Gamescom - Story details for Final Fantasy XV, planned for release in 2016
Yesterday's Active Time Report for Final Fantasy XV was a bit light on new information for the long awaited title, but speaking with press on the floor at Gamescom, some new details and tidbits have been revealed by director Hajime Tabata.
Most notably, Tabata told Gamespot in a recent interview that fans can expect to play the full game before 2017, suggesting the game will be out next year.
Tabata: “We can certainly say to people: it’s not going to be 2017. It’s going to be before that.”
When asked when we can expect it.
Tabata: “At the very least, I can tell you that it isn’t going to be released this year. I think we’ll be able to tell you when we’re making the announcement around PAX Prime, at the end of this month.”
Speaking with our sister site - Nova Crystallis - Tabata confirmed that like Final Fantasy Type-0 and Episode Duscae, the final release of Final Fantasy XV will support English and Japanese voices, along with French, German, Spanish, and Italian subtitles.
"So when it comes to localization and our priorities, we think that before we want to introduce French, German or other languages’ voices, we want to expand the number of text-supported languages. Traditionally, Final Fantasy is only translated into Japanese, English, French, German, Spanish and Italian. It has been just those five languages, but it is just a small amount compared to games that other companies are doing…It’s probably a higher priority to get more people to play the game before we enhance the experience for certain languages.”
As far as story details go, speaking with GameInformer, Tabata explained a big part of the game will focus on the bonds shared between parent and child in addition to the bonds of friendship we’ve already seen between Noctis and his friends - which was the theme of the recent 'Dawn' trailer.. For example, the car so prominently seen in much of the game’s media is actually owned by Noctis’ father and serves as a “sort of the metaphor representing the relationship between Noctis and his father through the car.”
Throughout the story, players will learn more about Noctis’ past through various flashback sequences. The dog seen in the trailer is one such key element. “That dog actually plays a really big part in the events that take place a little later in their lives – after the young-man phase,” said Tabata.
The young girl in the trailer is Lunafreya who serves as a replacement for Final Fantasy Versus XIII heroine Stella. Luna is a childhood friend of Noctis and although she shares some visual similarities to Stella, Tabata insists she possesses a stronger personality. “She’s a much stronger, more determined character,” Tabata said. “She’s got her own willpower and objectives that she acts upon. In some ways, Noctis is the weaker character. Maybe he’s the one who’s going to need protecting.”
Yesterday's ATB presentation concluded with a short gameplay clip of Noctis battling (and losing to) a classic Malbaro enemy. Check that out below along with some direct-feed screenshots of the 'Dawn' trailer.
