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Final Fantasy XIV has long been rumored for the Nintendo Switch platform. Unfortunately, it seems cross-play has been the biggest impediment to the game’s release on Switch. Apparently, this has not deterred producer Naoki Yoshida. In an interview with Kotaku, Yoshida talked about the current hurdles of bringing the game to Nintendo’s latest system, and his interest in making it happen.
Conversations have been had with Mr. Phil Spencer of Microsoft, and the upper management teams of Nintendo. But I have proposed a condition every time I speak with any platform manufacturers. It’s that the game has to have the capability of cross-platform play.
Of course with an MMORPG, once it launches and starts going into live services and operations, there will be a community. No matter how small it dwindles down to, we have to be responsible for taking care of those communities. It would become an obstacle if the first-party or manufacturer changed how patches are being implemented or online regulations. Some of our external parties’ regulations don’t have MMORPGs in mind in terms of how they’re regulating their online activities. Those can become a hurdle when we consider operating FFXIV for an extended period of time, and so when I talk to those first-party companies, I ask them, ‘Do you have the capability to prepare for that, do you have the resolve that you’re going to make sure to take responsibility and take care of those, do you have that willingness?’
If we are able to come to some sort of agreement, a handshake so to speak, or if it does end up being that unfortunately we can’t do a handshake with Final Fantasy XIV, either way we’ll make sure to communicate with our players. But we have been tenacious—we’ve been trying to keep at it and be persistent about our conversations.
A potential Switch version of Final Fantasy XIV still certainly seems far away, but it is interesting to see that Yoshida still sees it as a worthwhile pursuit. While making cross-play work between versions can prove to be a hurdle, it isn’t unheard of for Nintendo’s newest platform; both Minecraft and Rocket League will feature cross-play between Switch and Xbox One. This sort of thing may have seemed impossible at one point, but Nintendo seems focused on learning and listening to the demands of consumers more this generation. If Nintendo sees Final Fantasy XIV as a worthwhile pursuit, they’ll likely be as dogged in their attempts to make things work as Yoshida. At the very least, it would be nice to see another numbered entry in the Final Fantasy series appear on a Nintendo console!
Are you interested in seeing Final Fantasy XIV come to Nintendo Switch? Let us know in the comments below!
Source: Kotaku
