Technologies

Final Fantasy Tactics: Ivalice Chronicles Director Says ‘That’ Boss Fight Still Wrecks Him

You’re not the only one who struggled against Wiegraf.

Last week was the first time I picked up Final Fantasy Tactics since finishing it back in 1998. One infamous boss battle scarred me so badly that I never went back — and given its reputation among fans, I know I’m not alone. So when I had the chance to talk with Kazutoyo Maehiro, part of the original dev team and now director of the upcoming remaster, Final Fantasy Tactics: Ivalice Chronicles, I jumped at it. I needed to know why they made that one fight so brutal.

My question for Maehiro: “Back then — 28 years ago — what was the original team even thinking with this fight?”

He laughed, as did the Square Enix PR team and interpreter in the room, clearly familiar with this question. Though it isn’t his favorite or the hardest fight — that honor goes to the Zeirchele Falls battle, a plot turning point that frustrated countless players with its early difficulty spike — the infamous fight I asked about looms far larger in players’ memories.

Arriving late in Chapter 3, the battle unfolds as two back-to-back encounters that form a brutal marathon. First up is a one-on-one duel between Ramza, the player’s protagonist, and Wiegraf, a recurring antagonist. Without careful preparation, this fight alone can feel impossible. After defeating him, players immediately battle Belias, the demon possessing Wiegraf, alongside his summoned monsters. For many, this moment is where their Tactics playthrough ended.

“At the time, having a battle that’s difficult for the sake of being difficult wasn’t necessarily seen as the correct thing to do,” Maehiro said through his interpreter. “In a way, it wasn’t necessary that we were trying to intentionally make it that difficult. It’s more so that it ended up being that way. And in retrospect, when I look back, I do think that the decision to make that battle as difficult as it was was the correct one.”

The new Final Fantasy Tactics: Ivalice Chronicles is a remaster of the original PlayStation game, which launched in 1998 in the US (1997 in Japan) following the blockbuster Final Fantasy VII. Unlike the main series, Tactics embraced the tactical RPG format popularized by Sega’s Shining Force and Nintendo’s Fire Emblem, requiring players to think carefully about unit positioning, abilities and turn order. Mistakes could wipe out your party quickly, a design choice that cemented the game as both beloved and intimidating.

The remaster lightly updates the game’s visuals, including its iconic character sprites and polygonal environments, while focusing on enriching other elements, such as adding fully voiced dialogue. Even minor enemies get voice lines, adding cinematic flair. The accents feel a bit theatrical, as if they’re voicing scenes from Game of Thrones, but they suit the game’s dark narrative of betrayal and political intrigue. Ramza’s journey through a war-torn kingdom was mature storytelling that I didn’t fully appreciate at 19 years old, but it resonates much more strongly now.

The most striking upgrades are “quality of life” improvements. Battles and dialogue can now be sped up with a fast-forward button — a godsend for a game known for its slow pace. My time with the preview was short, as it only included the first few battles of the game. It ended at the Dorter Trade City fight, the game’s first truly challenging battle, introducing new enemy types and set on a map filled with structures of varying heights.

Dorter Trade City is a pivotal introduction to a key element of the game’s combat. The vertical position of a character can be both beneficial and harmful: They can easily attack enemies farther away from a higher vantage point, but at that height, an enemy attack pushing them over the edge could mean instant death. A key disadvantage for players in the original and the remaster is that the computer-controlled opponents know all the pros and cons of certain heights, while the player has to learn on the fly. What I played in my preview felt true to the original game, especially that familiar crushing feeling of losing a battle due to misplayed moves.

Maehiro emphasized that players struggling with battles like these in the new Ivalice Chronicles now have options. Difficulty can be lowered and fights can be restarted instantly or abandoned entirely, making the game more accessible without losing its core challenge.

As mentioned earlier, Maehiro was on the original FF Tactics team as an evnt planner, responsible for directing scripted events such as character movement and animations during story sequences. At the time, he was a new developer, and now, years later, he can look back at his younger self — full of hunger and determination.

ç”I would feel very disappointed if I were to let down my past original team members,” he said. “In that sense, I really couldn’t let this project fail, and I felt some pressure from that as well. Looking through the archival material that exists in the past as well, it helped me reflect on my time over the past 28 years as a game designer. Having been able to come back to Final Fantasy Tactics after all that does make my chest swell with pride.”

Since the original Final Fantasy Tactics, Maehiro has worked on major Square Enix projects, including Vagrant Story, Final Fantasy XII and the MMORPG Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn, eventually becoming creative director for 2023’s Final Fantasy XVI. But his connection to Tactics remains personal, especially when it comes to character jobs, a system that defined its depth and replayability, enabling players to customize their units with a dizzying array of options.

With over 20 jobs players assign to their characters, ranging from staples like Knight and Archer to unconventional picks like Calculator and Time Mage, Maehiro has his favorites. For efficiency, he prefers the Ninja, who can dual-wield weapons and throw items for big damage. For pure fun, though, he loves the Orator (originally called Mediator), a talking-based magic class capable of recruiting enemies, boosting allies or intimidating foes. It’s a fitting choice for a designer whose career has been built on strategy and storytelling.

Will I play Ivalice Chronicles and return to the game that left a mark on me almost three decades ago? Yes, but I’m going to make use of every QoL feature available to avoid spending days trying to defeat Wiegraf. I’m no longer a college kid wasting time to avoid studying; I’m an adult now, wasting time between writing assignments.

Final Fantasy Tactics: Ivalice Chronicles comes out on Sept. 30 for $50 on the Nintendo Switch, Switch 2, PC, PS4, PS5 and Xbox Series X and S.

Technologies

Trump Maintains US‑Iran Negotiations Continue Amid Tehran’s Denials of Duplicity

President Trump insists that US‑Iran talks are ongoing despite Tehran’s denial of any negotiation plans, while warning that only a deal or total surrender will allow passage through the Strait of Hormuz. Conflicting statements from both sides have heightened uncertainty as the conflict enters its sixth month.

On Monday, President Donald Trump asserted that negotiations between the United States and Iran are still taking place, even after Tehran stated it has no intention of engaging in direct talks with Washington.

In a fiery Truth Social post, Trump labeled Iran’s leaders “unbelievably duplicitous,” claiming they are lying about ongoing peace talks “whether Iran wants to admit it or not.” He repeated his assertion that the United States completely controls the Strait of Hormuz, despite maritime traffic through the crucial route lingering at only a small fraction of pre‑conflict levels.

He wrote, “Nothing reaches Iran unless we allow it, and nothing will pass unless a deal—or total surrender—is achieved.”

Earlier that day, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei told reporters there is no imminent plan for U.S.–Iran negotiations, contradicting Trump’s earlier comment that talks would resume Monday afternoon. Baghaei added that Iran’s only current discussions are with Oman concerning the Strait of Hormuz.

The conflicting statements have heightened uncertainty over the peace‑talk process and the broader conflict, now in its sixth month.

Trump’s assertion about new negotiations came a day after he said on Truth Social that he had agreed to cancel a massive strike against Iran “subject to being able to rapidly make a DEAL.” He said in the same post that Iran and other Middle Eastern countries had asked him to hold off on that attack because “the perimeters of a deal has been agreed to.”

Trump has claimed dozens of times throughout the more‑than‑five‑month‑long war that a deal is at hand. No permanent deal has been signed, and a temporary ceasefire reached in June has fallen apart.

Trump has also repeatedly threatened to launch devastating strikes against Iran before backing off. After the latest example, oil prices on Monday fell and stocks surged.

BMI, a research unit of Fitch Solutions, said in a note Monday that a broader diplomatic understanding on reopening the Strait of Hormuz is still achievable this quarter, while raising the probability of its escalation scenario to 35% from 25%, citing mounting military, diplomatic and economic signs of rising U.S.-Iran tensions.

“Diplomatic progress is likely to be punctuated by periodic military flare-ups, while miscalculation by either side could trigger a renewed escalation,” BMI analysts wrote in a note. The firm said the key issue to watch is the future governance of the strait, as the Iran-Oman talks — potentially backed by Gulf states, China and the U.S. — point to efforts to build a post-conflict shipping framework.

Shipping risks persist even as diplomacy appears to be advancing. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Centre said it received a report of an incident 20 nautical miles (23 miles) northeast of Khasab, Oman — at the mouth of the strait — with a tanker’s master reporting an explosion in close proximity to the vessel at about 20:37 UTC Sunday (4:37 pm ET). The vessel and crew were safe and authorities are investigating, UKMTO said, advising ships to transit with caution.

The proposal Trump announced over the weekend calls for the U.S. and Iran to return to negotiations and continue ironing out some of the thorny issues that had derailed diplomatic efforts, according to The Associated Press, citing a regional official involved in the mediation efforts.

The official said the proposal also includes a reopening of the Hormuz Strait and halting attacks across the region, including by Iranian-backed militias in Iraq on the Arab Gulf countries and Jordan.

The U.S., for its part, will end its naval blockade on Iran and allow Tehran to export its oil, the official said, adding that no deal has been reached, although the mediation efforts remained underway.

Trump’s weekend reversal has lowered the temperature after days of escalating attacks across the Gulf. Kuwait said Saturday that Iranian forces launched a wave of drones within its airspace, with its military destroying multiple aircraft after Iran targeted critical infrastructure in the country’s north.

A parallel track with Muscat is also advancing. Iranian diplomats said Tehran was close to reaching a new arrangement with Oman to manage shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a deal critical to preventing the war from escalating further, according to the Financial Times.

Iranian officials said negotiations over future management of the Hormuz Strait with Oman, which sits on the opposite shore of the waterway, are in their final stages. The agreed shipping route would be different from those used before, according to Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Baghaei, adding that the new route was separate from the issue of the strait’s reopening or continued closure.

Technologies

Oil Prices Slide as Trump Halts Planned Iran Strike

Oil prices dropped after Trump cancelled a planned strike on Iran, with WTI down about 5% and Brent near 5% lower. He said the move followed requests from Tehran and regional allies for a pause while a deal shaping the Strait of Hormuz and Iran’s nuclear program is negotiated.

Oil prices fell on Monday after President Donald Trump announced he had cancelled a planned strike on Iran. WTI futures dropped roughly 5% to $80.34 a barrel, while Brent slipped about 4.7% to $83.77 a barrel.

Trump said early Sunday he called off the strike after Iran and several Middle Eastern nations asked him to hold off, noting that the outlines of a deal had been agreed upon. He added that the prospective accord would entail the immediate, full opening of the Strait of Hormuz and an end to Iran’s nuclear ambitions, according to his Truth Social post.

The president had been considering another round of strikes as diplomatic hopes waned since the conflict began on February 28. He said the U.S. and Iran would meet for talks on Monday, but Iran denied any scheduled negotiations with Washington, citing PressTV. Iran’s foreign‑ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei clarified that Tehran was only discussing shipping routes through the Strait of Hormuz with Oman. In a follow‑up Truth Social message, Trump insisted that, regardless of Iran’s acknowledgment, the United States is indeed discussing a solution to a long‑standing problem created by Iran.

Technologies

Oil Prices Drop as Trump Cancels Planned Attack on Iran

Oil prices fell sharply after President Trump announced the cancellation of a planned strike on Iran, citing a new deal that would open the Hormuz Strait and end Iran’s nuclear threat.

Oil prices fell sharply on Monday after President Donald Trump announced that he had called off a planned strike on Iran.

West Texas Intermediate futures, the U.S. benchmark, slipped roughly 5% to close at $80.34 per barrel, while Brent crude, the international benchmark, declined 4.7% to settle at $83.77 a barrel.

Trump made the announcement early Sunday, saying he had canceled the strike following requests from Tehran and other Middle Eastern countries.

In a Truth Social post, he wrote: “We have just been asked by Iran, and other Middle Eastern Countries, to hold off any attack in that the perimeters of a deal has been agreed to.”

The president indicated that the proposed agreement would include the immediate, complete, and total opening of the Hormuz Strait, as well as an end to Iran’s nuclear threat.

Trump had been weighing additional strikes amid diminishing prospects for a diplomatic resolution to the conflict that began on Feb. 28. He stated that the U.S. and Iran would hold negotiations on Monday.

Tehran denied that talks were planned with Washington, according to state news outlet PressTV.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said Tehran was only holding talks with Oman regarding the routes ships can use through the Strait of Hormuz.

In a subsequent Truth Social post, Trump added that whether “Iran wants to admit it or not, we are, in fact, talking of a solution to a problem that they have caused for decades.”