Square Enix taps UE4 to build multi-part Final Fantasy VII remake

Square Enix has laid out its plans to develop Final Fantasy VII Remake with Unreal Engine 4 as a "multi-part series" after a trailer for the project ran during the PlayStation Experience keynote on Saturday.

The decision to go with Unreal is interesting in light of the fact that Square Enix has traditionally stuck by its own in-house engine tech, though it's not unprecendented -- last year the company switched gears during development of Kingdom Hearts 3 to use Unreal Engine 4, rather than its own Luminous Studio.

The company is still building Final Fantasy XV in its Luminous Studio engine, and it showcased a tech demo of the multi-platform, DirectX12-capable engine at Microsoft's Build conference earlier this year.

The fact that Final Fantasy VII Remake is being designed as a multi-part game is also intriguing, though it's yet unclear how Square Enix intends to redesign the original game (which spanned 3 discs when it was released for PlayStation in 1997) to fit within the new format.

"It means instead of concluding in one entry, multiple entries are being considered in development. Each entry will have its own unique story," A Square Enix representative explained to Kotaku today. "As a gaming experience, each entry will have the volume of content equal to a full-sized game."