I am happy to finally present the third part of Famitsu’s epic Final Fantasy X 20th anniversary developer interview translated into English by 黒凧 BlackKite.
Apologies for the long delay on this. And don’t worry, part 2 is coming later.
–The possibility for a sequel…–
Famitsu: When we think about it again, a numbered title in the FF series receiving a sequel like Final Fantasy X-2 was so groundbreaking.
Toriyama: Until X, FF titles getting completed with 1 game was the norm, so the plot to make sequels was not in our heads at all. But it began when we wondered if we could reuse development resources to expand the world a little more and create a game that can be enjoyed.
Kitase: The bigger development scales and costs from full 3D, full voice acting, and the platform change from PS1 to PS2 also had a big factor. That’s when we began thinking to not end with just one game when we construct a new title, so we could expand the world further.
Toriyama: Because of that, if we were to do it we had to make a bold reform. I remember that’s how X-2 was created.
Famitsu: We had re-read the Final Fantasy X-2.5 novel and re-listened to the Final Fantasy X -Will- voice drama for the sake of this interview, but I think both of them ended with a cliffhanger. There are also some people who may misunderstand it as being intentionally made incomplete without a conclusion. is it okay for us to look forward to a future story development that will conclude the tale?
Nojima: There were many circumstances which led the novel to be published like that. There was a period in the past where I felt signs that we could be making a FFX-3…
Kitase: There was a bit of such tendency, indeed.
Nojima: There were talks about making a novel adaptation, so I wrote plots that would connect to X-3, but certain circumstances made it come out to the world not as a novel, but instead the “-Will-” voice drama. As a result, characters that appeared in “-Will-” could no longer appear in the novel, so I wrote another one that takes place in the same world but intended for a novel, and that one received the “2.5” numerals.
Famitsu: Actually, there are huge voices hoping for a X-3, but is there any chance of that getting realized?
Nomura: Nojima-san had written some kind of synopsis of how an X-3 would be like if it exists. 2.5 and “-Will-” were also written based on that. Right now it’s still being hibernated, but the concept itself is there.
Toriyama: The probability is not zero, but unless we have finished FFVII Remake’s production, we’re not in a phase where we can talk about it yet.
–The reason it’s still loved even now–
Famitsu: We received an overwhelming amount of voices in our prior survey, and we could confirm once again that X is a game that our readers still have strong feelings towards. What do you think is the reason why X is loved so much like this?
Nomura: First of all, I think it’s because the story was very good. In the middle of that, Yuna was also appealing in many meanings. I feel like she is the one who gets loved quite much.
Nojima: There are many reasons, but I think it’s ultimately the story about an adolescent boy and girl being received as a good general theme. Despite being tossed around by many hardships, we saw the two of them fighting head-on.
Toriyama: In that sense, I had a fixation on how I could make the circumstances for Yuna’s journey to be not understandable. But Yuna herself is easily understood, so I’d say you get to understand her more by observing her speeches and facial expressions.
…Nowadays people upload summary videos on YouTube and social media, so anyone could easily know the gist of a story. But 20 years ago, taking the time to play and getting to know Yuna’s duty by yourself was the obvious thing to do. I feel like being able to gain the experience by investing time and effort by yourself is what makes it keep recorded in your memories as a strong impression.
Kitase: Mine is the same with everyone: I think it’s because X had good story and characters, and the full voice acting was also a big factor. With prior FFs, we game developers only made it with computers. But we made X with live actors. The actors created their characters with a totally different way of thinking from us, and I feel that made it possible for all players to get a live impression. Especially as for myself, the story between Tidus and Jecht as a child and parent resonated with more emotions than the Tidus-Yuna one. It was the only time in my game production career when I actually cried when I test-played it. The scenario was very good, and I also remember how the actors’ performances made my heart tremble at the same time.
–They are still continuing their journeys–
Famitsu: Finally, do you have anything to say as game developers to all fans who still love X even now?
Toriyama: X has thankfully become a hugely popular title even among the FF series. I’d be glad if you kindly continue loving it in the future. The [fame] exposure of everyone who participated in X, including recently Rikku’s actress Ms Marika Matsumoto, has become more prevalent. While you’re looking at their performances, I hope you will “never forget” X.
Nojima: For a period, I had repeated occurrences where I got to work together with people who “joined the game industry after playing VII”. The phase has since shifted, and now I get to work with those who enter the industry after they played X. Those people talked about the quotes they like, but somehow that made me tremble in fear sometimes. I was glad but also a bit scared at the same time, because I had given influences to their lives. But really, I’m just honestly thankful. I hope you will “never forget them” for eternity. (laughs)
Toriyama: By doing that, the day that we can release X-3 may come in due time. (laughs)
Kitase: I feel like there are some fans who started playing X with the HD Remaster, but most of the people who gave much support were those who became fans after playing the [original game] 20 years ago. When 20 years have passed, the boys and girls of that time may have now become parents. X also had a story about parents and children, so I feel like their viewpoint would change if they play it again right now. In that sense, the HD Remaster can be enjoyed in many current-gen consoles, so I’d be glad if you play it again and notice different things from before.
Famitsu: The HD Remaster was released in 2013, so 8 years have already passed since then.
Kitase: That’s right. Quite a lot of time had passed. But regardless it still continues to sell well even now. That’s where I really felt the game is being loved by everyone.
Famitsu: What about you, Nomura-san?
Nomura: X has also become a title of the past with 20 years having passed, but people still think about it with much care, and that made me really grateful and think about it too whenever a similar project showed up. As for myself, I basically didn’t really look back at games that I’ve finished creating and released to the world. That’s why I sometimes didn’t even remember the details of their development back then. But when I created X, I nonchalantly thought “What would happen to these characters after the game ends?” X was the first time I had such a feeling. We’ve released a number of X-related titles to the world, so we can also follow the trails from there. But they are still continuing their lives that have not been depicted yet. There ought to be people who want to see that, and there are also some people who think the story better ends there. As for ourselves, we sincerely receive those voices, and we must continue to think about the best destination that will please all the fans.
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