer, had very little information revealed about it so far, and a complete lack of gameplay footage. Kingdom Hearts 3, similarly made no appearances for some time, and after the transition of the game to the Unreal Engine 4, fans have been eager to see Kingdom Hearts in action. The hugely anticipated Just Cause 3 will surely be making an appearance at the show.
Square Enix recently released the transcript of its financial results, outlining the plan for fiscal year 2016. CEO Yosuke Matsuda explained the company’s IP policies, stating that the company plans to strengthen and reboot existing IPs.
First is to strengthen and reboot our existing IPs. We would like to focus on how to utilize the numerous assets of content that we have nurtured so far, and apply them to the latest trend. As for the platform, we would like to use consoles and smart devices in parallel. Just focusing on one platform is not enough. We believe it is significant to serve both platforms, if we are to offer game content and services that appeal to the new generation.
Japanese gaming magazine Famitsu, tried to get some information from the publisher regarding their E3 conference and the Square Enix representative responded with the following:
“At this year’s E3, we’ll have our own conference for the first time after two years, where we’ll deliver to everyone the rich line-up of the Square Enix Group. What we’re going to show off at E3 is unprecedented in the history of Square Enix, with a strong line-up in which each can be considered a centerpiece.
Since we plan to stream the conference live, it’ll be at night [in Japan], but please watch it!”
The publisher promises their biggest line-up ever for E3 2015, so we can expect to see more of the already announced titles, and have a lot of new announcements and surprises.
Sony’s press conference will take place on June 15 – 6pm PT / 9pm ET / June 16 – 2am BST / 11am AET, while Square Enix will have their event on June 16 – 10am PT/ 1pm ET / 6pm BST / June 17 – 3am AET.
We will bring you any new information from Square Enix, Sony and E3 2015 as soon as it becomes available.
Final Fantasy VII Remake Announced With Beautiful Trailer; First on PS4
During Sony’s E3 2015 press conference, Square Enix announced that it’s working on a remake of Final Fantasy VII. The developer mentioned that Final Fantasy VII will appear first on the PlayStation 4, something that indicates that the remake could find its way at other platforms including the PC at a later date.
You can view the beautiful announcement trailer below:
As is apparent in the trailer the look is more akin to the Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children movie, rather than the look of the original game. The evolved and updated visual style, will do well with the new Luminous Engine used in Final Fantasy XV. It almost seems that Square Enix have been waiting for the right time for the technology and hardware available to be ready to capture the vision they had in mind for a remake of the classic iconic Final Fantasy iteration, that changed RPG gaming for millions of gamers around the world.
There was no mention of whether Sony was funding the project, but there is a possibility, as Square Enix has previously stated that it would be too expensive for them to do it on their own. The remake is being done to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the game.
Final Fantasy series producer Yoshinori Kitase, speaking about a potential remake in February, stated:
“I can honestly tell you I would love to do that,”
“If you simply ask me if I personally would like to do that, yes I would. Definitely. There’s no lie about it. But you must believe me when I say it would take a lot to happen. Even if I casually say I would like to do that, because it would be a huge project I would have to motivate myself to the level that I really am prepared to take on this huge responsibility,”
“I don’t know if those three things will happen simultaneously. It has to tick lots of very big boxes. I won’t rule out the possibility, but it would take a lot to make it happen. But should I ever take it on, it would have to be the biggest project I’ve done. My life work. So I would have to be as highly motivated as that to end up with something I’m very happy with. It’s a huge thing for me.”
Even if the remake is funded or aided by Sony that would not necessarily determine exclusivity, at least as far as the game making it to the PC. Street Fighter V is one such example, that even though the title is co-founded by Sony it will still be making its way to the PC. It would mean though that the game could be a console exclusive to Sony’s platform.
We will bring you any new information on the Final Fantasy VII Remake, as soon as it becomes available.
This week on Sony’s E3 stage, Square Enix surprised everyone with the announcement of a Final Fantasy 7 remake, something fans of the classic PlayStation title have been after for years. While at the time all we got was a trailer with no further details, some more news has come out, suggesting that the remake won’t follow the original exactly.
At E3 this week, Gamespot had a chance to catch up with the game’s director, Tetsuya Nomura, who suggested that Final Fantasy Remake will deviate from the original, although it wasn’t specified if this would be in terms of gameplay, story or a combination of the two.
“We’ve announced an HD port version on the PlayStation 4, and then we have the remake coming to PS4. You’ll have this extremely, very, very pretty FFVII existing on the same plane. We feel that if that happens, it’s like, why have the same exact game?”
“We think that if a game is on a certain platform and that platform becomes obsolete, then we’d recommend playing the new port version”.
Currently, all that has been officially announced surrounding the Final Fantasy 7 remake is that it is happening. There is no release date as of yet but we do know that it will launch ‘first on PS4′, suggesting that it will come to other platforms eventually.
Final Fantasy 7 Remake's combat to be "dramatically changed"
Square Enix's hotly anticipated Final Fantasy VII Remake might not feature the classic turn-based combat fans know and love; Square Enix's Tetsuya Nomura affirms that "dramatic changes" are incoming, but also affirms the game will still be recognizable to lifelong fans.
"We are bringing dramatic changes to the Final Fantasy VII Remake," Tetsuya said in an interview with Official PlayStation Magazine's UK branch. "That being said we want to clarify: we're not going to be changing it into a shooter or something like that. We are going to be bringing dramatic changes, but we want to make sure it's still recognisable."
In lieu of the beloved ATB system used by the iconic original, could Square Enix opt in for a sort of combination of real-time role-based combat like Final Fantasy Type-0, or maybe even go all in for the action like Final Fantasy 15?
This is pretty risky, and Square has to tread a razor's edge here or risk alienating and facing incredible backlash from gamers everywhere. Final Fantasy VII is heralded near-unanimously as a masterpiece of epic proportions, and the Japanese developer/publisher needs to handle this resurrection just right. At the same time it makes sense for Square to push forwards to a new stylish concept and reinvigorate the game with next-gen power, and it'll be interesting to see what kind of concepts they cook up.
As for as graphics go, Nomura has said that the remake's visuals are based off of Advent Children, but Square Enix doesn't "intend on utilising the 3D models of Advent Children as is because, well, it's a different technology, and it's actually been almost ten years since Advent Children was first released."
Apart from the short teaser showcased at Sony's E3 2015 press conference, we haven't been able to glimpse any more footage or screens--but we do know for sure that this isn't going to be a remastered port; Square Enix aims to tap that 90's magic to create something wholly unique and show another side of the crystal that we recognize but at the same time have never seen before.
There's speculation that the Final Fantasy VII: Remake might release sometime in 2017 to coincide with the game's 20th anniversary, and we'll likely see more news next year.
Final Fantasy VII Remake Will Not be Using The Luminous Engine; Could it be Using the Unreal Engine 4
During Sony’s E3 2015 press conference, Square Enix announced that it’s working on a remake of Final Fantasy VII. The developer mentioned that Final Fantasy VII will appear first on the PlayStation 4, something that indicates that the remake could find its way at other platforms including the PC at a later date.
As is apparent in the trailer the look is more akin to the Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children movie, rather than the look of the original game. The evolved and updated visual style, will do well with the new Luminous Engine used in Final Fantasy XV. It almost seems that Square Enix have been waiting for the right time for the technology and hardware available to be ready to capture the vision they had in mind for a remake of the classic iconic Final Fantasy iteration, that changed RPG gaming for millions of gamers around the world. Final Fantasy XV director reports that Final Fantasy VII Remake will not be using the Luminous Engine
During an interview at Gamescom, Final Fantasy XV Director Hajime Tabata was asked whether the Luminous engine will be used for the remake, to which Tabata replied:
“Final Fantasy VII (Remake) is not planned to be made with that.”
Kingdom Hearts 3, dropped the Luminous Engine in favor of Unreal Engine 4 in 2014. The Luminous graphics engine is in development at Square Enix and was shown to the public for the first time in 2011. It now powers Final Fantasy XV and will be enhanced alongside the game development.
We will bring you any new information on the Final Fantasy VII Remake, Final Fantasy XV, as well as Kingdom Hearts 3 as soon as it becomes available.
Final Fantasy VII: Re-Imagined Demo Available; Cloud Slashes Side Scrolling Style
Final Fantasy VII fans from PD Design Studio have created a 2D action version of the classic game, titled ‘Final Fantasy VII: Re-Imagined’. The game has been inspired by games like Streets of Rage and Dragons and Dungeons: Chronicles of Mystara. The game will be free, when it releases, and will support online as well as local co-op.
You can download a demo at the website here.
In the playable demo, you get to play as Cloud or Tifa, or co-op locally. The demo also features Barret fire support. Barret is on a timed recharged system and can only be called when there is at least 1 blue bar.
The Materia system is built into the player’s attack, collected as players progress through the game. Both Cloud and Tifa are pre-equipped with Fire, Ice and Lightning. At the end of a 4 hit combo, the Materia will be effected. Ice freezes enemies for a number of seconds for players to continue hitting them, dealing extra damage when the freeze is finiahed.
Move List
Light Attack x 4
Heavy Attack x 4
Jump + Light Attack x 4
Jump + Heavy Attack
Jump > Down + Heavy Attack
Up + Heavy Attack
Roll + Light Attack
Roll + Heavy Attack
Dash + Light Attack
Dash + Heavy Attack Known Bugs
Heavy Attack Button ceases to function randomly when using controllers
Playable Characters may get stuck during game play. Trying performing a roll, dash or jump. Sometimes, it will fix the issue.
We will bring you any new information on Final Fantasy VII: Re-Imagined as soon as it becomes available.
Final Fantasy VII is a game near and dear to the hearts of many gamers around the world. For a lot of them, the original PlayStation title was their first real introduction to the Final Fantasy series of games and its story was very well crafted for the time. That’s why as much as Square has annoyed many with talk of redoing the combat for the remastering, it should still be a fun ride. For a pretty different experience entirely though, how about re-imagining it at a side scrolling brawler?
This is a fan-made project, so there isn’t much in the way of official backing and it’s in the very early stages of development, but already it looks pretty polished. Players can side-scroll-slash their way through the first few areas from the original game in one long level, culminating in a boss fight against the robotic scorpion.
Currently there are two playable characters, Cloud and Tifa, with Barrett acting as a timed fire support – think the police in Streets of Rage – and they can be played individually or cooperatively. They even come with their own Guardian Force to summon, with Ifrit and Shiva making an appearance. Later when the game is complete, we’re told that the full roster of customisable summonings will be available.
Materia powers up as you go, giving you access to the more powerful attacks in your arsenal, and there’s a variety of melee and ranged enemies to deal with, which require their own unique attacks to take down.
Currently the game is free to play in browers (though not Chrome) on the official site. You can also download the standalone executable if you’d rather play offline.
Square Enix improvised Final Fantasy 7's development, says Nomura
With the Final Fantasy 7 Remake on the way, legendary Square Enix alum Tetsuya Nomura takes us back to the late 90's to discuss how one of the most iconic juggernauts in video game history was made.
Final Fantasy 7 was a pivotal moment in history for Square Enix and gaming as a whole: the game rode the mighty wave set forth by the original PlayStation, ushering in a new era of 3D visuals that breathed true life into the game via cinematics, polygons, and characters with real heart (you teared up during Aerith's infamous scene, admit it).
"The original game was the first time in Final Fantasy that all of the creation of characters and environments was rendered in 3D," Nomura said in an interview with PlayStation Magazine. "It was a time of big changes when we went from sprites to something more lifelike and in 3D, and it was just such an iconic moment. And we just packed so much playable content for players to experience, I feel that maybe that's one of the great reasons that that game had such an impact on fans. We were able to create a new game-playing experience. And on top of that, the characters. Not only the transition of 2D to 3D polygons, just that their personalities were more drawn out, they were more human and you can attach emotionally to those characters."
Since they were in unfamiliar territory, the devs were like pioneers in a brave new world filled with possibilities. This kind of exciting new environment fostered a unique creative process that was ultimately fueled by raw passion, freedom, and of course experimentation. The devs didn't have a tried and true process this time around. They were mostly improvising to see what worked, but it was their tremendous faith and effort that effectively let Square Enix capture lightning in a bottle.
"For me and the whole development team that worked on Final Fantasy 7, we were experiencing creating a game in 3D for the first time, so we didn't know what we were doing. We were sort of learning as we went. We were building that experience with so much passion and [putting] so much thought and effort into it that if you ask anybody else on the staff, they have a special place in their heart [for it]. It's such a tremendous creative process and was a very special moment for me."
The times have definitely changed and Square Enix has learned much in the decades since the original RPG classic. These lessons have tightened up development, and the process may never be as experimental and free as it had been during Final Fantasy 7's creation. Even the hugely anticipated Final Fantasy 7 Remake on PS4 will have the original game as a source--sure there will be innovations, as Nomura says the combat with be dramatically different, but it'll still have that same ethereal Mako soul.
The advent of virtual reality represents yet another brave new world to explore, and it will be interesting to see if this kind of spirit is ever harnessed again in the studio's lifetime.
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