Square Enix Permanently Ends Service For iOS Release Of ‘Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles Remastered’ Citing Inability “To Completely Fix” Bug Preventing Players From Accessing In-Game Purchases

Spencer Baculi |

Feb 17, 2025

A female Selkie lashes out with her club in Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles Remastered (2020), Square Enix

Following roughly two months of attempted troubleshooting, Square Enix have announced that due to their own inability to fix a bug regarding players’ access to their in-game purchases, they will be bringing an immediate and permanent end to the iOS version of Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles.

Two representatives from each tribe in the Tipa Caravan assemble to fix the Great Crystal in Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles Remastered (2020), Square Enix

Originally released in 2003 as a Nintendo GameCube exclusive, Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles is a dungeon-crawling action RPG which sees a the player, either alone or with up to three friends, tasked with reassembling the pieces of the shattered Great Crystal in order to restore its protective magics and prevent the deadly Miasma mist from permeating the planet and killing everything on its surface.

To do so, rather than a specific set of protagonist characters, players are instead put in the shoes of their own generic avatar, the attributes and skills of whom are determined by their choice of tribe and ‘family job’ affiliation. Further, rather than the series’ usual turn-based combat system, Crystal Chronicles featured a real-time system à la the Diablo or Marvel Ultimate Alliance series.

A player creates a Yuke character in Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles Remastered (2020), Square Enix

Motably, many players, particularly in the West, chose not to pick-up its original release thanks to its ‘full experience’ requiring four individuals to not only be physically present in the same location but also come prepared with their own GameBoy advances and GBA-to-GCN link cable.

But in 2020, Square Enix eventually saw fit to give the game a new lease on life with the aptly-named Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles Remastered Edition, which released for the PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, Android, and iOS platforms and brought with it graphical upgrades, new music, new dungeons, the addition of voice acting, and cross-platform multiplayer.

A male Clavat prepares for adventure in Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles Remastered (2020), Square Enix

Like most such mobile-focused releases, though admittedly on the less egregious side of the industry trend, the Remastered Edition also offered a number of in-app purchases, ranging from additional costumes, to a set of unique weapons, to items that respectively enhanced one’s recovery and Gil acquisition speeds.

Further, the game also allowed players to download a ‘Lite’ version of the game from their respective digital storefront, wherein they could then buy the ‘upgrade’ to the full version if they so chose.

Unfortunately for iOS players, as January 2025 drew to a close, an iOS 18-related update made by Apple to the inner workings of their app store, the details of which have not been publicly detailed, resulted in a number of players reporting that they were unable to access their premium purchases.

The Tipa Caravan sees the player off in Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles Remastered (2020), Square Enix — Arion sees the player off in Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles Remastered (2020), Square Enix

And though the developer ostensibly worked their hardest to find a fix, Square Enix ultimately threw up the white flag, announcing on February 13th due to being unable to make the game and Apple’s code align, they would be shuttering the iOS version of Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles Remastered and offering refunds to any player who made an in-app purchase within the last calendar year.

“As of January 24, 2025, we have been receiving reports of customers unable to access the additional content they purchased for the iOS version of FINAL FANTASY CRYSTAL CHRONICLES,” the company explained in an update posted to the official Final Fantasy series website. “This issue extends to the full paid version of the game, which allows users to play through all dungeons.”

The in-app purchases, sans the 'Full Version', as offered for the PlayStation 4 release of Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles Remastered (2020), Square Enix — The in-app purchases, sans the ‘Full Version’, as offered for the PlayStation 4 release of Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles Remastered (2020), Square Enix

“The issue is due to changes made to the in-app purchases model,” detailed Square Enix. “Further investigation revealed that we are unable to completely fix the bug and implement the new changes, making it unlikely to resume service for the game. Thus, we must regretfully announce that we will end support for the iOS version of FINAL FANTASY CRYSTAL CHRONICLES.”

“Customers who wish to request a refund should contact Apple Support and request a refund from them,” they ultimately closed out their statement. “If you have any questions or issues regarding this process, please contact our support center by August 31, 2025.”