Final Fantasy VII's 30th anniversary could perfectly align with the release of the third and final chapter of Square Enix's remake of the beloved classic.
On X/Twitter, user @aitaikimochi shared new information featured in the upcoming Final Fantasy VII Rebirth Ultimania book, which also includes some exciting details about the third installment in the ongoing Final Fantasy VII Remake trilogy.
The most notable takeaway is that Square Enix is hoping to release Final Fantasy VII Remake Part 3 in three years. According to @aitaikimochi, the main story of FFVII Remake Part 3 has already been completed with voice recording likely starting "in the near future."
While those who played the original FFVII back on PlayStation are already familiar with the story, Nomura comments in the book that "[Producer Yoshinori Kitase] proposed an idea to him about “something” very important to include, even though it wasn’t in the original game." Nomura is still thinking on how to work this into the game, but he believes if he can successfully do so it "will surely make people happy if they can do it well."
The post also touches on the development timeline of Final Fantasy VII Remake Part 3 and how Square Enix could possibly get it out in time for the 30th anniversary in 2027.
Kitase hopes to deliver an amazing product for Part 3 without having to sacrifice quality over time. He says the reason why FF7 Rebirth was such an efficient development period was because they retained the same staff as the previous installment, and Part 3 will also have the same team.
Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, the sequel to Final Fantasy VII Remake and the second title in Square Enix's planned trilogy, was released earlier this year in February. Final Fantasy VII Remake was released in April of 2020. According to @aitaikimochi's post, the fourth year was due to Square Enix working on DLC for the game, otherwise, it would've been out in three years.
Kitase mentions FF7 Rebirth was actually done within 3 years since about one year was developing the DLC, and he hopes to be able to stick with that schedule for Part 3 too.
It's also worth pointing out that Final Fantasy VII Rebirth is an absolute mammoth of a game. It features an open-world filled with side quests and mini-games that could take players upwards of 100 hours to complete it all. The game has been met with universal acclaim from critics and fans alike.