Javi does not appear in The Walking Dead: The Final Season (Season 4) primarily due to production budget limitations.
The Reason Behind His Absence
During the development of The Walking Dead: The Final Season, there were intentions to feature Javier "Javi" Garcia, a central character from A New Frontier (Season 3), in the game. These plans aimed to include Javi in a specific sequence designed to recap the events of the previous seasons.
Planned Appearance and Subsequent Cut
- Intended Role: Javi was originally slated to appear in the comic-style recap featured at the beginning of "Done Running," the first episode of Season 4. This visual summary was created to quickly bring players up to speed on the broader narrative, including key events and characters from the first three seasons.
- Budgetary Decision: Despite these initial plans, Javi's inclusion in this recap was ultimately removed from the final version of the game. This decision was a direct consequence of the budgetary constraints faced during the development of Season 4. Developers had to make difficult choices regarding resource allocation, and Javi's appearance was deemed non-essential to the core narrative of Clementine's final journey, leading to its omission.
Therefore, while a cameo was considered, Javi's absence from Season 4 is a result of production practicalities rather than a narrative choice.