Do The Final Fantasy 9 Remake Right, Or Don't Do It At All

By 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Ryan Thompson-Bamsey

Published Jul 10, 2025

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If you’re anything like me, you’re tired of the rumours surrounding Final Fantasy 9 Re🧜make.

First, we unofficially learn that the remake is happening, but it’s far, far off. Then, it suddenly starts sounding like a pipe dream. After that, Final Fantasy Tactics and a bunch of other 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:titles from the Nvidia leak turn out to be real, so it’s looking like we’re revisiting Gaia after all! And now, finally, it seems the remake was real but is now likely cancelled. I’m tired. A littl🙈e part of me, though, is🍌 also relieved.

Final Fantasy 9 Vivi standing over an Octopath Traveler 2 road.

"I Did Hear It Was In Trouble": Insider Sparks Concerns That💟 Final Fantasy 9 Remake Could Be Cancelled

The long-awaited return to Gaia m♏ight have hit a snag in the ༺road.

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On one hand, thওere was an exhilarating, almost giddy hope; the thought 🦩of revisiting Gaia in a truly modern form is breathtaking. On the other, a bone-chilling dread, a cold sweat born from the fact that for tens of thousands of us, Square Enix would absolutely mess it all up.

What Makes FF9 So Special?

Let's be clear: Final Fantasy 9 isn't just another game in the series. It's a meticulously crafted fairy tale, a poignant journey back to 🧸the classic JRPG’s roots after the experimental dieselpunk escapades of its predecessors.

It's a game that resonates deeply, a comfort blanket for many thanks to its gorgeous art style and iconic OST, not to mention a masterclass in character and world-building. A remake has the potential 𝔉to be glorious, a triumphant reintroduction of a beloved classic to a new generation and a thrilling revisit to an old friend for us elderly millennials, but I also don’t have it in me to withstand the caustic debates and firestorms that the likes of the Final Fantasy 7 Remake trilogy has set off. If a remake of FF9 turned out to be a sequel in disguise, I can’t ima♐gine a single person being happy.

There is simply no way a remake would get away with any of the decisions it makes if it were to alter things. Change the narrative even one iota? The purists will riot. Keep the battle system untouched? The one big flaw of the original gets trashed in today’s nastier world. Make a deviation away from the turn-based roots? We get anotheꦰr thousand op-eds about how Clair Obscur should have taught us more than it already has. I h🐎aven’t got the patience...

Vivi with his staff raised in Final Fantasy 9.

It Could Be Done Well...

Theoretically, there is a remake that ticks as many boxes as hum🅺anly possible, and here’s a few ideas:

We don't need photorealism. We need a painterly or stylised upgrade that enhances the original art direction, rather than replacing it. Think Octopath Traveller and other HD-2D titles like Dragon Quest and Triangle Strategy.

A slightly quicker battle system that feels modern but retains its strategic depth as a turn-based affair. Meaningful enhancements to Trance and ability learning would also be welcome.

A 1:1 narrative adaptation is crucial. Any new content should add to character development or lore in a way that feels organic and enhances the existing story, never contradicting or overshadowing it. Give Freya some new lines and make Amarant interesting for more than three minutes.

Nobuo Uematsu's iconic melodies are the heart and soul of FF9. A lovingly re-orchestrated soundtrack that preserves its emotional power is an absolute must, but also provides us with the originals as an alternative. Uematsu himself is on record as saying that FF9 is his favourite; it arguably doesn’t even need a re-orchestration.

Even with these one hundred percent perfect ideas for what this remake should be, I’m sure there would be a plethora of angry voices who have their own imperfect ideas of what should be done to ⛎this masterpiece to bring it into the mo✤dern era.

While I was terribly excited by the rumours of the remake, I have to a🎶dmit that, having given the game a recent r𝓡eplay, it arguably doesn’t even need one. It more than holds up.

If the rumours are all true - that we had the remake all but confirmed but it’s been cancelled rather close to the finishing line - then it’s possible that the impossibility of remaking such a belovꦏed piece of video game history played a significant role. Square Enix needs to truly nail this, and it’s a tall ask.

Final Fantasy 9 holds a truly speciꦰal place in the hearts of millions. It's a game that taught 𝐆us about life, loss, and the enduring power of doing the right thing. It's a game that reminded us why we fell in love with JRPGs in the first place, and for plenty, like myself, it’s the one that got us into gaming as a medium in the first place. Square Enix, please, either do it justice or leave it alone.