Final Fantasy 7 Remake Part 3's Multiplatform Approach Won't Affect Graphics, and Here's Why 1

Square Enix's Final Fantasy 7 Remake project started life as a PlayStation-exclusive endeavour, but the games are now coming to every other major platform.

The third instalment, which is yet to be given its full name, is the only game in the project that's being simultaneously developed for multiple platforms, following the publisher's change of tact regarding exclusivity.

Some fans have voiced their concerns about this; they're worried the third game will have to compromise its visuals across all versions in order to run on lower-spec hardware, such as Xbox Series S or Switch 2. However, according to director Naoki Hamaguchi, it seems the opposite is true.

Speaking to Automaton, Hamaguchi explains in detail why Final Fantasy 7 Remake Part 3 won't be downgraded despite the multiplatform approach.

He says the team "will not in any way lower the quality of the third instalment" and says the "development structure simply doesn’t work that way to begin with".

Hamaguchi then breaks things down, explaining in basic terms how things like GPU, CPU, RAM, and ROM (discs, cartridges etc.) affect visuals.

What it all boils down to, in the end, is that the dev studio doesn't produce one build of the game that can run on everything — it creates a PC build to the highest fidelity possible, then ports it to console platforms, catering each version to the specs of each machine.

"As our fundamental principle, we do not design assets to meet the lowest baseline," He says. "Instead, we create them for high-end environments first."

He continues: "We then apply what we call 'reduction', adjusting assets and tuning them appropriately for each platform. This means that we avoid negatively impacting high-spec platforms."

Hamaguchi says that even the PS5 Pro version of FF7 Remake Part 3 will have some reductions made to its visuals compared to the PC version, but the point is that each port is built to make the most of the hardware to which it's tuned.

And it isn't as simple as lowering graphical quality overall, "because this can compromise the intended visual expression," he says. "That’s why we make sure to review everything by eye and fine-tune so that each port matches the original vision."

So, there you go. The game will look fantastic on any platform, it sounds like, because it's tailored to the hardware from the top down.

Final Fantasy 7 Remake Intergrade on Switch 2 is proof of that; it's been very positively received, and that's in no small part thanks to a very well-handled port.

Are you excited to finally see the third game in action? Tell us in the comments section below.

[source automaton-media.com]