We all know that Final Fantasy XIV is a big success story. So what’s the secret behind Naoki Yoshida taking the game from zero to hit? According to a new interview over on PC Gamer, it’s all about charisma and spreadsheets. Yes, spreadsheets. One of Yoshida’s big tricks when he took on the project was creating a detailed spreadsheet showing off the smallest part of every single task needed to revamp the game, and his personal charisma and communication handled much of the delivery of that message according to development supervisor Mitsutoshi Gondai:
These weren’t little plans, either. The initial plan for rebuilding the game from the start had a roadmap for every update up to and including the game’s first expansion, a tradition that has persisted subsequently. Why? Because Yoshida knew that a long time between updates was unacceptable for players, and he knew that planning ahead was how you avoided that problem. Check out the full interview for more looks back at how the game came together seven years ago; it’s just the thing for an anniversary celebration for Eorzea.It might seem like a very top-down sort of workflow at first glance, but when Mr. Yoshida talks to his staff, he doesn’t simply order them to do a task but instead explains how creating a certain element with a particular intent is important to the overall game. Each member of the team understands the meaning and importance of their work, and they can stay motivated as they work on the game. I believe that was a very important thing to keep in mind.
