Despite Final Fantasy 14 producer/director Naoki Yoshida seemingly teasing it and reliable leaker Midori affirming its existence, Final Fantasy 9’s remake has yet to be announced. Nevertheless, it’s still in the works, with Midori reporting that it wasn’t cancelled after Square Enix announced its new business plan.
Interestingly enough, it was “originally outsourced to another developer.” Square Enix wasn’t happy with the result, however, and development shifted (not unlike what happened with Final Fantasy 7 Remake).
“Development of this title is now very far along,” she revealed in a follow-up tweet, but a lot is unknown. “I do not have any firm information on the scope of this title or a firm release period right now. This title could release before the end of this fiscal year, but I am not certain right now.”
Square Enix reportedly plans to reveal new details on some of its titles at the upcoming Xbox Games Showcase (which could include Visions of Mana’s release date). However, Midori doesn’t know if Final Fantasy 9 Remake will be present. On the bright side, it is planned for multiple platforms, reflecting the publisher’s recent shift.
The Xbox Games Showcase will take place on June 9th at 10 AM PT, but we can expect further updates and “deep dives” on the titles that appear from June 10th via the Official Xbox Podcast. Stay tuned in the meantime.