Creating Final Fantasy 15 doesn’t seem like an easy task. A video game of its magnitude, having sold more than 6.5 million copies on consoles, should be well handled when created for the PC. PC users are not so easy going as console lovers and Final Fantasy 15 will be a game many will try to rage upon if its port is not as smooth as they want it to be. Final Fantasy 15 director Hajime Tabata, states that creating its PC version was a lot easier than its console one.
Tabata told MCV that after the game’s development for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One they felt the necessity for a PC version so they “began strengthening their game engines with the help of Nvidia in 2016 in anticipation of any projects that might come after the console version”. Next year when Final Fantasy 15 hits PC, it will compliment stunning native 4K and 8K resolutions, high dynamic range (HDR) for more vibrant colors and Dolby Atmos for surround sound and will also feature user mods and a unique first-person mode.
When talking about the first-person mode Tabata stated:
“The biggest reason [behind the first-person mode] was that we wanted players who only usually play first-person mode games on PC to take an interest in FFXV. Currently, we have only reached about 50 percent [completion] on this mode, but we feel the gameplay has a certain freshness to it and it’s been well-received among those in the development team. In providing this mode, we needed to make some large adjustments, like the player character’s VFX, displayed animations, and camera movement. Even now, we’re still making small, daily adjustments.”
The developer team’s aim was for players to want to dive in Final Fantasy 15 on PC even if they have already seen it on a console. Its development for PC helped the team sharpen their development skills and with their collaboration with Nvidia they managed to ensure they had the latest “technological graphics”.
Even if the market is still not 100% ready for 4K and 8K/ HDR graphics, Final Fantasy 15 has put the ground stones for video games to aim a bit higher. When comparing the developing of Final Fantasy 15 on consoles and PC, Tabata said:
“The console version, which required reconstruction from the very start for both the game itself and the engine, was more than 100 times more difficult.”
Hajime Tabata is currently working on many different projects around the Final Fantasy universe, with the most recent one being a next-gen Final Fantasy game using the same engine as Final Fantasy 15.
Final Fantasy 15 is coming to PC in early 2018. Also, there is an episodic-based Final Fantasy XV: Pocket Edition for iOS and Android devices which will be released later this year as well as an upcoming DLC adding a four-player co-op mode to the game. This DLC will come as a free update for its PC version when the game releases.
