Remake Interviews: Catch-all Thread

[Tashasaurous]

There are genuine concerns here. Yes modern games are a different beast, but as we've just learned the majority of the original FFVII's production took just over a year, which is how long it's been since the last update* on its remake -- PART 1 of its remake.

Nomura is a very creative and ambitious artist. No one will deny this. I think it's becoming clear that he is too much of a dreamer to be a proper leader, and that he needs a true business partner, now.

Tabata's approach with FFXV seemed to be trashing everything that wasn't done, polish up what was there and get it on the shelves. Reactions to this are mixed, from what I gather, but I'm on the outside of XV as of yet. It sounds like Nomura and Tabata might work well together if they had an equal share of power on a project. As it stands, Nomura is all talk, no product. How embarrassing.

*The last update that wasn't: "We don't have anything, please stay excited."

So he just spent the last year 'dreaming' of both games would be like instead of just doing anything? That's a bad sign.

I think Kitase made a bad move in making Nomura the director of the remake. He should've been made a director like he was of the original game and Nomura being the productor again. Plus, Nomura and Tabata had worked on Crisis Core before ten years ago.

 

[Dashell]

To conduct an interview means... to basically have an interview

EDIT:
whoops, was a little late there

 

[ForceStealer]

Looks kind of dodgy? Are you suggesting they made up the answers to their questions from all those people?

And honestly I don't really trust Kitase with much of anything at this point, I'm sorta glad he's not directing.

 

[Tashasaurous]

Looks kind of dodgy? Are you suggesting they made up the answers to their questions from all those people?

Well, it just looks like something those other bull-crap websites like Christ-whatever it is tends to do. You know, give out false information. Not to mention that it also has links to other things like facial surgeries with images most people don't want to see.

And honestly I don't really trust Kitase with much of anything at this point, I'm sorta glad he's not directing.

At least he's still a little bit better than Motomu Toriyama who directed the Lightning Trilogy. God, imagine this guy directing the Remake.

 

[Dashell]

Well, it just looks like something those other bull-crap websites like Christ-whatever it is tends to do

what?

 

[Tashasaurous]

You know, those UK sites that tell all kinds of lies just to get people's attentions who go on about certain games coming out in this certain year when they just go on about random things?

I know Polygon isn't an UK website but...well, I just don't trust it.

 

[Dashell]

You know, those UK sites that tell all kinds of lies just to get people's attentions who go on about certain games coming out in this certain year when they just go on about random things?

I honestly have no clue, but I'll take your word for it

Also am I getting the general consensus that Nomura shouldn't be directing?... is it cause he has too many ideas that he can't get off the ground?

 

[Tashasaurous]

I honestly have no clue, but I'll take your word for it.

Also am I getting the general consensus that Nomura shouldn't be directing?... is it cause he has too many ideas that he can't get off the ground?

He couldn't be directing so many games that things end up in an unfortunate mess. He should focus at one at the time and in that order, concentrate on KH3 first since that's been in development longer than FFVII Remake has.

And yes, he shouldn't be directing the Remake, because he was director of FF Versus XIII turned FFXV and look what happened. Hell, they had to redo Advent Children three years after the original film's release even though I love both versions.

But he should've done something with KH3 last year instead of just 'Dreaming' about it and the FFVII Remake.

Though you can't take him away from directing KH3. Without him being the director of the franchise, Kingdom Hearts would've never existed in the first place.

 

[Dashell]

But he should've done something with KH3 last year instead of just 'Dreaming' about it and the FFVII Remake.

again, where was this stated?

 

[Ite]

Tash is quoting me. I am not a reliable news source. I am a lay person. Polygon is a reliable news source, one hopes to tell the difference.

Tash, if it wasn't clear from my post I am sympathetic to you, but I have no idea what you're raving about now (UK websites with pictures of what? huh?) and I certainly didn't mean to fan the flames of your discontent. Ah well. If you give a moose a muffin...

@ Dashell: Don't know if it's a general consensus... yet. Mostly naysayers at this point like me. Nomura should absolutely be involved in a creative capacity. (Otherwise, everyone will die when you parachute into Midgar.) But looking at his recent track record as a developer and the garbage he has been giving to the press, it's my professional opinion as a professional lay person that he should be a co-director rather than the central overseer of a project of this size and scope.

 

[Shademp]

I would certainly feel more reassured if Naoki Yoshida, director of FFXIV: A Realm Reborn, directed the FFVII remake. That man GOT SH*T DONE. He took a hopeless, dead title and brought it back in greatest glory. That's some real-life sorcery right there.

 

[Joe]

He's also one of the few people over at SE that seems really in touch with the fans. If the fans want something, he'll make it happen. He's even said that if fans were serious about wanting deceased characters to return, he'd find a way to make it work.

That guy is the future I'm telling you.

 

[Roger]

I honestly have no clue, but I'll take your word for it.

Also am I getting the general consensus that Nomura shouldn't be directing?... is it cause he has too many ideas that he can't get off the ground?

He couldn't be directing so many games that things end up in an unfortunate mess. He should focus at one at the time and in that order, concentrate on KH3 first since that's been in development longer than FFVII Remake has.

And yes, he shouldn't be directing the Remake, because he was director of FF Versus XIII turned FFXV and look what happened. Hell, they had to redo Advent Children three years after the original film's release even though I love both versions.

But he should've done something with KH3 last year instead of just 'Dreaming' about it and the FFVII Remake.

Though you can't take him away from directing KH3. Without him being the director of the franchise, Kingdom Hearts would've never existed in the first place.

They did not "have" to redo Advent Children by any means. ACC was good but far from necessary. And there's plenty people who have been involved with Kingdom Hearts games. If we don't trust him with big productions then get someone else to help with KH3, it won't immediately stop being Kingdom Hearts they've already made the concession to break up FFVII Remake in multiple installments.

 

[Ryuman]

I know people like to focus on one person for their issues, but shouldn't there be someone separate from Nomura who manages a project like this? Like, sets everyone's roles and priorities, milestones, etc? This is a genuine question, as I'm not entirely knowledgeable of these things.

And yes, it is very frustrating when Nomura or anyone related to this project (Even Square's other big projects) are roped into pointless interviews by magazines when they know full well that they aren't allowed to say anything. Imagine if there was a huge update on Remake at the 30th anniversary celebration. It would make this comment stupid and harmful to public's image of the company for no reason. I simply have no idea why these interviews happen sometimes. Either Square should refuse these things, or change the way they communicate information.

If there is a large infodump later this month, then I genuinely don't see the problem. Nomura speculated an update in Winter and it would hold true. Remember, this project was revealed less than 2 years ago, and showed massive progress in the first 6 months. No reason to throw up your pitchforks over your own speculation about the man relating to a certain title.

 

[Kionae]

Hell, they had to redo Advent Children three years after the original film's release even though I love both versions.

ACC was nothing more than a cash grab. They didn't really "redo" anything. They added in some scenes that, from what I understand, were already done or mostly done but got cut from the original. It's a director's cut and nothing more. Hell, they didn't even bother to re-render the old scenes for blu-ray.

But I will say, I do prefer ACC... because it has more Turks in it.

 

[Shademp]

@Ryuman

I agree that pitchforks would be overdoing the reaction, but Nomura's handling of FFXIII Versus has left many people weary and concerned. It's only natural that the lack of FFVII Remake news would remind us of FFXIIIV's production hell.

Ergo, my reaction is more of giving Nomura a stern gaze. IF huge amounts of FFVIIR content has been created behind the scenes during 2016 and if a coherent vision is being formed, then Nomura will have proven that he is not repeating the production mistakes of FFXIIIV.

However if we get comments like "we don't have much to show right now" or "we are not sure yet about the battle system" I'll throw my hands up in the air and assume that FFVIIR is suffering from a problematic development process.

 

[Tashasaurous]

I would certainly feel more reassured if Naoki Yoshida, director of FFXIV: A Realm Reborn, directed the FFVII remake. That man GOT SH*T DONE. He took a hopeless, dead title and brought it back in greatest glory. That's some real-life sorcery right there.

Even though I don't know this guy, I have to admit the ending of A Realm Reborn before the Heavensward Patch came out left me shaking so strongly that I was having a bit of trouble breathing.

I think that was more of a shocker than

Spoiler

Lunafreya's stabbing by Ardyn in Final Fantasy XV

which the former is closer to the shocking death of Aerith by Sephiroth in the original game. I actually don't mind A Realm Reborn.

 

[Lex]

@Ryuman

I agree that pitchforks would be overdoing the reaction, but Nomura's handling of FFXIII Versus has left many people weary and concerned. It's only natural that the lack of FFVII Remake news would remind us of FFXIIIV's production hell.

Ergo, my reaction is more of giving Nomura a stern gaze. IF huge amounts of FFVIIR content has been created behind the scenes during 2016 and if a coherent vision is being formed, then Nomura will have proven that he is not repeating the production mistakes of FFXIIIV.

However if we get comments like "we don't have much to show right now" or "we are not sure yet about the battle system" I'll throw my hands up in the air and assume that FFVIIR is suffering from a problematic development process.

Reading that massive Polygon article on VII did two things to me, and they're conflicting emotions:

1: Comforted by the confirmation that Nomura talked Nojima and Kitase off a ledge during the production of the OG (by stopping the killing of 5/6 characters the player doesn't choose), reminiscent of Kitase being stopped during the development of CC (unnecessary Jenova boss fight). It's the first time I've gone "OK his reaction to these things are promising for the remake".

2: Alarmed and worried by the direct comparison to Sakaguchi by other staff members; specifically in terms of attitude. He's an "untouchable" in a certain sense of the word - I realise his being removed from XV slightly disproves this, but I feel like he'll get away with his own brand of extremist perfectionism. This sounds like a good thing, but since we know Nomura can spend time obsessing over frivolous details that don't matter to anyone but him, that's a worry. He's on record as saying he disliked the remake reveal trailer, which is insane. Sakaguchi may have had a god complex that led to his ruin, but he delivered stellar titles in a timely manner. I'd agree that Nomura has reached a legendary status amongst the fans of FF, but I don't think he has anywhere near the chops of Sakaguchi to back that up. He has had some wildly successful and beloved titles in the Kingdom Hearts games and appears to have been involved in some important decisions in previous FF games, which is a slight comfort. But it's not touching Sakaguchi's CV by a mile, not yet.

 

[Shademp]

He's on record as saying he disliked the remake reveal trailer, which is insane.

Actually I'm almost on the same page as Nomura here. While I didn't dislike the reveal trailer, it did nothing for me to revive "FFVII nostalgia" emotions like the second trailer did. With the reveal trailer, in most parts it felt so removed from the FFVII atmosphere that I really couldn't take it in and bask in the glory of the reveal. I was shocked at the reveal, but not joyous. The joy only came with the second trailer.

There is definitely merit in the reveal trailer. The way they kept fans guessing and wondering up until the very end was masterful. For me however, the emotional resonance and the FFVII atmosphere just wasn't there (apart from in the final seconds of the trailer).

 

[Claymore]

It was the second trailer that he didn't like:

Cyber Connect2 may have put together the latest PV. Nomura complained about CC2’s difference in directing taste, and so they changed the trailer’s style to fit more of SE’s.

Which was the better one, lol.

 

[Shademp]

Cyber Connect2 may have put together the latest PV. Nomura complained about CC2’s difference in directing taste, and so they changed the trailer’s style to fit more of SE’s.

That version of the quote is from the bullet-point translation posted on Nova Crystallis.

In the translations posted by TLS, the following is said:

Yoshinori Kitase
”Not only does CC2 have a wealth of experience and know-how concerning action games, we also felt that they had something of a shine in regards to their sense of video production. That being said, in the first teaser trailer there were some subtle differences from the production(s) of our company and so we had extensive exchanges on the matter. For this time’s PV, Tetsu (Nomura) was persistent/bossy/annoying (smiles) and we had them make it closer to our own style.”

This, to me, expresses the commentary that the reveal trailer was the one Nomura did not agree with. However I'm not finding a quote where Nomura personally and distinctly says that he disliked the reveal/teaser trailer.

 

[Claymore]

I see what you mean. That version of the quote suggests that he noted differences in styles, but then again, he did ultimately let it fly. But he actively got them to change the second one to fit his / the company's style - hinting that he didn't like the presentation of it.

It can certainly be read both ways, but to me, it leans heavily on the second.

 

[ForceStealer]

I gathered from that that some original trailer was something Nomura didn't like, but the ones we got were something he signed off on. I never got the impression that he didn't approve of the trailers we got. Are any of you basing that on something?

 

[Tashasaurous]

I gathered from that that some original trailer was something Nomura didn't like, but the ones we got were something he signed off on. I never got the impression that he didn't approve of the trailers we got. Are any of you basing that on something?

It could be the fact that neither of the trailers are what Nomura actually wanted. So, in a way, call them 'practice' runs to see how far the development will go and what it would really look like.

Take the trailers for Kingdom Hearts 3 for example, or all of those trailers of FF Versus XIII turned to XV and demos. They're not the final versions of the actual games and so far, from what I'm understanding, Nomura really did not improve the teaser trailer because that didn't feel, well, Final Fantasy VII enough, and the second trailer was a little too close to being like a copycat of FFXV's gameplay and style, despite being run on a different engine.

I could be wrong on this theory, but if this was the case, then I kind of agree with him on this one, especially with the first trailer. When I first saw it, that felt absolutely nothing like Final Fantasy VII save for the backs of Barret and Cloud, and the Buster Sword.

 

[Lex]

He's on record as saying he disliked the remake reveal trailer, which is insane.

Actually I'm almost on the same page as Nomura here. While I didn't dislike the reveal trailer, it did nothing for me to revive "FFVII nostalgia" emotions like the second trailer did. With the reveal trailer, in most parts it felt so removed from the FFVII atmosphere that I really couldn't take it in and bask in the glory of the reveal. I was shocked at the reveal, but not joyous. The joy only came with the second trailer.

There is definitely merit in the reveal trailer. The way they kept fans guessing and wondering up until the very end was masterful. For me however, the emotional resonance and the FFVII atmosphere just wasn't there (apart from in the final seconds of the trailer).

The reveal trailer was built very specifically around its presentation though, and you missed what I consider the most important part: not knowing what it was before you watched it. Given who you are it would have been completely impossible for you to avoid the news prior to watching E3 as a whole, and I don't even think you watch E3 live generally. It's in the same vein as the reveal of The Last of Us II at the last PS experience; the reaction is about the realisation of what is this.... what is this.... WHAT IS THIS... OMG IT'[S HAPPENING.

The VII remake reveal trailer is therefore intentionally not reliant on nostalgia, that was a conscious choice. It goes like this: lifestream in the background and an announcer teasing something big. Your interest is piqued. A bird... a weird sky and some crane things. Is that Advent Children music? Why is there AC music? Are they doing another compilation title!? Wait what are all those shiny modern looking buildings? OMG it is Advent Children mus- MOOGLE SLIDE FUCKING MOOGLE SLIDE WHAT... KITASE WHAT... ... wait... that's not Midgar is it? Is that Midgar? OMG is that the support pillar? What's going on! NOJIMA! FLOWER! OMFG IT IS MIDGAR!!!! ...I THINK. NOMURA!? WHAT!? .... wow this really looks like it could be the slums... wait no not that note, not that beautiful opening note, please no I'm going to cry, wa- GUN ARM OMFG IT'S BARRET... AND IT'S CLOUD AND THE MUSIC AND WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS IT CAN'T FINALLY BE THERE'S NO WAY THEY WOUL-

"LOGO"

"REMAKE"



*SCREAMING*

Now if you watch the trailers as actual trailers then the gameplay trailer is going to win because it's built to appeal to your nostalgia and memories of the game. I still reacted like a maniac to the PS Experience trailer but there is no denying that clicking on a YouTube video that says "FFVII Remake Reveal Trailer" completely nullifies a vast amount of the experience of watching that trailer being revealed live - which is how it was intended. If they'd released a reveal trailer that wasn't part of a conference it'd be incredibly different.