Square Enix Announces Final Fantasy XIII Bus Tour

Square Enix, Inc., the publisher of Square Enix interactive entertainment products in North America announced today that a bus tour offering fans the first chance to get their hands on the North American version of FINAL FANTASY XIII will be kicking off on January 13, 2010.

The bus is scheduled to make numerous stops in the San Francisco and Bay areas through January 16, loaded with a never-before-seen demo area of the North American version of FINAL FANTASY XIII. Locations will be revealed and updated through the Twitter site @PlayFFXIII (http://twitter.com/PlayFFXIII), so start following today!

One of the most highly anticipated games of this generation, FINAL FANTASY XIII marks the dawning of a new era for the celebrated franchise, bringing the series to multiple hi-definition consoles simultaneously for the first time in its history. Introducing the ultimate Active Time Battle system and extraordinary new characters, FINAL FANTASY XIII will set new standards for role playing games.

FINAL FANTASY XIII will be available for both the PlayStation 3 computer entertainment system and the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft on March 9, 2010.

Official Web Sites:

FINAL FANTASY XIII information: http://finalfantasyxiii.com.

FINAL FANTASY XIII Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/FinalFantasyXIII.

FINAL FANTASY XIII Twitter: http://twitter.com/OfficialFFXIII.

[NEW] FINAL FANTASY XIII Bus Tour: http://twitter.com/PlayFFXIII. 

Credit : ps3.ign.com

This Week in PlayStation Home: Assassin’s Creed, Final Fantasy XIII, Fullmetal Alchemist and A&E’s Lawman

Greetings Homelings!

We have a ton of cool stuff coming at you for this week’s publish in PlayStation Home. This week is particularly heavy on free video content – from exclusive video pulled from some of the most highly anticipated game titles, to brand-spanking new TV shows being aired in-world before they find their way to cable, to full-length episodes of some of your favorite programs. What they say is true – there is no place like PlayStation Home!

Anime fans will be stoked to find the first full episode of Fullmetal Alchemist’s second season playing in the 10-Screen Theater (courtesy of FUNimation). This free episode will only air from November 12th to the 19th. If you like what you see, be sure to head to the PlayStation Store, where you can follow Edward and Alphonse Elric’s quest for the Philosopher’s Stone by downloading additional episodes from season one and season two from this award-winning series.

Speaking of hits – few video games can match the level of anticipation that a FINAL FANTASY title brings to the table, and the newest addition to Square Enix’s celebrated franchise, FINAL FANTASY XIII, promises to be no exception. Assuming you haven’t been living under a rock for the past year, you’ve probably caught a glimpse of the sheer awesomeness of FINAL FANTASY XIII via one of the many trailers. The intriguing characters, the enigmatic Eidolons, the beautifully rendered environments, and the awe-inspiring cut scenes have spurred many impassioned conversations. And while it seems that everybody is waiting with bated breath for the next installment in the FINAL FANTASY saga, it is well understood that it takes time to achieve the level of “wow” hinted at in these trailers. To whet your appetite, Square Enix has given us a special, never-before-seen FINAL FANTASY XIII video to air in the PlayStation Home 10-Screen Theater this Friday, November 13th – so be sure to stop by and check it out.

A&E’s new Real Life Series “Steven Seagal Lawman” is sure to be the “can’t miss” premiere of late 2009. In fact, after viewing the trailers, we begged A&E to give us an exclusive sneak peek to show to you, the PlayStation Home community. Needless to say, they came through in a bigger way than we expected, offering up an advance screening in PlayStation Home. And on top of that, they’re even giving away a free virtual item – a Lawman Vest – to everyone that comes into the 10-Screen Theater. So come out and watch as Steven Seagal takes to the mean streets of New Orleans with the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office, enforcing the law and serving the best interests of the community with the help of a hand-selected band of elite deputies, and then be sure to watch all the new episodes on A&E, starting with the series premiere on Wednesday December 2nd at 10:00pm PT (9:00pm Central).

Those of you who “Live by the Creed” are wringing your hands in anticipation for the next installments of the Assassin’s Creed franchise – Assassin’s Creed: Bloodlines (PSP) andAssassin’s Creed II (PS3). To celebrate the release of these stellar third-person action-adventure titles, Ubisoft has decided to release a line of special Assassin’s Creed virtual items in PlayStation Home. From hats and shirts to hoodies and wristbands, never has it been easier to display your enthusiasm for Ezio and all his stealthy ways. Find these items in the PlayStation Home Mall this week, and be sure to check back in next week for another installment of AC-themed virtual goods.

Credit : blog.us.playstation.com

TGS 09: Final Fantasy XIII Update

 We already played Final Fantasy XIII's Tokyo Game Show demo at the Final Fantasy XIII Premiere Party event earlier this month. But you weren't expecting Square Enix to be totally quiet about the game as Japan's biggest gaming event approached, were you? Sure enough, Famitsu came through today with a massive update on the game.

The big focus of the Famitsu story is Serah Farron. Serah is Lightning's younger sister and Snow's fiancee. It appears that Serah and Lightning lost their parents in their youth, and the two now live together.

FFXIII lead character designer Tetsuya Nomura offered a few comments to the magazine about his design decisions for both Serah and another recent character announcement, Hope.

On Serah, he said that much of the character details are still a secret, and thus he can't share too much about how her design came to be. However, he was able to say that one of the reasons Serah's hair is wavy is that he wanted her silhouette to match up with that of Lightning (the two characters do have similar hair).

On Hope, Nomura revealed that director Motomu Toriyama had something to do with the character ending up being blond. Back when nothing had yet to be set for the character, Toriyama suggested making the game's main character blond. Lightning ended up being pink blond. They decided to give Hope blond hair because they thought that, among the party members, the color would fit him best.
 

Toriyama and producer Yoshinori Kitase shared some additional background details on Serah in particular. Serah, revealed Toriyama was the first Pulse l'Cie in Cocoon. After she became a l'Cie, a variety of occurrences or incidents started taking place. He wouldn't get into specifics.

The trailer that was shown at the Premiere Party event suggested that Serah is on good terms not just with Lightning and Snow, but with Vanille as well. They actually meet for the first time during the game, Toriyama told Famitsu However, they get along well because their ages are similar.

Toriyama also shard some background on the trailer's opening. The trailer opened with a romantic scene of Snow and Serah against what appeared to be a fireworks ceremony. This ceremony is actually the largest event in Serah's town. She resides in a resort town that's visited by many tourists. Snow and the Nora crew live there too. When they're not fighting against the government, they manage a beach house.

While giving our first in-depth look at Serah, the trailer also provided our first brief glimpse at a new character -- a black-haired girl who appeared at the end of the trailer. Asked if this character would be important, Toriyama would only say that details would be announced in the future. However, he suggested that there are hints about the character in the information revealed during the Premiere party.

The two did manage to touch a bit upon the gameplay side of things. Did you think Vanille's fishing rod-like weapon was odd? Then wait until you see Snow's weapon. Apparently, that long coat Snow is always seen wearing is his weapon. The coat has a slot for special patches which can be swapped out to give it special powers. In terms of the game's storyline, the coat is something that was made by Nora using technology from the government.

One area of the Premiere Party (and TGS) demos that struck us as odd was the missing launch command from the battle menu. In the original Advent Children demo, you were able to select a launch command to launch your foes into the sky. Toriyama explained that this move has been made to occur automatically in order to make the game more user-friendly.

This isn't strictly gameplay-related, but we have a feeling people are going to spend a good amount of time on it. There's a bit more to Sazh's afro than just a giant mass of hair. The afro actually shakes as the character walks. Additionally, Kitase revealed that the game's engine has wind parameters that effect the environment. When the wind blows, the trees will shake, and so too will Sazh's fro.

It looks like Square Enix still has plenty left to share on Final Fantasy XIII even after the recent announcement of a December 17 Japanese release date. We, of course, have no complaints!


Source : ps3.ign.com

GRIN's Final Fantasy Project Still On Track

Rumored action-based title still in development.

Swedish developer GRIN may be long gone, but their rumored Final Fantasy project is still underway. 

GI.Biz reports multiple sources close to both parties have revealed the project, codenamed 'Fortress,' is still in development by Square-Enix. The company reportedly removed GRIN from the project with only just six months of development time.

GRIN shut its doors back in early August, citing delayed payments from certain publishers. Concept artwork from the project started appearing online through employee resumes and portfolios.

The game is rumored to be action-focused, and is set in same world as Final Fantasy XII.

Neither Square-Enix nor GRIN has yet to officially comment on this story. 

 

Credit : ps3.ign.com

Square Enix Announces Final Fantasy XIII Novelization

Final Fantasy XIII hits Japan on December 17. But players won't have to wait until then to start sinking their teeth into the game's story.

Square Enix announced today a web novelization that will detail the events leading up to the main Final Fantasy XIII game. Titled Final Fantasy XIII Episode Zero, the novelization, penned by Jun Eishima, will be split into multiple parts and will provide insights that you won't find in the main game.

The first part of the novelization, "Encounter" will hit the web (presumably via the game's official Japanese site) later this month.

As with the Japanese version of FFXIII, the web novel will likely be Japanese-only. With a game like FFXIII, however, you can probably expect fan translations to surface rather quickly. And failing that, we presume Square Enix will translate the stories for international audiences leading up to FFXIII's Spring worldwide release.

Credit : ps3.ign.com

Final Fantasy XIII Dated

 

After months of speculation, Final Fantasy XIII has finally been given an official release date in Japan. Unveiled at a pre-Tokyo Games Show event, Square Enix has announced the game will hit stores on December 17, priced 8,000 Yen (equivalent to 86 US dollars or 52 GB pounds) or 9,240 Yen (100 dollars or 60 pounds) with tax.

Meanwhile, Sony's Kaz Hirai bounded on stage at the event to note that Japanese punters can also pick up a Final Fantasy XIII/PlayStation 3 bundle come the game's release. Square also showed off a new trailer for the game, which according to our man on the ground Ryan, showed "An environment shot with pink flowers sitting before a beautiful lake," plus lots of shots of spaceships.

For the complete low-down direct from the event be sure to check out IGN's live blog.

  

 

Credit : ps3.ign.com

Final Fantasy XIV: Gamescom Interview

Many of you have been asking about Final Fantasy XIV since its announcement a few months back at E3. During my Gamescom Cologne stay, Square Enix invited me to a small roundtable discussion (along with some new friends at ZAM) with Final Fantasy XIV producer Hiromichi Tanaka and Sage Sundi. Our 30 minutes flew by, but we definitely got to some good stuff, which you can read in its entirely below.

PlayStation Blog: You recently talked at E3 about how the game closely relates to Final Fantasy XI. How have the monsters and races changed from FF XI to XIV.

Hiromichi Tanaka: Because we’re using a new graphic engine, the graphics are really different from FFXI and you can see more details on both monsters and races. Regarding the races, to encourage people to shift smoothly from FFXI, you will see very similar types of classes. But if you actually make your own character, you’ll be able to select your own colour of hair, skin, eye color, shape of your face, etc. There will be a wide range of variety to customize.

PSB: After E3, you mentioned there might be a way to transfer your name over from FFXI. Is that still planned – are you still working on that? Is there a plan on how you’re going to do it?

Tanaka: It hasn’t been confirmed yet, but we would like to give incentives to the players. First of all, FFXI has 32 worlds, and they may have the same name across different worlds, as I’m sure you know. Each name in each world has to be a unique; there can’t be conflicts with other players. However, when we have FFXIV, we still don’t know how many worlds there’s going to be yet, but players might have the same name if they all move to the same world, so there may be conflicts. So, to avoid that, what we’re trying to do is add a surname to their name, so players can keep their main name, but they can add something else to their surname – that way players with overlapping names can keep their names from FFXI, but they can add something on to it to make it unique.

PSB: You mentioned that the combat system will have less of a team play aspect. Can you elaborate on that, and how it’s different, and how much progress you’ve made in the past few months since it was announced?

Tanaka: For FFXI, the system was job based, so that’s why they had a party to make the most out of each job. This time it’s not going to be a job based system, it’s going to be an Armoury system, so it depends on which weapon you use and you can switch your class. That allows the player to use a different ability or skills. You can also join a party, that doesn’t mean you have to play solo, but it will allow you to play solo as well, because you can fight against monsters and you can change to a healer to heal yourself. So there will be more variety and it depends on what you plan on doing for that day.

PSB: The leveling system was described as not being experienced based. Can you explain exactly what kind of system you’re working on, and if it’s been completely defined?

Tanaka: This time it really depends on the Armoury system. It’s going to depend on how much you use your own equipment and weapons. The more you use it, the more the skill will go up of your class, so that’s the way you will get to higher levels for the class – the skills. You’ll also get abilities. It’s not going to be like if you fight more monsters, you’ll get more level ups, like similar to the experience system. Of course, if you fight against monsters, you will get some skill points, but it will help more if you attend to Guildleves. So that will be a more efficient way to hone your skills and ‘level up’ your character.

PSB: Are they any games that you have been influenced by that have done the online experience particularly well, even if outside of MMOs?

Tanaka: We don’t have any specific title that we’ve been influence by or have done research on, but if we should say one title it would be Final Fantasy XI as we are trying to achieve something different from FFXI. Even though the game worlds may seem and look similar, the game and how we are going to expand it will provide a totally different game experience.

On the other other hand, we listen to the community, and of course they have much experience in MMOs. In that sense, we receive from and keep up with the MMO-based community.

PSB: Are you still planning a spring 2010 beta?

Tanaka: We can’t really say any certain timing, because the launch is planned to release is 2010. So that means in springtime there will probably be something at that point. We are trying to work as soon as possible, so as soon as preparation is done, there could be something earlier than 2010.

Credit : blog.us.playstation.com