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[Draugoth]

FF7 Rebirth Director Naoki Hamaguchi said Rebirth took 4 years to develop in parallel with FF7R Intergrad. He says they are considering using Unreal Engine 5 for the final game, but believes what players want most is for them to deliver the game in good shape as soon as possible. He says he will make a decision based on whether it will be faster to switch engines or whether it is best to make it all at once as it is now.

We'll have to evaluate the merits and demerits of the engine, but I think it's something to consider - it's similar to considering switching from SVN to Perforce.

Even so, the director understands that the fans want the final part as soon as possible and he doesn't yet know if switching engines could end up lengthening development too much, so it's something he'll have to consider consciously.

But I think what our users are looking for most at the moment is to deliver the last game in the series in good shape as quickly as possible. I'm trying to think about this in a fair way and decide whether the change will speed up the process or whether it's better to create the whole series the way it is now.

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[Luipadre]

Oh god please dont

 

[Bring Back Scalebound]

I think it would somewhat mess the visual cohesion of these games.

I get that they are "technically" separate games... But I think just improving and expanding on what they already got, would be better.

By the way, I haven't played them yet. This is just based on the things I have seen of both.

 

[Comandr]

I’m not interested in getting this narrative train wreck out as fast as possible. I’m interested in them taking their time and polishing it as much as possible. UE5 offers a lot of advantages over 4. The idea of a huge studio like SE sticking to UE4 in what- 2026? 2027? Is absurd in an effort to simply get the game out asap.

 

[JimboJones]

I’m not interested in getting this narrative train wreck out as fast as possible. I’m interested in them taking their time and polishing it as much as possible. UE5 offers a lot of advantages over 4. The idea of a huge studio like SE sticking to UE4 in what- 2026? 2027? Is absurd in an effort to simply get the game out asap.

Even a upgrade to a more recent UE4 would be beneficial if they don't want to go full UE5.
But if they did go UE5 with the third it might make a "remaster" of the first 2 with UE5 bells and whistles more likely, which would be cool.

 

[Comandr]

Even a upgrade to a more recent UE4 would be beneficial if they don't want to go full UE5.
But if they did go UE5 with the third it might make a "remaster" of the first 2 with UE5 bells and whistles more likely, which would be cool.

I would definitely be on board with a full FF7RR2.0+1.0 you can (not)remake trilogy in ue5

 

[Mr Hyde]

FF7 Rebirth is a great game. Made in just 4 years, with impressive visuals and 60 fps smoothness. It's super fun to play, the combat system is awesome and the world building is superb with lots of fun things to discover. Just stick to what you know and don't fuck it up by switching to a trash engine like UE5, and then have the final game come out 4 years late and completely broken.

 

[SantaC]

graphics isnt a problem in FF7. Dont switch.

 

[Rudius]

I don't think this is worth it. The original took only 3 years to make and this will take what, 15 years? It's ridiculous.

 

[Metnut]

Just build on FF7 Rebirth and get the game out in a reasonable amount of time. You have 2-3M people who will buy it full price day 1. Unlikely to grow beyond or sell less than that. Use FF17 to try a new engine. Not this.

 

[semiconscious]

my question: when it comes to these remakes, is there anything in the world that hamaguchi does rule out?...

 

[Moochi]

Don't upgrade. Make core game better. Focus on writing and gameplay.

 

[adamsapple]

If they want to make the sequel in 2~3 years, it's probably not feasible. Especially if they intend to use UE5 bells and whistles like Lumen or Nanite.

 

[Insane Metal]

Please do it. It'll be glorious having the next game running at 720p on PS5.

 

[asdasdasdbb]

From a maintenance perspective, I have to think it'd be better to stick on UE4 so all of the games are on the same UE version.

 

[Go_Ly_Dow]

I think they should stick to UE4. The highs in Rebirth are some of the best this gen.

They'd be better of using the time saved and focusing that on making the final entry the best game it can and as great as Rebirth, if not better. Then I think they could get it out in time for the FF7 30th anniversary in 2027.

Then for PS6, if it's not too complicated port all 3 games over to UE5 with lots of graphical enhancements.

 

[hussar16]

they need to reason i didnt buy 2 is it lookd to much like last game

 

[LordOfChaos]

Did Rebirth have the same problem as Remake where even on the PS5's SSD it would just load in a PS2 era door or texture sometimes and sometimes fix it and sometimes just not after waiting a bit?

 

[{insert code here}]

If they can manage to get the 3rd game out by late 2027 (miracle, i know) they would create 3 full games in 7 years.

 

[Pejo]

If they can manage to get the 3rd game out by late 2027 (miracle, i know) they would create 3 full games in 7 years.

Well KINDA. I mean FF7 was one game to begin with, they're the ones stretching it out to 3(?). So they created three 1/3 games in 7 years.

 

[Loomy]

But I think what our users are looking for most at the moment is to deliver the last game in the series in good shape as quickly as possible

Yeah no shit. Just release this so all those people can go work on something else.

 

[TheAssist]

graphics isnt a problem in FF7. Dont switch.

weeeeeell, lighting, draw distance and texture pop in are problems. IF this could be remedied by using UE5, than yes make the switch and remaster the first 2 games as well.

 

[Arioco]

Did Rebirth have the same problem as Remake where even on the PS5's SSD it would just load in a PS2 era door or texture sometimes and sometimes fix it and sometimes just not after waiting a bit?

That never happened on PS5 version, just on PS4 and PS4 Pro.

 

[JimboJones]

weeeeeell, lighting, draw distance and texture pop in are problems. IF this could be remedied by using UE5, than yes make the switch and remaster the first 2 games as well.

The upscaling they are using is pretty poor too.

 

[Feel Like I'm On 42]

FF7 Rebirth is a great game. Made in just 4 years, with impressive visuals and 60 fps smoothness. It's super fun to play, the combat system is awesome and the world building is superb with lots of fun things to discover. Just stick to what you know and don't fuck it up by switching to a trash engine like UE5, and then have the final game come out 4 years late and completely broken.

A trash engine lol ...then what does that make UE4?

 

[adamsapple]

Please do it. It'll be glorious having the next game running at 720p on PS5.

FF16 already drops to a fixed 720p/60 FPS in the Performance Mode during fights

 

[amigastar]

It they are deep into development changing from UE4 to UE5 will take about 4-5 months as far as i know.

 

[Insane Metal]

FF16 already drops to a fixed 720p/60 FPS in the Performance Mode during fights

Well I'm sure they'll find a way to go all the way to 540p or 480p then!

 

[adamsapple]

Well I'm sure they'll find a way to go all the way to 540p or 480p then!

720p reconstructed from 360p

 

[StereoVsn]

See you in 10 years if they decide to switch engines. It would be an impressively dumb move.

Also, I would have hoped they have been working on the 3rd game for a while now. Instead it sounds they are still prototyping.

 

[Killer8]

If they want to make the sequel in 2~3 years, it's probably not feasible. Especially if they intend to use UE5 bells and whistles like Lumen or Nanite.

Those features actually speed up the process considerably.

 

[SlimySnake]

they shipped the game 6 months ago and still havent made the decision? what have they been doing the last 6 months? jerking each other off?

 

[Elios83]

If the switch requires something like an extra 6 months of development and they believe it can fix some of the graphical shortcomings of Rebirth like the uneven texture quality then it might be worth it.
If it means delaying the game by 12-18 months just to lower performance and internal resolution even more don't do it imo.

 

[jakinov]

they shipped the game 6 months ago and still havent made the decision? what have they been doing the last 6 months? jerking each other off?

Video game development happens in phases. The early phase(s) before production can take several months to multiple years (e.g. God of War PS4 spent 2 years in pre-production phases). It's the right time to be deciding if you want to change engines. During these phase(s) you would decide what you want to build, like if you want to build a game with x, y, z and this is how we would do this this is how long it would take to build this part and that part, etc.. If UE5 for example has features that would make accomplishing Y and Z faster while giving other benefits than this could be the time to make the strategic move to include engine migration/upgrade as part of the production plan.

 

[Cert.in.Death]

Eh, tbh just finish with the assets you’ve made and then do a full series port/remaster 2-3 years later

Double dipping is the key to financial success

 

[JohnnyPhats]

Maybe off topic. But relevant to a question I had today. What is THE version of VII to play right now? Preferably PS5.

 

[Loomy]

Maybe off topic. But relevant to a question I had today. What is THE version of VII to play right now? Preferably PS5.

Are you asking about the remake/re-imagining/re-whateverthefuckthey'redoingwiththesegames or the best version of the original game?

 

[nial]

If they can manage to get the 3rd game out by late 2027 (miracle, i know) they would create 3 full games in 7 years.

You need to account FF7R1's development time too...

 

[JohnnyPhats]

Are you asking about the remake/re-imagining/re-whateverthefuckthey'redoingwiththesegames or the best version of the original game?

I want to play the prettiest version of it available now. I’m damn near 50. Played it back it 97…the year I got married. I want the pretty shit now.

 

[Go_Ly_Dow]

See you in 10 years if they decide to switch engines. It would be an impressively dumb move.

Also, I would have hoped they have been working on the 3rd game for a while now. Instead it sounds they are still prototyping.

They've been working on the final entry since around June 2022. When they announced Rebirth there was a dev comment saying work on the final entry is already underway.

 

[FeralEcho]

If they can manage to get the 3rd game out by late 2027 (miracle, i know) they would create 3 full games in 7 years.

The remake was announced in 2015 so counting its development time... it's more like 12 years lol

 

[Rhazer Fusion]

FF7: Rebirth looked really good. Is it worth it? How much better will it look to justify going to the Unreal 5 engine? Probably not worth it.

 

[Fabieter]

As long as you hit the 30. anniversary we are cool.

 

[Three]

Well KINDA. I mean FF7 was one game to begin with, they're the ones stretching it out to 3(?). So they created three 1/3 games in 7 years.

The scope of those 3 games are huge though. They made small jpeg backgrounds in the first game into huge worlds you can explore.

 

[Hudo]

Maybe off topic. But relevant to a question I had today. What is THE version of VII to play right now? Preferably PS5.

Afaik, you can play the original FF7 on PS5.

 

[Three]

Maybe off topic. But relevant to a question I had today. What is THE version of VII to play right now? Preferably PS5.

Just play the remakes on PS5. Some purists will try and convince you to play the original on PS5 because everything new somehow sucks with nostalgia blinding judgement but really having played them all myself I would say the remakes are a great version of FFVII even if you haven't played any. Then if you get into it you can play the original later too.

 

[Go_Ly_Dow]

Given that the final entry was in pre production in 2022 and will be well into development now, this comment may be a hint of sorts it will be on UE5, as one would expect by now they would have decided. I guess they also want this team to use the engine ahead of next gen.

UE5 would probably help with texture streaming as that seems like a persistent issue for them with the 7R games.

 

[Kumomeme]

if they adamant to switch from UE4 to UE5, they need some standalone DLC to serve as transition and experiment platform first before go full development on the main game. cant risk having the main game itself as experimental subject and it affected the final output when the game is out on market.

for example Intergrade serve as a platform for the devs to get used with PS5 hardware.

but for 3rd game, i hope they take example of title like BoTW to ToTK. rather than sudden extra focus time on visual with UE5, they could use the knowledge already gained in efficient development with UE4 for more gameplay focus aspect. like enrich the world and improve their world design. give more focus on polish the visual and art style. Rebirth quality is already gorgeous. i hope they wont take risk with something they cant fully deliver.

if they truly want to implement airship exploration properly, they definitely need more time as they could get on development. airship mean more and bigger vertical exploration.

 

[Gonzito]

A lot of ignorant answers in this thread. Changing to UE5 would allow them to work faster and implement better textures and lighting which the franchise really needed on the first place.

The lighting and textures in both Rebirth and Remake are terrible. These guys dont know how to handle properly UE4 and I am sure that UE5 would make their life much easier

 

[Hudo]

A lot of ignorant answers in this thread. Changing to UE5 would allow them to work faster and implement better textures and lighting which the franchise really needed on the first place.

The lighting and textures in both Rebirth and Remake are terrible. These guys dont know how to handle properly UE4 and I am sure that UE5 would make their life much easier

I don't think UE5 will help them with their texture issues, tho. LOD stuff? Sure. Lightning? Possibly (they still need to know what they're doing but they have an easier time to do it). I don't know how their build systems and tool pipeline looks like, so who knows if that move will make their lives easier. It's up to them to evaluate that, I guess. UE5, much like UE4, has a lot of good things and a lot of bad things. So it really depends on what you want to do and how you go about doing it.