Square Enix is in no hurry to return to the project, despite long-standing rumors and leaks.
New rumors about the Final Fantasy IX remake confirm that the project is still on hold. According to insider NateTheHate, there are no signs of forward movement around it. At the same time, he clarified that for Square Enix, such a "freeze" does not necessarily mean a final cancellation: the company may return to development in the future, but there are no changes at the moment.
The remake of the cult JRPG has been discussed for several years, but Square Enix has not officially announced it. One of the main reasons to believe in the existence of the project remains the Nvidia database leak that surfaced a few years ago.
It featured a number of yet-to-be-announced (at the time) games, many of which were later actually released — including the Resident Evil 4 remake, Dragon’s Dogma 2, and Kingdom Hearts IV.
Against this background, the Final Fantasy IX remake remains one of the few projects from that leak that has not been presented to the public. Moreover, it is still unclear how far the development has progressed or whether it was frozen at an early stage.
At the same time, Square Enix continues to develop FFIX through third-party projects. An illustrated prequel book is in development, as well as an animated series, the events of which take place after the original game and tell about the children of the black mage Vivi Ornitier.
