Earlier this month it was revealed that Final Fantasy VII Remake won’t let you control Red XIII as a full party member, instead relegating the big beast to guest character status. This is because Red XIII is introduced near the end of Final Fantasy VII’s first act, which is where the upcoming remake cuts off, meaning there wouldn’t be enough time to develop him as full character. That makes a certain amount of sense, but many fans were still disappointed to hear the news.

　　Well, maybe Red XIII fans needn’t be so upset. While Red XIII won’t be a full party member, Final Fantasy VII Remake co-director Naoki Hamaguchi promises they’ve created something special for the character.

　　The development team feel the same way that the fans do when it comes to seeing Red XIII as an important character, and we designed his gameplay in a special way to offset him not being playable in battle. I won’t reveal exactly what that entails, because I want people to enjoy it when they actually play the game, but I will say that Final Fantasy VII Remake has added a new upper floor to the Shinra Building to present a climax that was not in the original. The key to navigating this floor lies in using Red XIII’s unique physical abilities to overcome environmental obstacles. Letting the player experience his heroics in this way is something that I’m confident will please the fans.

　　In the same interview, Hamaguchi also hinted fans can expect a good amount of endgame content, including secrets and hidden bosses…

　　We can’t say exactly how much [endgame content] there is - we want to keep some surprises for players! I will say, Final Fantasy VII Remake has been designed as if it were a standalone game, and comparable in size to other mainline Final Fantasy games. The [secrets or hidden bosses] you mentioned from other Final Fantasy games…I don’t want to say precisely what’s in Final Fantasy VII Remake, but if you’re expecting endgame content, you won’t be disappointed.

　　Final Fantasy VII Remake brings fans back to Midgar when it hits PS4 on April 10.