Final Fantasy 7 Remake director Tetsuya Nomura has suggested that future instalments in the episodic title could focus on smaller sections of the original game, in order to release them faster.

The comments come from the Japanese Ultimania book, quoted and translated by a Twitter user.

In the book, Nomura is quoted as saying that “if we divide the story into large parts, it’ll take longer to make. If we divide it into more detailed smaller sections, then developing it will be faster. I hope to release the next one ASAP.”

The first Final Fantasy 7 Remake instalment released this month and focuses entirely on the opening Midgar section of the original PlayStation game.

Also speaking in the Ultimania book, producer Yoshinori Kitase reportedly said that the FF7R team has “a general idea” of how the game’s story will play out across each episode, following a cliffhanger ending to the first game.

“We have a general idea of how the story will play out, but we haven’t decided exactly [how many parts], nor can we confirm anything,” Kitase is reported as saying. “There’s speculation that it will be three parts, but we’re just doing things one step at a time.”

In November 2019, director Nomura confirmed that work on Final Fantasy 7 Remake Part 2 was already underway. Part 1 is a timed PlayStation 4 exclusive for 12 months.

Final Fantasy 7 Remake sales are reportedly off to a strong start, with physical and digital shipments topping 3.5 million worldwide in three days following the game’s April 10 release.

Publisher Square Enix claimed last week that the PS4 exclusive, which experienced a significantly disrupted physical release due to the coronavirus, had “achieved exceptional digital sales which are continuing to increase”.

Final Fantasy XV remains the fastest-selling game in the long-running RPG series’ history, having recorded day one shipments and digital sales exceeding five million units following its November 2016 release for PS4 and Xbox One.

VGC’s Final Fantasy 7 Remake review called the RPG “a game full of beauty, intelligence and nostalgic power”. See what other critics thought of the game in our Final Fantasy 7 Remake review round-up.

A Final Fantasy VII Remake demo released in March and lets players sample the game’s opening chapter, the Mako Reactor 1 bombing mission.