In an era where our gaming backlogs resemble mythical beasts we’ll never slay, the developers behind Final Fantasy 7 Remake’s conclusion find themselves navigating a delicate balance between artistic vision and player attention spans. Naoki Hamaguchi’s recent comments about making the third installment “more concise” while defending Rebirth’s pacing reveal a fascinating tension in modern game development. He makes a compelling point that perhaps the problem isn’t the games themselves, but our increasingly fragmented attention and overwhelming options. This isn’t just about Final Fantasy—it’s about how we consume entertainment in a world of endless choice.
Hamaguchi’s defense of Rebirth’s length speaks to a developer’s conviction in their creative choices. When he states he doesn’t believe sections were “longer than necessary,” there’s an underlying artistic integrity that’s both admirable and potentially problematic. Game development, especially for beloved franchises, involves walking a tightrope between faithful recreation and modern sensibilities. The original FF7 was revolutionary partly because it took its time, allowing players to immerse themselves in its world. Yet today, that same pacing might be criticized as bloated or self-indulgent.
The director’s observation about players having “too much to do and too much to play” hits uncomfortably close to home for many of us. Our relationship with gaming has transformed from dedicated journeys to checklists of experiences. We’re no longer just playing games—we’re managing them, optimizing our time, and often prioritizing completion over immersion. This shift fundamentally changes how we perceive length and pacing. What might have felt like rich world-building a decade ago can now register as unnecessary padding when we’re mentally calculating how many other games we could be playing.
What’s particularly interesting is how the development team appears to be learning and adapting without abandoning their core vision. The promise of “even more freedom” in combat and exploration suggests they’re not simply cutting content but refining their approach to player engagement. This evolution mirrors how players themselves have changed—we want depth and complexity, but we also want efficiency and respect for our time. The challenge becomes delivering meaningful content that doesn’t feel like a chore, especially in an RPG genre known for its expansive nature.
As we await the trilogy’s conclusion, Hamaguchi’s comments serve as a microcosm of broader industry conversations about game length, player attention, and artistic integrity. The solution isn’t necessarily shorter games, but smarter pacing that respects both the narrative’s needs and the player’s time. Perhaps the real achievement of the FF7 Remake project won’t just be its reimagining of a classic, but how it navigates the changing landscape of how we play and experience games in an age of abundance. The team’s willingness to listen while staying true to their vision might just provide the blueprint for how epic storytelling can thrive in our time-starved world.
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