As the Final Fantasy 7 Remake trilogy prepares to go multiplatform, Final Fantasy Remake Part 3 director Naoki Hamaguchi is putting franchise superfans’ concerns about game performance and graphics to rest. In a new interview with AUTOMATON‘s Ayuo Kawase, Hamaguchi assures players that development changes “will not in any way lower the quality of the third instalment.”
Square Enix‘s Hamaguchi spoke about recent ports to Xbox Series S and Nintendo Switch 2 and whether he felt they affected development processes. “Both the Nintendo Switch 2 and Xbox versions have been incredibly well received and generated a lot of buzz online, and that attention has also made me realize how many people are worried about this issue,” the tenured game director told AUTOMATON. “However, our decision to go multiplatform with the FFVII Remake series will not in any way lower the quality of the third installment. Our development structure simply doesn’t work that way to begin with. …I suppose I’ll just have to keep saying it (laughs).”
“Since I haven’t previously had the chance to explain in detail why there’s no need for concern, I’d like to take this opportunity to do so. I’ve heard that talk about this has been circulating ever since the Switch 2 and Xbox Series X|S versions launched, so if I can help ease even a little of that anxiety, I’d be very glad.”
Final Fantasy director says multiplatform development won’t hinder graphics on high-end systems
AUTOMATON’s Kawase asked Hamaguchi how to avoid platforms’ “performance gaps” without dips in graphical quality. Hamaguchi, who got his start in the industry as a programmer, takes a technical tone in his response.
“When developing a game,” Hamaguchi explains, “there are four key points to consider across platforms. First is CPU, the computational side that governs character behavior and executes game logic. Second is the GPU, which handles graphics rendering and related tasks. The third is RAM, or memory, which determines how much data can be loaded while the game is running … Finally, there’s ROM, or storage media such as cartridges and discs.”
With ROM in mind, Nintendo’s Switch 2 handheld offers quasi-physical versions of games via download-only game-key cards, which means game studios “don’t need to shrink data just to fit it on a cartridge or improve read speeds.” Hamaguchi says this makes affecting performance on other platforms “highly unlikely.” As far as RAM goes, the Nintendo Switch 2’s “ample memory” leaves little to fear. However, Hamaguchi confesses that Microsoft’s Xbox Series S “does have its limits, but we already optimize for each platform individually to the absolute limit, so memory constraints on one platform don’t impose restrictions on others.”
CPU benchmarks, Hamaguchi says, have shifted from 30 FPS to 60 FPS over the last five or so years. But the team’s “current approach to developing games is based on the idea that if a title runs at 30fps on platforms like PS4, Nintendo Switch 2, or Xbox Series S, it should be able to achieve 60fps on high-end platforms. In other words, we don’t design the game to fully saturate a high-end CPU at 30fps.”
Japan’s PC gaming craze ifluencing rapid market growth
In the interview, FF7 director Hamaguchi cited Japan’s rising interest in PC gaming and the medium’s Western success as the primary reason Final Fantasy 7 Remake assets are created “with the broad PC market in mind.” He continues: “In fact, our 3D assets are created at the highest quality level based on PC as the foundation.”
“When FFVII Rebirth launched, there was talk about how the PC version looked better than the PS5 version, and our philosophy will not change for the third installment. As our fundamental principle, we do not design assets to meet the lowest baseline. Instead, we create them for high-end environments first.” Once team members prepare high-quality graphics, they apply “reduction,” through which assets are fine-tuned and tailored for each platform. This methodology prevents players using high-spec platforms from running into issues or constraints.
Upcoming Final Fantasy installment is in ‘playable state’
Final Fantasy director Hamaguchi closes by teasing the JRPG remake and its current development stage. “Development of the third installment is progressing very smoothly, and we’re almost exactly on schedule with the milestones we set at the beginning of the project. The game is already in a playable state, and right now, we’re in the final push phase, refining and building up the experience. We’re at the stage where the quality improves day by day, and each time we play it, the scenery feels different, so it’s genuinely exciting. I think it won’t be too long before we’re able to share some kind of update with everyone.”
Final Fantasy VII Remake launched on PlayStation 4 consoles in April 2020. An enhanced PS5 version of the remake — Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade — was released on PS5 in June 2021. Integrade later landed on Windows in December 2021, and on Nintendo Switch 2 and Xbox Series X|S this past January.
The trilogy’s second installment, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, was released on PlayStation 5 on February 29, 2024. Rebirth is also available now on PC via Steam, but the second entry won’t come to Nintendo Switch 2 and Xbox Series X|S until June 3, 2026.
