The irony that Final Fantasy’s least liked character of recent times is named Hope is not lost on me. A franchise that once revolutionised the way we game seems close to throwing in the towel, with more recent failures than successes like the disastrous Final Fantasy XIV – their second swing at an MMORPG – and the lack-lustre reception of the Final Fantasy XIII trilogy there seems to be growing discontent with Square Enix.
Japanese game developers have had a rough couple of years. Nintendo made a loss of $228 million in 2013, their third year of consecutive loss, and Keiji Inafune, the creator of the Megaman and Street Fighter series, has even stated, “Japanese developers need to accept they’ve fallen behind.” However with recent success of J-RPGs, Ni No Kuni and Fire Emblem, there may be life in the industry yet. With all eyes looking to the upcoming release of Final Fantasy XV this could be Square Enix’s last chance to prove that Final Fantasy has the ability to keep up with the times.
With their Japanese audience turning to handheld devices and Western audiences falling in love with action-packed series such as Call of Duty and Uncharted, the Final Fantasy franchise is hemorrhaging fans. The old formula of turn based combat and lengthy, emotional discussions in the face of imminent world obliteration seems to no longer captivate the hearts and minds of audiences. Pwrobably due to the increasing intolerance of cut scenes, Final Fantasy XIII clocks in with over nine hours in total. From trailers it would seem that Final Fantasy XV has steered away from the turn based fighting system that defined the series, for a real time combat system with an open world experience, and there is nothing that quite gets us westerners as riled as open world. Then there’s the long tradition of Square creating a cast of beautifully rendered characters, distinctly western in their appearance. There’s an obvious push to claw back the Western market but with that comes the question of whether Square Enix have lost sight of who their core fans are.
There’s also a worry that Square may be clawing at a world they don’t understand. Past attempts at reaching out to a new medium have been riddled with impracticalities. Final Fantasy XIV despite its claims to be an MMORPG was predominantly a lonely experience, and Final Fantasy All the Bravest was cursed by the modern affliction of micro-transactions, which all upcoming smartphone-based Final Fantasy games have inherited too. There haven’t really been any game changers for Square Enix since Final Fantasy VII ultimately redefined the RPG genre as well as expanding the market outside of Japan, it still remains Sony’s second bestselling game.
Maybe Square Enix should accept that the new giants are in the west, stop redesigning the characters with bigger boobs and maybe we won’t have any reoccurring incidents where we are cringing so hard our stomach has recessed into our spine – anyone who’s sat through the pop star sequences of Final Fantasy X-2 will know what I’m talking about. With advancements such as the oculus rift and valve redirecting where the game industry is heading, how can Square Enix hope to keep up? Originally proposed as Final Fantasty Versus XIII in 2006, if Final Fantasy XV ever is released it might be the last nail in the coffin of one of gaming’s greats.
Lauren Natalie Emina-Bougaard
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