Final Fantasy Agito Producer Talks All About The Game And Its Story

Hajime Tabata, who has directed several of Square Enix’s high profile PSP titles in Final Fantasy Type-0, The 3rd Birthday, and Before Crisis: Final Fantasy VII, will be busy this year, as he will be co-directing Final Fantasy XV and producing Final Fantasy Agito.

In the latest issue of Famitsu magazine, Tabata discusses the upcoming mobile game. Tabata begins the interview by talking about how work on Final Fantasy Agito began.

“I wanted to write a story that depicted different fates for the main characters of Final Fantasy Type-0,” starts Tabata. “Those who played Final Fantasy Type-0 were very vocal in that regard, and there were also many staff members who said ‘I want to do that,’ as well.”

He continues, “Final Fantasy Type-0 was originally going to be for mobile phones, and we were fond of the title ‘Agito,’ so with that in mind, we began production of the project. Since then, some time has gone by, and we decided that if we were going to release it, it should be for smartphones, and have it be different from Final Fantasy Type-0, by allowing users to experience to story in a live fashion.”

Famitsu asks if the game has an actual ending, to which Tabata replies that it does, and it is actually similar to Before Crisis: Final Fantasy VII, except that once you complete the story, it starts over from the beginning, as history repeats itself in the game.

“The ‘Decision’ system we wanted to use while working on the original mobile version, which allows players to decide on the story’s direction, will also be in it, so the story should gradually change over time,” says Tabata. “This will appear in the form of turning point choices in the story, where players can pick their choices, which will change the story, accordingly. On your second play-through, you might make different choices, or the number of choices you can make may increase altogether. That is the type of live-feeling you’ll have in this game.”

While Final Fantasy Agito will be similar to Before Crisis: Final Fantasy VII, it won’t be completely the same, especially when it comes to the game’s pace.

“Unlike Before Crisis: Final Fantasy VII that had 24 chapters that were delivered in the span of two years, I am thinking of having something shorter, that is repeatable-yet-enjoyable, as the base,” explains Tabata. “We’re currently reviewing how many chapters will constitute an entire cycle, but we’re expecting to have a chapter delivered once every two weeks.”

As seen in our earlier report, Final Fantasy Agito will offer various abilities, including some that are exclusive to job classes.

“Yes, jobs will have exclusive abilities, for example if you’re a Knight, they specialize in the ‘Cover’ ability that lowers all allies’ chances of being hit,” explains Tabata. “During the Solo Play Phase, you’ll accumulate job points, which can be used to acquire abilities. These job abilities can then be used during the Team Play Phase’s boss fights, by tapping the ‘Squad’ button to activate it, and the entire team will benefit from its effect.”

Famitsu asks whether you’ll be required to be on top of the game and make sure your character’s level is always high enough to do their job right.

“Even if you slack or don’t level up much, we made a system that still allows you to play along your allies with ease,” replies Tabata. “I wanted to make something that allows you to contribute, no matter what your play-style is.”

In addition to wanting the game to show off a school life, along with the decision making system, Famitsu asks if there was anything else that Tabata wanted to do and accomplished in Final Fantasy Agito.

“Being able to get to the end of the game with just free-to-play,” replies the producer. “I actually never spend money on those,” he adds with a laugh.

Final Fantasy Agito is slated for release this winter for Android and iOS devices.