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Final Fantasy XV 'Episode Ardyn' DLC Gets Short Prequel Anime
posted on by Rafael Antonio Pineda
Final Fantasy XV producer Yuji Shinoda and Final Fantasy XV "Episode Ardyn" DLC director Takefumi Terada announced in a "special program" on Thursday that Square Enix is producing an anime short based on the "Episode Ardyn" DLC, titled "Final Fantasy XV Episode Ardyn - Prologue." Terada noted that the anime will "provide context as to why Ardyn became wild for revenge." (Announcement at 15:45 in video below)
Akio Ofuji, the global brand director for Square Enix's Final Fantasy XV game, also announced in the same video that Square Enix has cancelled the development on the planned "Episode Aranea," "Episode Lunafreya," and "Episode Noctis" DLC. Production for "Episode Ardyn" is ongoing, with a planned release for March 2019. The short animation will debut before the DLC is released.
Ofuji stated that the reason for the cancellation was due to Square Enix deciding to focus its efforts in the production of a new "AAA" title, with development headed by its new subsidiary studio Luminous Productions. The video also announced Final Fantasy XV and Luminous Productions head Hajime Tabata's resignation from Square Enix.
In addition, the program announced that it will release a standalone game version of the Final Fantasy XV "Comrades" DLC as Final Fantasy XV Multiplayer: Comrades on December 13 (December 12 in North America), with sales of the original "Comrade" DLC to stop on the same date. The standalone version is playable without the main game, and will have new bosses, costumes, and weapons. The PC version of the game will not receive the standalone version, but will instead receive the new content in a free update.
Square Enix will also release a new quest for Final Fantasy XV on December 13 (December 12 in North America) as part of a collaboration with Final Fantasy XIV. The new quest will feature the new boss "Garuda," and finishing the quest will unlock new costumes.
