OG Final Fantasy creator won’t return to the iconic JRPG series again, partly because he might not “enjoy Final Fantasy 14 as much”

Final Fantasy’s original creator Hironobu Sakaguchi doesn’t want to return to Final Fantasy – because he’s too busy playing Final Fantasy. 

It’s been years since the JRPG icon left the series he created almost four decades ago, but he still has no plans for a Final Fantasy comeback, partly because he no longer works for publisher Square Enix, and partly because he just wants to enjoy critically acclaimed MMO Final Fantasy 14 as an everyday fan. 

“It started off as a courtesy,” Sakaguchi said in an interview with Bloomberg while discussing how he first jumped into the hit MMO. Square Enix reportedly asked Sakaguchi to be a guest speaker on a Final Fantasy 14 panel, prompting him to sign up for research purposes. “Now I almost live in Final Fantasy 14,” he said.

Sakaguchi’s Final Fantasy 14 habit has become so dire, his own employees at developer Mistwalker will poke him in-game to remind him about missed meetings. “On a rare occasion — I want to stress rare occasion — sometimes one of the Mistwalker team members will hop on Final Fantasy 14, and I’ll see a message saying, ‘Hey, the meeting’s started.'”

That habit also means Sakaguchi has no desire to step back into a creative role for the series, or any of his old series, in fact. “If I take on the Final Fantasy brand again, I don’t know if I’ll be able to genuinely enjoy Final Fantasy 14 as much,” he said, adding that he’s “switched to a consumer rather than a creator” for the series.

Despite totally staying away from Final Fantasy, Sakaguchi has teamed back up with publisher Square Enix for his sort-of-next game. Sakaguchi’s Fantasian Neo Dimension comes out later this year, escaping the clutches of Apple Arcade exclusivity, with Square Enix on publishing duties. And, thankfully, the beloved developer is also working on something new, too. 

Why not run through the 10 best Final Fantasy games while you’re here?