The Tokyo Game Show is in full swing, and a number of announcements have already been making the rounds.  Among them is one from Square Enix, as the company is bringing back one of its most popular role-playing games for both the PlayStation 3 and PS Vita, in high definition format.  That game of choice is Final Fantasy X, and while it's nice to see it make a come back, we have this sinking feeling that Square could've gone with a better, more popular choice.  And you can probably guess what it is.

The game, announced before the start of the show, will bring the popular PS2 release back in a high definition format.  It scored very well amongst critics and fans alike upon its release, thus probably the reasoning for Square deciding to bring it back.

However, while some fans are pleased with the announcement, there's "the one that got away", the game a lot of folks were hoping would be announced well before Final Fantasy X -- and there's no question that game is Final Fantasy VII.  First shown as a brief high-definition presentation that in no way confirmed the existence of the game, many have been speculating as to whether Square Enix would take the plunge and bring the multi million-selling PS One game back to market in a trailblazing new format.  For years, execs have been brushing off the idea, insisting it would cost too much time and money.

However, with the forthcoming release of Final Fantasy X HD, those questions come back into play.  After all, if Square Enix can remaster a game of that magnitude, certainly it can go back and tweak an even more popular favorite for everyone to enjoy.  Granted, it would probably have to rework the game engine with high definition flair, and perhaps even rework characters on an entirely new level, but think about how many units it would sell.  The original, which came out on PlayStation Network some time ago, has been a continuous resident on top ten seller lists -- mainly because of its fairly reasonable $10 price tag.

And for that matter, why couldn't Square Enix revisit other popular RPG's with high definition remakes?  Chrono Cross, while not nearly as popular as the previously released Chrono Trigger for SNES, would wow audiences with a greater visual appeal; Xenogears would no doubt shake things up in the gaming world with beautiful looking robots and epic battles; and even an older compilation of classic Final Fantasy games, with touch-ups here and there, would probably be an instant seller.  (Provided they have the right price, of course -- those iPad apps that Squeenix pumps out are a bit hard to swallow in the $15-$18 range.)

Don't get us wrong.  Final Fantasy X is a good game in its own right, and no doubt role-playing gamers everywhere are looking forward to its arrival sometime next year.  But Square Enix probably should've considered its resources and gone with a remake of FF VII first, just to appeal to the masses and open up the idea of re-releasing classic RPG's in a whole new light.

On the other hand, maybe X is some sort of "testing waters" title to see how HD remakes would perform, and we could very well end up with a VII remake sooner rather than later.  We'll just have to see how the next few months play out...

Hopefully Einhander's somewhere in there, too.  Classic Square title.  We'd take it in either original or HD form, please.

About the Author

Robert Workman

Senior Writer/Editor

Robert has years of experience in the video game industry, writing for such sites as AOL GameDaily, PlanetXbox360 and Comic Book Resources.  He can also outdrink you any day of the week.  And twice on Sunday.  Follow him at www.twitter.com/thedcd.