Yesterday, Nomura was interviewed by Famitsu about his work on the upcoming video game, Kingdom Hearts III. We have the interview here, thanks to SQEXGURL’s translation.
Famitsu: Over the past week, we heard Square Enix’s statements concerning Final Fantasy XV and Kingdom Hearts III, telling us that neither title is going to be released this year. Do you have any comment on that?
Nomura: Unfortunately, that is correct. But trust me, we are working hard to get these games out to the players as quickly as possible.
Famitsu: How are you coping with being the director of both titles? Has it been stressful?
Nomura: Oh, absolutely. But what’s any job without a little stress? (laughs) Speaking of which….
Famitsu: Ah yes, I’m told you have an announcement for us?
Nomura: Yes, yes I do. Seeing as I am still working hard on Final Fantasy XV, I’m pleased to announce that Motomu Toriyama will be taking the director’s chair for Kingdom Hearts III.
Famitsu: This is exciting news! (For those of you who don’t know, Motomu Toriyama is the director of the Final Fantasy XIII series.) His work with Lightning’s story was fantastic. What can we expect to see from him?
Nomura: I can’t reveal too much at the moment, but you can expect a great time-travel based storyline, some familiar faces, and an exciting battle system.
Famitsu: Some familiar faces? Do you mean to say that we’re going to be seeing more Final Fantasy characters in this title?
Nomura: Well, one more in particular: don’t be too surprised if Lightning makes another return. (laughs)
Famitsu: Great! So we can expect to see her in one of the new worlds?
Nomura: Oh, not just in one world. (laughs) Toriyama-san has decided to make her the main playable character.
Famitsu: Ah. And how do you feel about this? Does it feel odd for one of your Kingdom Hearts games to not feature an original character as the main playable character?
Nomura: A little, yes. But I did design Lightning, so it doesn’t feel that bad to me. Besides, Toriyama-san has shown that he can form a coherent and strong storyline, especially in Final Fantasy XIII-2. I know that he’ll give a great reason as to why Sora isn’t the main playable character.
Famitsu: You mean to tell us that Sora won’t be playable?
Nomura: Of course not! Sora will definitely be available as a DLC character.
Famitsu: That’s comforting. Well Nomura-san, I believe that’s all the time we have today. Thank you for speaking with us. Do you have any final words to the fans?
Nomura: We have been working hard to deliver a quality title to the fans. I hope you all will be able to enjoy Kingdom Hearts III, along with the day-1 episodic DLC that comes with it. We hope to be able to deliver the best Xbox One exclusive on the market.
Yesterday, Nomura was interviewed by Famitsu about his work on the upcoming video game, Kingdom Hearts III. We have the interview here, thanks to SQEXGURL’s translation.
Famitsu: Over the past week, we heard Square Enix’s statements concerning Final Fantasy XV and Kingdom Hearts III, telling us that neither title is going to be released this year. Do you have any comment on that?
Nomura: Unfortunately, that is correct. But trust me, we are working hard to get these games out to the players as quickly as possible.
Famitsu: How are you coping with being the director of both titles? Has it been stressful?
Nomura: Oh, absolutely. But what’s any job without a little stress? (laughs) Speaking of which….
Famitsu: Ah yes, I’m told you have an announcement for us?
Nomura: Yes, yes I do. Seeing as I am still working hard on Final Fantasy XV, I’m pleased to announce that Motomu Toriyama will be taking the director’s chair for Kingdom Hearts III.
Famitsu: This is exciting news! (For those of you who don’t know, Motomu Toriyama is the director of the Final Fantasy XIII series.) His work with Lightning’s story was fantastic. What can we expect to see from him?
Nomura: I can’t reveal too much at the moment, but you can expect a great time-travel based storyline, some familiar faces, and an exciting battle system.
Famitsu: Some familiar faces? Do you mean to say that we’re going to be seeing more Final Fantasy characters in this title?
Nomura: Well, one more in particular: don’t be too surprised if Lightning makes another return. (laughs)
Famitsu: Great! So we can expect to see her in one of the new worlds?
Nomura: Oh, not just in one world. (laughs) Toriyama-san has decided to make her the main playable character.
Famitsu: Ah. And how do you feel about this? Does it feel odd for one of your Kingdom Hearts games to not feature an original character as the main playable character?
Nomura: A little, yes. But I did design Lightning, so it doesn’t feel that bad to me. Besides, Toriyama-san has shown that he can form a coherent and strong storyline, especially in Final Fantasy XIII-2. I know that he’ll give a great reason as to why Sora isn’t the main playable character.
Famitsu: You mean to tell us that Sora won’t be playable?
Nomura: Of course not! Sora will definitely be available as a DLC character.
Famitsu: That’s comforting. Well Nomura-san, I believe that’s all the time we have today. Thank you for speaking with us. Do you have any final words to the fans?
Nomura: We have been working hard to deliver a quality title to the fans. I hope you all will be able to enjoy Kingdom Hearts III, along with the day-1 episodic DLC that comes with it. We hope to be able to deliver the best Xbox One exclusive on the market.
Famitsu: Thank you for your time, Nomura-san.
Nomura: Always a pleasure, Interviewer-san.
Edited by Jim