Nomura On Final Fantasy Versus XIII’s Destructible Fields

Famitsu asked Tetsuya Nomura about the scene in the trailer where Noctis is running from a Behemoth. There seem to be a lot of gimmicks during battles, the video game magazine asked.

Nomura explains there are different types of Behemoths in Final Fantasy Versus XIII. The one in the trailer is a large Behemoth, chosen because being large has a greater impact within the city and its tall buildings. Players will face small(er?) Behemoths in the wild. When the Behemoth runs through the city it will knock down telephone poles and tress while it chases Noctis. However, the Behemoth won’t attack the bridge seen in the trailer if Noctis doesn’t walk on it. Nomura laments that with so much freedom, it’s difficult to cram all of these gimmicks into Final Fantasy Versus XIII.

The fight with the Behemoth continues to a collapsing three-tiered highway road. Noctis will have to jump to move forward. Nomura says the route is not fixed. When he played through this area he scurried up an emergency staircase and climbed to the roof. To get to the tip-top point Nomura made Noctis climb up an air conditioner where he could see everything from up high, even hidden treasure chests.

Nomura stressed he does not think players will be able to do everything in one play through of Final Fantasy Versus XIII.

The city-like kingdom shown in the trailer is ruled by Noctis’ father. While exploring other parts of the world, you’ll come across villages, which are so spacious they astonished Nomura. As mentioned earlier, the field shifts from day to night and monsters react to the changes.

Speaking of battles, Famitsu asked if the system is a kin to another Nomura directed series with command menus in action game, Kingdom Hearts. Nomura responded that it’s closer to that, but he also says the game is quite fast with characters doing double jumps and other actions. While the screenshots have been edited to remove names, Nomura says the battle interface is the same as the game. (Spencer’s note: The trailer slipped and showed the names and revealed one of other characters, Gladiolus.) There are bars for the HP meter and an orange bar made just for Versus XIII. Nomura didn’t explain what this meter does. Above, there are character portraits, which change in realtime so you know how your allies are doing during a fight.

Nomura re-iterated bits mentioned in previous interviews, Final Fantasy Versus XIII will not have a job system for player characters, but enemies may fall into job classifications. The game has summons and vehicles to ride like chocobos and magic armor. You can also switch between characters. Ignis is a tactician armed with throwing knives and support magic. A blonde haired boy can target enemy weak points with firearms and the scar-faced character goes into battle barehanded or with a pile bunker. Changing characters is optional. Players can stick to just using Noctis who wields a variety of weapons if they prefer.