a free anime caused problems when it came to funding the project: this had been decided upon to get the anime to the widest audience possible. Ultimately, the budget was split between the total production costs of Final Fantasy XV and projected physical sales after the anime's release. Ofuji was responsible for creating the basic scenario from which Brotherhoods main writers would work: working from the character sheets created by the writers of Final Fantasy XV, he created the entire scenario based on each character's background characteristics, such as Ignis' love of baking and Prompto's childhood obesity. The anime focuses on themes of brotherhood and friendship, and includes interpersonal scenes that could not be included in the game. Its storyline details the backstory of Noctis from his childhood to the game's opening, along with the backstories of his companions. The first and last episodes tie directly into the events of Platinum Demo: Final Fantasy XV, a free tech demo showing Noctis' journey through a dreamworld during a near-death experience. The anime also serves as an introduction for potential players to the characters. In previous Final Fantasy games, the player party was built up gradually over the course of the game. In Final Fantasy XV, the complete party is available from the start, and since the backstory moments could not be fitted into the game, the anime serves as a similar means of allowing players to sympathize with them. Each episode's events also helped detail some of the characters' different social classes, with the cited example being the contrast between Prompto's small house and hard-working parents when compared to Gladiolus' more luxurious life. Release Brotherhood was first announced on March 30, 2016 at "Uncovered: Final Fantasy XV", a media event dedicated to the game; the first episode aired immediately following the event. Each episode was released online for free through the game's official YouTube channel and concluded with the fifth episode on September 17, 2016. They were also streamed through online service Crunchyroll. Each episode is approximately ten to fifteen minutes long. This format was chosen over the standard 23-minute format as it would tell the desired stories without the viewers getting bored. All episodes of Brotherhood were included as part of the Ultimate Collector's Edition of Final Fantasy XV on a Blu-ray disc. The series was also included in the "Final Fantasy XV Film Collection", a box set which includes