Final Fantasy VII: Remake is the first installment of the trilogy of games remaking the 1997 PlayStation title in this series. This action RPG title was released exclusively for PS4 in April 2020. Later, an enhanced version called the Final Fantasy VII: Remake Intergrade was released for PS5 in June 2021. It only found its way to Windows PC in December 2021.
The latest installment to this renowned action RPG series, Final Fantasy XVI, is also released exclusively on PlayStation 5. There are plans to release a version for Windows, but there is still no official release date. Seeing how the Final Fantasy games are exclusively released for PlayStations at first, suggests Sony has some hold over the franchise.
On a recent Rand al Thor 19 podcast, an industry insider, Jez Corden, revealed, “I got evidence tentatively that there are discussions about Final Fantasy 7 for Xbox.” However, the Japanese behemoths or Microsoft haven’t yet made any official announcement related to this. Corden claimed Sony or Square Enix might not want to make the announcement right now to “take the shine off” Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth, which is set to release on February 29, 2024.
Will an Xbox release for Final Fantasy VII: Remake reaffirm Microsoft’s view on console exclusivity?
When it comes to policies about console exclusivity, PlayStation and Xbox have opposite ideologies. The Japanese company is strict with its exclusivity and prevents its AAA game studios from releasing content for other platforms. Meanwhile, Xbox emphasizes on releasing its content on rival platforms like PlayStation and Nintendo.
If Sony does release the Final Fantasy VII: Remake on Xbox, it will reaffirm Microsoft’s stance on releasing games across different platforms. Moreover, it would also mean the Japanese giants are finally willing to loosen up their strict exclusivity policies. We have already seen Sony release many PlayStation exclusives like God of War, Marvel’s Spider-Man, and Horizon Zero Dawn on PC in the past few years.
Fans should take the rumor of Final Fantasy VII: Remake releasing on Xbox with some grain of salt, as it could be false unless Sony or Microsoft makes an official announcement. Meanwhile, they can look forward to the upcoming Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth, the sequel to the 2020-released title.
