The Patriarch of the Final Fantasy Series, Hironobu Sakaguchi, Elevates Part 6 to Utmost Perfection.

Hironobu Sakaguchi, the visionary behind the Final Fantasy series, recently shared his thoughts in an interview with the website Inverse. One intriguing point he made was his belief that Final Fantasy VI is the “most complete” installment in his perspective. This is partly due to FF6 being the final Final Fantasy game to use pixel graphics, capturing the emotions of the game effectively. (The last installment he was involved in before leaving Square Enix was X-2.)

He also discussed the overall concept of the Final Fantasy series, which constantly strives to innovate and offer something new to each fan, creating diverse memories for each individual. However, the core essence that every installment must have is the storyline and the game’s world. The game world must contain themes that relate to real-world events in a broad sense, allowing players to ponder and explore. For example, the theme of FF7 revolves around the environment and climate change, with the Shinra company depleting resources from the world. FF10 focuses on religion and challenging societal norms, while FF16 uses crystal themes comparable to oil resources. FF Tactics delves into social classes and the differences between the wealthy and the poor.

Another point Sakaguchi touched upon was the trend of game remakes. He personally stated he is not keen on remaking any games. From a business perspective, remakes can significantly reduce the costs of game design by not having to create new gameplay systems, worlds, or characters. Despite this, he commended the team behind FF7 Remake for putting in as much effort as creating a new game, offering a fresh experience that the original FF7 couldn’t achieve at the time due to technological limitations.

TLDR: Hironobu Sakaguchi views Final Fantasy VI as the most complete installment in the series due to its pixel graphics and emotional depth, highlighting the importance of storytelling and world-building in each game. He discusses diverse themes present in different FF games and shares his thoughts on game remakes, emphasizing the FF7 Remake’s ability to offer a new experience beyond the original.