For many years now, Final Fantasy XIV has been one of the best, most successful, and most popular MMORPGs. Now, a new version of the online role-playing game is said to have been approved for one of the world’s largest gaming markets.
What is planned for Final Fantasy XIV? According to a report from the website nikopartners.com, the Chinese authority “China’s National Press and Publication Administration” (NPPA) has recently approved 15 new games for release in China.
Among the approved titles is an unreleased mobile version of Final Fantasy XIV, which is to be developed jointly by Square Enix and the Chinese mega-corporation Tencent and is called “Final Fantasy XIV: Crystal World.” This seems to confirm a rumor that has been circulating for a while.
What else is known? Daniel Ahmad, “Director of Research & Insights” at Niko Partners, adds on X that this is supposed to be a standalone MMORPG that will run separately from the PC and console versions of FFXIV.
Additionally, Tencent developer Lightspeed Studios is expected to assist in the implementation, and production is said to be nearly complete. An official announcement from Square Enix could come in the next three to six months (via X).
The trailer for the freshly released expansion Dawntrail of Final Fantasy XIV:
Everyone wants to go to China, but not everyone is allowed to go to China
What is behind the approval? To publish a game in the Chinese market as a foreign company, a Chinese partner and the NPPA’s approval are mandatory. For example, World of Warcraft was unavailable in China for 18 months when Blizzard and NetEase could not agree on an extension of their collaboration.
Since 2018, Square Enix and Tencent have been collaborating to reach a global audience with joint projects. The Chinese market is highly interesting for several reasons:
- Gaming in China is a growth market. According to a report from german.news.cn from February 2024, the Chinese games market recorded a revenue growth of 15 percent compared to the previous year.
- The long-term forecasts from industry analysts like mordorintelligence.com also show strong growth rates until 2029.
- With over 1.4 billion inhabitants (2020 figure), China is the second most populous country in the world after India. According to a report from nikopartners.com, there were already more than 720 million Chinese gamers in 2020 – a trend that is rising.
- For comparison: According to game.de, the association of the German games industry, about 34.4 million people are gamers in Germany.
Accordingly, the potential that the responsible parties at Square Enix see for a mobile version of Final Fantasy XIV, which will be specifically tailored to the Chinese market, is likely to be significant. Whether this version of FFXIV will eventually be released in the West is currently unclear. No problem, after all, fans of the MMORPG have just received fresh content with Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail.
