Hironobu Sakaguchi, the legendary creator of the Final Fantasy series, initially considered retiring but has now set his sights on crafting a new game inspired by Final Fantasy 6. Dive deeper into his upcoming project and discover the latest updates on its development.
Final Fantasy Creator To Develop His Final Game Again
The Successor To Final Fantasy 6
Following the success of his 2021 game, Fantasian Neo Dimension, Hironobu Sakaguchi expressed in an interview with The Verge his initial intent for Fantasian to mark his retirement. However, his passion for game development reignited, and he now aims to create "a successor to Final Fantasy VI." Sakaguchi credits the enjoyable collaboration with his team on Fantasian as a significant factor in his decision to continue. He plans to work with the same team on this new project, describing it as an endeavor to "create something old but new at the same time." He also refers to this upcoming game as "part two of my farewell note."
Development On Sakaguchi’s Latest Project
In a 2024 interview with Famitsu, Sakaguchi revealed that he has been actively working on his new project for about a year, having completed the script. He anticipates reaching a significant development milestone in approximately two years. Additionally, in June 2024, Mistwalker filed a trademark for "FANTASIAN DARK AGE," sparking speculation about a potential sequel to Fantasian. Sakaguchi confirmed that his new project will maintain the fantasy RPG style of his past works, though no official title or detailed information has been released yet.
Reuniting With Square Enix For FANTASIAN Neo Dimension
In a significant move, Mistwalker partnered with Square Enix to bring FANTASIAN Neo Dimension to a broader audience on PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and Switch in December 2024. Originally released exclusively on Apple Arcade in 2021, Fantasian has been widely acclaimed as one of the best games on the platform. Reflecting on this collaboration, Sakaguchi noted, "It’s the place where I started my career, so coming full circle through the game I envisioned to be my final work was definitely a fascinating experience."
Sakaguchi's career began at Square (now Square Enix) in 1983, where he directed the first Final Fantasy game in 1987 and the subsequent four mainline titles, later serving as the producer for Final Fantasy 6 to Final Fantasy 11. He left Square in 2003 to establish Mistwalker, under which he developed titles such as Blue Dragon, Lost Odyssey, and The Last Story. Despite his recent partnership with Square Enix, Sakaguchi has no plans to revisit the Final Fantasy series or his previous works, expressing a shift from being a creator to a consumer.
