Final Fantasy 15's story is being patched
Noctis like this.
Final Fantasy 15's director Hajime Tabata has detailed forthcoming updates to the recently released game, and its story - which has come in for some criticism - is set to be tweaked at an unspecified date.
Be warned - some minor spoilers follow. The first beneficiary of the free updates will be Chapter 13 - the point at which the game sheds its open world and becomes more linear, and a level with stealth elements that's been cited as being overlong and frustrating as it limits the player's abilities. "Our early plans are to enrich certain aspects of the game, adding gameplay enhancements for Chapter 13, buffing ring magic, etc," said Tabata in the update. "We'll have the specifics of what and when for you at a later date."
Perhaps more controversially, Final Fantasy 15's story is to be tweaked with new cut-scenes that aim to clear up a muddied plot. "We're hoping to delve deeper into the story, adding scenes that will give you new insight into character motivations, such as why Ravus walked the path he did," said Tabata of what's to come after the updates to Chapter 13. "We will need a little time with these, as they'll need to be localised and voiced in other languages, but we'll let you know the details once everything is set."
Beyond that, Tabata and his team are also looking at making new characters playable in the story, as well as introducing customisable avatars.
These updates will be free - and will sit separately to the DLC packs already announced and that form part of a season pass - yet it's a move that leaves a slightly sour taste.
Final Fantasy 15, a game whose development famously stretches back 10 years, was delayed by two months as Square Enix said it wanted to get everything on-disc for fans who couldn't connect to the internet. Upon its launch on November 29th, Final Fantasy 15 had an 8GB day one patch that added a series of features as well as weaving in scenes from the Kingslaive movie throughout the game.
Patching stories in predominantly single-player games isn't unprecedented - Mass Effect 3 famously tweaked its ending after negative fan feedback - but Final Fantasy 15's updates sound like they're on a grander scale, and those who jumped in early are effectively playing the incomplete experience. It's a puzzling state of affairs for a single-player game that punishes those most eager to play it on day one, and another reminder that pre-ordering is a mug's game.