There are rumors circulating regarding a remake of Final Fantasy IX. If the rumors are true, then the game has the chance to avoid some of the pitfalls of Final Fantasy VII Remake, as it’s another attempt at adapting an epic RPG from the original PlayStation to modern systems, which comes with a lot of expectations from the fans.
The reason why people think FF9 Remake is in the works is that it was listed in the GeForce Now datamine leak, among other games that are meant to be coming to the PC platform. A remake of FF9 would seem unlikely, considering Square Enix is still busy with the FF7 Remake series. The reason fans think the rumors could be legit is that there is an FF9 animated series in the works, and Square Enix might want to push the series as a multimedia entity. There is also a surprising amount of FF9 representation in Chocobo GP, though this could be a case of the game skewing to a younger audience.
FF7 Remake already took inspiration from FF9, in the form of its weapon/ability system. If FF9 Remake is in development, then it could be inspired by FF7 Remake‘s approach to storytelling. There’s also a chance that FF9 Remake could be an episodic game, as this was a practical decision forced upon FF7 Remake early on. The developers of FF9 Remake have the chance to see what worked in FF7 Remake and to ignore the parts that didn’t work.
FF9 Remake Should Avoid Rushing The Villain’s Introduction
One of the biggest changes in FF7 Remake is Sephiroth’s role in the story. In FF7, the player doesn’t see Sephiroth until the Kalm flashback, which happens after the Midgar section of the game. The build-up to Sephiroth’s reveal is masterfully done, as the player only hears about his strength, and witnesses the aftermath of his assault on the Shinra Headquarters. Once the player is finally introduced to Sephiroth, he is shown slaying dragons in a single hit, which makes his descent into madness all the more terrifying. FF7 Remake introduces Sephiroth within the first hour of gameplay, as he appears in a vision to taunt Cloud. He appears sporadically to mess with Cloud’s head, before becoming a major part of the final act of the Midgar section of the game. Sephiroth has some awesome moments in FF7 Remake, but his presence diminishes the threat of the Shinra Electric Power Company as the main villain, which is the corporation’s role before Sephiroth’s arrival.
Sephiroth’s presence in FF7 Remake was likely due to his popularity, and the fact that the episodic nature of the series meant that he wouldn’t have appeared until the sequel, had the series stuck to the original storyline. If FF9 Remake goes the episodic route, then the developers might be tempted to do the same thing with Kuja, who is the main villain of Final Fantasy 9. Kuja barely appears during the first segment of the game. The villain at the start of FF9 is Queen Brahne, who uses her army of artificial Black Mages (provided by Kuja) to wage war on neighboring kingdoms. Kuja manipulates Brahne from behind the scenes into doing his bidding. He eventually kills Brahne and becomes the villain of the story.
If FF9 Remake does go the episodic route, then there will be a temptation to introduce Kuja into the story early and set him up as the main villain, even if it’s just as the power behind the throne. This would be a mistake, as Brahne is a fantastic villain in her own right, and she deserves to be the star of the show before her final battle with Kuja. FF9 already has a problem with a good villain having the spotlight stolen from them, so it doesn’t need to happen again to accommodate a fragmented release.
FF9 Remake Shouldn’t Bring The Summons In Earlier Like FF7 Remake Did
The summon monsters are an iconic part of the Final Fantasy series, mostly due to the fact that they have the most reoccurring appearances. In FF7, the player doesn’t receive their first summon until they reach the Chocobo Farm, which is visited after the Midgar section of the game. FF7 Remake decided to introduce the summons during the Midgar section of the story, with some of them needing to be defeated in Chadley’s simulator before they can be used in battle.
In FF9, only two of the characters have access to summons. Dagger cannot use her summons at the beginning of the game, as their MP cost is inflated. It takes some time, but Dagger eventually gains the ability to summon monsters on Disc 2. The developers of an FF9 Remake might be tempted to bring the summons into the story at an earlier point, especially if the game goes the episodic route, but there are more issues with this concept when applying it to FF9. The summons in FF7 aren’t part of the story, are only explained in a piece of cut dialogue, and can easily be ignored by the player. In FF9, the Final Fantasy summons and the limitations on their use are a major part of the story, and trying to bring them in earlier for fanservice would diminish the role in the rest of the game.
FF9 Remake Shouldn’t Pad The Runtime By Reusing Assets Like FF7 Remake Did
One of the biggest issues with FF7 Remake is how it pads out the story. The decision to set the game in Midgar likely made sense early on, due to how it’s such an iconic setting in the Final Fantasy series. In reality, the version of Midgar in FF7 Remake mostly consists of junkyards, shantytowns, industrial facilities, and sewers. The only thing drearier than the locations is the time spent going backward and forward through them. FF7 Remake has a padding problem, which is linked to keeping it in one location that is familiar to fans of the original game.
FF9 doesn’t have a location that could serve the same function as Midgar. The story starts in Alexandria, but the players spend a good chunk of the first disc traveling between locations and exploring dungeons. The world of FF9 is a lot brighter and more fantastical than FF7, and the developers should make the most of that fact in a remake. The worst thing that Final Fantasy 9 Remake could do is pad out its runtime by artificially expanding the early locations that appear at the start of the game, either through unnecessary minigames, or extra backtracking.
