"It's not even comparable. They're different genres. But in terms of the quality of the in-game footage, this is easily the best of all the announcements today."
"Look at the character animations. It's reminiscent of Sega's games on the Jupiter platform."
"You can see similar sprite-overlays in the live-action demos for Sonic and Phantasy Star."
"Of course. Sega invested in the project, so the technical documentation and development tools are shared. It would be stranger if Square didn't use these resources."
The Famitsu editor pushed up his glasses and scribbled furiously in his notebook. The photographer beside him raised his camera and fired off seven or eight shots in quick succession.
The four-minute trailer montage included pre-rendered CG opening sequences, in-game footage of city exploration, a live demonstration of the combat system, and two cutscene CG clips.
Throughout the four minutes, there was no voiceover narration—only the game's music and sound effects.
The music was composed by Nobuo Uematsu.
You could tell without even looking at the screen.
The blend of orchestral arrangements and electronic synthesizers, the seamless transitions between narrative and combat themes—all carried the unmistakable signature of this composer.
The trailer ended.
The screen froze on the FINAL FANTASY VII title screen.
Hironobu Sakaguchi stepped back up to the microphone.
He didn't deliver a lengthy feature rundown, didn't announce the number of characters, and didn't boast about technical specifications.
"This game is scheduled to release next year. For more details, please visit our booth."
Applause erupted from the front rows, spreading throughout the entire hall within three seconds.
Someone in the front row stood up.
This was the first time anyone had stood during today's press conference. Not just one person, but four or five stood simultaneously.
The applause continued for a long time.
So long that the screen had already gone black, yet the audience hadn't fully settled down.
"Square has gone mad."
The GamePro editor closed his notebook. His writing hand trembled slightly—not from excitement, but from cramping after scribbling too quickly and densely during those four minutes. His wrist was protesting.
"The scale of this production—just the computer graphics segments must have burned through a fortune. Now consider the workload for the in-game sprite animations: eight walking frames per direction for each character, plus combat animations, multiplied by the total number of playable characters—"
"Don't even try to calculate it. You won't sleep tonight."
An editor from Electronic Gaming Monthly flipped through the materials in his hand.
The press release for Final Fantasy VII was a mere half-page long, pitifully lacking in information—just the project name, platform, genre, and a vague release window.
"But you have to admit," the editor said, looking up, "if this game gets made and turns out well, the global status of the RPG genre would be completely different from what it is now."
"The problem is, it's on Jupiter," a reporter from Wired interjected from the back row, leaning forward. "Sega took a stake in Square, and having FF7 developed for Jupiter makes sense from that perspective. But this morning, Sony announced they're collaborating with Square on Fairy Warrior. How does this relationship even work?"
"Commercial relationships are never so black and white," someone from Gamelnformer replied. "Sega's investment is purely a financial matter and doesn't imply exclusivity. Sony paying Square to develop a game is a separate deal. Two different things. Square simply takes work from both sides, doing more for whoever offers better terms."
"But they gave the official Final Fantasy sequel to Jupiter. Isn't that a clear enough signal?"
"Clear enough. The Final Fantasy brand is the lifeblood of Square. Putting it in Jupiter's hands is like giving Sega a peace of mind pill."
"Have you noticed?" A reporter who hadn't spoken up until now suddenly interjected. He was a tech reporter from the Los Angeles Times, older and deliberate in his speech. "Hironobu Sakaguchi said 'scheduled for release next year,' not 'exclusive.'"
When this detail surfaced, several people around him paused simultaneously.
"You mean—"
"I don't mean anything. I'm just pointing out a fact. At today's E3, the word 'exclusive' has been conspicuously absent. Aside from Namco's few confirmed PlayStation exclusives, other publishers are deliberately avoiding the term."
"Konami doesn't talk about exclusivity because they're releasing their games on all platforms anyway. Capcom avoids the term because they want to keep both sides happy. But Square..."
"You're overthinking it," a Famitsu editor waved dismissively. "The FF7 tech demo clearly ran on Jupiter, using Sega's graphics processing technology. Porting it to PlayStation—theoretically, it's not impossible, but the workload would be enormous."
"Theoretically."
"You Americans just love to nitpick over wording."
"We nitpick over words, you nitpick over graphics. We all have bright futures ahead of us."
A few people chuckled.
In a corner of the press conference room, Takuya Nakayama sat silently, not saying a word.
He had already been briefed on Final Fantasy VII's progress, and everything happening on stage was exactly as he'd anticipated.
He had personally pushed for Sega's investment in Square.
The capital tie-up guaranteed that Square's core products would be prioritized for Jupiter, but "prioritized" didn't mean "exclusive."
Hironobu Sakaguchi's carefully calibrated remarks today had given Sega the proper deference while leaving all his options open.
This wasn't disloyalty, merely the instinctive choice of a seasoned developer navigating the complex landscape of platform competition.
Square wasn't Hudson. With Final Fantasy as their trump card, they would always have leverage in negotiations.
Sega had its own RPG, Phantasy Star, and a roster of licensed titles from film and television. With a solid foundation in RPGs, they weren't at a disadvantage against Square.
The applause finally faded.
Hironobu Sakaguchi had already left the stage, but the content on the screen continued uninterrupted.
The footage cut to a montage.
Four Mega Drive platform games debuted in quick succession, each given about a minute of screen time.
Front Mission, a mecha strategy game, showcased impressive graphical fidelity for a 16-bit console. Cockpit-view battle sequences would excite military genre fans.
Trials of Mana, an action RPG, featured real-time combat with a three-member party. Players could choose any three characters from six available protagonists—a forward-thinking design for a 1995 Japanese RPG. The trailer showed the trio coordinating in a forest, with seamless transitions between controlled characters.
Mystic Ark, a sci-fi RPG, had a dark art style. Though the trailer was brief and revealed little, the distinctive visual design stood out.
Romancing SaGa 3 offered an open narrative structure and multiple protagonists. The trailer showcased the series' hallmark freedom, displaying opening scenes and branching storylines for different protagonists.
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