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Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth director knows players “got a little bit of tired” of side quests in the JRPG’s massive open world and might have “stepped away”
Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth director Naoki Hamaguchi has acknowledged that some players became fatigued by the game’s large volume of side quests and may have stopped engaging with them. The comments matter because they suggest Square Enix is considering feedback on open-world pacing as it develops the final instalment of the Final Fantasy 7 remake trilogy.
Hamaguchi said the team understood that players could feel “a little bit” tired of optional content in Rebirth’s expansive world, potentially leading some to “step away” from the game. Rebirth greatly broadened the scope of Final Fantasy 7 Remake with several open regions, numerous side missions and exploration activities, drawing praise for its scale but criticism from some players over the amount of non-essential content.
In short
- Rebirth’s director recognises side-quest fatigue among some players.
- Feedback may influence the remake trilogy’s final game.
- Rebirth expanded the series into a much larger open-world structure.
Steelman: both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
Defending the breadth of optional content: players retain full autonomy to engage or skip side quests entirely without penalty, and those seeking extended gameplay and exploration benefit from abundant choice. Open-world design fundamentally offers freedom and discovery; restricting optional content diminishes player agency and removes value for completionists and those who enjoy a game's world deeply. The side quests themselves weren't universally criticised; the game was broadly praised, and fatigue is an inevitable feature of optional content that some players simply choose not to pursue.
The case against
Supporting more streamlined design: the feedback indicates that excessive optional content actively damages the experience for a substantial player segment, leading them to abandon the game entirely. Quantity without careful curation dilutes narrative focus and creates bloat that undermines pacing. A tightly selected set of meaningful optional activities serves both story-driven and completionist players more effectively than overwhelming volume; quality-focused design respects player time and creates a more coherent, resonant experience overall. Addressing this feedback demonstrates professional attentiveness to player wellbeing.
Explained simply
Final Fantasy 7 is a role-playing game series from Square Enix, following Cloud Strife and his allies as they oppose the powerful Shinra company and confront a threat to the planet. The current remake project retells the 1997 game across three instalments, expanding its story and setting.
Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is the second instalment, directed by Naoki Hamaguchi. It takes the characters into several large regions and offers optional missions and activities alongside the main story, so players can choose how much of that content to take on. The discussion matters as Square Enix develops the trilogy’s final game and considers how to pace exploration and side content.