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Right, so we reckon that if Final Fantasy XV comes out either late next year or early 2017, then Final Fantasy VII Remake will probably have to launch around 2020. Obviously we hope that we're exaggerating, but by the sounds of it, the game really isn't far into development at all.

Speaking in the latest issue of Famitsu, kindly translated by Gematsu, the title's producer, Yoshinori Kitase, says that the team's currently trying to nail its visual style and figure out the basis for the game's battle system. "We're starting to see the visual direction [and] we're currently working out the battle system and such through trial-and-error," he revealed, adding: "Since there's a possibility that the command battle system of the old days might not work today, we're thinking hard about what kind of direction we can take it." In other words, we wouldn't count on seeing the traditional active time battle system again.

"Normally, when you do a remake, it becomes somewhere along the lines of a familiar action RPG, so we're looking at how we can put out something like Final Fantasy VII while still surprising players," Kitase explained. It's an understandable statement, too, because at the end of the day, there's just no way that a remake of such importance is going to please everyone.

Finally, with a quote that doesn't exactly inspire confidence, Kitase jokes "please don't ask about how far into development we are". 2020 it is, then.

[source blog.esuteru.com, via gematsu.com]