During that span, Square Enix has released remakes and spin-offs to try and tide fans over until Final Fantasy 16 arrives. But, it appears that Square Enix is more than ready to drop FF16 already.
According to Spheshal_Nick on a recent XboxEra podcast, Square Enix is open to delaying Forspoken for the second time, but it won’t be because of development issues. Apparently, Square Enix is doing this so that it can push FF16’s timeline forward. It’s worth noting that Square Enix has already delayed Forspoken earlier this year, so it’s not like the Japanese video game publisher hasn’t done it before. Not to mention, Square Enix might want to release a big Final Fantasy game this year. The hail mary franchise is set to celebrate its 35th anniversary later this year and a new title would be perfect. Square Enix hasn’t talked much about Final Fantasy 16 after announcing it in 2020. The last we heard is from the game’s producer, Naoki Yoshida, who claimed that Creative Business Unit III is putting on the finishing touches on Final Fantasy 16 and a trailer could come out soon. In an ideal world, this would suggest that FF16 is close to launching. The timeline also makes sense after Square Enix delayed the game in December, giving itself more time. At the very least, we’re close to that time of the year when companies usually announce big names. E3 2022 isn’t happening, but Xbox and Bethesda have a showcase planned for June 12 and the Summer Game Fest is still set for June 9. We also can’t discount the possibility that Square Enix might have another Square Enix Presents showcase scheduled around the same time. All that we are trying to say is that it would be a big surprise if we didn’t hear more about Final Fantasy 16 and Final Fantasy VII Part 2 in the next few months. In other Square Enix news, the first expansion for last year’s surprise hit, Outriders, will go live in June. It will be interesting to see what Square Enix and People Can Fly have to say about the game’s financial success or failure by then.
