As the Final Fantasy VII Remake Nears its End, Square Enix Faces a Pivotal Decision: Stick or Switch?
Among all of the games in the series, many people consider Final Fantasy VII, the title of the PlayStation 1 classic from 1997, to be their favorite, and understandably so. This is the game that sent the Final Fantasy series to the heights of fame. It was a rather goofy game and rarely had a seriousness for its tone; at least, that is how it appeared to me.
Then the remake came out, and a lot of love and nostalgia went into it. It was a remake that many have been waiting for for what seems to be a lifetime. This was barely a third of the game’s narrative, which is why I was not interested in picking it up when it first came out. However, it has been quite a while since then.
With the intention of perhaps accelerating the production process, Square Enix is contemplating making the transition to Unreal Engine 5 for the last installment of its last Fantasy VII Remake in the trilogy. Naoki Hamaguchi, the director of Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, said in an interview with CG World Japan that the business is now weighing the benefits and drawbacks of continuing to use Unreal Engine 4 as opposed to switching to Epic’s more recent engine.
This information was brought to light by a user on Twitter who goes by the handle @Genki_JPN. He emphasized that Hamaguchi is committed to providing the final game and the trilogy in timely fashion and in excellent shape. Due to the importance of this matter, Square Enix will investigate whether or not switching to Unreal Engine 5 may assist them in achieving a more expedient production schedule.
For further context, the first delivery of Final Fantasy VII Remake was made available for PlayStation 4 in April 2020. Afterward, in June 2021, Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade was published for PlayStation 5, which includes the Episode INTERmission DLC. February 2024 saw the release of the second installment, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth.
Hamaguchi disclosed that the development of Rebirth took four years, concurrently with the development of Final Fantasy VII Intergrade. Yoshinori Kitase, the series’ producer, has declared his desire to finish the third and final installment of the trilogy within a timescale comparable to that of the video game.
Takashi Kiryu, the president of Square Enix, said in April that the sales of Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, Final Fantasy XVI, and Foamstars were lower than expected. This acknowledgment comes while the original Final Fantasy VII is getting closer to its 30th anniversary in 2027.
Therefore, the question that needs to be answered is whether or not they decide to invest a longer period of time into possibly requiring more funds for developing this game and possibly even extending the duration of production to switch the engine.
Or whether or not they will just stick with what appears to be working and allow them to deliver this game on time while reducing development costs as much as possible, which appears to be the goal for Square Enix, according to their most recent financial report.
It is my opinion that the wisest course of action would be to allow the series to conclude without regrets for the team, regardless of their decision. Considering everything, the choice ought to be self-evident.
