Final Fantasy 9 25th Anniversary Site Hints at Switch 2 Remake Reveal

The buzz around a potential Final Fantasy 9 remake has reignited following Square Enix's launch of an official 25th Anniversary website for the iconic game. The site, which is in Japanese, commemorates Final Fantasy 9's initial release on July 7, 2000, and celebrates its 25th anniversary in 2025. The website teases fans with a promise of "various projects, including merchandise and collaborations," fueling speculation about the long-awaited remake.

The timing of the website's launch has not gone unnoticed, especially with Nintendo's upcoming Switch 2-focused Direct scheduled for April 2. Some fans are speculating that Square Enix might seize this opportunity to announce a Final Fantasy 9 remake for the Switch 2. While the website's mention of merchandise and collaborations seems straightforward, the phrase "various projects" has ignited discussions and hopes among the gaming community.

Last year, Naoki 'Yoshi-P' Yoshida, the producer of Final Fantasy 14, shared insights on what a Final Fantasy 9 remake could entail. He highlighted the game's extensive content, suggesting that remaking it as a single title might be challenging. Yoshi-P drew comparisons to the Final Fantasy 7 Remake, which is being released as a planned trilogy, hinting that a similar approach might be considered for Final Fantasy 9.

Earlier in 2024, Yoshi-P announced Final Fantasy 9-themed extras for the Collector’s Edition and Digital Collector’s Edition of the Final Fantasy 14 expansion, Dawntrail. These include the Ark summon from Final Fantasy 9 as a mount in Final Fantasy 14 and a wind-up Princess Garnet minion. Pre-orders of Dawntrail also come with a wind-up Zidane minion. During PAX East, Yoshi-P playfully hinted at the significance of these Final Fantasy 9 references, saying, "You may have noticed a lot of Final Fantasy 9 references here, but the reason is a secret,” and then mimed zipping his mouth shut.

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Rumors of a Final Fantasy 9 remake have been circulating since a 2021 Nvidia leak revealed a list of unannounced games, including titles from Square Enix that have since been released or announced, such as the Chrono Cross remaster, Kingdom Hearts 4, and the Final Fantasy 7 remake for PC. However, both the Final Fantasy 9 remake and Final Fantasy Tactics, also mentioned in the leak, have yet to be officially confirmed. Additionally, a Final Fantasy 9 animated series was reportedly in development around the same time, but no further updates have been provided since its initial announcement in June 2021.