Kingdom Hearts III has less Disney worlds than Kingdom Hearts II; Final Fantasy VII Remake further along in some areas

The latest issue of Weekly Famitsu has an interview with Kingdom Hearts III and Final Fantasy VII Remake director Tetsuya Nomura, who shares new information on the former while briefly discussing the latter.

Kingdom Hearts III

• (In response to the question of around when in 2018 Kingdom Hearts III will be released) “Please wait for the proper followup report. (Smiles.)”
• Nomura wanted a Toy Story world in Kingdom Hearts since around Kingdom Hearts II. For Kingdom Hearts III, there have been repeated negotiations as its inclusion was of absolute necessity.
• The Toy Story world is set after Toy Story 2. It isn’t a parallel world. Rather, the events of Kindgom Hearts III are part of the Toy Story time axis. (In other words, it is canon.)
• While it is not shown in the trailer, at the start Sora is mistaken for a character in the latest game to be released in this world.
• The Toy Story staff were considerably surprised at the reproduction quality of the Toy Story characters in-game.
• Nomura told the development team he wanted riding and fighting in a mech early in development. A different mechanism is being prepared for when you go to another floor in Galaxy Toys.
• The Big Hero Six world is progressing well, but news on that is still down the line.
• While the number of Disney worlds are less than the amount included in Kingdom Hearts II, the density of each world is greater, including gameplay.

Final Fantasy VII Remake and Misc.

• “We’re switching over to internal production on Final Fantasy VII Remake.” (Further reading.)
• “Although there are parts [of Final Fantasy VII Remake] further along than Kingdom Hearts III, such as cutscenes, it is unlikely we’ll share information for a while as we switch from mainly external to mainly internal development.”
• “[Project lead] Naoki Hamaguchi has been a part of this from the beginning and is a member of Business Division 1.”
• “I, on the other hand, am not a member [of Business Division 1], so the person who is putting Business Division 1 in order concerning Final Fantasy VII Remake is Hamaguchi.”
• “Similarly, there is Tai Yasue of Business Division 3. In that sense. I am sort of like a cross-sectional mercenary not tied to a Business Division.”
• “If I belonged to a Business Division, I would basically be working full-time at that Business Divison, so it’s a system that lets me take on various jobs, including requests from other companies.”
• (Regarding titles that are not Kingdom Hearts III or Final Fantasy VII Remake) “Right now, there isn’t anything that I’m directing, but there are a few things that I’m involved with. I’m not sure when which will be announced. (Laughs.)”
• (Regarding Nomura doing character designs for Xenoblade Chronicles 2) “Tetsuya Takahashi of Monolith Soft is both my senior and mentor, who looked after me considerably when I was a newcomer. I have no reason to refuse a request from such a senior. (Laughs.) The work itself was finished quite long ago.”

During a Mobius Final Fantasy live stream on May 27, Hamaguchi commented on the recruitment listings—which are seeking battle and level planners; background, motion, and video effects designers; and a programmer—clarifying that development has shifted from cooperation with an external studio to an internal focus.

“The information is already available online, but I’ve taken charge on the development side for Final Fantasy VII Remake,” Hamaguchi said. “As for the whole story, (it’s a sensitive topic, but) until now, development was moving forward with external cooperation, but the company has decided to shift to an internal setup, including mass production and quality, because we want to control everything, including quality, on a stable schedule. (I won’t be leaving Mobius Final Fantasy.)”