Stevivor Interviews Tai Yasue about Kingdom Hearts -HD 2.5 ReMIX-!

[Chaser]

Australian Gaming Website Stevivor was lucky enough to get the chance to sit down with Kingdom Hearts’ Co-Director Tai Yasue at E3 nearly 2 months ago. The interview in question reaffirms what we’ve heard in the interviews over the last few months, however it is still an interesting read for fans, where they talk about PSVita and PS4 ports, remaking Re:coded and 358/2 Days into full games, and even talks about whether or not a Kingdom Hearts III teaser will be in Kingdom Hearts -HD 2.5 ReMIX-!

You can read the full interview here.

When Stevivor asked Yasue about the improvements to Kingdom Hearts -HD 2.5 ReMIX-, Yasue commented on how much they learnt from the development of Kingdom Hearts -HD 1.5 ReMIX-, how they were able to efficiently upgrade the graphics and the sounds, as well as listening to fan feedback in relation to battle scenes for Re:coded. 

One of the hot topics with these collections with games is the possibility of releasing a collection that contains both Kingdom Hearts -1.5- and -2.5-. Yasue commented that there is a possibility in a version of the game that contains both ReMIX’s, however no decision has been made on this topic. He goes on to say that Japan is receiving a starters pack with both -1.5- and -2.5-, however a release for this in the American and European market hasn’t been decided yet.

DLC has become more and more common with games as content cut from development for time or little added bonuses become available a few weeks or months after a games release. Stevivor asked Yasue about DLC in the Kingdom Hearts series, which Yasue comments that DLC is a difficult thing. It doesn’t exclude a future of DLC for the series however, as Yasue says that DLC is an avenue for them to consider when developing future games, such as Kingdom Hearts III and beyond.

When Kingdom Hearts -HD 1.5 ReMIX- was revealed, it was announced for the PS3. Since then, fans have been contacting Square Enix and appealing for a PSVita and a PS4 port of the game. Stevivor asked Yasue directly about a port of these games to these respective consoles, however Yasue comments that -1.5- and -2.5- are on the PS3 because players wanted the games on one platform. He doesn’t dismiss a Vita or a PS4 version of these games but says it’s not something they are considering at the moment, however there is a possibility of a port in the future.

One of the biggest mysteries with Kingdom Hearts -HD 2.5 ReMIX- is about a potential Kingdom Hearts III teaser. Will it play during the credits like how -2.5- was revealed? Would there be a secret secret ending in Re:coded? Stevivor asked Yasue about unlocking a III teaser in -2.5- however Yasue was quick to say that, since the purpose of -2.5- was to bring in new players and help old players reconnect themselves with the series and the backstory, there won’t be anything relating to Kingdom Hearts III that can be unlocked.

Redeveloping previously released games on a new platform can present a bit of a struggle with the different technology. Stevivor asked Yasue about which game took more time to make, Kingdom Hearts II or Birth by Sleep. Yasue commented on both games had two departments working on each, with one department working on both games. Birth by Sleep had much more to change and was a bigger effort to port to the PS3, however Kingdom Hearts II was more vast with a lot more data that needed to be changed.

Stevivor then ended the interview with a question about 358/2 Days and Re:coded. They wondered if there had ever been any plans to bring 358/2 Days and Re:coded in the collections as fully playable games. Yasue responded by saying that because the games were on the DS and contained touchscreens, porting a game like Re:coded to a different system would make Re:coded into a different game. He reaffirms that porting these DS games would take away time and resources from Kingdom Hearts III, and believes fans would rather play a new game than a remake of a previous game.

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[Antar]

Wow, this is great, thank you for this! I'm really glad they improved some of the environment models for BBS since it is PSP title and the environments were a bit plain/flat/empty. With a larger screen it is a very obvious flaw to see. Tai is a really cool guy and I love these interviews. Also, that keyblade jump attack pose xD

 

[Ranma]

Unpopular opinion, but I no longer have any interest in this release. I desperately needed something for Kingdom Hearts III. I don't expect any REAL news for a long while.

 

[Sign]

Unpopular opinion, but I no longer have any interest in this release. I desperately needed something for Kingdom Hearts III. I don't expect any REAL news for a long while.

I'm sorry you feel that way, though you're definitely not the only one.

However, please understand that because 2.5 is releasing this year (less than 2 months to go for Japan), they are going to be promoting it first and foremost. Even though you personally may not care for it, it doesn't diminish its worth at all.

 

[Chaser]

It's probably better that they have 2.5 getting all the attention right now while they work hard on III in the background so when it makes it's reappearance it won't be really early footage.

 

[QuintusKing]

Just as I thought, DS games are hard to port due to their touchscreen feature. But I figure it wouldn't make much difference since we can almost never use this feature in these two DS games. I would say DDD is the only game that requires reconsideration before remaking. Coded and Days, however, aren't much problem (well, at least Days isn't).

 

[Gram]

He reaffirms that porting these DS games would take away time and resources from Kingdom Hearts III, and believes fans would rather play a new game than a remake of a previous game.

The man truly be wise ~

 

[Taochan]

Unpopular opinion, but I no longer have any interest in this release. I desperately needed something for Kingdom Hearts III. I don't expect any REAL news for a long while.

I'm more excited for something tangible than something as enigmatic as KH3, lol.

Plus, we're finally seeing all of that Japan exclusive Final Mix content here which is awesome and definitely worth being excited for.

 

[rawpower]

I would be super chill with them porting the Remixes over to the Vita and PS4. If they came in one big bundle I'd be all over that.

 

[Lnds500]

"Take away resources" my back-end. Putting PS2 quality games in new consoles is their bread and butter.

You are Square Enix, you have been moving the FF XV crowd back and forth between projects for years. Find the staff from another department.

They obviously didn't wanna make the effort because they couldn't charge full-price for them. The rest is just PR talk.

 

[Sephiroth0812]

"Take away resources" my back-end. Putting PS2 quality games in new consoles is their bread and butter.

Since when are the DS-Titles PS2-quality?
Last time I checked, while they are pretty good for DS-standards, they aren't really on par with PS2-titles.

Not to mention that this isn't the first time they said this.
Nomura already mentioned Days (and thus also Re: Coded) would require too much work to turn into a fully playable game.

 

[Mirby]

Also while Days didn't use the touch screen a lot, Re:coded did. It's not just porting the game, it's reconfiguring a lot of systems to work differently, upgrading every model from the rather crappy DS ones, increasing the resolution from the tiny 256 × 192 of the DS all the way up to 1920x1080 for full HD, among many other things.

They're not wrong when they say it would take away resources.

 

[OathkeeperRoxas XIII]

Also while Days didn't use the touch screen a lot, Re:coded did. It's not just porting the game, it's reconfiguring a lot of systems to work differently, upgrading every model from the rather crappy DS ones, increasing the resolution from the tiny 256 × 192 of the DS all the way up to 1920x1080 for full HD, among many other things.

They're not wrong when they say it would take away resources.

Exactly, it's not as easy and that time could be on main projects before being sidetracked with remaking them.

 

[Heartkeeper]

I hope they think about porting both collections to VITA and PS4, specially PS4, if they pack 1.5 and 2.5 together at the right price, I beat a lot of new PS4 user that never played KH will buy it.

 

[WaveK89]

Nice interview indeed. I'm sort of hoping that the games could be played through PlayStation Now, but it doesn't seem likely, I suppose.

I'm excited for 2.5 Remix. The ability to play BBS in HD on TV with a controller, everything about Re:Coded, and finally being able play the final mix of KHII.

 

[SoundMatch]

So is anyone gonna ask where is KH3D? Or is that gonna be 2015's release with KH3 being 2016?

 

[Sephiroth0812]

So is anyone gonna ask where is KH3D? Or is that gonna be 2015's release with KH3 being 2016?

That interview already happened way back at E3 this year, so new questions won't be asked.
And no, the member of Stevivor who did the interview with Yasue didn't ask about 3D.

It's currently unknown what will become of 3D, or if it will get any attention at all cause it's still a pretty recent game on a current-gen platform.
The one KH-game a year-issue is only something they aim to do, not a "promise" or anything made to the fans. Considering they're making KH III now, it is also possible that 2015 may not even see a KH game released at all if KH III isn't ready by late 2015.
On that note, 2016 is a more realistic release window for KH III anyways.

 

[saintfighteraqua]

I'm actually glad that Days and Re:Coded are not playable, they were my least favorite games in the series and I would honestly dread trudging through them again. Watching the story scenes is much more preferable to me.
Birth by Sleep and KH II are two of the best games I've ever played, so I'll be all about that!
hat are they going to do about DDD? It's being almost totally ignored. It comes in fourth place of my favorite KH games, but I still don't see how they can claim KH is complete without it!

 

[ChibiHearts249]

At first I didn't understand why everyone wanted 3D to be remade so badly. I mean, it's on a current-gen console already, so the likelihood of it going ANYWHERE is minimal, in my opinion. Not even worth the wasted breath of the wish.

I still feel this way, but the part of the interview that covers "all on the same platform" makes me wonder. I know that it's possible for the future; I never doubted that. But this could actually be a nod to that game, as well.

 

[Sdog]

That's awesome news! The light for the PS4 ultimate port is getting brighter n brighter =D. Having these come to vita would be a great asset as well, especially if they made 358/2 days and re:coded playable as well.