Square Enix and Microsoft have a rather strange relationship quite akin to that of a roller coaster. Early on in the current generation's life, Square Enix was happy to offer their games on Microsoft's system, distributing exclusive titles like The Last Remnant, Infinite Undiscovery, Star Ocean: The Last Hope - now also on the PlayStation 3 - and just recently Final Fantasy XIII was released on both major consoles. Square Enix CEO Yoichi Wada explained it as a way of expanding their audience. So then why isn't Final Fantasy XIV heading down the same route as well?
Originally codenamed Rapture, it was a brand new MMO being developed by Hiromichi Tanaka and the team behind FFXI. It was announced way back in August 2005. Since then, statements about what platform it would be on went back and forth with Tanaka first stating it was being made for the PlayStation 3 and PC in 2006. However, it was later said that Rapture was being made for the Xbox 360 and PC, with the possibility of a PS3 version being brought out at a later stage. Square Enix then reaffirmed that the game would be for all consoles at GDC 2008.
Fast forward to June of last year, E3 2009, Sony's Press Conference where Square Enix unveiled the debut trailer of Final Fantasy XIV - only for the PlayStation 3 and PC.
The Final Fantasy games, like most RPGs, have upheld the tradition of immersing that one person, the player, into the game entirely. Trying to sink two people into the sixty hour plots simultaneously might be spreading themselves too thin, surely.
But multiplayer in the series stems ten years now, since 2000 when Final Fantasy IX was released. Sure, it wasn't advertised at all and it wasn't a well-developed feature, but it was a step in the right direction. You can assign characters to controllers port 1 or 2 through the configuration menu so that a second player can share your party. It's a basic system, but it latches onto an idea that is synonymous with the new-age Final Fantasy fans. A lot of them grew up watching the games being played by an older sibling. The same story over and over:
"I never played Final Fantasy VII at first, I just watched my big brother play it."
Today is a day of mixed emotions. Square Enix announced that Final Fantasy XIII would be seeing its Western release on the 9th of March, 2010 (good news), but they also announced that pop sensation Leona Lewis would be lending her song 'My Hands' to the Western version as its theme song (bad news).
Why is this bad news? Well, not only is Final Fantasy XIII the first game that Western gamers won't be able to hear any music composed by the legendary Nobuo Uematsu, but it's also the first time that Square Enix have featured licensed music from an artist in a main Final Fantasy game. Uematsu was originally hired to compose the theme tune for Final Fantasy XIII, but decided to hand off the responsibility to Masashi Hamauzu, who composed the rest of the soundtrack. The result was Kimi Ga Iru Kara, which is unlikely to be present in the Western version.
Dissidia: Final Fantasy has now been out for a few months in the West, but its sales figures are actually quite low in comparison to those from Japan, and even lower when compared to that of Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII's.
While this might not seem like a big deal on the surface, it may actually prohibit the release of any kind of sequel, as Square Enix stated that a sequel would be based on its Western sales.
Check out why Dissidia 2 is hanging in the balance inside the full article.
Final Fantasy Versus XIII has been in Final Fantasy XIII's shadow for quite some time now, as Square Enix have expectedly diverted all their attention towards their biggest asset. People had been hoping to see something new at TGS, but following Square Enix's announcement that Final Fantasy Versus XIII wasn't going to be shown there wasn't any real surprise.
However, there was surprise when reports surfaced that it was actually being shown, and of course Final Fantasy Union had to investigate. It turned out that gameplay footage was being shown in what was essentially their very toned down "Closed Mega Theatre".
Read the full article to find out what exactly was shown, and why Square Enix were wrong to display the footage at this year's Tokyo Game Show.
Since its initial announcement, Final Fantasy Versus XIII has had a steady flow of information. The original concepts were greeted with intrigue, and things only increased following the release of more trailers during 2008.
The game focuses around the exploits of Noctis Lucis Caelum, who is the main protagonist. However, although many other characters have been seen, only the name of one other character is known, Stella Nox Fleuret. Her relationship with Noctis is set to be extremely complicated, and the story in general looks like it could be a departure from the typical teen angst seen in many RPGs.
The Dissidia: Final Fantasy demo arrived on the PlayStation Network just over a week ago, and it allowed gamers a chance to play the latest Final Fantasy spin-off. The game took Japan by storm when it was released in December, 2008 and it looks like it will have similar success for the PlayStation Portable when it's released in North America in a few weeks.
Reaction from the demo has been extremely positive, with the only complaints really being about not offering enough. Surely just sentiments that the full game can't come soon enough, as it's one of the most extensive demos in recent history.
Towards the tail end of last week, Square Enix announced that Dissidia: Final Fantasy would be released in Europe on the 4th of September, 2009. While this doesn't sound overly significant in itself, the date is only a week after the North American release.
For those who have been following Final Fantasy for some time, especially those in Europe, delays between regions are usually quite substantial. It's not uncommon for there to be a 4-5 month delay between the North American and European versions, and it's something that's always been very disappointing to European gamers.
However, the announcement that Dissidia: Final Fantasy will be coming so soon after is huge. Square Enix have gone on record numerous times about how much more detailed Dissidia's dialogue is than Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII's and if they can get the localisation done so efficiently on a game like Dissidia, it definitely looks positive for Final Fantasy XIII. There is of course The Last Remnant too, which was released worldwide on the same day and while Square Enix have claimed it's something they're striving to do, up until now it hasn't been overly evident.
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