Square Enix had to have known the sort of Pandora’s Box they were opening with Final Fantasy VII: Remake. Thankful, devoted, but nonetheless greedy fans like myself now have running lists of every game they wish to see announced for a trip through the reimagination machine. Final Fantasy IX, I’m looking at you.
The volume of games in the Final Fantasy series leaves plenty of remake options, but looking through it game by game, Final Fantasy IX does seem to have been ignored a little more than its siblings. Square Enix recently announced the Final Fantasy Pixel Remaster that provides the series’ first six games with 2D remasters; Final Fantasy VII has the remake, and Final Fantasy VIII got a full reskin back in 2019. To date, IX has only received a standard remaster, which almost every game in the world gets at some point.
What is strange about Final Fantasy IX is that if you view it from a distance, it comfortably fits in the series’ 35-year timeline, but if you zoom in, it feels out of place. After the success of VII and VIII—games set in what one might consider depictions of a not-too-distant, slightly dystopian, future (VII rooted in exploitative industry, VIII in some variation of college academia)—IX is firmly medieval. The medieval setting was a concern during development given the stark contrast to the then-current direction of the series. Hard to imagine now more than 20 years on, but a time existed when IX was potentially seen as a side release. Even from the developmental stages, IX was a little bit of an orphan.
The orphan mentality went far beyond the setting though. The game was given a stronger, cartoonish art style and was released on PlayStation after the debut of the PlayStation 2. Final Fantasy IX was like the latest, greatest horse-and-buggy model; the only problem was that the Model T lot had just opened up next door. IX was already an historical artifact at the moment of its release, an uncommon pause in an industry so often focused on rushing towards the next-best thing.
That friction might be what makes IX the great game that it is. The convergence of the old and the new left a game that had no loyalties, willing to pull from any era without prejudice. Plot, setting, character development, battle systems, and even graphics, all became strange hybrid creatures comprised of metaphorical limbs left behind by the game’s forebears. Perhaps it is only fitting then that the hero, Zidane Tribal, is human, save for that he has a tail. Almost normal. Almost.
Final Fantasy IX’s story is more complex than many of those forebears. Almost every principal character has a deep, winding story arch unique to them, further fleshed out by the introduction of Active Time Events, which allow exploration of side characters and their stories apart from their intersections with Zidane. As Zidane and Tantalus—a medieval version of VII’s AVALANCHE (one man’s eco-terrorist is another man’s theater troupe)—begin the game trying to kidnap Princess Garnet from the city of Alexandria, this classically set medieval drama ends up wandering no small distance away from its starting point.
Which is why a remake seems so appropriate. It is hard to find a Final Fantasy world with more perceived depth than IX’s. The world feels old. Not "old" in relation to the setting, but rather in relation to all of the histories and mythologies that populate it. The world's age becomes believable because nothing could be young and have accumulated so much of said history and myth. That history would seem to provide endless threads for expansion should a remake materialize. And if you want to add another 100 Chocographs to be found, I won't stand in the way.
Perhaps the largest obstacle to getting such a remake is that we are, in a way, already getting one. On June 22, Cyber Group Studios announced that, in partnership with Square Enix, they are releasing an animated series adaptation of Final Fantasy IX. The series will be “an adventure animation series primarily aimed at 8 to 13-year-old kids and family audiences with respect to co-viewing. It will also target and please game players, as the adaptation will maintain the world of the game thanks to the supervision of Square Enix.”
Does that mean we are getting a retelling of the original story, or something altogether new? Probably the latter given the language of the press release. That the announcement feels the need to mention that the adaptation will "please game players" probably indicates it is heading for a direction far from the original game. Though the original looks more childish in presentation, many of the themes and events within it are not particularly child-friendly, so the target audience feels noteworthy in reference to the sort of content that might be expected. The mention of “respect to co-viewing” suggests that the creators might be willing to push the envelope from time to time (violent Burmecian genocides, anyone?), but what form that envelope pushing may take is still a mystery.
The announcement of the animated series is conflicting. It unquestionably will breathe new life into a world that has not received much attention since its inception, but it is difficult to say that this particular new iteration is one of choice. A cartoon series and a potential remake are not mutually exclusive, but the presence of one likely, at best, delays the existence of the other. And that Square Enix seems content to remain entrenched in remaking VII for the foreseeable future, IX may have to remain the historical artifact it always was.
The soundtrack is another aspect that would benefit from this remake proposal. By the time VII Remake came out, gamers had already been exposed to several variations of many of the more well-known themes thanks to Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children, as well as the Distant Worlds orchestral albums and concerts. And the soundtrack was still incredible. With the exception of a few selections from the Distant Worlds series, IX’s soundtrack has yet to be given the sprawling, grandiose orchestral treatment. Remaking the game might be worth it just to get our hands on that soundtrack.
Surprise animated adaptations notwithstanding, a formal remake still feels desirable, even if it feels less likely at this point. It is not to say that anything in the game requires reimagination, but one of the genuine thrills of Final Fantasy VII Remake was to simply see Midgar with a fresh set of eyes and a new, very expensive coat of paint. When I consider many of the significant moments of IX’s narrative, I cannot help but wish to see them given the same attention.