Final Fantasy VII remake to ship early amid coronavirus: 'Don't spoil it'

As the videogame industry continues to navigate how to keep business as usual during the coronavirus pandemic, Square Enix made special considerations for the Final Fantasy VII remake, one of the big game releases to drop during the age of self-isolation and quarantine.

Announced Monday, the publisher made plans to ship the title early to players so that as many as possible can have it by the planned launch date of April 10. As a result, the gatekeepers of Midgard ask that everyone checks their urge to run to Twitter to spoil it for others.

Square Enix

In a statement shared across social media, Final Fantasy VII producer Yoshinori Kitase and director Tetsuya Nomura stated their intent "to ship the game far earlier than usual to Europe and Australia." Additional orders "will be shipped this week" to western regions, including North America.

"We had some hard decisions to make during the final few weeks before launch due to disruption to distribution channels caused by the spread of the COVID-19 virus," the statement reads. "These unique circumstances have made it very difficult to align timing of our global shipping. Our highest priority is that all of you, including those who live in countries currently facing the biggest disruption, can play the game at launch."

With the COVID-19 respiratory illness continuing to spread, Amazon made the decision on March 13 to "temporarily prioritize household staples, medical supplies, and other high-demand products coming into our fulfillment centers" over other orders. Multiple players on social media noted that orders of Nintendo's Animal Crossing: New Horizons, which launched March 20, were delayed. Other merchandise, including delivers of Baby Yoda-themed items from The Walt Disney Company, were delayed.

This move from Square Enix comes with "one big favor" from Kitase and Nomura.

"If you get the game early, please think of others and don't spoil it for them," they said. "We know there are potential spoilers that have been out there for over two decades as the original Final Fantasy VII was released in 1997. But Final Fantasy VII remake is a new game that still has many surprises for everyone. All our fans and players deserve to experience the game for themselves, and we ask for the support of our dedicated community around the world to ensure that."

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