Is FF IX a direct sequel to FF VIII?

[01.25.99] » Could this be the bomb Square is about to drop on the gaming world? Quite likely. A GIA exclusive investigation.

Could this be the logo?

   Every Final Fantasy game is its own self-contained universe -- characters, worlds, and features never carry over from one game to the next. But could Final Fantasy IX buck this long-time trend? Very possibly. It sounds impossible, but take a look at the facts and you too might be convinced.

Fact: Squall and Laguna were the first two characters revealed for Final Fantasy VIII.

   When Square chooses to introduce their new title, they're not going to drag out the minor supporting characters. Final Fantasy VII's first revealed characters were Cloud, Aeris, and Barret. It's safe to say that the game's story revolves around Cloud first and Aeris second; Barret has a strong supporting role from the very first battle. Minor characters such as Yuffie, Vincent, Cait Sith, etc. were revealed over the ensuing months.

   Square chose to reveal Squall and Laguna simultaneously, making them both "flagship" characters for the series. But Laguna has since been relegated to a supporting role in Final Fantasy VIII! Something is amiss....

Fact: Reports surfaced in May 1998 that Square was displaying banners for Final Fantasy VIII reading "Two heroes, two worlds."

   Gamers were confused by this statement ... what did it mean? Some chose to take it literally; believing that Laguna was from another planet. Others took it figuratively, believing that Laguna came from another "world," another sort of life, from Squall.

   But what if Square meant something entirely different ... what if they meant two entirely separate quests for two entirely separate heroes, each taking place in the same time and world? And what if they had to cut this feature at the last moment due to time constraints ... but wanted the full story to live on in some form? Conflicting reports later on made it sound as if Square removed these banners -- perhaps last minute design changes? Hmm...

Fact: After his initial appearance, Laguna Loire disappeared for a few months before resurfacing in a largely changed form.

The new Laguna barely resembled the old one. The old Laguna was an older journalist (27 years old) who had seen his share of suffering and was ready to call it quits. The new Laguna is a brash, young, weapons-using soldier -- like Squall.

Fact: Laguna and Squall are practically mirror images of each other.

   Squall is a young soldier from Balamb Garden and is assisted by his two close friends, Rinoa Heartilly and Zell Dincht. Laguna is a soldier from Galbadia Garden and is assisted by his two close friends, Ward Zabac and Kiros Seagill. Wait a minute ... Laguna's so important that even his friends have last names? For a "supporting" character, that doesn't make much sense.

   What's more, Laguna's first appearance is in Squall's dreams ... where Squall dreams he's Laguna. Laguna is more than just a supporting character. He's more than just a literary foil. Laguna is perhaps the most interesting person revealed in Final Fantasy VIII so far, besides Squall. And the two's lives seem so closely connected....

Squall and Laguna

Conjecture: This picture adds support to the brewing hypothesis.

   This is, perhaps, the first picture of Final Fantasy VIII released by Square to feature multiple characters in a setting. (i.e. not free floating in space). Look at the two characters chosen: Squall and Laguna. Why them? Why them together? Look at the framing of the picture; the two, in this case are mirror images. But the two even look alike, each with bangs falling over his face, his hands by his side and a backwards glance towards the wall. But the ground at their feet is different, symbolizing the separation between them.

   And if you're looking for separation, that black wall is a nice touch. But look closely at the top of the wall. You can see the bottom of Squall's necklace. It is unknown what exactly this necklace comes from, but it is likely a symbol of either SeeD or Balamb Garden. So the black wall isn't just a wall, but is symbolic of the war which the necklace represents -- the war dividing the two.

Squall's necklace

Fact: Square has released three Final Fantasy games for every system it has ever developed them for.

   Final Fantasy I, II, and III were for the NES. Final Fantasy IV, V, and VI were for the SNES. But the PlayStation will be nearing the end of its life cycle by the time Final Fantasy VIII is released. After all the time and effort Square has put into mastering the PlayStation hardware, they'd no doubt like to squeeze another game in there. But how?

   Making Final Fantasy IX a direct sequel would allow massive re-use of valuable media from Final Fantasy VIII: the entire world map, most towns and locations, even (potentially) some characters. Final Fantasy VII and VIII are very expensive games, and Square still needs to recoup their investments. Going the "direct sequel" route saves them time and money, appeases gamers who don't want to endure the long wait until the next "next-generation" Final Fantasy, and allows them to fulfill their original vision.

Rumor: Square is working on Final Fantasy IX concurrently with Final Fantasy VIII, to be released at the end of 1999 (in Japan).

   Several gaming sites have reported rumors that Square is currently working on Final Fantasy IX at the same time they finish up VIII. If Final Fantasy VIII and Final Fantasy IX were originally supposed to be a single game, then this makes sense. A large percentage of the artwork for IX will have been completed, and much of the scenario and character designs have no doubt already been worked out. The seemingly too-short time between the two Final Fantasies' releases makes more sense, too, if the titles are directly linked.

Fact: Square is planning a sequel announcement which will "rock the industry" (Japanese gaming magazine)

   Let's face it, Final Fantasy Tactics 2 and Chrono Trigger 2, while cool titles which would send RPG fans nuts, wouldn't "rock the industry." But a new Final Fantasy game would. A new Final Fantasy game which was the first direct sequel in the series' history would also rock the industry. A Dreamcast defection is unlikely, given Square's close ties to Sony (Sony Columbia-Tristar is publishing the FF Movie in 2001, for example). And no next-generation PSX2 is in sight. So this "industry-rocking sequel" just might be a Final Fantasy game.

Conclusion: Final Fantasy IX will be a direct sequel to Final Fantasy VIII

   GIA hypothesis: Sakaguchi decides to make a "story about humanity" (FF VIII's current Japanese tagline) set in the midst of a great, world-spanning war. This story would tell the tale of the battle from both sides of the battlefield -- from two characters' perspective -- in order to show that, fundamentally, when we fight other people we're just fighting ourselves. Squall Leonheart would show one side of the battle. Laguna Loire would show the other. Together, their story would be Final Fantasy VIII.

   But his ambitions were too great; the effort involved in producing a single title with two distinct, Final Fantasy-level storylines was too great a strain on the development staff. So the project was refocused: Final Fantasy VIII would tell Squall's story. Final Fantasy IX would tell Laguna's story. Together, the two opposing protagonists in these two games would weave a combined tale. It would be more epic than anything which had come before.

   But the original design plan could still be seen through the cracks. Even though Square made no official announcement, astute observation of all available knowledge showed that there was much more to the story than Square was letting on.

   From an economic standpoint, two games made more sense as well. Two stories, two games, two times the money! And reuse of Final Fantasy VIII's data would speed development of the sequel. Incremental improvements would still be found, of course ... think of it as Final Fantasy eight-and-a-half.

   With Square's "industry-rocking" sequel announcement just around the corner, all the facts, rumors, and hypotheses point in the same direction. Will Final Fantasy IX be this sequel? Square's not talking, but for this GIA agent, all signs point to "yes."

Addendum: Thoughts? Comments? Concerns? It may sound at times like a great conspiracy theory, but there really aren't too many great leaps of faith or logic required. All feedback is welcome at andrewv@gaming-intelligence.com