Illusion of Gaia Remaster Set for January 14, 2027 — Standard Edition ¥5,478, Limited Edition Up to ¥19,580

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The story

On September 17, 2026, Clear River Games announced that it will release multi-platform versions of “Illusion of Gaia,” the action RPG originally released for the Super Famicom in 1993, on January 14, 2027. The game will be available on PC, Switch 2, PS5, Xbox Series X|S, Switch, and Xbox One. Physical pricing is set at ¥4,980 (before tax) for the standard edition, ¥7,000 for the SteelBook Edition, and ¥17,800 for the top-tier Gaia Edition. On 5ch’s Hardware/Industry (Geha) board, posters called the price steep for a remaster of an old SFC title, questioned the pricing compared to Konami’s revival titles, and debated the bulkiness of the limited edition’s bundled items and whether the port is emulation-based.

Clear River Games announced today (September 17, 2026) that it will release the action RPG “Illusion of Gaia” (PC / Switch 2 / PS5 / Xbox Series X|S / Switch / Xbox One) on January 14, 2027.

Pricing for the digital version has not yet been decided. The physical version will be available for Switch 2 and PS5, with the standard edition priced at ¥4,980 (before tax), the SteelBook Edition at ¥7,000 (before tax), and the Gaia Edition at ¥17,800 (before tax).

Pre-orders will be rolling out at retailers starting today.

Source: 4gamer.net / Original article here

What people said

3AnonymousSep 18, 2026 06:03
Ugh, the soundtrack doesn't include all the tracks again?
4AnonymousSep 18, 2026 06:07
Music boxes, figures, whatever—
why do they only bundle stuff that makes the package needlessly huge?
Do they seriously think bigger = happier?
5AnonymousSep 18, 2026 06:08
Is this really the only way left for them to feel superior?
7AnonymousSep 18, 2026 06:12
Well, at least physical PS5 releases are still a thing come next January.
9AnonymousSep 18, 2026 06:14
It's not even a remake, so this price is way too high — are they taking us for fools?
10AnonymousSep 18, 2026 06:19
After seeing the pricing for Goemon and Bomberman, this really stands out.
Classic pattern: hype at the announcement, everyone cools off once the price drops, and by release day it's completely forgotten and nobody's talking about it.
31AnonymousSep 18, 2026 06:43
Re: #10
Konami's being incredibly reasonable here.
Square Enix doesn't seem to care at all whether kids can actually afford this.
11AnonymousSep 18, 2026 06:20
Is it because of Edia (a Japanese publisher known for cheap retro re-releases) that reviving retro games turned into this easy-money trend?
12AnonymousSep 18, 2026 06:22
Just get the Romancing SaGa team to make them do a proper remake instead.
13AnonymousSep 18, 2026 06:23
It's basically still the SFC game inside, yet they're pricing it so boldly — but I bet people will buy it anyway.
14AnonymousSep 18, 2026 06:24
The digital version will probably end up priced around the same as Torneko (Mystery Dungeon: Shiren the Wanderer's cousin series).
16AnonymousSep 18, 2026 06:24
No physical release for the original Switch either, huh.
I wanted to buy it as a game card.
34AnonymousSep 18, 2026 06:48
Re: #16
The Switch 2 version IS on a game card.
18AnonymousSep 18, 2026 06:27
Ditching Nintendo, lmaooooo ("datsunin" — slang for a game going multiplatform off Nintendo)
20AnonymousSep 18, 2026 06:30
Re: #18
That's just a malicious thread title.
Honestly "Switch, Switch 2, and others" would've been a better title.

Anyway, ¥5,000 feels off. Isn't that basically the same as full price back in the day?
I did want it, but full price is a bit much…
48AnonymousSep 18, 2026 07:14
Re: #20
Full price back then was over ¥10,000.
Also, this thread's way too late —
the limited editions were already sold out by 11am yesterday.
19AnonymousSep 18, 2026 06:29
The price is such an own-goal that it overshadows the good news of a release date — someone should just redo the thread with "Switch 2, etc." as the title.
27AnonymousSep 18, 2026 06:37
Re: #19
On the usual Geha board this thread would just be titled "Switch 2"
with something like "Bad news: Switch 2's Illusion of Gaia is a rip-off."
23AnonymousSep 18, 2026 06:32
It's a gem that really deserved a proper remake for this era.
If it were an actual remake, I'd have bought it without hesitation.
28AnonymousSep 18, 2026 06:37
Re: #23
Though there's the dilemma that I'd at least prefer Square Enix not be the one doing it.
30AnonymousSep 18, 2026 06:42
If it's Square Enix, I can safely skip it with total peace of mind.
33AnonymousSep 18, 2026 06:46
Re: #30
This one's being developed and published by an overseas company, like what happened with Front Mission.
35AnonymousSep 18, 2026 06:48
It's just a plain remaster with no real added content, right?
Illusion of Gaia's a great game, but there's no way I'm buying this.
45AnonymousSep 18, 2026 07:07
Re: #35
Isn't making it more playable itself an added feature?
37AnonymousSep 18, 2026 06:50
Re: #34
Seriously?! Leave it to an overseas publisher.
40AnonymousSep 18, 2026 06:57
Re: #37
Of course, it's playable on the original Switch too.
41AnonymousSep 18, 2026 07:02
Re: #33
If it follows the Front Mission model, that means if you wait, the digital version might even drop 90% in a sale.
47AnonymousSep 18, 2026 07:09
Re: #41
Different publisher, so there's no telling what the sale discount rate would be.
51AnonymousSep 18, 2026 07:26
With the Arcade Archives line, the buyer's personal taste and experience really factor in heavily—
like, people who don't get old games like "Kaitei Takara Sagashi" (an obscure retro arcade title) just won't buy them.
56AnonymousSep 18, 2026 07:31
Re: #51
That's exactly why I'm saying a price like ¥800 won't cut it.
58AnonymousSep 18, 2026 07:35
Seriously, the limited edition stock is way too small.
Barely any brick-and-mortar stores are even carrying it, so it's going to end up pretty rare.
Basically, I can't even buy one.
59AnonymousSep 18, 2026 07:38
Re: #58
Kamui Fujiwara (the game's character designer) said production hasn't even started yet and that he wants to do something about it, so hopefully there'll be a reorder.
61AnonymousSep 18, 2026 07:39
I mean, it's still basically the SFC game underneath, right?
I'll probably just consider buying it if it goes on sale.
63AnonymousSep 18, 2026 07:41
Re: #61
At least read the article before posting…
74AnonymousSep 18, 2026 08:13
"This port is based on the original while adding a number of modern conveniences. The new 'Arrange Mode' includes boosted magic damage, a minimap to track exploration and progress, and save/load anywhere."

Personally I'd have liked a Hard Mode.
The original's back-half balancing was pretty loose.
85AnonymousSep 18, 2026 08:47
Re: #74
So this is basically emulation under the hood, isn't it?

Thought so, and sure enough the screenshots in the article clearly look like emulation.
If they'd gone full "3D Classics"-level remake, you couldn't tell — but I doubt they put in that much effort.
79AnonymousSep 18, 2026 08:24
Square Enix has finally reached the point where they can't even do remakes anymore —
welcome to the remaster hell arc.
94AnonymousSep 18, 2026 10:14
"The Nintendo Switch 2 version can also be enjoyed on the Nintendo Switch console."

So the Switch 2 cartridge actually works when inserted into a Switch 1?
96AnonymousSep 18, 2026 10:43
Re: #94
That's rough, way too sloppy…
Guess that tells you all you need to know about the quality inside too.

Background and key points of this discussion

“Illusion of Gaia” is an action RPG developed by Quintet and released for the Super Famicom in 1993, with the original package back then priced at over ¥10,000 including tax. The publisher behind this new release, Clear River Games, appears to be an overseas company handling the license rather than Square Enix itself, and the thread saw some confusion and correction over that point. On pricing, many commenters compared it to Konami’s recently announced revival titles, and there was also dissatisfaction with the tendency for limited edition bonus items, like music boxes, to bloat the package size. Whether the port is based on emulation of the original ROM can’t be determined from the article alone, and how far the Arrange Mode’s minimap and save-anywhere features go will likely shape how the release is ultimately received.

*This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Hardware/Industry [Geha]) thread “PS5 and Others: “Illusion of Gaia” Release Date Set for January 14! Standard Edition ¥5,478, Limited Editions ¥7,700 and ¥19,580.”

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