Naoki Hamaguchi, director behind Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth and its long-awaited sequel – the officially unnamed Part 3 – reveals that work on the upcoming entry is moving along very nicely, with developers hitting the goals they set on time.
Speaking in a recent interview with Automaton, Hamaguchi first explains that, no, ports like the Nintendo Switch 2 and Xbox Series X|S editions of Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth coming this summer are not hindering progress on the next game. "We have a dedicated unit within my team that handles porting work, and they operate separately from the team developing the third installment," as the lead describes.
"The porting unit is deeply committed and has been tuning those versions with meticulous care, so I trust them and oversee their work from a distance. That allows me to focus on the third game."
How is the development of that third game going, though? Apparently, quite good. "Development of the third installment is progressing very smoothly, and we're almost exactly on schedule with the milestones we set at the beginning of the project."
Perhaps most excitingly, however, is the fact that the Final Fantasy 7 Remake Part 3 is now "playable," as Hamaguchi puts it. "The game is already in a playable state, and right now, we're in the final push phase, refining and building up the experience. We're at the stage where the quality improves day by day, and each time we play it, the scenery feels different, so it's genuinely exciting." That's big news.
The director concludes, "I think it won't be too long before we're able to share some kind of update with everyone" – and I'm personally keeping my fingers crossed for a real look at the JRPG in action, gameplay or otherwise.
