January 31, 2012 marks the 15th anniversary of the original Japanese release of FFVII. Given the significance of that date, it would have made perfect sense. Square Enix could finally throw back the curtain and show us high-definition remake we've been wanting for so long.
But instead, we get a 10-year anniversary re-do of Final Fantasy X. And it's not even a remake, but an HD update. Huh.
Quite simply, Square Enix doesn't care what their fans want.
But the truth is, Final Fantasy needs to be saved from itself. There hasn't been a good, "core" Final Fantasy title since FFX, Final Fantasy XII/XIII never lived up to the extraordinarily high bar that the franchise usually sets. Final Fantasy XIV, a broken mess of a game, is a running joke among console and PC gamers, and Square Enix even apologized for ruining it. And yet, the series continues its backwards progression with an aggravating amount of spin-offs, side projects, and more things that the fans never asked for.
Sure, I understand the concept of a Final Fantasy X HD remake. It's cheap to produce. It's easy to shill out for the PlayStation Vita launch. It's also an anniversary release, and you're essentially just re-skinning a PlayStation 2 title. Final Fantasy VII, an original PlayStation title from 1997, is so old that Square Enix would literally have to create a brand new game with a brand new engine. And they should have been doing that since the PS3 first rolled off the factory lines.
And what's worse is that Square Enix has proven they have the technology to do Final Fantasy VII again. I'm not just talking about the PlayStation 3 tech demo, either. Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII (and the Final Fantasy Dissidia series) has shown that Square Enix is more than capable of recreating a full RPG experience with the world of Gaia. They've proven that they have the assets and art direction to do a FFVII remake on the PlayStation Vita -- or even the PlayStation Portable. But they haven't. For whatever reason, they won't.
Final Fantasy VII, an original PlayStation title from 1997, is so old that Square Enix would literally have to create a brand new game with a brand new engine. And they should have been doing that since the [PlayStation 3] first rolled off the factory lines.
And no matter how much we beg, we might not even get a remake until 2017. Why 2017, of all years? Because that's the date of the 20th anniversary -- and literally how long it might take before Square Enix finally lets us eat the carrot that they've been dangling in front of us since E3 2005...
Square Enix is either waiting on better technology (PlayStation 4?), or they're waiting for the day that their fans finally stop caring. Well, congratulations, Square Enix, you win. I don't care about Final Fantasy anymore.
Link: http://www.gamepro.com/article/news/222957/editorial-final-fantasy-x-remake-proves-square-enix-doesnt-really-care-about-ffvii-fans/
