The excitement surrounding the long-awaited Final Fantasy 9 remake has been reignited with the launch of Square Enix's official Final Fantasy 9 25th Anniversary website. The site, available in Japanese, commemorates the game's original release on July 7, 2000, and highlights the upcoming 25th anniversary celebrations.
"We are preparing various projects, including merchandise and collaborations to commemorate the 25th anniversary, so please look forward to it!" the website states. This seemingly innocuous announcement, coupled with the website's existence, has fueled speculation that Square Enix might finally unveil the much-anticipated Final Fantasy 9 remake.
The timing of the website's launch has not gone unnoticed by fans, especially with Nintendo's Switch 2-focused Direct scheduled for April 2. Many are hopeful that Square Enix could announce the Final Fantasy 9 remake for the Switch 2 during this event. However, the website's mention of merchandise and collaborations, while intriguing, leaves room for speculation about what "various projects" might entail.
Last year, Naoki 'Yoshi-P' Yoshida, the producer of Final Fantasy 14, discussed the potential challenges of remaking Final Fantasy 9. He noted the game's extensive content, suggesting that a remake might not fit into a single title. "Of course, I do know there are requests for Final Fantasy 9 to be made, but when you think about Final Fantasy 9, it’s a game with huge volume," Yoshi-P explained. "When you think about all of that volume, I wonder if it’s possible to remake that as a single title. It’s a difficult one. It is a tough question." He hinted that a Final Fantasy 9 remake could follow the multi-part approach seen with the Final Fantasy 7 Remake, which is currently being released as a trilogy.
In early 2024, Yoshi-P announced Final Fantasy 9-themed bonuses for the Collector’s Edition and Digital Collector’s Edition of the Final Fantasy 14 expansion, Dawntrail. These include the Ark summon as a mount and a wind-up Princess Garnet minion, with pre-orders offering a wind-up Zidane minion. During PAX East, Yoshi-P teased, "You may have noticed a lot of Final Fantasy 9 references here, but the reason is a secret," before playfully zipping his mouth shut.
Final Fantasy XIV Dawntrail Final Fantasy 9 Bonuses
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Rumors of a Final Fantasy 9 remake have been circulating since a 2021 Nvidia leak, which listed several unannounced Square Enix titles, including the Final Fantasy 9 remake and Final Fantasy Tactics. While some games from the leak, such as the Chrono Cross remaster, Kingdom Hearts 4, and the Final Fantasy 7 remake for PC, have been confirmed or released, the Final Fantasy 9 remake and Final Fantasy Tactics remain unconfirmed. Additionally, a Final Fantasy 9 animated series was reported to be in development in June 2021, but no further updates have been provided since then.
