Square Enix shared new information about the characterization for Don Corneo in FFVII Remake, alongside concept art of the character. The information comes from the official Final Fantasy VII Remake Japanese Twitter account, which answered a question from a Scenario Staff Q&A. The question asked about the approach of the FFVII Remake dev team when adapting Don Corneo for the remake.
Here is the original Japanese tweet, alongside the artwork:
【Scenario Staff Q&A】
Q： リメイク版のコルネオは声や動きも相まって、いっそう印象的なキャラクターになりましたが、どんな方針で個性付けを行ないましたか？アンサーと一緒にアートもチェックしてくださいね！ほひ～#FF7R #FF7R_inter pic.twitter.com/qKHGGjAbfc
— FFVII REMAKE (@FFVIIR_CLOUD) April 19, 2023
The original question asked the following:
“The FFVII Remake version of Corneo ended up becoming more impressive than in the original thanks to the voice, line delivery, and movements of the character. What was your approach for his characterization?”
The answer mentioned how people in Don Corneo’s crime syndicate are known for their unique dialogue, but that the initial characterization of the characters in the original FFVII was already strong, as a result of their writing and unique quirks.
During development of the original FFVII, the development team came up with the catchphrase “hohi” for Don Corneo. Originally, there were worries in the FFVII Remake development team that it would sound too comical when delivered in voice. However, they ended up deciding to leave it in as is for FFVII Remake. Instead, they made sure to avoid overdoing it with ad-libs.
The team also mentions that the character was fun to create, thanks to the mocap actor being able to match the pre-recorded lines so well. In addition, the team incorporated elements to his character that appeared in works related to FFVII that were created after the original game, such as the commemorative photo of Don Corneo in Kazunari Nojima’s novel.
Final Fantasy VII Remake is immediately available for PS4, PS5, and Windows PC. A sequel to the game titled FFVII Rebirth is currently in development for PS5, and is expected to release in Winter 2023.
