Xenoblade Chronicles 3 Shows That Open World Final Fantasy Is More Than Possible
Naoki Yoshida has said that creating a true open world Final Fantasy game in the modern era would take 15 years, and thus just isn’t possible when you take into account the work, resources, and ambition required in bringing it to life.
I suppose I get it - Final Fantasy is a big budget blockbuster focused on innovative gameplay mechanics and visual fidelity often known for pushing the medium forward. Square Enix would rather champion those qualities instead of creating an inconsistent open world that players are keen to poke holes in and pull apart. As a result, Final Fantasy 16 will be a relatively linear affair with larger areas for players to explore while progressing the narrative, and I imagine the same will be true for Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth.
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The series has changed with the times and hasn’t really had an open world in the traditional sense since Final Fantasy 15 - and even that was split into multiple regions that weren’t fully available until several hours into the game. The days of world maps that grow and mature alongside the player’s journey are long gone, and here I was hoping future entries would seek to remedy that absence. It will to some extent, but it’s a shame that Final Fantasy has resigned itself to a singular vision that seeks to leave its legacy behind.
Monolith Soft first envisioned Xenoblade Chronicles as a return to former glory for the genre as it set out to create the greatest JRPG ever made. It felt these sorts of games had lost their way, focused on linear spectacle and franchise appeal instead of allowing players to lose themselves in inviting new worlds and magnificent stories. While it took a lot of effort on
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