On March 27, 2020, developer Square Enix made an official statement on their blog regarding the status of the first installment of the highly anticipated Final Fantasy VII Remake. The company clarified that the official release date for the game remains April 10, 2020, but that they cannot control whether shipments of physical copies will be delayed due to COVID-19 related lockdowns.
“This does not mean that box copies of Final Fantasy 7 Remake will not be dispatched,” reads the blog post, “It just means that we cannot control the date the game may arrive.”
The developer reassured customers who had pre-ordered their copy of the game through the official Square Enix store. “We are working hard to ensure as many of you as possible can play the game on April 10,” they explained. Meanwhile, those who had ordered their copy via local retailers were encouraged to contact stores or check their individual websites for delivery updates.
This warning comes in light of the fact that many retailers, including GameStop, Best Buy and Target, have temporarily closed their doors or are operating within limited hours due to “social distancing” measures. Additionally, shipping services such as Amazon have pledged to focus on “essential” items, a term which includes food, medicine, and hygiene items, but not video games. Gamers hoping to receive their copies of Final Fantasy VII Remake in the mail are likely to find themselves waiting longer than initially planned.
Amidst these delays, many fans have taken to the Internet, breaking the game’s “street date” by posting pictures of their copy and screenshots from the game. In particular, a poster going by NateLo22 shared an image of the deluxe edition’s packaging to the r/FFVIIRemake community on Reddit. However, the moderators of the community were quick to remove the post, as well as any others explicitly discussing content not yet officially released.
We hope that all of our readers who have pre-ordered Final Fantasy VII Remake will be able to enjoy their adventures with Cloud and his friends as soon as possible!
