Through a little bribing and late-night pillow talk, I’ve managed to wrestle the full interview transcript out of OPM, chockful of more info. about the upcoming assault of FFVII-related games and even Kitase’s current relationship with Final Fantasy creator Hironobu Sakaguchi.

OPM: Where did the idea to do the Compilation of Final Fantasy VII come from?

Kitase: The idea began with AC [Advent Children, the movie], which has become the “sequel” of the original story of VII. But one title was not enough to cover the entire world of VII, so around the same time that AC started as a project, the team came up with the ideas of BC [Before Crisis, the mobile phone game] and DC [Dirge of Cerberus, the PS2 gun action game] in order to support the world.

OPM: The Compilation is a very large undertaking, with four projects in development at the same time. We noticed that the CG movies in Dirge of Cerberus use the same models as the Advent Children movie. Have you been able to share many resources between the projects?

Kitase: Originally, the team expected that there were a lot of things that could be shared between the titles. But actually, it ended up being difficult to share anything. A good example is the design of Vincent in AC and DC. If you look at his hair in AC, it’s very smooth and beautiful, but in DC it’s very pointy and animated. [Tetsuya] Nomura did the character design, and he wanted to use a different style for each different title. So everything ended up being customized for each different title.

OPM: Which came first, the idea to make a Final Fantasy VII action game, or the idea to use Vincent as a character?

Kitase: First, the team had the idea to make an action game. And second, that was the time when we were starting to think about the Compilation of Final Fantasy VII. In the world of VII, Vincent used a gun–it was his signature weapon. So that’s why it ended up becoming Vincent’s story.

OPM: A few years ago, there was a rumor that there was going to be a Final Fantasy VII action game, but everyone thought that Cloud was going to be the main character. Vincent is a somewhat unusual choice–he’s a secret character, and his backstory is hidden deep within the game. Why not Cloud, Yuffie, or some other “action” character?

Kitase: Of course, AC was already in the middle of being made, and in AC, people can deeply experience Tifa and Cloud’s story. AC completes Cloud’s story. Also, Cloud doesn’t use a gun at all, and the idea was to make a gun game, and that’s when Vincent came along. Even though Vincent was a hidden character in the original VII, he was very deeply involved with Shinra, Hojo, and Sephiroth. So in a way, he had a lot of drama associated with these other characters.

OPM: It’s interesting that the Compilation of Final Fantasy VII has four projects, but none of them are traditional RPGs. Was this a conscious decision? Or did it just end up that way?

Kitase: An RPG takes so much time and so many people to create that if the team decided to make one, it would have stood out. It would have needed a lot of preparation and taken a lot of physical and emotional attachment. Instead, the idea was to make original games in the world of VII. There were never any plans to make a traditional, hardcore RPG.

OPM: The first “sequel” to be set in a Final Fantasy world was Final Fantasy X-2. A major reason Square made that game was because it was cheap–they could reuse the art, the characters, and the world of Final Fantasy X. Even though the Compilation of Final Fantasy VII uses the same world, the team has had to remake everything from scratch. So why focus on Final Fantasy VII at the expense of new projects?

Kitase: Final Fantasy VII came out when the PlayStation console was introduced and 3D visuals became possible; it was the first title in the franchise to basically create this whole new style. VII was a milestone for the franchise and the beginning of a new direction. Until Final Fantasy XII, the style of the series came from VII. That was one reason.

The second reason is that VII is a popular and world-renowned RPG, and there are lots of fans all over the world that have a strong emotional attachment to it. The team had to do a great amount of preparation so as not to disappoint the fans. When we created X-2, we learned how we could make a sequel by reusing resources, but we thought that for VII, we had to have a different type of approach–serious projects that would satisfy the fans.

The original staff members of VII, such as Naora, the art director, Uematsu, the composer, Nojima, the scenario writer, and Nomura, the character designer–they were all working on different projects when this Compilation plan came up. But they were able to gather again to work together once more on the Compilation of Final Fantasy VII. It would be kind of nonsensical to have a whole new team create a sequel for VII, but we thought it would be possible now that the original members were gathering together to create it. The titles would be good enough not to embarrass the team, the company, or the fans.

OPM: Some American fans were…offended by the very silly tone of Final Fantasy X-2. Did the team ever think about making a silly Final Fantasy VII game?

Kitase: The team definitely didn’t consider any silly concepts. But actually, it might have made for a funny story if we had used Cait Sith as a main character.

Before X-2, Final Fantasy was already established as a franchise that fans expected to be very serious. Because of that pressure, the team always had to protect themselves; they couldn’t be as creative as they might like, and they didn’t have the freedom to come up with something different.

If you look back, the original Final Fantasy games were very funny and silly, but eventually the Final Fantasy franchise became nothing but seriousness. X-2 made the team remember that there’s lots of possibility contained within “Final Fantasy.” Because of X-2, we had the freedom to choose what we wanted to do for the Compilation of Final Fantasy VII. If there were no X-2, we could only ever think of making a pure, perfect RPG.

OPM: Before, you said that making Final Fantasy X was very difficult, but making X-2 was very fun. What sort of feeling do you have making Dirge of Cerberus?

Kitase: It’s still on the PS2, so technologically it’s been very smooth, but it’s the first time the team has made a gun action game. We already know from experience how to make a good RPG, so we know what kind of reaction to expect from the fans. But with a gun action game, we’ve had to start all the way from just making it simple to control. Because it’s our first game in this genre, we’re always going back-and-forth, back-and-forth on every decision.

There were never any plans to make a traditional, hardcore RPG.
OPM: Reeve (who controls Cait Sith) appears in Dirge of Cerberus. What’s the story behind his uniform?

Kitase: Those are just his clothes.

OPM: Oh. Well, Reeve is heading up the WRO (the World Recovery Organization). Can you tell about the group?

Kitase: It’s a volunteer organization trying to restore the world after Meteo messed it up in the original VII. Originally, their purpose was to go to different destroyed towns and help the towns recover. But in the story of DC, enemies show up, so the members of WRO form a volunteer army to fight against them.

OPM: And the big blue guy, Azul? He seems to be the main villain…

Kitase: He’s not the absolute strongest enemy or boss in the game. There’s a group of enemies, the Deep Ground soldiers, and Azul is one of the strongest elite soldiers within the group. Originally, Deep Ground was just a group of soldiers that were all at the same level. Eventually, fighting within the group led to some soldiers becoming stronger, more elite, while others became inferior. In the online mode, these soldiers fight against each other.

OPM: How do you earn medals in the online ranking mode?

Kitase: There are lots of conditions. For example, a player who was the MVP of a battle might get a medal. And someone who performed really poorly in a battle might get a bad medal.

OPM: Do the medals affect your character’s ability? Or are they just for show?

Kitase: They don’t give bonus points or anything like that.

OPM: In an online game, it’s important to maintain a level field. But in Dirge of Cerberus’ online mode, you can earn weapons and armor that improve your character. How will a new character be able to fight against a character with strong equipment?

Kitase: Players can set conditions for battles, such as restricting the use of strong weapons, or restricting a match to only powerful players. But there’s no way to control if one player has a strong weapon and they fight against somebody weaker.

OPM: What kind of online gameplay modes will be available?

Kitase: There are three modes. Team vs. team, free-for-all deathmatch, and mission mode, where a team fights against a boss.

OPM: Has the team size been decided yet?

Kitase: We have to wait for the results of the beta test, but it’s going to be about 20 to 30 players on both teams together.

OPM: Your name has become synonymous with the modern Final Fantasy series, but if you could make your dream game–something outside of the Final Fantasy series–what kind of game would you make?

Kitase: Storywise, I can’t really say anything yet. But gameplaywise, I’m a big fan of the gun shooting game I’m working on right now. I really enjoy playing FPSes like Half-Life 2. If it’s a non-Final Fantasy title, I’d be glad to try a gun shooting or FPS type of game.

OPM: Hironobu Sakaguchi, who started the Final Fantasy series, recently left Square to start a new company, MistWalker. His company is making two RPGs for the Xbox 360. How do you feel about competing on next-generation consoles against the father of Final Fantasy?

Kitase: I sometimes go out to eat with Sakaguchi, so we have a good relationship. His message for me is something like, “Let’s improve each other’s quality. Let’s grow up together and complete each other’s work.”

Before Square Enix was Square Enix, when it was still Squaresoft, there were multiple key titles like Mana, Saga, and Final Fantasy within the company, so the teams were sort of competing with each other to make better games than the rest. So a culture like that already existed.

That culture’s kind of been extended, after Sakaguchi left. Our intention is still to make good games that impress each other. If you look at the market in Japan, it’s somewhat saturated, so it’s good to have a rival that stimulates you to do your best. That’s our relationship.

Source: 1up.com

Romancing SaGa will be rated E10+ for Everyone 10 and Older and will carry an MSRP of $39.99 USD.

Source: RPGFan

Kingdom Hearts II will be available in Japan sometime later this year.

Source: RPGFan

Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children will be available in Japan on September 14th. Following a recent delay, publisher Sony Pictures Entertainment will release both the DVD and UMD version of the movie sometime during this year’s holiday season in North America.

Source: RPGFan

Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence carries on the “update” tradition for Metal Gear Solid titles, which began with Metal Gear Solid 2: Substance and Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes.

Source: Game Pro

Following the story of a young boy and his friends as he tries to stop the evil CIPHER organisation and purify their Shadow Pokemon – including the seemingly impurifyable Shadow Lugia. Thanks to the work of Professor Krane, a Purification Chamber has been developed to rid the Shadow Pokemon of their darker sides. Along with a few ‘normal’ Pokemon, the chamber helps to purify the Shadow Pokemon and open their hearts; their old moves are removed but a range of others become available instead.

Several mini-games feature alongside the two main game modes (Story Mode and Battle Mode) and gamers will also be able to connect to a host of GBA Pokemon titles and swap various Pocket Monsters between the games.

We’ll have more news on Pokemon XD: Gale of Darkness in the coming weeks…

Source: Total Video Games

However, it’s apparently taking Link a little longer to mature than expected. In what could be the most disappointing delay to fans rabid for a sequel since Bungie’s Halo 2 was knocked back a few seasons, Nintendo today announced that the Twilight Princess will miss its original ship date of 2005’s holiday season.

“After much discussion, the Zelda development team has requested extra time to add new levels, more depth, and even higher quality to Zelda: Twilight Princess. Consequently, we’re announcing a new global launch in 2006,” stated Perrin Kaplan, Nintendo of America’s vice president of marketing and corporate affairs.

The new release date is now no sooner than April 1, 2006, as the game is pegged to hit shelves sometime after Nintendo’s next fiscal year kicks off.

“While this may come as a disappointment to many eager fans, it will absolutely enrich the game,” said Kaplan.

Nintendo let out a trifecta of big news stories today. In addition to the disappointing Zelda delay, Nintendophiles will be happy to know that the Game Boy Micro now has a release date of September 19, and the DS will be $20 cheaper as of August 21, to coincide with the release of Nintendogs and Advance Wars: Dual Strike for the DS. Stay tuned to GameSpot for more information.

Source: GameSpot

Utilising the various features of the DS (including a rather interesting idea of using the built-in microphone as a panic button when blown into), Lunar Genesis is controlled via the lower touch screen with aspects including character movement and navigating maps. Battles are split between the two screens with ground battles taking place on the lower screen and aerial combat in the higher screen.

With an estimated gameplay length of over 70 hours, Lunar Genesis looks set to keep DS owners very busy when it finally arrives in Europe in November. We’ll have more on the game soon…

Source: Video Game News

But tending to a farm isn’t the only goal of gamers, as they must also attract suitor from the village and eventually marry him (if the female lead can find the time.)

Harvest Moon: More Friends of Mineral Town will be released in October 2004; we’ll have more news on the game shortly…

Source: Total Video Games

Sam Houser of Rockstar has registered the domain name http://www.grandtheftauto4.com/

But as to whether this is leading anywhere, who knows? The same thing happened with gtatokyo.com. As for a new grand theft auto anytime soon. Who’s to say?