With the release of Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade on Nintendo Switch 2 and Xbox Series X|S, the remake trilogy is finally multiplatform. For many fans, this is long overdue, but at the same time, concerns are growing: Will it be Final Fantasy 7 Remake Part 3 Technically limited to run on weaker hardware?
Director Naoki Hamaguchi clearly disagrees.Our development structure doesn't work in such a way that one platform drags down another.“,” he says in conversation with AutomatonAnd it provides unusually detailed insights.
PC as the base, not the weakest console
Hamaguchi breaks down the technical question into four core areas: CPU, GPU, RAM, and storage. The Xbox Series S is considered particularly limiting in terms of RAM. Nevertheless, he emphasizes that each system is individually optimized. Bottlenecks on one platform will not automatically affect others.
The GPU strategy is crucial, however. According to Hamaguchi, all 3D assets are initially created at high-end PC levels. Textures, polygon count, mesh density – everything is produced at maximum quality. Only then does the so-called "reduction" for individual platforms take place.
In plain terms, this means that Final Fantasy 7 Remake Part 3 It's not designed based on the weakest hardware. Instead, it scales down. This approach is standard practice in the industry, but rarely communicated so openly.
Internally, the team even classifies the PS5 and PS5 Pro as "mid-range" – compared to high-end PCs, textures can be up to twice as large, and polygon counts can be more than three times higher.
30 FPS as a baseline, 60 FPS as a target
The team also follows a clear approach to CPU design. If a game runs stably at 30 FPS on one platform, it should reach 60 FPS on more powerful hardware. However, not everything is treated equally. On more powerful systems, for example, the NPC density in cities increases. More characters, more detail, more life.
That sounds technically sound, but the question is: Will it hold up in everyday use? Especially in complex areas like in Final Fantasy VII Rebirth We've seen how sensitive performance and streaming can be. It remains to be seen whether the optimization really works as smoothly as Hamaguchi describes.
More platforms, more budget?
Another point of criticism concerns the budget. Does multi-platform development consume resources that would be better spent on content? Hamaguchi argues from an economic perspective. More platforms mean greater reach, higher sales, and therefore a larger development budget. In the long run, the core target group also benefits.
Furthermore, according to him, there is a separate porting team. Work on Final Fantasy 7 Remake Part 3 They're running independently. The game is already fully playable and on schedule. These are strong statements, but of course, they're also statements from the studio itself. What will ultimately matter is what we see in the final version.
Personally, I think the PC-first approach makes sense. It minimizes the risk of a graphical bottleneck. Nevertheless, real-world performance remains the ultimate test. What do you think: Do you trust Square Enix, or do you have reservations? Final Fantasy 7 Remake Part 3 Still have stomach pains?
I'm curious to see if that works well. I want to be able to explore the open world of Highwind at 60fps on PS5.