Square Enix says Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is PS5 exclusive ‘because of the SSD speed’

Square Enix has claimed Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is exclusive to PS5, and skipping PS4, partly because of its desire to exploit the new-gen console’s SSD.

The first trailer for Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth was shown last month, revealing that the game will be part two of a planned trilogy.

Unlike its predecessor Final Fantasy 7 Remake, which was released for PS4 in 2020 before making its way to PS5 and PC the following year, the second part of the story won’t be available for Sony’s last-gen console at all.

During an interview with Japanese publication Gamer, Rebirth producer Kitase claimed there were several factors involved in the decision not to release the game for PS4.

“It’s exclusive to PlayStation 5 because of the graphical quality, of course, as well as SSD access speed,” he said (translated by Gematsu).

“Since the adventure unfolds in a vast world after the escape from Midgar, loading stress is an extreme bottleneck. We felt we needed the specifications of PlayStation 5 to overcome that and travel the world comfortably.”

Since before its 2020 launch, PS5’s SSD was positioned as Sony’s headline feature for next-gen, with architect Mark Cerny calling the storage drive “a true game changer.”

In a PlayStation 5 hardware presentation , Cerny claimed the drive could affect not just loading times, but fundamentally change how game developers build their game worlds for PS5 exclusive games that don’t have to rely on hard drives used in older consoles such as PS4.

Xbox Series X and S also use SSD storage, but Final Fantasy 7 Remake is yet to release for Microsoft‘s console, likely due to an exclusivity deal.

When FF7 Rebirth was announced last month, creative director Tetsuya Nomura said the sequel was being designed so that people can enjoy it whether they know the original game or not.

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“In fact, new players might even enjoy starting their Final Fantasy VII journey with Final Fantasy VII Rebirth,” he said. “Cloud and his friends embark on a new journey in this game, and I believe that the scenes that they witness after leaving Midgar will give players a fresh, new experience.”

Kitase also claimed the game was “proceeding at an astonishingly fast pace for such a large-scale HD title.”

He added: “Making the middle part of a trilogy has its own challenges, but there are plenty of classic second instalments in the world of film that are defined by stunning story twists and deeper explorations of their characters. Often these second instalments become a favourite amongst the fans.”