Reportedly, Final Fantasy XIV might be ported to mobile based on the partnership Square Enix and Tencent made back in 2018.
The MMO Final Fantasy XIV could be receiving a mobile version of the game. Following the recent release of the game’s fifth expansion pack, Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail, this rumoured mobile port is another likely project to be announced at some point. According to eXputer, the mobile port could be a direct result of the strategic alliance between Square Enix and Tencent that was originally made back in 2018. So far, no projects have been announced between the two companies.
In 2018, Square Enix and Tencent signed a letter of intent to form a strategic alliance, and in 2021, Yosuke Matsuda, then President of Square Enix, confirmed that some projects were underway. Some news earlier this year revealed that Tencent cancelled an unannounced mobile game for the NieR series. The 2023 Reuters report highlighted that Tencent cancelled it due to challenges in finding a compelling monetization model.
Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail launched last week on July 2nd but had some launch issues. Final Fantasy XIV director Naoki “Yoshi P” Yoshida apologized for these early access issues. One of the major problems was the Xbox version becoming unresponsive when transitioning between areas, issues with several ultimate abilities, and some animation issues. Yoshida wrote:
“Firstly, I would like to thank everyone who has been playing Dawntrail since the start of early access. However, I would like to offer my sincere apologies regarding the issues that we have identified and listed below. Please let me explain the status of the investigation behind their causes and the measures we plan to take to address them.”
Many rumblings and conversations seem to point out that the joint effort of Square Enix and Tencent are working on some kind of big collaborative project. Porting Final Fantasy XIV could be the big project, or maybe not. Square Enix’s president, Yosuke Matsuda, said back in 2021, “We are in ongoing communications with Tencent, and there are some projects that are underway, but I will refrain from commenting on any details at present, including in terms of any output over the next three years.” Those next three years are almost up.
