Final Fantasy Tactics writer says its political message is still relevant because the world hasn’t improved in 30 years

The writer of Final Fantasy Tactics says the game’s political messaging is “sadly” still relevant 30 years later, because the world is suffering from the same issues.

The tactical RPG was originally released on the PlayStation back in 1997, but is getting a modern remaster on PC and consoles called Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles, set to arrive on September 30 on PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PS4 and PC.

Speaking to Denfaminicogamer, Yasumi Matsuno – the original script writer, scenario writer and editor for the game – pointed out that its central themes, which were based on the state of the world at the time, remain applicable today.

“This game was made almost 30 years ago, and at that time there were many economic and political problems, such as the bursting of the bubble economy and the Gulf War,” he explained (via machine translation).

“In Japan in particular, the economy worsened due to the after effects of the bubble economy, with many companies going bankrupt, and leading to an ‘ice age’ of employment.

“Final Fantasy Tactics was released in that climate as a work depicting class struggle, with the main theme of ‘the haves’ and ‘the have-nots’. Unfortunately, 30 years have passed since then and the environment surrounding the world has not changed.”

Matsuno said that he had hoped the wealth inequality, discrimination and global conflict the game was based on in the ’90s would have eventually improved over time, but instead things may have even gotten worse.

“Economic disparity remains the same, and in terms of division, the situation is not good at all,” he noted. “The same can be said about the wars around the world. Conflicts are constantly happening in various places, such as between Russia and Ukraine, Israel and Hezbollah, Syria and so on.

“I had hoped that maybe things would be a little better in 30 years, but nothing has changed. In fact, things may have been better in the ’90s.

“In that sense, I think you will feel something even if you play this game in 2025. I would be delighted if those who have not played the game before, as well as those who have already played it, will pick up the game and give it a try.”

In a separate interview last week, Matsuno said that while the remaster’s script includes “story adjustments” and “additional dialogue”, this was down to the addition of voice acting in the game, rather than any changes in modern sensibilities.

“The main focus of the updates to the script was to change it from something that the audience reads to something that the audience listens to,” he explained. “It’s kind of like the difference between a novel and a play. It’s the difference between text that you follow with your eyes and text that you hear with your ears.”