Interview: Preparing FFVII Ever Crisis Costumes and Gear

While Final Fantasy VII Ever Crisis is a gacha game, it doesn’t lock characters behind it. Rather, it functions in a similar way to Dissidia Final Fantasy: Opera Omnia, with equipment behind banners. In the case of FFVII Ever Crisis however, we also get different kinds of gear that include new abilities and different costumes for familiar characters. To learn more about those designs and possible future ones, Siliconera spoke with Producer Shoichi Ichikawa about the game.

Jenni Lada: When coming up with completely custom FFVII Ever Crisis gear for events and gacha banners, what does the process look like from concept costumes and pitches to final implementation?

Shoichi Ichikawa: First, we decide on the general motif/theme and create a few rough artworks.

Next, as we polish the rough artwork, we work with Tetsuya Nomura to narrow it down to one idea. It’s not uncommon that in this phase, more new possibilities are born, such as the combination of some rough ideas to create a new one.

After all that’s done, we create models based on the finalized version of the artwork.

When FFVII Ever Crisis crossover event gear comes up, such as with the FFIX and Monster Hunter costumes and weapons, how did you decide which characters would appear during the event?

Ichikawa: The most important factor with these crossover events is that our players enjoy the themed character and/or items. It’s also important for our team to properly redesign and incorporate the key elements of our collaboration partner within Final Fantasy VII Ever Crisis.

After Cid is added to the game, could we see him get a Freya-themed FFIX weapon or costume in FFVII Ever Crisis?

Ichikawa: Yes, please stay tuned!

Which other Final Fantasy games would you like to bring into FFVII Ever Crisis and, if another one of these crossovers would appear, what would be your dream character and costume pairings?

Ichikawa: I’m not able to say more about any future potential crossover events, as I don’t want to get anyone’s hopes up. That said, I’d love for everyone to stay tuned, as we will have some exciting announcements in the future! 

How would you feel about a FFVII Ever Crisis art book that included the concept art for these additional character designs and costumes?

Ichikawa: I, for one, am most definitely interested.

We’ve released many pieces of gear up to this point, but in actuality, the number of rough artworks is probably three times higher than the approved/final pieces… So, I would love the opportunity to showcase our concepts to players someday.

Final Fantasy VII Ever Crisis is available for PCs and mobile devices.