Final Fantasy XV has learned lessons from other failed game launches

I am a huge Final Fantasy fan. Yes, I know the last few iterations in the franchise haven’t exactly been stellar, but I still love the core idea of the franchise and so many of its installments. You know which other franchise I really like? Assassin’s Creed. But you can’t say that anymore because Unity launched in such a broken state – it pretty much ruined Assassin’s Creed for most gamers, even after Syndicate was a damn good game. It seems Hajime Tabata isn’t going to repeat that kind of mistake.

We already told you about the Final Fantasy XV delay, and that it was to fix the game rather than release a day one patch. But apparently it goes even deeper than that. According to an interview with Tabata-san, the bugs weren’t game breaking but did cause some real issues beyond simple frame rate drops.

There are still of number of bugs like characters floating unnaturally in the air or appearing all strange [and glitchy].

We are going to fix the issues. Another thing is that I also wanted to refine the game balance.

According to some data, the console game users of more than 20% of Japan was such a situation. The United States has a higher connection rates than Japan. In other words, in Japan, [those] who will be playing without the Internet connection, was found to be a significant number.

20% of people in Japan don’t have connected consoles? I’m sure other regions have similar situations, like South Africa as well as parts of Europe and South America. For those without the ability to get a day one patch, a broken game is broken forever. If those people bought a game like Assassin’s Creed Unity, they are still playing a game where characters have no faces and can fall through the world without warning. It’s a good thing Tabata-san won’t let that happen to Final Fantasy XV fans.

I know the delay was sad – I was also really looking forward to getting my hands on the game ASAP – but I’d rather wait for the experience a little longer than have the whole thing ruined by unstable and glitchy gameplay. After waiting this many years, a couple months is really manageable. Plus, at least I won’t have to wait too long on launch day itself; with a game that is already optimized when the discs are pressed, the day one patch should be minimal.

Last Updated: August 31, 2016