When Hajime Tabata and his team started developing “Final Fantasy XV”, they deemed it was necessary to create a PC Version as well. “FFXV” was only available on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One platforms when it was initially released back in November 2016. But since then, Tabata and his team diverted all their focus in developing the game’s PC version.
It could also be a blessing in disguise but with the arrival of powerful yet cheaper graphics cards, PC gamers will soon find themselves playing “Final Fantasy XV” to its maximum settings. And for PC gamers who are used to playing first-person video games, Tabata expects to bring the same intensity with “FFXV”.
First-person mode
In an interview with MCV UK, Tabata teased that they have already completed about 50 percent of the first-person mode on “Final Fantasy XV”. And while they are just halfway through, “we feel the gameplay has a certain freshness to it and it’s been well-received among those in the development team.”
Tabata revealed that they have made big adjustments in terms of player character’s VFX, displayed animations and camera movement on “Final Fantasy XV”. In fact, they are still making revisions and alterations every now and then.
But with the help of GPU leader NVIDIA, the development of the PC version of “Final Fantasy XV” is way easier compared to its console counterparts.
According to Tabata, the console version requires “reconstruction from the very start for both the game itself and the engine,” which he claimed, “was more than 100 times more difficult.”
Pushing for a lower spec
A lot of first-person shooter video games are PC-based simply because of its adjustability in gameplay while reaching a wide range of hardware specifications (from minimum to max) among other things.
Currently, “Final Fantasy XV” requires high PC specs according to Tabata, though they intend to push the settings and see what the lowest possible system settings they can get.
This can be attributed to the fact that they have collaborated with NVIDIA in the development of “FFXV” PC version. Tabata, though, did not mention which exact GPU they are currently using.
More features on PC version
With more options and features on the development of the PC version compared to the limited console settings, Tabata revealed that there are a number of new features added which cannot become part of the console platforms. This can also be attributed to a number of NVIDIA libraries used on the development of “FFXV”.
The best example is the first-person mode. According to Hajime Tabata, “there are a number of features we can't put onto a console.” The explanation is simple – the settings to support these features are not available, something that is part of the console’s limitations. Then there’s the mouse and keyboard which are very handy when it comes to changing the game settings on PC rather than using a console controller.
There is no official release date yet for the PC version of “Final Fantasy XV”. There were rumors that “FFXV” will come to Nintendo Switch, though it remains to be confirmed.