Final Fantasy XV was internally pinned for a release in September of 2016 more than three years ago, according to Game Director Hajime Tabata.
Word comes by way of Famitsu, where Tabata noted that nailing down a realistic launch window was the first port of call for the developer upon taking charge.
“I wasn’t the director at first, but when I was formally entrusted with the duty (in December 2013), ‘September 30, 2016 is when we’ll release it,’ was the first thing that was decided. “[The date] was not something that was randomly decided, but it was something we saw when considering the time and cost for the amount of resources we had.”
Furthermore, Tabata-san went on to reveal that Final Fantasy XV would have released earlier in Japan — much like previous entries in the series — had Square not opted for an international release date.
Officially revealed to the masses last week via the Uncovered event, Final Fantasy XV launches worldwide on September 30, 2016.
[Source: Hachima via Siliconera]