Akihiko Matsui (松井 聡彦, Matsui Akihiko, Matsui-P) is a Japanese video game developer and battle designer working for Square Enix. He was one of the directors for Chrono Trigger and worked on several battle systems for the Final Fantasy series.
Career[]
After finishing his work on Romancing SaGa 2, Matsui joined the development of Chrono Trigger midway through. He was responsible for planning and the movements of monsters in battles.
Since 2000, Matsui has been a member of the production staff for the MMORPG Final Fantasy XI, where he was in charge of the battle system. He became the director of the game's ongoing development in September 2010 but was succeeded by Mizuki Ito two months later.
Matsui was switched to the Final Fantasy XIV team as lead combat system designer following the game's unsuccessful launch.
When Final Fantasy XI producer Hiromichi Tanaka left the company in August 2012, Matsui was chosen to fill the position in his place.
Appearances[]
Since 5th November 2013, Matsui-P has appeared in regular live-streamed Final Fantasy XI presentations called Version Update Information, which describe the month's version update over the course of 30-120 minutes. There will often be special guests, slides, and gameplay showcased. The broadcasts are entirely in Japanese and are available to watch on the Official Final Fantasy XI YouTube Channel.
Since 10th May 2019, Matsui-P has appeared in a monthly recorded Final Fantasy XI presentation called Final Fantasy XI Digest with Director Yoji Fujito, which similarly describes the month's version update. These recordings are fully subtitled in English, and usually last 3-4 minutes. They are also available to watch on the Official Final Fantasy XI YouTube Channel.
From 10th December 2020 to the May 2021 update, Matsui-P was characterised and 'added' to the game as a limited-time Alter Ego: Trust: Matsui-P.
Works[]
| Release | Title | System | Credit(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | Final Fantasy IV | Super Nintendo Entertainment System | Battle designer |
| 1992 | Final Fantasy V | Super Nintendo Entertainment System | Battle planner |
| 1993 | Romancing SaGa 2 | Super Nintendo Entertainment System | Map developer Map data developer |
| 1995 | Chrono Trigger | Super Nintendo Entertainment System | Director |
| 1996 | Koi wa Baransu Tatoeba K-kun no Tabou na Ichinichi-hen | Satellaview | Game designer |
| 1997 | SaGa Frontier | PlayStation | Game data developer |
| 1999 | Legend of Mana | PlayStation | Game designer System design chief |
| 2002 | Final Fantasy XI | PlayStation 2 Windows PC Xbox 360 |
Battle data designer Battle director Director (2010) Producer (2012 – present) |
| 2013 | Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn | Windows PC PlayStation 3 PlayStation 4 PlayStation 5 |
Lead combat system designer |