Final Fantasy 15's director has revealed why he left Square Enix back in 2018.
Hajime Tabata famously resigned from Square Enix two years after Final Fantasy 15 shipped in 2016. In a special livestream at the time, Tabata announced his decision to resign from the company, cancelling three of four new story-focused DLC episodes for Final Fantasy 15 in the process.
Now, Tabata has finally revealed why he left Square Enix so abruptly. In a new interview reported by 4Gamer, the former Luminous Productions head joked that he departed the company so many years ago that the details have become a little hazy over the years.
However, Tabata pointed to the philosophy of Yosuke Matsuda, who was Square Enix president at the time, as the main reason for his departure. The president and Tabata had "different" philosophies at the time, Tabata said, and since Square Enix would obviously proceed according to Matsuda's policies, Tabata departed.
That wasn't as quick a decision as it sounds. Tabata revealed that the feeling had been brewing for several years, but it ultimately culminated in him leaving Square Enix in 2018. Tabata said he couldn't really be honest about his reason for leaving back in 2018, but he thinks it's alright to be honest in 2023.
As for what Tabata's working on now, he's returning to his RPG roots. At the Taiwan Creative Content Fest 2023 event, Tabata revealed his company, JP Games, is making two games: one RPG in collaboration with another company, and a MMORPG that's developed entirely at the company. There currently isn't a release date for either game.
In more current news with the franchise, Final Fantasy 16 still has two paid-for story DLC expansions to come.