Final Fantasy XV is the hit that fans have been waiting quite some time for, and it is also the hit that Square Enix was waiting for. It’s no secret that the franchise wasn’t performing like it used to back during its heyday in the mid to late 90s, and after a decade of development pushed Final Fantasy XV in the direction it went, Square Enix very likely wouldn’t have taken a risk on a big budget game ever again.

At least, that is Director Hajime Tabata’s belief, who opened up about his success at GDC this week. According to him, Final Fantasy creator Hironobu Sakaguchi told him to approach his game like it was the last chance he had to make one, just like the original Final Fantasy back on the NES. Tabata took that advice to heart.

In the end, Final Fantasy XV was completed, and it’s finally in everybody’s hands. Within a month of release, we sold six million copies. As I said at the beginning, if we failed this time, there wouldn’t be a next time, which means that probably this isn’t our final Final Fantasy. The series will probably live on.

His decision to mess with the combat irked his superiors at Square Enix also, who told him they estimated the game would sell under 5 million copies and the series was both “diminished” and “in danger.”

Still many more final games to come

Nothing lasts forever, and there is no such thing as a perpetual machine. The time will come when we indeed have a “final” fantasy. For now, the series seems to have dodged a bullet. Square Enix must have been holding down the square button with a full MP meter. The bulletproof suit also helps with defense in that regard.

Wait, what were we talking about again?