In case you happened to forget (because there hasn’t been a whole lot of news as of late), Square Enix is still developing two very highly anticipated role-playing games (RPGs): Kingdom Hearts III (KH3) and a remake of Final Fantasy VII (FF7). It feels like it has been an eternity since they were announced, leaving us with empty hearts every time we do remember that they’re coming. The Director of both projects, Tetsuya Nomura, has given an update on the developmental progress of both titles.

In an interview with Japanese gaming magazine, Famitsu (and translated by Gematsu), Nomura talks about how we still have a while to wait before the release of either title, but reassures us that the wait will be well worth it. When asked about Kingdom Hearts III, Nomura stated:

“While I can’t make a sweeping statement because the development process is different from what we’ve done so far, there are still worlds untouched. Production is progressing on unannounced worlds, in a state that we cannot show them off. In terms of the state of development, there is still some way to go.”

Announced back in 2013, KH3 has felt like the longest wait for any game ever. With all of the properties that Disney now owns, the speculations on which worlds we will be able to visit are seemingly endless. Aside from the obvious Disney classics and newer hits, we may get to see some lightsaber action in a Kindom Hearts title, as Disney now owns the rights to Star Wars. There’s also a chance we may see some of our favorite Marvel characters as well, thanks to Disney’s endeavors. So far, the only confirmed worlds we will get to experience are the worlds from Hercules, Tangled, and Big Hero 6, as well as the Mysterious Tower and Twilight Town from the previous Kindom Hearts games.

The announcement of Final Fantasy VII Remake, in June of 2015, took the world by storm. Every RPG gamer that grew up in the 90’s had goosebumps as Square Enix rolled the footage. We watched in awe as the familiar setting of Midgar from FF7 appeared. Awe turned into screaming, yelling, and jumping as we saw the rear profiles of Barret Wallace and Cloud Strife come into frame. Their presence was followed by the original game’s meteor logo, followed by the word fans across the world were waiting for- “Remake.”

It was soon after the reveal that Square Enix had announced that the remake of one of their most popular titles would not only be a complete remake with full voice casting, but would also be released in a multi-part series. During his interview with Famitsu, Tetsuya Nomura was asked about the development of FF7 Remake, in which he responded:

“We’re steadily progressing on production. While we are making them, I apologize that the wait will be be a bit longer for Kingdom Hearts III and Final Fantasy VII Remake. I am very sorry, but to that degree I will make a game that will meet your expectations.

“Last year, I didn’t put out much information on either title, but this year I want to show our progress at an event somewhere. The release of the titles themselves have still have a way to go. But there are many titles releasing this year, if you can wait for any ‘surprises.’”

I know I’m not alone in hoping this means that more gameplay and information will be released this year. Maybe E3 2017 will be when we get the “surprises.” This year is a big year for both the Final Fantasy and Kingdom Hearts franchises as it marks 15th anniversary of Kingdom Hearts, the 20th anniversary of Final Fantasy VII, and the 30th anniversary of the Final Fantasy franchise. With such a a milestone celebratory year for both series, let’s hope that means we get more solid information on the games.

We may still have to wait quite a bit for the release of Final Fantasy VII Remake and Kingdom Hearts 3, but at least we know that the projects haven’t just faded away into oblivion or facing cancellation. Are you eagerly awaiting for more new on either title? Which one are you most looking forward to? Let us know in the comments section below. If you want all of the hottest gaming news as soon as it drops, be sure to follow us on Twitter.