Unlike the earlier years when Square Enix was quite cagey about providing new information about Final Fantasy Versus XIII, series producer Yoshinori Kitase has assured us that Final Fantasy XV is coming along quite nicely.

Speaking to Videogamer he stated that, “We can’t give too much information but certainly looking at Final Fantasy XV, it’s not as if it’s in competition with Kingdom Hearts 3 for resources or anything like that. It’s quite far into development now and it is being given a very high priority within the company itself, but that doesn’t mean Kingdom Hearts isn’t.”

And while it may no longer bear the “XIII” tag, it’s still very much part of the Fabula Nova Crystallis project that Square Enix had planned when it first announced FFXIII and FF Versus XIII.

“Right from the start when we first it announced it as Versus XIII, the game itself was backed up by the same Crystal legend: the Fabulla Nova Crystallis mythology that underpins the whole of the XIII series. So even though it’s not necessarily the same universe or the same game, they’re all linked and underpinned by the backdrop of that legend.

“Now it’s moved on – obviously the title’s been changed to Final Fantasy XV – but that hasn’t actually changed. The story and the world is still going to be linked and backed up by that. So yes, there is the link between XIII and XV, and they both share that mythology as a backdrop and a starting point.”

Final Fantasy 15 is currently in development for Xbox One and PS4. No release date has been confirmed as of yet.

That seems to have changed. NeoGAF reports about a supposed Square Enix insider who stated that said action element was removed from the game’s combat system.

Now, the game’s more like a regular Final Fantasy with the Active Time Battle system and some elements from Final Fantasy XII.

This same supposed source did the rounds according to GameFAQs with a report that said the game’s “been plagued by internal politics strife but is on track for a late fourth quarter 2013 or early 2014.

“From what I’ve seen, it’s a gutted project into which far too much money and time has been poured into. Regarding an official announcement, nothing is planned just yet but we are already ramping up partnerships with distributors/retailers.”

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