Though Final Fantasy started out as a series that was most commonly associated with Nintendo console, starting with the PS1 era, Square Enix switched over to PlayStation, and Sony’s consoles became the exclusive home of the series’ mainline instalments. Starting with Final Fantasy 13 on the Xbox 360 though, the series has been a multiplatform one, with previous Final Fantasy games also seeing Xbox releases.
It seems like that’s no longer being the case. As per comments on ResetEra by VGC journalist Jordan Middler, specifically where Final Fantasy is concerned, Xbox fans shouldn’t hold out hope of seeing mainline games in the series on their platform of choice. According to Midller, Square Enix is “firmly in Sony’s camp, even beyond what’s publicly known.”
Middler says that Sony wants PlayStation to be the home of Final Fantasy this generation, and “until something changes”, the series won’t see any mainline releases on the Xbox Series X/S. In another comment, Middler also said that where PC releases are concerned, Square Enix is “keen” to keep releasing its games for PC, and we’re likely to see more timed exclusive releases making their way over to the platform some months following launch.
Where PC releases are concerned, timed console exclusives like Bravely Default 2 and Final Fantasy 7 Remake have both made their way to the platform, though the latter port has been widely criticized. The upcoming Forspoken is also going to launch for PC day and date (and will remain a PS5 console exclusive for at least two years after launch). Square Enix has also introduced $70 pricing for its PC releases.
Meanwhile, when it comes to Final Fantasy and Xbox, this doesn’t come as too much of a surprise. Final Fantasy 7 Remake remains a PlayStation console exclusive even now, even though its exclusivity period has ended. Final Fantasy 16 is also launching exclusively for PS5, though that is going to be a timed exclusive as well, so at least a PC version might eventually launch.
Of course, the upcoming Stranger of Paradise Final Fantasy Origin is releasing for Xbox as well.
