Final Fantasy IX, one of the most beloved entries in the Final Fantasy franchise and the last mainline Final Fantasy title to be released for the PlayStation One will be having its 25th anniversary later this year on July 7, 2025.
To celebrate this occasion, Square Enix has launched a new Final Fantasy IX anniversary website which will be selling new merchandise for the game including plushies, figures, music tracks, books, and more.
However, fans on Reddit are speculating that this website could be hinting that Final Fantasy IX's long-rumored remake could be announced for its 25th anniversary.
Final Fantasy IX 25th anniversary website launched from r/PS5
What also fuels this speculation is that according to VGA, a GeForce NOW database leak in 2021 suggested that a Final Fantasy IX remake was reportedly in the works. Several games in this list would later become reality, such as the Chrono Cross Remaster, Kingdom Hearts 4, and the PC port of Final Fantasy VII Remake.
Of course, this leak should be taken with a grain of salt as there's currently no official confirmation from Square Enix that they are working on a remake for Final Fantasy IX.
However, we may have an idea of what a remake may look like because according to an IGN interview with Final Fantasy XIV's producer/director, Naoki Yoshida, when he was asked about a potential Final Fantasy IX remake, he responded thusly:
"Of course, I do know there are requests for Final Fantasy IX to be made, but when you think about Final Fantasy IX, it’s a game with huge volume." Yoshida then proclaims, "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."
This suggests that if Square Enix does go ahead with remaking Final Fantasy IX, it may split the game into multiple titles, much like it's been doing with the Final Fantasy VII Remake trilogy.
Will Final Fantasy IX receive the Final Fantasy VII Remake treatment?
Final Fantasy IX is one of my favorite games of all time. The rich story and characters, timeless artstyle, medieval fantasy setting, in-depth exploration, and addictive turn-based combat system made me into the JRPG lover I am today, even more so Final Fantasy VII.
If Square Enix does end up remaking Final Fantasy IX, I hope they keep the turn-based combat intact. I much rather prefer that gameplay style over the real-time combat modern Final Fantasy games have been using, like Final Fantasy XVI and Final Fantasy VII Rebirth.
Not only that, I hope that the Final Fantasy IX remake ends up on Xbox consoles and PC. That way, I can play it alongside other awesome JRPG revivals like Final Fantasy Pixel Remaster, the Live A Live Remake, and Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake.
Of course, only time will tell if these rumors of Square Enix returning to the magical world of Final Fantasy IX to give it a next-gen makeover turn out to be true.
