Final Fantasy creator mouths off

Final Fantasy creator Hironobu Sakaguchi reckons the PlayStation 3 is too fiddly to develop for, and that Microsoft's advertising in Japan has been rubbish, GamesIndustry.biz is reporting.

His outburst appears in the latest issue of US magazine Electronic Gaming Monthly, as reported by 1UP. When asked why he has no current plans to develop games for PS3, he is said to have replied, "The machine's architecture is tricky, and I don't like Ken Kutaragi."

Sakaguchi was more positive with regard to the Nintendo Wii, describing the system as "intriguing". But he added, "Right now, I have no plans on making a game for the Wii."

The first game from Sakaguchi's Mistwalker studio, Blue Dragon, went on sale in Japan last December. Its release gave a much needed boost to Xbox 360 sales, which have so far been disappointing - a fact which Sakaguchi blames on Microsoft's failure to communicate effectively with Japanese consumers.

"Microsoft has to change its marketing strategy in Japan. There are a lot of excellent games on the 360, far better games than what's on the Wii or PS3. But not a lot of people in Japan have a clear idea what games like Gears of War are all about," he said.

And it's not just the marketing for Xbox 360 which Sakaguchi feels is lacking: "Just look at the Windows Vista commercial - it's terrible," he stated.