Final Fantasy 16 producer Naoki Yoshida has admitted the recent trailer for the game was delayed due to the war in Ukraine.
Speaking to Japanese site Dengeki Online (spotted by VGC), Yoshida feared the subject matter of the game would be inappropriate due to ongoing world events.
“Actually, it was ready to be released in March, but at the same time, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine made the world situation unstable,” said Yoshida.
“Since Final Fantasy 16 deals with a rather heavy theme as a story, I wondered if the second trailer was released at this time if it would be truly enjoyable for gamers. When I told SIE about that feeling, SIE was also worried about it, so I decided to postpone the release after thorough discussions.”
In another interview with Famitsu, Yoshida likened the game’s Eikon summons to nuclear weapons of mass destruction, and the lands of Valisthea built on the Mother Crystal are “the equivalent of a land that is abundant with oil”.
Gamespot reports that Final Fantasy 16 will have a more mature storyline than the series has seen before, leading to its M rating.
“One of the main themes explored in Final Fantasy 16’s narrative deals with the inevitable clash of values and ideals when you get multiple different people with different ideals in the same room; what is truly right and what is truly wrong?” said Yoshida.
Final Fantasy 16 is due for release on PS5 in summer 2023.
