Three years ago, an extensive list of games was inadvertently revealed aftera major leak from Nvidia GeForce Now. Many of these have since been confirmed,including Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles, but nestled among them was the still-unannounced Final Fantasy 9 remake.
Whilenew merchandcryptic social media postsseem to be hinting at its arrival, especially with its 25th anniversary underway, behind the scenes, things might not be going so well.
“I’m Going To Lose My Mind If It Gets Cancelled”
Amidst images of a new leaked form-ism Vivi figure, ResetEra commenters tagged leaker NateDrake (ie NateTheHate) to ask if he had heard anything about the remake.He answered, “As of last check it remains in development, to my knowledge; but I need to do a fresh check & see what a more current status is—as I did hear a month or so ago that it was in trouble & possibly cancelled.”
I did hear a month or so ago that it was in trouble & possibly cancelled.
Before you grab your pitchforks, NateTheHate clarified that he only had “one source” for the cancellation claim, and that he needs to do further digging to verify it. So, the Final Fantasy 9 remake could still be in the works, even if it’s “in trouble” right now. Hardly the most promising sign for the long-awaited return to Gaia, either way.
At the very least, Square Enix has been giving Final Fantasy 9 fans some new story to chew on, like a prequel picture book thatfinally answers the mystery behind Vivi’s name.
It also released a special one-minute ‘movie’ for its 25th anniversary, featuring a montage of iconic scenes from across the game, scored to Melodies of Life. But again, it’s worth tempering expectations. This isn’t proof that the remake is about to be announced; in actuality, it’s marketing for the new vinyl release.
Maybe we’ll hear something for the anniversary, or maybe Square Enix is busy with Tactics while trying to course correct on the ‘troubled’ development of one of its most renowned mainline games—if not outright cancelling it. Until we hear more, it’s hard to say, but it’s hardly reassuring.
