News ► Kingdom Hearts 3 Nomura Interview with Edge-Online!

[Sign]

It's been a busy ride for Series Director Tetsuya Nomura this past week with so many news outlets seeking for a chance to rank among the lucky few who'd receive the opportunity to interview him. We've already heard from Square Enix Members, Square Enix Channel, Famitsu and Dengeki, so now it's time to hear from Edge-Online!

So, Kingdom Hearts 3: what took you so long?

Tetsuya Nomura: So we received great reviews for Kingdom Hearts 2 and so of course the expectation for 3 became much higher. And to make the game appropriate in terms of story, systems and the world – to reach the fans’ expectations – it just ended up taking some time.

What’s the relationship with Disney like? Disney’s attitude to games has changed in recent years to become focused on mobile and social games. Have you noticed their attitude change much?

The relationship with Disney has [remained] the same. Actually the contact person at Disney is still the same person from Kingdom Hearts 1, and Disney has given us lots of requests in terms of the Kingdom Hearts franchise and they did mention some smaller titles for other platforms, but our common, most important goal was to [complete] Kingdom Hearts 3. So it’s the same.

Fans of the series would be quite happy for the game to be the same as the last one, but as a designer and developer don’t you want to experiment and do new things? How do you balance those desires in Kingdom Hearts 3?

As you know, it took a while to actually announce Kingdom Hearts 3, but in the meantime we announced several spin-off titles in the series, and each time for the spin-off title we did experiment and challenge with new things. So we did definitely feel like we have reached enough experimentation and experiences and also I do the development of Final Fantasy, so I feel like for this Kingdom Hearts 3 we are putting everything – all of the experimentation and experiences – into this new title.

The combat in Final Fantasy XV looks real-time instead of turn-based, is that a complete change for the series? Are you making an action game now?

The Final Fantasy series – if you look at each title – each of them has a different system and a different story, so that’s the trend of the Final Fantasy [series] in the past. And when we decided to do action-based for Versus XIII, I personally thought: Is that Final Fantasy? So that was actually one reason why the title was called Versus XIII, not the main sequel, main title, for Final Fantasy. But if you look at the other titles in the franchise, XI and XIV are MMORPG so they do use battle systems which is a command-based, turn-style battle system. So it’s not quite the typical RPG… so that’s why we decided why [Final Fantasy XV] could be action-based battle. And in the future, if other teams decide to different styles of battle systems, then that’s what they decide to do.

So why were you at Sony’s conference and not Microsoft’s? Have you chosen your favourite already?

So, why not Microsoft? Until the last minute we actually didn’t know which conference we would be in, and there was a possibility not to be in the Sony conference either. So it was simply the arrangement between the companies and also originally Versus XIII was announced for PlayStation 3 several years ago. That’s why we thought it’s just probably proper to just go to them and discuss and if they decided to put it on then we would see.

What did you think of E3? Was there anything in particular that excited you?

So of course I was aware of the specifications of each new next-gen console because we are working on them, so there was no specific impact that I got from the announcements in that [respect]. But I was more curious about the software that would be announced. Some of the contents looked really interesting to me and I was preparing for my own presentation of my own games, so I was also very nervous of what other companies would present.

Do you feel comfortable now that you’ve seen everyone else’s games and put yours out there alongside them?

The more contents I saw, with each new trailer before mine, I was getting more worried [laughs]. So of course I’ve been seeing my own trailer so many times that I’m accustomed to watching it so I can’t tell if it’s great any more because I’m so used to watching it. I know my team is working so hard and they agree, but I’ve never done that comparison of looking at my title and trailer with others so that’s why I was nervous.

What does the next generation of consoles mean to you, the games you make, and to Square Enix in general?

So in terms of my own titles that I directed, for the current generation consoles, I have to admit that our company was a little bit behind in terms of development. Talking about my own titles, Kingdom Hearts 1.5 HD is not yet released in the UK, Europe and US even after the announcement of next-generation consoles, and 1.5 is for PlayStation 3. But in the meantime we were already in the development of Kingdom Hearts 3 and Final Fantasy XV for next-generation consoles, so we definitely have to catch up with the rest of the gaming world with those titles and in the future Final Fantasy XV most likely will be released sooner than Kingdom Hearts 3. And I think for Square Enix Final Fantasy XV will be the flagship title for the next-generation consoles, and after that we will definitely make more titles for those platforms.

Disney made requests for the Kingdom Hearts series to expand to small titles on other platforms? I wonder what could have become of that? Leave us your thoughts in our hustling bustling forums.

Thanks to forum member Heartkeeper for the heads up!

Source: Edge-Online

 

[Nazo]

Oh, Nomura. No need to worry about the quality of your trailer. Needless to say, if you can move us all to tears, you've done well.

As far as the "being behind on development", I don't think he should sweat it. I'd rather him take forever and produce the best games I've ever played than feel rushed to get it to us and wind up with something that's just "good". But, if he's feeling a little antsy, maybe this will speed up the announcement/develeopment of HD 2.5 ReMIX?

 

[rokudamia2]

great interview. Really insightful,

Disney has given us lots of requests in terms of the Kingdom Hearts franchise and they did mention some smaller titles for other platforms

Wonder what he means by this.

 

[Nazo]

Wonder what he means by this.

Perhaps a Cross-Play Vita version of KH3? I highly doubt they're already considering more portable titles again.

 

[Decrith]

I'm glad this isn't just a Kingdom Hearts 3 interview, great that they involved FF15 and KH 1.5 a bit.

 

[Oracle Spockanort]

Perhaps a Cross-Play Vita version of KH3? I highly doubt they're already considering more portable titles again.

Wonder what he means by this.

Read it as things they were previously requesting, not stuff they were asking for now. The shelved KH title comes to mind...

 

[Nazo]

Read it as things they were previously requesting, not stuff they were asking for now. The shelved KH title comes to mind...

There was a shelved KH title?

 

[Taochan]

There was a shelved KH title?

"Birth by Sleep volume 2" a game fearuring Aqua in the Realm of Darkness, traversing fallen Disney worlds along with scenarios showcasing the blank times we have of certain characters... like Mickey's journey in the Realm of Darkness, Riku's time between Chain of Memories and when he finally appears in Kingdom Hearts 2, Kairi in Twilight Town with Hayner, Pence and Olette, etc.

 

[Nazo]

"Birth by Sleep volume 2" a game fearuring Aqua in the Realm of Darkness, traversing fallen Disney worlds along with scenarios showcasing the blank times we have of certain characters... like Mickey's journey in the Realm of Darkness, Riku's time between Chain of Memories and when he finally appears in Kingdom Hearts 2, Kairi in Twilight Town with Hayner, Pence and Olette, etc.

Oh, I remember that. I was always under the impression that BBS V2 was actually Dream Drop Distance, but they renamed it later.

 

[Bobjam]

"Birth by Sleep volume 2" a game fearuring Aqua in the Realm of Darkness, traversing fallen Disney worlds along with scenarios showcasing the blank times we have of certain characters... like Mickey's journey in the Realm of Darkness, Riku's time between Chain of Memories and when he finally appears in Kingdom Hearts 2, Kairi in Twilight Town with Hayner, Pence and Olette, etc.

I think these are the kind of plot points and exposition that kh3 will hopefully have the scope to deal with and fill us in on instead of Nomura making a whole new game just to fill those 'blank points'.

 

[Taochan]

Oh, I remember that. I was always under the impression that BBS V2 was actually Dream Drop Distance, but they renamed it later.

If I remember correctly, there was a second "mystery title" that had its story was gutted and re-purposed for Dream Drop Distance. BBSv2's trailer content wasn't present in DDD at all.

I think these are the kind of plot points and exposition that kh3 will hopefully have the scope to deal with and fill us in on instead of Nomura making a whole new game just to fill those 'blank points'.

Considering how much KH3 already has to deal with, I honestly find it very unlikely. :\

 

[Nazo]

If I remember correctly, there was a second "mystery title" that had its story was gutted and re-purposed for Dream Drop Distance. BBSv2's trailer content wasn't present in DDD at all.

Really? Because I seem to recall someone on here about 2 years back analyzing the BBSV2 trailer and predicting the introduction of the time travel element that they introduced in DDD. I don't know, maybe that user is just smart.

Considering how much KH3 already has to deal with, I honestly find it very unlikely. :\

Yeah I hope not. KH3 has a lot on its plate and Nomura knows it. It's a big reason why it's taken so long for them to make the game in the first place, since they want to meet our expectations from KH1 & 2. The more backstory they try to explain, the harder it'll be to focus on the present, which is ultimately more important.

 

[Taochan]

Really? Because I seem to recall someone on here about 2 years back analyzing the BBSV2 trailer and predicting the introduction of the time travel element that they introduced in DDD. I don't know, maybe that user is just smart.

Not to go off topic, but what? How? Lol. The Master Xehanort scene?

Yeah I hope not. KH3 has a lot on its plate and Nomura knows it. It's a big reason why it's taken so long for them to make the game in the first place, since they want to meet our expectations from KH1 & 2. The more backstory they try to explain, the harder it'll be to focus on the present, which is ultimately more important.

Well, Nomura initially wanted the PDD1 team and himself to be more involved with KH3, which would mean Versus needed to be released. So in the mean time they had Osaka working on the portable titles and I think Nomura eventually realized that Osaka was more than capable and knew KH very well at this point, and Versus still had a way to go. With fans becoming more and more impatient for KH3, I think he just decided to trust their abilities and get the ball rolling.

 

[Nazo]

Not to go off topic, but what? How? Lol. The Master Xehanort scene?

I believe that was it, yes. Again, this was years ago so I don't fully remember it, but one of the users on here broke down every scene of the BBSFM secret ending and outright said "You know what this means? Time travel."

Low and behold if the very next KH game (Re:coded was already out) didn't introduce time travel into the mix.

Well, Nomura initially wanted the PDD1 team and himself to be more involved with KH3, which would mean Versus needed to be released. So in the mean time they had Osaka working on the portable titles and I think Nomura eventually realized that Osaka was more than capable and knew KH very well at this point, and Versus still had a way to go. With fans becoming more and more impatient for KH3, I think he just decided to trust their abilities and get the ball rolling.

Am I the only one who feels slightly uneasy about this? I LOVED Birth By Sleep. It's my third favorite, behind KH1 and KH2 in second and first respectively. DDD on the other hand... I don't know why but I found it not as amazing as I thought it would be. Perhaps it was just the whole "Realm of Sleep" thing which caused such a radical change in the gameplay with Flowmotion and Dream Eaters and the Drop system. I don't doubt they're great, but for a title as grandiose as KH3, I hope they can deliver a knockout punch.

 

[Taochan]

I believe that was it, yes. Again, this was years ago so I don't fully remember it, but one of the users on here broke down every scene of the BBSFM secret ending and outright said "You know what this means? Time travel."

Low and behold if the very next KH game (Re:coded was already out) didn't introduce time travel into the mix.

To be fair, Birth by Sleep has a secret boss called "Mysterious Figure" (Young Master Xehanort) who uses time travel power, so it was foreshadowed long before BBSv2's trailer.

Am I the only one who feels slightly uneasy about this? I LOVED Birth By Sleep. It's my third favorite, behind KH1 and KH2 in second and first respectively. DDD on the other hand... I don't know why but I found it not as amazing as I thought it would be. Perhaps it was just the whole "Realm of Sleep" thing which caused such a radical change in the gameplay with Flowmotion and Dream Eaters and the Drop system. I don't doubt they're great, but for a title as grandiose as KH3, I hope they can deliver a knockout punch.

Osaka has more experience with Kingdom Hearts than the PDD1 does and they've had all of the recent experience with the series since Kingdom Hearts 2 - barring h.a.n.d. - so we're definitely in safe hands and there's no reason to worry.

Nomura wanted the gameplay for the Realm of Sleep to be that way. I thought it really worked considering we were in the Realm of Sleep and I love that they took full advantage of that concept.

 

[Nazo]

To be fair, Birth by Sleep has a secret boss called "Mysterious Figure" (Young Master Xehanort) who uses time travel power, so it was foreshadowed long before BBSv2's trailer.

Yeah, I remember. Never fought him though, lol. I was too scared. But that's another reason why I thought BBSV2 was DDD. Because MF was in BBSFM and then the next game ended up being DDD and the secret boss always hints at the next game in the series.

Osaka has more experience with Kingdom Hearts than the PDD1 does and they've had all of the recent experience with the series since Kingdom Hearts 2 - barring h.a.n.d. - so we're definitely in safe hands and there's no reason to worry.

Well, that puts me at ease then. Like I said, they made Birth By Sleep, so I know they're capable of wonderful things. But I have very, very, very high expectations for KH3 in terms of plot, gameplay, art direction, music, everything. Am I likely to be dissapointed in some of those categories? Yeah, because my expectations are probably too high to fully meet. But, I still hope they can make KH3 the best one in the series thus far.

Nomura wanted the gameplay for the Realm of Sleep to be that way. I thought it really worked considering we were in the Realm of Sleep and I love that they took full advantage of that concept.

Yeah, that makes sense. I thought it fit the game for sure, I just personally didn't love it the way I loved other KH games. I found Flowmtion too hard to fully control, especially in combat. Am I a hopeless fanboy that would give all seven KH games a 10/10? Yup. But DDD was a "lesser" 10/10 for me. Re:coded was definitely the worst though, even though the gameplay was a hoot.

 

[Taochan]

Yeah, I remember. Never fought him though, lol. I was too scared. But that's another reason why I thought BBSV2 was DDD. Because MF was in BBSFM and then the next game ended up being DDD and the secret boss always hints at the next game in the series.

He was in the regular version of Birth by Sleep too, lol. No Heart was the big new secret boss for BBS:FM.

Well, that puts me at ease then. Like I said, they made Birth By Sleep, so I know they're capable of wonderful things. But I have very, very, very high expectations for KH3 in terms of plot, gameplay, art direction, music, everything. Am I likely to be dissapointed in some of those categories? Yeah, because my expectations are probably too high to fully meet. But, I still hope they can make KH3 the best one in the series thus far.

Ultimately, I think KH3 is going to disappoint us all. We've built it up in our heads too high and we need too much content to be covered. So far though, it sounds good. I'm interested to see what new info we learn in the coming months.

Yeah, that makes sense. I thought it fit the game for sure, I just personally didn't love it the way I loved other KH games. I found Flowmtion too hard to fully control, especially in combat. Am I a hopeless fanboy that would give all seven KH games a 10/10? Yup. But DDD was a "lesser" 10/10 for me. Re:coded was definitely was worst though, even though the gameplay was a hoot.

Flowmotion was nice because it gave the feeling of being a god, rofl. It looked like they tried to incorporate the concept of it in the KH3 trailer from E3, so it'll be interesting to see if it makes it into the final product of the game.

Re:coded was so much fun! ;~;

 

[Nazo]

No Heart was the big new secret boss for BBS:FM

And that's while I'll cry a river if the Final Mix version of BBS isn't used for 2.5.

Ultimately, I think KH3 is going to disappoint us all. We've built it up in our heads too high and we need too much content to be covered. So far though, it sounds good. I'm interested to see what new info we learn in the coming months.

I don't know. KH3 has pretty huge stakes in the plot. The Seven vs Thirteen plot alone could easily make this the best game in the series. But there's also all the unanswered questions, character development, resolutions, etc to cover. I think there's only one way to cover EVERYTHING they need to get in and still make the game awesome.

Really, really, really long ass story mode. Which I will fully embrace with tears of joy since I want the game to be long.

Flowmotion was nice because it gave the feeling of being a god, rofl. It looked like they tried to incorporate the concept of it in the KH3 trailer from E3, so it'll be interesting to see if it makes it into the final product of the game.

Re:coded was so much fun! ;~;

Maybe I just suck at Flowmotion. I never quite got the hang of it.

And yes I know! I loved Re:coded too! I just meant that it was my least favorite of the seven. Still give it a 10/10 though.

 

[Wehrmacht]

And that's while I'll cry a river if the Final Mix version of BBS isn't used for 2.5.

I'd say there's very little change of this being the case. There's really no reason not to use it unless SE just wants to piss off their fans.

 

[Nazo]

There's really no reason not to use it unless SE just wants to piss off their fans.

They sometimes seem like they like to do that. And I hear rumors that they hate money too.