For the development, the staff split up into multiple teams that handled different segments of game development: one group was responsible for the game's build, another was responsible for the database system and AI, while another was in charge of level design. The game design went smoothly as the game's staff were used to the genre, but other aspects did not: development began without access to the Xbox 360 hardware, and starting development with a large staff caused aspects to be changed upon the console's release. The three separate teams that created battle, adventure, and cutscene components ran into "various issues" while combining their work, causing company president Ray Nakazato to consider "seamless" development for any later projects. Little-used parts of the environment were given an extensive level of detail, resulting in a waste of money and time, and concept art was given the same extensive level of attention. Microsoft's milestone-based development schedule was seen as a boon to the development, as every three months the team needed to produce acceptable results for Microsoft. Conversely, the high number of staff led to a prolonged feeling of disconnection between developers. According to Sakaguchi, the team was on the point of collapse by the middle of development, but they pulled through.