The Nintendo 64 era is often marked by its bold decisions, most notably its choice to continue using cartridges while its competitors, the SEGA Saturn and PlayStation 1, embraced the power of CDs. This choice didn’t sit well with many third-party developers, most notably the iconic Squaresoft. Years later, they would unite with Enix to form the renowned Square Enix, but back in the day, they stood as one of Nintendo's most dependable partners.
Squaresoft was known for its blockbuster releases on Nintendo consoles, particularly the beloved Final Fantasy series. However, everything shifted with the arrival of the PlayStation 1. The limitations of the Nintendo 64 cartridges, especially in comparison to the vast storage of CDs, played a significant role in this evolving landscape. During a recent interview with VentureBeat, former PlayStation executive Shuhei Yoshida shared intriguing insights about Squaresoft's push for change.
Yoshida highlighted that “Hironobu Sakaguchi, the mind behind Final Fantasy, was captivated by the possibilities that CDs brought to the table. His vision was to craft a cinematic experience within the game. It was a crushing moment for him when he realized that the Nintendo 64 had stuck with cartridges, which couldn’t accommodate his ambitious ideas. Squaresoft sought to persuade Nintendo to adapt, but they remained steadfast. They were skeptical about CD-ROMs altogether, which is why they initially licensed the Super Nintendo add-on concept to Sony, believing that CD technology was too slow to support a proper gaming platform.”
“Hironobu Sakaguchi, the creator of Final Fantasy, loved the potential of CDs...
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