5 Games That Went Through Development Hell and Came Out the Other Side
Final Fantasy XV
Of the many titles that are delayed, rescued and manage to finally see a release, none have experienced the drama or anticipation that Final Fantasy XV did.
Originally revealed at E3 2006 and touted to have the same minds behind it that crafted Kingdom Hearts 2, including Tetsuya Nomura, the game had plenty of goodwill and excitement to fuel its expectedly long development. But then, the game went dark. Scant trailers were released every two years or so, but no substantial footage or news came until 2011 when a comprehensive trailer was released depicting the game’s story, setting and gameplay.
And yet the drama continued. The game would be rebranded as the next mainline entry in the series in 2013, and later on down the line Nomura would hand the project over to Hajime Tabata, who would restructure the game to accommodate for changes in what was needed from the game after so long in development and a jump to a new console generation of hardware.
It would then suffer even more delays until it was finally released in 2016, the final product familiar and yet a far cry from what it had originally been marketed as. Fortunately, it would be enough to garner support and praise from fans and critics alike, and ensure the series had a chance to continue on for years to come.
Know of another game that made it through development hell, regardless of whether it was a gem or a turd? Let us know about it in the comments section below, and check out our list of some of the most expensive video games ever made (and how they performed).
