Developers' Office (The After Years)



The Developer's Office in Final Fantasy IV: The After Years is located on the True Moon. Once the Subterrane is cleared, the location "???" can be accessed from the dimensional elevator. This location is actually the tail collector's home. In the back bedroom, the Developer's Office can be accessed through a hidden passage in the left wall.

Layout
The Developer's Office opens on a long hallway leading to a large room with a square counter. To the right are several programmers and artists working at desks. A door here leads to a small room with other developers. To the right is a smaller area with desks and workers, and a door leading to a resting area with two developers resting in beds. Above the main room is a small room with a pot, which prompts the player to use an item on it.

Inhabitants

 * Akiyama is a member of the Red Wings, who is surprised the player found the "legendary Developers' Office". He thanks them for playing the game and says that once the staff were only fans of Final Fantasy IV, and that making a sequel to it was exciting. He gives the player a Lustful Lali-ho to convey how exciting it was for them.
 * Maoki Mutou is a Black Mage with purple robes. He offers the player to fight him and two Monks, Kamineko, and Mad Vegan. During battle, their attacks are misdirected on themselves or they do the wrong things. They summon three Tiny Mages; Cynico, Mild Ghost, and AssaShin.
 * Nakahara is an Armor Construct. He only appears during random encounters and compliments the player's attacks. Before he self-destructs, he claims the adamantite pig from Edward's Challenge Dungeon still lives.
 * Dot Lady is a Dancer who asks which sprite character the player liked most.
 * Ichiro Tezuka is a man in Mini status facing a wall. He tells the player he has no tails, and enters a fight with them. After Tezuka is defeated he says "Geez! I told you, that's not a tail! Does it look like it's coming out of my rear end?".
 * Nabeko is a pig, who expresses it was a great opportunity to do PR for the game, but says it would have been a huge hit regardless if it needed any. He can be fought in a battle if he is spoken to again. His graphic used for the fight is a Malboro. He complains about his gooey tentacles and keyboard.
 * Kaoriko and Natsuko are White Mages. In battle, they're a Magma Tortoise and a Behemoth respectively. They attempt to use the Band "Lonely Developer", but it fails. After retreating, Kaoriko says she hopes that a particular man in her life will address her as a pig one day.
 * Junya Nakano is a merchant in bed. He exclaims he is not asleep, and that he makes his best music while dreaming.
 * Akira Oguro is in the bed opposite of Nakano's. He says nothing, but if the player keeps badgering him he will give them some Hi-Potions, and then ask them to leave him alone.
 * Ueno is an elderly man. He imparts his advice on the player, saying "that when it is time to act, a man has to move. That's what being cool is all about".
 * Yuu is a black chocobo, who complains he cannot stick out of the crowd as a pixel artist.
 * Iitaka is a Black Mage. He says he has helped with some graphics on the project, and that he wishes he could have a pet Cockatrice in his house.
 * Matsua is a man in Mini status, who gives the player some trivia about the game during pre-production: before all the sprites in the game were drawn, most of the characters were depicted with the pig sprites from Final Fantasy IV, including Ceodore and Cecil. He is amused with the fact that once there were pigs floating in the Crystal Chambers.
 * Taniguchi is a Monk who asks if the player feels like painting some pixels.
 * Ishikawa is a man who complains his facial hair grows too fast and that the player cannot tell by examining his sprite.
 * Niiyama is a knight dressed in blue, who says he will get married when he is done with the game. This occurs to Niiyama that this could set off a story flag, and tells the party the only thing to do is "to take that flag... and break it in half!". He enters battle and after being defeated, he admits he has to lose five more pounds of weight, and that he was the one who got broken.
 * Kurihara is a guard who says he never thought he would get involved with another Final Fantasy project at his age. He asks the player if they were considering to get into the game industry. If they respond with "yes", he says it is rough and that it will take years off their life. If "no", he tells them playing games is more fun than designing them.
 * Shingo Narumi is a castle guard. He mumbles the staff is nuts for asking him to place a particular story event during a battle. When he discovers the player is standing behind them, he resigns back to work and says he will do what is needed.
 * Wanchin is a monster in a blue cloak, who feels they do not have enough people or time. He mistakes the player as the new assistants sent to help them out. If the player responds with "no", Wanchin and Kurihara will attack the player, pleading that they should help. In battle Wanchin is a Centaur Knight, and Kurihara is a Sorceress. They summon Shingo Narumi, who is depicted as a Black Knight, but accidentally kill him when they attempt the Delta Attack. After the battle, they thank the player for killing them and freeing them from the burden of their hard work. Kurihara admits his mother always wanted him to die alone. However, if the player said "yes" to Wanchin earlier, the phase of the moon will change over night. The next day, Wanchin is grateful for the work, but all of the party's HP will be reduced to 1.
 * Momiyama is a monster in a purple cloak, who asks if the player has been enjoying the game's battle system and the Bands the staff thought of. If spoken to again, he will be asked if he can fight as a battle designer. In the battle, his enemy graphic is a Bomb. He self-destructs and does 9,999 damage to anyone it hits.
 * Imuimu as a Zombie only encountered during a random preemptive battle. He uses Poison Gas on the party and attempts to run from the fight, but is just hiding off-screen and returns to the battle occasionally. Before dying, he will sometimes say he cannot work anymore.
 * Cat Lover No.1 is a white cat hiding outside of the walls in the Developer's Office. The player can pat him on the head or rub his chin, which will restore the party's HP and MP.
 * A "Game Designer", who is revealed to be Takashi Tokita, is hiding in a vase at the top of the Developer's Office that smells. If the player gives it a Lustful Lali-ho, they will enter battle with Tokita, who is a Soul. He says the Lustful Lali-ho was his own copy, and contemplates a day and age when people can play games on cell phones ("make games in such high resolution" on Final Fantasy IV: The Complete Collection version). After the fight, the player will either win back the Lustful Lali-ho, or receive a Discovery Book instead.

Enemy Formations

 * Maoki Mutou
 * Kamineko
 * Mad Vegan
 * Cynico
 * Mild Ghost
 * AssaShin
 * Nakahara
 * Ichiro Tezuka
 * Nabeko
 * Kaoriko
 * Natsuko
 * Niiyama
 * Momiyama
 * Wanchin
 * Kurihara
 * Shingo Narumi
 * Game Designer

The Discovery Book
When the player engages the Game Designer by using a Lustful Lali-ho, after defeating him, the player will win either another Lustful Lali-ho, or a Discovery Book. The Discovery Book is a highly useful item that can only be acquired this way. When used it increases a character's max MP by 50. Contrary to what the Game Designer implies, any Lustful Lali-ho can be used to enter battle with it. Thus, if the player stockpiles the Lustful Lali-ho magazines from other tales and holds onto them, they can use them here to acquire several Discovery Books.

There are three Lustful Lali-hos in the game aside from the one found in the Developer's Office. Their locations are:


 * Random treasure at the end of Ceodore's Challenge Dungeon. Not obtainable in the Wii release, as Ceodore's Tale was merged into Kain's and his Challenge Dungeon removed.
 * In Cid's House in Baron in Kain's Tale. Not obtainable in the Complete Collection release - the magazine was likely added here to make up for the removed instance of it in Ceodore's Challenge Dungeon.
 * Random treasure at the end of Kain's Challenge Dungeon.
 * In Troia in Palom's Tale. To obtain this magazine the player must pay 10,000 gil for a Member's Writ at the King's Bounty Pub, and the magazine can be found in a chest in the dressing room after watching the show. Leonora will ask to see what the player found, if they show her the magazine will be thrown away, they must decline to keep it.