Final Fantasy series creator Hironobu Sakaguchi left Square back in 2003, and his departure impacted more than the popular role-playing game series, as Square reportedly "collapsed" after he left.
As reported by Automaton, the creator of the Final Fantasy series recently spoke on the NOBIYO To Isshoni podcast hosted by longtime series composer Nobuo Uematsu about their time together at the Japanese publisher. The creator of one of the most beloved JRPG series was the "big boss" even in the company's early days, and managed to work even at the beginning when Square was more like a club of university students rather than an actual company. At the time, Square did not have a proper corporate organization, Uematsu-san recalled during the show, but everybody listened to Sakaguchi-san, whom he described as a leader. As such, when Sakaguchi-san left Square, the situation was quite bad, and the entire organization suddenly collapsed, so much so that even Uematsu-san felt that he should leave, but the Final Fantasy series ultimately commends Square Enix for getting back on its feet after so many key figures in the company left right before the merger with the Dragon Quest series publisher.
Although Hironobu Sakaguchi left Square over 20 years ago, the legendary game developer recently collaborated with the publisher again on FANTASIAN: Neo Dimension, the PC and console port of the JRPG originally released on the Apple Arcade service a few years back. Sakaguchi-san's touch is unmistakable in the game, so much so that it feels like a proper entry in the Final Fantasy series, as I highlighted in my review.
About the author: Francesco De Meo has been covering video games and technology since 2012, starting his career at small outlets like Gamersyndrome and GeekSnack. After joining Wccftech gaming section in 2015, he quickly expanded his video gaming coverage with in-depth reporting, interviews with iconic industry figures such as Grasshopper Manufacture founder and No More Heroes creator Goichi "Suda51" Suda, Resident Evil series creator Shinji Mikami, Team NINJA's president and Nioh series director Fumihiko Yasuda, and Silent Hill creator Keiichiro Toyama, reviews and on-the-ground coverage of major industry events such as Gamescom and E3. When he's not reporting or reviewing, Francesco can be found playing the genres he loves most, spending time with his six cats, reading, writing music, playing guitar and drumming for his progressive rock band.
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