Yoshinori Kitase facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Yoshinori Kitase
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At the E3 in Los Angeles, California in 2009
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| Born | 23 September 1966 |
| Nationality | Japanese |
| Alma mater | Nihon University |
| Occupation | Video game director, game producer |
| Years active | 1990–present |
| Employer | Square Enix |
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Notable work
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Final Fantasy series |
| Title | Vice President |
Yoshinori Kitase (北瀬 佳範 , Kitase Yoshinori, born 23 September 1966) is a Japanese game director and producer working for Square Enix. He is known as the director of Final Fantasy VI, Chrono Trigger, Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VIII and Final Fantasy X, and the producer of the Final Fantasy X and Final Fantasy XIII series. Kitase is a vice president, a member of the board of directors and an executive officer at Square Enix. He is currently the head of Square Enix's Creative Business Unit I and the Final Fantasy series Brand Manager. He was the head of Square Enix's Business Division 1 during its entire existence as well as a Corporate Executive. He is also part of the Final Fantasy Committee that is tasked with keeping the franchise's releases and content consistent.
Biography
In July 1978, at the age of 11, Kitase watched the movie Star Wars for the first time and was deeply impressed with it. He later examined the making-of video to it and became interested in the creative process of the film industry. Kitase decided to attend the Nihon University College of Art and studied screenwriting and filmmaking. Although he enjoyed filming, he showed a much greater passion for post-production editing as he felt it allowed him to give the footage a completely new meaning and to appeal to the viewers' feelings. In his first year after the graduation, Kitase worked at a small animation studio that produced animated television programs and commercials. When he played Final Fantasy for the first time, he considered a switch to the game industry as he felt that it had potential when it came to animation and storytelling. Despite having no software development knowledge, he applied at the game development company Square and was hired in March 1990. In the ten years to follow, he gathered experience as an "event scripter", directing the characters' movements and facial expressions on the game screen as well as setting the timings and music transitions. He has compared this work to directing film actors. Kitase continued directing cutscenes in spite of filling other roles in later projects; for example, he directed part of the event scenes in Final Fantasy VIII and was event planner for the Nibelheim section of Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII.
When many players responded to the sci-fi world of Final Fantasy VII and Final Fantasy VIII by requesting a "simple fantasy world", Kitase tried to expand the definition of the word "fantasy" beyond that of a medieval European setting. This led to Southeast Asia being the backdrop for Final Fantasy X. Kitase referred to Final Fantasy VII and its protagonist Cloud Strife as his favorite game and character, respectively. In an interview, he said that he loves first-person shooters. Kitase supervised the Final Fantasy VII: Technical Demo for PS3. Final Fantasy creator Hironobu Sakaguchi feels that he "handed the torch to" Kitase as far as heading the series is concerned.
Works
| Release | Title | System | Credit(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | Final Fantasy Adventure | Game Boy | Game design, scenario |
| 1992 | Romancing SaGa | Super Nintendo Entertainment System | Field map design |
| Final Fantasy V | Field planner, event planner, scenario writer | ||
| 1994 | Final Fantasy VI | Director, event planner, scenario writer | |
| 1995 | Chrono Trigger | Co-director, scenario writer | |
| 1997 | Final Fantasy VII | PlayStation | Director, scenario writer |
| 1998 | Ehrgeiz | FF VII staff | |
| 1999 | Final Fantasy VIII | Director, story, system designer, event scene direction | |
| 2001 | Final Fantasy X | PlayStation 2 | Producer, chief director, scenario writer |
| 2002 | Kingdom Hearts | Co-producer | |
| 2003 | Unlimited Saga | Special thanks | |
| Final Fantasy X-2 | Producer | ||
| 2004 | Before Crisis: Final Fantasy VII | Mobile phone | Executive producer |
| Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories | Game Boy Advance | Producer | |
| 2005 | Romancing SaGa | PlayStation 2 | Special thanks |
| Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children | Film | Producer | |
| Last Order: Final Fantasy VII | Anime | Executive producer | |
| Kingdom Hearts II | PlayStation 2 | Co-producer | |
| 2006 | Dirge of Cerberus: Final Fantasy VII | Producer | |
| Final Fantasy V Advance | Game Boy Advance | Supervisor | |
| Final Fantasy VI Advance | |||
| Dawn of Mana | PlayStation 2 | Special thanks | |
| 2007 | Heroes of Mana | Nintendo DS | |
| Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII | PlayStation Portable | Executive producer, event planner | |
| 2008 | Sigma Harmonics | Nintendo DS | Producer |
| Dissidia: Final Fantasy | PlayStation Portable | ||
| 2009 | Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Complete | Film | |
| Final Fantasy: The 4 Heroes of Light | Nintendo DS | Special thanks | |
| Final Fantasy XIII | PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Windows | Producer, Crystal Tools development staff (for PS3 & 360) | |
| 2010 | Final Fantasy XIV | Windows | Crystal tools |
| The 3rd Birthday | PlayStation Portable | Producer | |
| 2011 | Dissidia 012: Final Fantasy | Special thanks | |
| Final Fantasy Type-0 | Producer | ||
| Final Fantasy XIII-2 | PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Windows | ||
| 2012 | Theatrhythm Final Fantasy | Nintendo 3DS | Special thanks |
| 2013 | Final Fantasy: All The Bravest | iOS, Android | |
| Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII | PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Windows | Producer | |
| Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD Remaster | PlayStation 3, PlayStation Vita, PlayStation 4, Windows | Producer (PS3, PS Vita), special thanks (PS4, Windows) | |
| 2014 | Theatrhythm Final Fantasy: Curtain Call | Nintendo 3DS | Special thanks |
| Final Fantasy VII G-Bike | iOS, Android | Executive producer | |
| 2015–2020 | Mobius Final Fantasy | iOS, Android, Windows | Producer |
| 2015 | Final Fantasy: Brave Exvius | iOS, Android | Special thanks |
| Dissidia Final Fantasy (2015 video game) | Arcade | ||
| 2016 | Kingsglaive: Final Fantasy XV | Film | |
| Final Fantasy XV | PlayStation 4, Xbox One | Special thanks, original producer | |
| 2017 | Final Fantasy XIV: Heavensward (Patch 3.56) | Windows, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Mac OS X | Special thanks |
| Final Fantasy XIV: Stormblood | Windows, PlayStation 4, Mac OS X | ||
| Itadaki Street: Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy 30th Anniversary | PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita | ||
| Final Fantasy Dimensions II | iOS, Android | ||
| 2018 | Dissidia Final Fantasy NT | PlayStation 4 | |
| Super Smash Bros. Ultimate | Nintendo Switch | Original game supervisor | |
| 2019 | Final Fantasy XIV: Shadowbringers | Windows, PlayStation 4, Mac OS X | Special thanks |
| Final Fantasy VIII Remastered | PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, Windows | Special thanks, supervisor | |
| Romancing SaGa 3 remaster | PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, Xbox One, Switch, Windows, iOS, Android | Executive officer | |
| SaGa: Scarlet Grace Ambitions English Version | PlayStation 4, Switch, Windows, iOS, Android | Executive officer | |
| War of the Visions: Final Fantasy Brave Exvius | iOS, Android | Special thanks | |
| Star Ocean: First Departure R | PlayStation 4, Switch | Creative business unit I, vice president | |
| 2020 | Final Fantasy VII Remake | PlayStation 4 | Producer |
| Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles Remastered Edition | PlayStation 4, Switch, iOS, Android | Creative business unit I, vice president | |
| Kingdom Hearts: Melody of Memory | PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Switch | Creative business unit I, vice president | |
| 2021 | SaGa Frontier Remastered | PlayStation 4, Switch, Windows, iOS, Android | Executive officer |
| Final Fantasy VII: The First Soldier | iOS, Android | Executive producer | |
| 2022 | Final Fantasy VII: Ever Crisis | iOS, Android | Executive producer |
