In a recent interview with NicoNico (via RPGFan), "Final Fantasy XV" director Hajime Tabata stated that the game's story campaign will take approximately 50 hours to complete and this is without taking into consideration side-quests and extracurricular activities that have been implemented in the game.
Tabata continued to explain that the developers initially had a goal of making the story campaign 40 hours long but this has since grown to add in another 10 hours of story content. Exactly what kind of story elements have been added or if any new character has been added to extend the story has not yet been revealed.
Story elements aren't the only features that will extend gameplay as Tabata also confirmed that airships have been integrated into the game and will be a standard means of travel. It was previously believed that airships would not be making an appearance due to the emphasis given on the car being used as the main means of transportation.
Other elements to extend gameplay include the cooking mechanic and the fishing mini-game. According to the report, the staff members took real photos of home-cooked meals and then integrated these into the game. The development team is still reportedly working on the cooking mechanics and sorting out the ingredients needed.
The fishing game is also going to be different compared to other RPGs as Tabata explained this will be the main character's first time fishing. Noctis is portrayed as royalty and it would make sense that he has never gone fishing himself, which will add some layers of difficulty to the mini-game.
In regards to the game's overall development toward completion, Tabata explained that the team is still working to ensure the game runs at a consistent frame rate as there are some areas where the game slows down. No official release date has been announced but it will be announced today during the "Uncovered: Final Fantasy XV" event.
The full interview can be viewed below, starting at the 26:56 minute mark.
