This series of JRPG titles have made a sizable impact in and out of the gaming industry, resulting in it appearing in other forms of media, from animation to movies and affecting even the global fashion industry. As impactful as the Final Fantasy franchise has been though, one could argue that 2021 could be the biggest year for the franchise yet. Here’s why.
The Final Fantasy Franchise in 2021
The numerous development teams over at Square Enix have had their hands full for quite some time and it’s expected that they’ll have something huge to show for their efforts in 2021. This includes:
More Details Regarding Final Fantasy 16
Nearly half a decade following the release of Final Fantasy 15, a new major release has been confirmed by Square Enix in the form of Final Fantasy 16. The latest entry to the Final Fantasy franchise was first teased during the September “Future of Play” broadcast by Sony. However, the development team has stayed quiet since, with very minimal details revealed outside of the official website going online. Still, we are quite hopeful that we’ll receive some big news regarding Final Fantasy 16 this 2021. This is following the assurance given by Naoki “Yoshi-P” Yoshida, head of the Square Enix Business Unit III and Final Fantasy 16’s producer, that they make major announcements this 2021. Just what exactly those announcements are is anyone’s guess at this point. Hopefully, it’ll be an actual gameplay trailer with an official release date announced. Considering that it started development way back in 2015 following the release of the second expansion for Final Fantasy XIV: Heavensward, that seems the most likely scenario at this point.
A New Expansion for Final Fantasy XIV
While all eyes are on Final Fantasy 16, all gamers who are currently playing Final Fantasy XIV are also expecting something big this 2021 after Yoshida’s statement. Final Fantasy XIV recently saw the release of Patch 5.4, with the story focusing more on the Source and less from the world of the First. In addition to this, the new update also included a new big baddie. With that said, Patch 5.5 should come sooner rather than later followed by, hopefully, the next expansion sometime later this year.
Final Fantasy VII Remake Part 2 Update
We likely won’t see Part 2 of the Final Fantasy VII Remake release this 2021, but we might see a release date revealed sometime this year. The Final Fantasy 7 Remake Part 2 has been in development since December 2019, with producer Yoshinori Kitase guaranteeing a smooth progression of the game’s development in December 2020, even in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. The motion capture artist for Aerith also revealed in the same month that she had just finished wrapping up a lengthy mocap work session with the motion capture artist for Sephiroth. He mentions “the new world of FF7 has only just begun” and they are progressing smoothly with development. He says to wait a bit longer for new info. Here’s the translation! pic.twitter.com/ScCF3KM39u — ☆オードリーAudrey☆ (@aitaikimochi) December 26, 2020 Considering how close “that part” is to the end of the game in the original Final Fantasy 7 release, mo-cap work, and the game’s development may be nearing completion. Of course, this is all speculation at this point, so take this guess with a grain of salt. If it’s any consolation though, Square Enix did guarantee fans that separate teams are working on the Final Fantasy 7 Remake Part 2 and Final Fantasy 16, so they shouldn’t be short of manpower while working on two big titles.
Final Fantasy 14 Live-Action Show
Nearly two years have passed since the announcement of the partnership between Hivemind Entertainment and Sony Pictures Television to develop a live-action show based on the MMORPG, Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn. We haven’t heard much about the series since, but we should hear more about it soon. If not because it’s long overdue, but possibly because the second season of Netflix’s The Witcher series is expected to release this 2021. In case you didn’t know, Hivemind Entertainment is also responsible for the said series that’s also based on a popular video game franchise.
Conclusion
The Final Fantasy franchise is about to get bigger and more popular if that’s at all even possible, which is good news for us gamers. However, it doesn’t matter what Square Enix announces this 2021, because we all know that they’re good for the money, so we can expect them to reveal some pretty exciting things throughout the entire year. Hopefully, this includes news on a possible remake of the Final Fantasy XIII trilogy of games.
