Final Fantasy Tactics Ivalice Chronicles, Square Enix Release Schedule

“Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles” game director Kazutoyo Maehiro knows you might not like his game — but he wants you to give it a shot anyway.

Releasing Tuesday, Square Enix‘s “The Ivalice Chronicles” is a faithful update of the Japanese game publisher’s 1997 cult-classic game “Final Fantasy Tactics,” which follows upheaval in the titular kingdom of Ivalice following the death of the king.

“When it comes to tactical RPGs in general, I do think it’s one of those genres where, because it looks so complicated at a glance, there are perhaps many players out there who might be put off a little bit because of how it looks, or intimidated by it,” Maehiro told Variety in an interview via translator last month. “It’s also a genre where, if you actually give it a try, you’ll be able to see just how fun and enjoyable it really is. I myself am a fan of the tactical RPG games.”

He added: “With ‘Final Fantasy Tactics,’ the key feature of it, or key characteristic, really was the charming pixel style art, as well as the 3D isometric battle maps. And so with ‘The Ivalice Chronicles,’ we wanted to be able to keep that foundation, but enhance the visuals and boost it up so that’s even more appealing. And so we do feel as though, ultimately, the experience that’s provided in this iteration is one where it almost feels as though the player will be stepping into a storybook.”

While beloved by many, it is a fanbase-breaking game among the “Final Fantasy” community due to its tactical nature. Simply put: gamers usually either like tactical games or they don’t, and even deep love for an IP can’t do much to change that.

In embarking on this remake of “Tactics” with “The Ivalice Chronicles,” Maehiro (who has been with “Final Fantasy” developer Square Enix since 1995, was part of the original “Tactics” design team in 1997, and is also the creative mind behind 2023’s “Final Fantasy XVI”) knew it wouldn’t be for everyone, but he didn’t let that deter the internal passion for the project and the community it could reach.

“When it comes to just the tactical RPG genre overall, we do feel that it is one of those games where there’s a lot of strong support for the game itself, but at the time same time, it just isn’t necessarily the genre that is really widely adopted,” Maehiro said. “That said, if ‘Ivalice Chronicles’ does become a success, I do feel it would lead to being able to show that there is viability, not just from a game perspective, but even from a business perspective, about these types of games. And so through that, I do think there is going to be a large possibility to be able to explore things like sequels, for example, or new titles. So I think I speak on behalf of not just the dev team overall, but also just as one fan of the TRPG genre, myself: I really do hope that that is something that we can do.”

Beyond the chance to make more tactical RPGs, should the appetite exist following “The Ivalice Chronicles,” Maehiro’s hope for the future of the “Final Fantasy” franchise is improvement in its release schedule, “given that there hasn’t really been as much of a perhaps consistent cadence of being able to release games.”

Maehiro said: “This isn’t necessarily something that’s a decision of the company or anything like that, it’s really also not something that I can promise for sure myself, but I at least wish for a cadence where the release of titles is shortened in between releases and we’re able to deliver more products that are that much more compelling within a shorter time span.”