Final Fantasy XV

Final Fantasy XV is out of pre-beta and currently playable in its entirety, according to Square Enix.

Speaking on the game’s official Japanese forums, with translation via Gematsu, programmer Satoshi Kitade reports the development of the Final Fantasy sequel has hit two major milestones. The game is playable from start to finish and the first half of the game appears to be finished.

“We’re at the point where we can play the game in its entirety from start to finish,” he says. “From this, everyone on the development team can get an overall view on the game.”

Kitade notes the studio is focusing on optimization, such as polishing elements of the game or adjusting gameplay.

“The first half of the game is finished with the quality of a final product, and you get the sense you’re playing it in its final form.”

Square Enix revealed new story details, centering on King Regis and Luna, back at Tokyo Game Show. It has been confirmed that Final Fantasy XV will also feature Moogles, the series' adorable winged creatures. And if you’re wondering why the main characters wear black, Final Fantasy XV director Hajime Tabata talked about that and the battle effects clothing will have.

The long-in-development sequel, formerly known as Final Fantasy Versus XIII is set to be released on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One sometime in 2016. Square Enix plans on revealing the release date at a “special event” in March 2016.

In December fans had a chance to ask the developers of Final Fantasy XV questions about the game. Today, three of the most popular questions were answered.

Will large buildings have multiple warp points to allow Noctis to scale and explore rooftops?

Why of course they will! The warp ability that lets you teleport instantly to high up locations is a vital part of FFXV’s battle system. The ability to use multiple warp points in a strategic manner is especially prevalent in the game’s large scale battles over urban terrain. It is not just the buildings though, and we have also created exciting aerial battles with flying foes and gigantic boss enemies, so watch out for those.

Respondent: Lead Level Designer Terada Takefumi

How much of the big cities like Altissia/Insomnia will we be able to explore?

I can tell everyone a little about Altissia at this time.

Altissia has many and varied locations, such as multiple cafes, ship-bourne market places and parks etc. The city is of a considerable scale, to the extent that even the developers sometimes get lost there!

The player is free to take a leisurely walk around the complex maze of streets, or ride the gondola to see the sights and there is also added enjoyment to be had looking for restaurants to visit! You are bound to encounter some unique characters when exploring the city streets.

So we have created lots of different things to enjoy in Altissia and hope everyone is looking forward to visiting!

Respondent: Planner Ishikawa Tomonori

How will the difficulty modes compare in terms of XP gain, enemy stats, damage and A.I?

The equivalent to difficulty level settings in FFXV is a system where you can switch between different battle modes. By having this ability to switch modes, we want to make it so that both players who like action oriented, technical gameplay and also those who want to fight at a slower, more relaxed pace can all enjoy the combat in their own style. This switching system is a key part of the gameplay that we decided to introduce based on the feedback we received from the Episode Duscae demo. We will go into more detail about the system closer to the game’s launch so stay tuned for more information.

Respondent: Lead Game Designer Takizawa Masashi

big cities like Altissia/Insomnia

New details on Final Fantasy XV are coming very soon, as Square Enix announced a new Active Time Report is airing this weekend.

According to a post FFXV's official Twitter account, the stream will begin on January 30 at 8pm PST/11pm EST and in Europe on January 31 at 4am GMT. The broadcast will feature "new battle footage" and additional information on the Niflheim Empire.

The Jan #FFXVATR will be streaming this week! NA: Jan 30 at 20:00PST EU: Jan 31 at 04:00GMT https://t.co/h6G2iuNPm3 pic.twitter.com/HuJauH8TZk

— Final Fantasy XV (@FFXVEN) January 25, 2016

Final Fantasy XV will release sometime later this year for Xbox One and PlayStation 4, and is now playable from start to finish. According to game director Hajime Tabata, the studio drew inspiration from The Last of Us, with the goal delivering a narrative "where the gameplay and storytelling are really one in the same."

Other games should be comparing themselves to Final Fantasy.. Not the other way around. SE makes me so angry/sad.. Hope this game finally bankrupts them.

Other games should be comparing themselves to Final Fantasy.. Not the other way around. SE makes me so angry/sad.. Hope this game finally bankrupts them.

Anyone else just roll their eyes when they see this? So many "fans" who think they know whats best for this company and like they haven't put out anything good since "namepersonsfavoritegamehere"

Anyone else just roll their eyes when they see this? So many "fans" who think they know whats best for this company and like they haven't put out anything good since "namepersonsfavoritegamehere"

Anyone else just roll their eyes when they see this? So many "fans" who think they know whats best for this company and like they haven't put out anything good since "namepersonsfavoritegamehere"

They have not put out anything good since SE took over Square.. Anyone else just roll their eyes when they see people that have no idea what they are talking about..

11 was started by Square.. SE killed it.
Had hopes for 12.. It was alright.
Excited for 13, Suckga..
Tremendous hope for 14..Death. Remade.. Failaga
Lost hope for 15.. Signs don't point to good things.

So yeah. Been a fan for 30 years. Wish SE would sell it to a company that cares. I really do hope it is a good game, honestly I do. The track record is a killer though. Only thing that has kept SE around is die hard fans that want to play Final Fantasy and they manage to not listen to them and screw up as often as possible.

Except SE has made more than 4 games since that merger... Hater bandwagoner it seems like.

Hater bandwagoner it seems like. Reminds me of the rabid fans that constantly attack the star wars prequels. Same schtick every time, "Square Soft was way better!" Wasn't everything when everyone was younger?

I was hating on SE before the bandwagon got wheels dude. Lots of games blow Final Fantasy out of the water nowadays which is really sad considering the potential money FF fans will THROW at SE if they actually did it correctly. The first Dragon age was epic for instance.

Are you seriously backing these massive POS games? Do you like getting bent over while playing trash? You would be part of the problem. Thanks so much for encouraging them.

Yeah, right... SE doesn't listen to fans but they are remaking FF7 after years of bitching.

I don't think any company should 100% listen to fans

SE is known for experimenting with their games, especially Final Fantasy series.

Leave those decisions to the people who actually create the video games and have years of experience

smacking their keyboards with all their hate

"These" games? What games have I defended? Do I think FF12 is good? Yes I do. FF13, isn't that great gameplay wise and 14 I think everyone knows my opinion. My point was they didn't just make 4 games since the merger, they still put out quality games. I could go on a huge list and not just handheld games either. I won't because it will be a waste of time as you already have your mind set that SE should crash and burn.

Remaking a classic Squaresoft game and it is going to literally make more money than every other Final fantasy game they have tried to make. Do you even hear yourself? Personally I think 7 is one of Squares worse games. Even so it is 100% better than anything SE has ***out since taking over.

Um yeah. I bet good money your one of the "Look its so pretty, I don't care if the entire game is a CS and has nothing to it at all types of people."

I just want them to stop screwing up Final Fantasy games. Could really care less about anything else they make.

So yeah. Been a fan for 30 years. Wish SE would sell it to a company that cares. I really do hope it is a good game, honestly I do. The track record is a killer though. Only thing that has kept SE around is die hard fans that want to play Final Fantasy and they manage to not listen to them and screw up as often as possible.

even though you admit you didn't look at anything outside of FF games

So you admit you have no idea about the company outside of Final Fantasy games, and yet you want them to go bankrupt and burn... lol. So 3~4 games automatically sinks them, huh? Okay you said earlier:

So what exactly can they do to make a game that would please you?

"These" games? What games have I defended? Do I think FF12 is good? Yes I do. FF13, isn't that great gameplay wise and 14 I think everyone knows my opinion. My point was they didn't just make 4 games since the merger,

Make a game that has More than 3 slots for armor.

Make so many weapons and relics and items that it takes me 80 hours+ to find it all in a world that isn't a straight *** line.

Make a ***ton of Towns you can buy stuff in, plain old monsters that Will kill you if youre not paying attention.

Oh, And I do not want to hear people talk, I can read, I don't need annoying voice overs.

Hell make a game that you have to be higher than lvl 30 to actually beat it!

Basically make me a Final Fantasy Game that deserves to be called Final Fantasy.