Quote Originally Posted by Kesey View Post
I'm not sure what you mean by "wrap up" on Garlemald. Unless Fandaniel and Zenos nuclear annihilate all of Garlemald, its not going anywhere and will be there after they are gone. The fall of the Empire by ways of military conquest off screen does not perclude it's inclusion in the coming or subsequent expansions.

Just use other Final Fantasy's as evidence, the empires are never taken to the sword. The real villain rises from those empires/corporations/religious institutions as an existential threat to existence and to the planet. Furthermore, the "narrative promise" of the story is a confrontation with Fandaniel and Zenos. Their stories will "wrap up". The Garleans story is far from over.
Another way of looking at it is that without the unified Garlean state in place (probably leading to fragmented states inheriting its former territories), it will actually become easier to visit both Garlemald and Ilsabard, provided there's a reason to do so. With that said, I'm less convinced now that it'll be the 6.0 destination, but there is indeed little precluding it.