They Still Make Final Fantasy?

You may have seen some comments from a GameSpot interview by one of Final Fantasy XV‘s directors, Hajime Tabata:

“Speaking honestly, an all-male party feels almost more approachable for players. Even the presence of one female in the group will change their behavior, so that they’ll act differently. So to give the most natural feeling, to make them feel sincere and honest, having them all the same gender made sense in that way,” Tabata said. The game certainly doesn’t shy away from the theme of male intimacy, with the party sharing a tent, protecting each other in battles, and holding no qualms about showing open concern for one another.

For Tabata, the journey will have the cast adopting what he dubs a “boys will be boys” type demeanor. “It was the story we wanted to tell and what we wanted to show players,” he explained.

“The world might be ready to see the curtain lifted on what boys do when girls aren’t around, when they come out of the tent all prim and proper. That’s kind of the idea behind it… we think, male or female player, that everyone will feel a certain connection and bond with the four characters.”

There’s some weirdness reading through that, I’ll admit. As someone who was totally in the dark on FFXV, I was only vaguely aware of developments beyond the initial “road trip and giant monsters” video. So let’s take a look at the main cast in an image I found on DeviantArt:

First things first: let’s reiterate that this stuff is already up on DeviantArt. So it’s safe to say the team on FFXV is already banging on all cylinders for their core demographic. But, does this ragamuffin crew of Express models really seem all that much more approachable without any women in there making them act so differently?

Well, they seem so much more relaxed since they brought their accountant along! But there’s some standard Final Fantasy character-design-detritus.

Seriously, leather right on the skin is a recipe for chaffing; I hope they don’t visit a desert or volcano. Or anywhere with a lot of humidity.

Anyway, I’m getting off-track. Let’s talk about how weird that original quote sounds:

“Speaking honestly, an all-male party feels almost more approachable for players. Even the presence of one female in the group will change their behavior, so that they’ll act differently. So to give the most natural feeling, to make them feel sincere and honest, having them all the same gender made sense in that way,”

Why can’t a creator just say, “We made them all dudes because it’s what we know?” I’m almost more angry as a male gamer. Because this is their go at a female character:

Ick! That’s your take on finally changing the gender of a venerable series staple? Stick to duds.

I mean dudes. Whoops, Freudian keyboard slip!

I think focusing on a crew of all-male characters when the crew in charge of the production and direction is all-male as well is fine. They clearly lack the soft touch required to design nuanced characters. Why would you want them trying to go out of their comfort zone? The drive for more female leads and casts in gaming needs to start with getting more female leads in the studio making the game.

Unless you want more Lightning and Vanille? Is that what you want?!