Final Fantasy 15’s DLC plan is a little over ambitious taking into a note. The series has not done that much downloadable content in the past and will terminate with a first for a numbered FF game – a non-MMO online multiplayer mode. It is known for a long time now that Final Fantasy 15 would have downloadable content. In August before the game was delayed the season pass popped up on the PS Store. Square Enix has confirmed details on season pass contents and DLC plan for the game and it is fairly interesting. You must not miss the following Final Fantasy XV Interview with Mr. Sawatari.
Mr. Sawatari: Final Fantasy XV Interview
DLC Producer Haruyoshi Sawatari says: “It all goes back to when we started development on FF15. We have a solid plan from the start that after we finished the primary game we’d move on and expand the game and enlarge it in different directions. Sawatari is the new face in FF15’s advertisement machine. He spent some time working at Sony on products similar to Folklore, Rain and Bloodborne, but in this moment he finds himself in charge of the DLC plan for Square Enix’s most valuable release. Behind that, he explains that everything is down to the game’s delay.
Earlier this year in the late summer they made the decision that they are going to delay the release of the game. Two months they organized a special team within the development to oversee the downloadable content expansions. The idea there being is that Mr. Tabata can focus on getting the main game finished while Sawatari is in charge of the team that’s going to make the DLC plan a reality.
There will be four “big” DLCs. Three of these will be all new single-player adventures. FF15 is the first in its series where you would not be able to speculate direct control of anybody, except the lead character. Nevertheless, DLC fans will get a chance to play as Gladiolus, Ignis and Prompto.
Each of the character-based episodes they are doing is going to add new gameplay elements and systems and change the idea the gameplay works. Each of those is placed very much on the personality and the style of character that stars in them.
Gladiolus is the tattooed older man in the group. He has a deep voice. Sawatari reveals that “Episode Gladiolus” will be a total action game. Gladiolus is the first one to be released, and I have seen some screenshots of it. Ignis is the man that is always prepared and also the smartest person of the group. His gameplay is tactical. Prompto will be the last one that will be released. He has usage of guns, and his DLC will play in what Sawatari says is a “shooter style”.
Each and every episode is going to contain new story scenarios and new locations to explore as well. These expansions will be story-driven and they tell stories that will make these characters living creatures. They are very closely connected and entwined with the main story of FF15, so any further details are secret.
When they have released all three of those character expansion DLCs and they have got all the comrades from the main game as playable characters, they will bring Noctis back in as the fourth member of the party and then add an online multiplayer expansion to bring them all together.
And at the moment when Gladio’s story episode appears to be pretty well underway, I can see nothing else of the other three episodes. When asked about the nature of the online multiplayer and if it’ll be something similar to the multiplayer modes cover with recent Bioware releases like Mass Effect 3 and Dragon Age Inquisition, Sawatari chuckles and remains coy but apologetic.
It is still very early. They only really formed the DLC team late this summer, and they are still very much looking into how they can work out what they can do with it. There’s really not too much they can say about it – it is all really very much in the air at the moment.
They are very much in the middle of planning the things in terms of how it’s going to work. Just a little more time to flesh out and finalize their ideas. Soon, they will be able to present them really soon.
I assume it will take the form of a four-player co-operative mode with every player taking control of one of the crew – but above that it is all a mystery. Square is that kind of a company where you get used to interviews that are full of “we can’t talk about that yet”, so I imagine that once the main game is released, we can catch with Sawatari for a full interview.
When he was asked about the length of the planned DLC, he asked a question on what people think the ideal length for an RPG DLC is and makes a point of saying that his team is more interested in the quality of experience than the hour count. It has to feel like a worthwhile experience regardless of how long it is, it is more about the experience than the actual play time.
Final Fantasy 15 is out on November 29. The DLC will cost £19.99 / €24.99
