Square Enix’s Yoshinori Kitase Shares Final Fantasy X/X-2 Development Memories; Graphical Challenges, Battle Design Inspirations

On PlayStation Blog, Square Enix director Yoshinori Kitase recently shared memories of developing Final Fantasy X and Final Fantasy X-2. He remarked how despite the PlayStation 2 being a considerable powerhouse compared to the original PlayStation, compensations had to be made for the product’s overall quality. For instance, color variation and higher resolution had to be chosen between. And, while the former is what the company initially desired, they ultimately settled for higher resolution after researching contemporary gaming trends.

The team highly desired voice acting, especially since it was not utilized in prior mainline entries. Kitase was thrilled to finally see it implemented here. He believes having multiple voice actors present in the booth simultaneously, as opposed to them being entirely separated nowadays, made the in-game interactions come off as more cohesive and natural.

As for Final Fantasy X-2, Kitase noted how the Dress Sphere transformations were inspired by popular kids’ TV shows in Japan, where the heroes transforming into wondrous attire was one of the main draws. Additionally, this gameplay design element was incorporated to supplement the lack of flashy Aeon visual effects following the end of Final Fantasy X.

You can read more trivia regarding the developments of Final Fantasy X and Final Fantasy X-2 from Yoshinori Kitase via PlayStation Blog.