Square Enix has announced that two of its upcoming flagship RPGs will be delayed. Final Fantasy XVI has been hit by the COVID pandemic and has been delayed by at least six months, while the offline version of Dragon Quest X now won't be arriving in Japan until summer next year.
What's the reason for this Final Fantasy XVI delay?
Final Fantasy XVI was originally announced back in September 2020. Since then, we haven't heard too much about the game, with producer Naoki Yoshida saying he wanted to wait until the game was closer to completion before revealing more details. Speaking via Twitter, producer Naoki Yoshida explained the reasoning behind this recent Final Fantasy XVI delay decision. Yoshida says the game's development has been delayed "by almost a half year" due to ongoing COVID-19 complications. He says that the team has been working from home, and that this has hampered communication and resulted in either delays or cancellations for third-party assets.
This is the second Final Fantasy-related delay announced in December, after Final Fantasy V Pixel Remaster was delayed to February earlier this month. It's not all bad news, though. It's worth noting that Final Fantasy XVI didn't actually have a release date attached to it, so while development has been delayed, it's not like a promised date has been missed. As well as this, Yoshida says that despite the delay, his team will have something brand new to announce about the game in spring 2022. While Yoshida doesn't go into any detail regarding what information he'll be showing off, he does call it a "big reveal", so we can hopefully expect a little more than just a few teaser screenshots. We'll have to wait and see.
Why has Dragon Quest X been delayed?
In addition to Final Fantasy XVI, we've also been hit by a Dragon Quest X offline delay. The game, which will offer an offline version of the previously online-only tenth installment in the Dragon Quest series, was due to launch in Japan in February 2022. However, owing to the amount of content the game will offer (thanks, Siliconera), Square Enix is pushing back the release date to summer 2022, with extra DLC due in the fall. No more specific release window has been defined as yet, but Square Enix says an announcement regarding an official release date is forthcoming.
When it does arrive, the offline version of Dragon Quest X will offer a cute, reworked version of the game, which was previously an MMO. The basic DNA of Dragon Quest X will remain the same, but there will be some changes designed to accommodate single players and streamline the experience. Unfortunately, this news doesn't come with any kind of confirmation regarding a Western release of the game. We'll have to wait and see what Square Enix has in store for Dragon Quest fans.
Are you disappointed by the delay to Final Fantasy XVI and Dragon Quest X? Let us know in the comments below!
