The anticipation for the long-awaited Final Fantasy 9 remake has been reignited following Square Enix's launch of the official Final Fantasy 9 25th Anniversary website. The site, which is in Japanese, commemorates the game's release on July 7, 2000, and highlights that this year marks its 25th anniversary. The website teases fans with a message stating, "We are preparing various projects, including merchandise and collaborations to commemorate the 25th anniversary, so please look forward to it!" This seemingly innocuous statement, coupled with the launch of the anniversary website, has fueled speculation that Square Enix might soon reveal the much-anticipated Final Fantasy 9 remake.

The timing of the website's launch has not gone unnoticed by fans, especially with Nintendo's upcoming Switch 2-focused Direct scheduled for April 2. Many are hopeful that Square Enix might seize this opportunity to announce the Final Fantasy 9 remake for the Switch 2. However, it's important to temper expectations, as the website's mention of merchandise and collaborations could simply be a prelude to those projects rather than a game announcement.

Last year, Naoki 'Yoshi-P' Yoshida, the producer of Final Fantasy 14, offered insights into what a Final Fantasy 9 remake might entail. He noted the game's substantial content, suggesting that fitting it into a single title could be challenging. Yoshi-P hinted that a remake might follow a multi-part approach similar to the Final Fantasy 7 Remake, which is currently planned as a trilogy.

Earlier in 2024, Yoshi-P announced Final Fantasy 9-themed extras for the Collector’s Edition and Digital Collector’s Edition of the Final Fantasy 14 expansion Dawntrail. These include the iconic Ark summon from Final Fantasy 9 as a mount in Final Fantasy 14, and a wind-up Princess Garnet minion. Pre-orders of Dawntrail also included a wind-up Zidane minion. During the announcement at PAX East, Yoshi-P playfully teased, "You may have noticed a lot of Final Fantasy 9 references here, but the reason is a secret,” before miming zipping his mouth shut.

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Rumors of a Final Fantasy 9 remake have been circulating since the game appeared on a leaked list of upcoming titles from Nvidia in 2021. Although Nvidia confirmed the leak's authenticity, the list might be outdated. It included several Square Enix games that have since been announced or released, such as the Chrono Cross remaster, Kingdom Hearts 4, and the Final Fantasy 7 remake for PC. However, the Final Fantasy 9 remake and Final Fantasy Tactics, also listed, have yet to be officially announced. Additionally, a few months before the Nvidia leak, in June 2021, reports surfaced about a Final Fantasy 9 animated series in development, though no updates have emerged since.