Kazushige Nojima (野島 一成, Nojima Kazushige) was born on January 20, 1964. He is a Japanese video game writer known for creating stories for several games in Square Enix's Final Fantasy series. These include Final Fantasy VII and its related games Advent Children and Crisis Core, Final Fantasy VIII, and Final Fantasy X and X-2. He also wrote stories for the Kingdom Hearts series, the Glory of Heracles series, and the Subspace Emissary mode in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. Nojima wrote the lyrics for the song "Liberi Fatali" in Final Fantasy VIII and the songs "Suteki da Ne" and "Hymn of the Fayth" in Final Fantasy X. He also wrote the lyrics for "No Promises to Keep" in Final Fantasy VII Rebirth. Additionally, he started a company called Stellavista Ltd.
Biography
Kazushige Nojima first worked for Data East, a Japanese company that makes and sells video games. In 1994, he joined Square. He began working on Final Fantasy VII after the main character details were completed. However, he had thought about this earlier while working on Bahamut Lagoon.
Nojima also created the stories and legends for Fabula Nova Crystallis, which serve as the foundation for all games in that series. He wrote scripts for several Kingdom Hearts games and helped create the story for Final Fantasy XV, which was previously called Versus XIII.
In 2003, Nojima left Square Enix and started Stellavista Ltd, a company that provides story writing services. He wrote the story for Sakura Note and contributed some story ideas to Final Fantasy XIII. While working on Glory of Heracles, Nojima used inspiration from the Fall of Troy and the Battle of Thermopylae. Although few real Greek places were included, the game used locations based on Greek mythology.
In 2011, Enterbrain announced on Famitsu that a short anime and audio drama, based on a novel written by Kazushige Nojima, would be streamed. The title of the project is Busō Chūgakusei Basket Army (Armed Middle School Student Basket Army).
Writing style and reception
Nojima is known as one of the strongest voices in the video game industry because of his writing. His stories are complex and explore romantic plot lines with courage.
Works
- Tantei Jingūji Saburō: Kiken na Futari (1988) – Scenario writer
- Heracles no Eikō II: Titan no Metsubō (1989) – Scenario writer
- Tantei Jingūji Saburō: Toki no Sugiyuku mamani… (1991) – Scenario writer
- Heracles no Eikō III: Kamigami no Chinmoku (1992) – Scenario writer
- Heracles no Eikō IV: Kamigami kara no Okurimono (1994) – Director and scenario writer
- Bahamut Lagoon (1996) – Director
- Final Fantasy VII (1997) – Event planner and story writer
- Final Fantasy VIII (1999) – Scenario writer
- Final Fantasy X (2001) – Scenario writer
- Kingdom Hearts (2002) – Scenario writer
- Final Fantasy X-2 (2003) – Scenario writer
- Before Crisis: Final Fantasy VII (2004) – Scenario supervisor
- Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories (2004) – Scenario supervisor
- Kingdom Hearts II (2005) – Scenario writer
- Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII (2007) – Scenario writer
- Super Smash Bros. Brawl (2008) – Subspace Emissary scenario writer
- Glory of Hercules (2008) – Scenario writer
- Sakura Note (2009) – Scenario writer
- Final Fantasy XIII (2009) – Scenario concept
- Last Ranker (2010) – Scenario writer
- Lord of Arcana (2010) – Original lyrics writer
- Black Rock Shooter: The Game (2011) – Scenario writer
- Sol Trigger (2012) – Scenario writer
- Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD Remaster (2013) – Scenario writer and audio drama writer
- Zodiac: Orcanon Odyssey (2015) – Scenario writer
- Mobius Final Fantasy (2015) – Scenario writer
- Dragon's Dogma Online (2015) – Scenario writer
- Final Fantasy XV (2016) – Original story plot writer
- Itadaki Street: Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy 30th Anniversary (2017) – Scenario supervisor
- Dissidia Final Fantasy NT (2018) – Scenario concept
- Final Fantasy XV: Pocket Edition (2018) – Original story plot writer
- Kingdom Hearts III (2019) – Scenario supervisor
- Final Fantasy VII Remake (2020) – Story writer, scenario writer, and lyricist
- Astria Ascending (2021) – Story writer and scenario writer
- Final Fantasy VII: The First Soldier (2021) – Scenario supervisor
- Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin (2022) – Story writer and scenario writer
- Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Reunion (2022) – Scenario writer
- Final Fantasy VII: Ever Crisis (2023) – Story writer and scenario writer
- Final Fantasy VII Rebirth (2024) – Story writer and scenario writer
- Reynatis (2024) – Scenario writer
- Final Fantasy VII: On the Way to a Smile (2005-2009) – Writer
- Final Fantasy VII The Kids Are Alright: A Turks Side Story (2011) – Writer
- Final Fantasy X-2.5 ~Eien no Daishō~ (2013) – Writer
- Basket Army (2013) – Writer
- Final Fantasy VII Remake: Traces of Two Pasts (2021) – Writer
- Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children (2005) – Scenario writer
- Last Order: Final Fantasy VII (2005) – Story writer
- Lupin the 3rd Part V (2018) – Episode 12 screenplay writer