Final Fantasy Tactics Creator Surprised by The Ivalice Chronicles’ Success, Surpassing 1 Million Sales; Future Updates Teased

Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles has exceeded the sales expectations set by its original director, surpassing 1 million copies sold before the close of 2025. The remake’s director has hinted that the game’s positive reception might pave the way for future updates.

In my opinion, aside from Donkey Kong Bananza, no title captured my attention in 2025 quite like Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles. While it originally debuted in 1997, the remake has brought it back to life with stunning enhancements, including a stellar voice cast that breathes new life into the characters and a complete overhaul of the classic PS1 experience. This remake stands out as one of the best of 2025, and I’d argue it deserves a spot among the year’s top games.

Clearly, many players share this sentiment, as the game has officially sold over 1 million copies by the end of 2025. In a press release translated by an outlet, game director Kazutoyo Maehiro expressed heartfelt gratitude, stating, “I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart! Truly, thank you so much!”

He added, “The entire development team is not only grateful to you, but, in order to spread the joy, create a better experience, and encourage more people to play, we are looking at updating the game in the future!” While the specifics of these updates remain unclear—ranging from cosmetic DLC to potentially restoring content from War of the Lions or introducing new units—there’s plenty of excitement about what could come next.

I definitely underestimated the sales figures. ???????????? January 6, 2026

While it’s become somewhat of a meme that Square Enix is never satisfied with good sales, Yasumi Matsuno, the creator of Ogre Battle and the original director and writer of Final Fantasy Tactics, had predicted sales between 800,000 and 1 million copies over three years, indicating the game’s success. Matsuno acknowledged this on Twitter, humorously admitting, “I underestimated the sales figures by too much.”

Given that turn-based tactics games are somewhat niche, with only a few standouts like Fire Emblem and XCOM (RIP Marvel’s Midnight Suns, you were too good for this world), this success is a pleasant surprise. Hopefully, it encourages Square Enix to explore the Tactics Advance series or even develop a new Tactics game inspired by the original’s storyline.

The director of Final Fantasy Tactics has suggested new paths for The Ivalice Chronicles remake that would allow players to save characters who die, but he believes that if they could implement that, it would be better to create an entirely new game.