An official announcement from Square Enix has confirmed that the long-awaited Final Fantasy XV will now release on November 29, 2016.
According to the developer, delaying the game “will allow the development teams time to further polish and conduct quality testing so that the reality of the game can match the expectations of both the fans and the creative teams.”
The announcement confirms rumors that circulated this weekend after retailer GameStop reportedly received replacement dates for Final Fantasy XV promotional items in stores, allowing them to cover up the game’s original planned release date of September 30, 2016.
According to the game’s director, Hajime Tabata, the team’s vision behind Final Fantasy XV is “to create a level of freedom and realism previously unseen in the series,” and went on to say that in order to do so, Square Enix requires “a little bit more time to deliver on this vision and are confident that this new release date will help us achieve this.”
“As the director and lead of this project, I wish to personally apologize for the additional wait,” Tabata said. “As a team, we want Final Fantasy XV to achieve a level of perfection that our fans deserve. We kindly ask for your understanding.”
While you’re waiting a few extra months, you can watch Tabata’s entire message right here.