Naoki Yoshida isn’t closing the door on a different kind of Final Fantasy XIV. The longtime director has revealed that he's open to a single-player spin-off. However, there is a major catch.

During the Final Fantasy XIV Fan Festival 2026 in Anheim, Yoshida, widely known as Yoshi-P, was asked about the possibility of a single-player game set in the same universe.

"Yes, I have thought about it. Considering how long that I’ve been working on this, I still feel that I want to continue bringing in even one more person around the world so that they can experience this game," he told GamesRadar at the Final Fantasy 14 Fan Festival 2026.

"There are still a lot of people out there who look at an online Final Fantasy and they say, ‘Well, an online Final Fantasy is not a Final Fantasy.'" Yoshida said during a panel.

However, there is a big obstacle. Yoshida also made it clear that "the only team that can potentially make a standalone Final Fantasy, the best kind of standalone Final Fantasy 14, is the current Final Fantasy 14 team."

The same team is fully committed to ongoing expansions, updates, and long-term support for the live service game. He also said that fans would likely prefer the team to stay focused on the MMO, rather than to split attention.

Final Fantasy XIV: Evercold expansion signals the MMO’s long-term focus

Square Enix's focus remains firmly on expanding Final Fantasy XIV. The next major chapter, Evercold, will launch in January 2027.

The same Fan Festival event confirmed that Evercold will introduce new classes, system updates, and other large-scale changes. As per Yoshida, these changes are more than iterative content additions.

Alongside the Evercold expansion, there will be improvements such as enhanced player matching systems, UI updates, and broader accessibility changes.

So while the spin-off idea exists, Final Fantasy XIV is still rooted in its online world.

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Written by

Nilendu Brahma

Edited by

Sagnik Bagchi