{"id":61761,"date":"2026-03-04T23:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-03-04T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/?p=61761"},"modified":"2026-03-04T16:25:27","modified_gmt":"2026-03-04T07:25:27","slug":"japanese-players-can-finally-access-final-fantasy-7-on-steam-with-recent-re-release-but-domestic-region-locking-remains-an-issue-for-several-titles","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/news\/japanese-players-can-finally-access-final-fantasy-7-on-steam-with-recent-re-release-but-domestic-region-locking-remains-an-issue-for-several-titles\/","title":{"rendered":"Japanese players can finally\u00a0access\u00a0Final Fantasy 7\u00a0on Steam\u00a0with recent re-release, but\u00a0domestic region-locking\u00a0remains\u00a0an issue for several titles\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A significant barrier for Japanese gamers was partially lifted this week as Square Enix released\u00a0a new version\u00a0of the original\u00a0Final Fantasy VII<\/strong>\u00a0on Steam and finally made the title purchasable in its home country. For years, the game was a prominent example of “Omakuni”\u00a0–\u00a0a slang term\u00a0that means “We won’t sell to your country” and is\u00a0used by Japanese\u00a0gamers\u00a0to describe the\u00a0unusually common\u00a0practice of\u00a0domestic\u00a0publishers\u2019\u00a0region-locking their games in Japan<\/a> while making them available in other countries.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The update replaces the 2013 PC port with a version that includes modern features like 3x speed, battle enhancements, and autosave. While it had a bit of a rocky launch and still maintains a \u201cMixed\u201d rating due to blurry textures and other issues, the \u201comakuni\u201d being lifted is still a big thing for Japanese Final Fantasy fans.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the other hand, as\u00a0Japanese media outlet\u00a0Game*Spark<\/a>\u00a0reports,\u00a0the series’\u00a0region-locking\u00a0problem is far from resolved.\u00a0\u00a0Several key entries\u00a0remain\u00a0blocked for Japanese users. Most notably, the 3D remake\u00a0of the Final Fantasy IV sequel, named Final Fantasy IV: The After Years, as well as the\u00a0MMO Final Fantasy XI\u00a0and the original version of Final Fantasy VIII,\u00a0all\u00a0remain\u00a0unavailable on the Japanese Steam store.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou\u2019d think you could finally complete the FF series on Steam… or so we thought, but there are actually still some titles you can’t get.\u201d\u00a0Game*Spark\u00a0wrote.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Final<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Historically, Square Enix has sold\u00a0domestic\u00a0versions\u00a0of their PC games through their own Square Enix e-Store, but after the company\u00a0announced<\/a>\u00a0it will adopt the “Reboots and Awakens”\u00a0initiative\u00a0in May 2024,\u00a0the company shifted to a focus on a multiplatform strategy\u00a0through Steam and other storefronts.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That said, the\u00a0reason\u00a0why\u00a0the original 2013\u00a0Final Fantasy VII PC port\u00a0was region-locked, as well as the\u00a0reason why\u00a0it\u00a0has been delisted and replaced with the\u00a0new version\u00a0is still unknown.\u00a0\u00a0One\u00a0Japanese\u00a0user (@All_WeekDays<\/a>) theorized that it might be \u201cdue to a consolidation of sales channels following the end of support for a security tool related to digital rights management (DRM), and added that \u201ccopyright protection laws differ from country to country, which could\u00a0have\u00a0led to region-based restrictions arising.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Related:\u00a0Final Fantasy fans in Japan hope FF7\u2019s\u202f\u201cnew version\u201d on Steam means no more region-locking\u202f<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFinal Fantasy 7 almost gave me a heart attack.\u201d Japanese developers talk about their most memorable bugs.<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Much like users had hoped, has Final Fantasy VII finally become purchasable on Steam in Japan following the game’s recent update.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":87,"featured_media":61763,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_gspb_post_css":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[36,17],"class_list":["post-61761","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-final-fantasy","tag-japan-related-news"],"blocksy_meta":[],"yoast_head":"\nJapanese players can finally\u00a0access\u00a0Final Fantasy 7\u00a0on Steam\u00a0with recent re-release, but\u00a0domestic region-locking\u00a0remains\u00a0an issue for several titles\u00a0 - AUTOMATON WEST<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Much like users had hoped, has Final Fantasy VII finally become purchasable on Steam in Japan following the game's recent update.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/automaton-media.com\/en\/news\/japanese-players-can-finally-access-final-fantasy-7-on-steam-with-recent-re-release-but-domestic-region-locking-remains-an-issue-for-several-titles\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Japanese players can finally\u00a0access\u00a0Final Fantasy 7\u00a0on Steam\u00a0with recent re-release, but\u00a0domestic region-locking\u00a0remains\u00a0an issue for several titles\u00a0 - 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