Final Fantasy 10 is well known for the ways it changes up the standard Final Fantasy formula, including the game's focus on water, the theme of a spiral of death, and having its protagonist be a pro athlete with no real combat experience. However, according to a Famitsu interview with key Final Fantasy 10 staff members such as Tetsuya Nomura, Motomu Toriyama, Yoshinori Kitase, and Kazushige Nojima, Tidus was originally planned to have a very different job.
Apparently, the original plan was for Tidus to work as a plumber, thus giving him an excuse to get into–and go under–the water frequently. Tetsuya Nomura, the character designer, even states that Tidus' notoriously difficult to cosplay overalls originated from the plumber concept.
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Scenario writer Kazushige Nojima also revealed that he was inspired by a trip to Okinawa, a Japanese prefecture consisting of over 150 islands with a tropical climate. Eventually, the team decided to make Tidus an athlete to help him stand out from the series' other protagonists, but the water theme remained–the fictional sport of Blitzball is even played entirely underwater. Most of Final Fantasy 10's party members look dressed for the beach, too, with the notable exception of Lulu and Auron.
Speaking of Auron, the interview states that the reserved warrior was conceived as a silent character, but was given more lines after his role was changed to be Tidus and Yuna's metaphorical guardian as well as Yuna's literal Guardian. His age also took a while to nail down, which Nomura explains is a common occurrence in the writers' room. In the same vein, Nojima noted that Jecht's writing may have been different if he was a father 20 years ago, presumably because Nojima would have had a different perspective on the matter. Final Fantasy 10-3 could still happen, which raises questions about how much Nojima's perspective on the characters and events of Final Fantasy 10 have changed.
Additionally, the interview reveals that Nojima was inspired to create the Al Bhed language by cryptography books he was reading during the game's development. In fact, the version that made it into Final Fantasy 10 is much simpler than what he originally envisioned. The team also confirms that Nojima has already completed a summary of Final Fantasy 10-3's story, which will allegedly start up a few years after Final Fantasy 10-2, though nothing will come of it until Final Fantasy 7 Remake is complete. It remains to be seen what nods Final Fantasy 10-3 will take from Final Fantasy 10-2.
Final Fantasy 10 is out now for PS2.
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Source: Siliconera
