At Final Fantasy 14 Fan Fest 2023, game director Naoki Yoshida (Yoshi-P) welcomed Xbox boss Phil Spencer onto the stage alongside Square Enix boss Takashi Kiryu to celebrate the announcement that Final Fantasy 14 is finally on its way to Xbox consoles after years of PlayStation console exclusivity. And it sounded like Microsoft had ensured even more Square Enix games will end up on Xbox in the coming years.
But does that mean that PlayStation exclusives Final Fantasy 7 Remake and the recently released Final Fantasy 16 will end up on Xbox? That’s exactly what IGN asked Xbox boss Phil Spencer in an interview at gamescom 2023. His answer teased deals are currently being worked on, although Spencer stopped short of announcing Final Fantasy 7 Remake and 16 for Microsoft’s platform.
“I recognise that when people buy an Xbox, they want to make sure the great games that they want to play are coming,” Spencer said. “If there’s any publisher out there where that hasn’t been true, Square’s one of the top. Sarah Bond [Corporate Vice President, Game Creator Experience and Ecosystem at Microsoft] and I fly to Tokyo and have conversations, and we’ve spent a lot of time with Square. There’s obviously business deals and relationships that will have to get worked through on certain games.
“But I’ll say it was really great to have the CEO of Square and Yoshi there to just talk about their commitment to Xbox. Because I can say, like, ‘I’m the head of Xbox, blah blah blah,’ but having the CEO of one of the third-parties make a commitment to the platform, I thought was a really meaningful step.
“So you’ll hear more. I’m not going to push them. They’re going to have to find their own rhythm. But having them make a commitment to Xbox was really important both to me, and I’ve heard it from the community, to the community as well. And 14 was more of a commitment.”
Final Fantasy 7 Remake launched in April 2020 on the PlayStation 4, with an Intergrade version releasing on PlayStation 5 and PC in 2021. Square Enix has yet to say an Xbox version is in the works. Final Fantasy 16, meanwhile, launched as a PS5 exclusive in June. A PC version is in development but currently is without a release date. There’s no mention of an Xbox version.
During the recent FTC v. Microsoft trial it emerged that Xbox had seriously considered buying Square Enix in 2019. Square Enix also came up repeatedly during the trial, with Final Fantasy 16 used as an example of the kinds of games PlayStation was buying exclusivity rights to in a frustrating but acknowledged part of games market competition. We learned how critical it has become for Xbox to pack its library full of games, and to ensure it doesn’t miss out on significant games like Final Fantasy 16.
If you need a catchup, here’s everything announced at gamescom Opening Night Live 2023.
Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.
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