Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth Director Believes There is a Need For “Yellow Paint” in Open-World Games

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For the past ten years, game developers have been discussing how best to show players which parts of open-world games they can explore. Some players dislike obvious visual cues, like yellow paint marking climbable surfaces. However, Naoki Hamaguchi, the director of the Final Fantasy 7 Remake series, argues that these design choices are actually very important.

I read an interview with Yoko Hamaguchi where she talked about this whole discussion around how realistic games are getting. She explained that as games started looking so real, developers realized they needed a way to show us players what we could actually do in the world versus what was just part of the background. It’s like, if everything looks touchable, you need a way to tell us what is actually interactive!

He acknowledged there’s discussion about whether this idea suits the game, with some players for it and others against. However, he believes games generally need this type of innovation, and developers are constantly experimenting to find what works best for their specific titles.

Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, the second game in the Remake series, used visual cues to guide players – for example, showing them which walls could be climbed or what kind of chocobo was needed for certain areas. This technique, where specific visuals hint at how to interact with the environment, has been used in many open-world games for over ten years. A good example is Assassin’s Creed 2 from 2009, which used white cloth on boxes to show players where parkour sections began.

Sometimes, it’s necessary to help players understand how to play and what they need to do. There’s a lot of discussion about how to do that effectively and at what level. Some people will always disagree with any guidance, and that’s okay, but I believe there’s a real need for it, and it’s worth exploring further.”

As a player, one of the biggest complaints I’ve seen over the years is that it just feels unrealistic when games tell you where to climb. It pulls you out of the experience, you know? Some games, like Horizon Forbidden West, really try to get around this. It was such a beautiful, detailed game, finding climbable spots should have been tough! But they cleverly used Aloy’s Focus to highlight those handholds and ledges, so it didn’t feel like the game was just pointing everything out for you. It was a really smart solution!

It’s unclear what Ryosuke Hamaguchi’s recent comments mean for Final Fantasy 7 Remake Part 3. However, he has clarified that the next game won’t be any less substantial than Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth. He previously stated that Rebirth felt appropriately paced and that some people misinterpreted his comments about Part 3‘s pacing as meaning the game would be shorter in scope.

The first game in the Final Fantasy 7 Remake series is coming to Xbox Series X/S and Nintendo Switch 2 on January 22, 2026.

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2025-10-31 16:11