Final Fantasy Appears On Japanese Virtual Console
Posted on 2009/05/26 by Ronin90
The original Final Fantasy has now seen yet another release in Japan, as it's now available for purchase on the Wii for the Virtual Console.
The game looks as you'd expect and plays like it too. So if you're in Japan and have never played the original Final Fantasy, it could be worth checking out. Either way, it'll cost you 500 Wii Points.
This could mean that Final Fantasy II will be released on the Virtual Console relatively soon, as they are usually released side-by-side.
Tags:
Final Fantasy, Nintendo Wii, Virtual Console
Final Fantasy On Wii
Square Enix At E3 2009
Posted on 2009/05/24 by Ronin90
E3 2008 was massive for Square Enix. They didn't announce any new games, or wow anyone with new trailers for their highly anticipated games. However, they did drop the bomb that Final Fantasy XIII would no longer be exclusive to the PlayStation 3, as it would also be appearing on the Xbox 360.
Since then, support for Square Enix has dropped considerably, and not just amongst loyal Sony supporters. Consistent rumours about Final Fantasy XIII delays and the game's production values, as well as other reports about the company have tarnished Square Enix's reputation in the West. What better place to try and rekindle the love affair than at the biggest trade shown in the world, E3.
Tags:
Square Enix, E3 2009, Final Fantasy XIII, Weekly Musings
Square Enix E3 2009
FXN Podcast: Episode 19
Posted on 2009/05/23 by Kyle
Jamie, David, Darryl and Kyle are in for a mass Dissidia discussion after Darryl interviewed Dissidia's producer and director. The crew also face off over listener questions in the return of Questions Segment, including FFXIII Demo impressions, what FF remakes are on the horizon, and much more.
This episode is this month's Discussion Episode.
FXN Dontations
As mentioned during the show, we've opened an FXN Dontation Drive! If you'd like to support the FXN Podcast paying for our pricy audio equipment, you can help via paypal with with a paypal account, or credit card. Contributions of any amount are much appreciated.
Donate to FXN Podcast via PayPal
Listen / Subscribe to the FXN Podcast on iTunes
Direct Link: FXN Final Fantasy Podcast Episode 19
RSS Feed
Podcast music "City Corner Lullaby" is by Jennerstein of OCRemix.
Tags:
FXN Final Fantasy Podcast, Dissidia, Final Fantasy XIII
Episode 19
Crystal Defenders R2 Launches On WiiWare
Posted on 2009/05/22 by Ronin90
Crystal Defenders R2 launches today in Europe, after a relatively successful launch in North America a few days previously. The game is now available worldwide for download via Nintendo's WiiWare service, on the Nintendo Wii.
Featuring a list of jobs and locations from Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift, Crystal Defenders R2 requires a lot more strategy, as players need to defend their crystals from the oncoming horde of enemies.
The game is set to feature a worldwide ranking system, so you can see how you're performing against your friends, as well as a host of other features which Square Enix claimed will only increase the excitement and replayability.
Tags:
Crystal Defenders R2, WiiWare
Crystal Defenders R2
Sanctuary Releases In Japan
Posted on 2009/05/20 by Ronin90
Sanctuary, the long awaited second album from The Star Onions, was released today in Japan. Unlike the original album, which featured 10, Sanctuary features 11 tracks that have been arranged from the various Final Fantasy XI soundtracks that have been produced throughout the game's duration.
This time, Takahito Eguchi has been drafted in to help with some of the arrangements, and fans might remember him as the composer of the Final Fantasy X-2 and The Bouncer.
The full track list can be found inside the full news story.
Tags:
The Star Onions, Sanctuary
The Star Onions
Square Enix: Final Fantasy XIII Could Be Delayed Further
Posted on 2009/05/19 by Ronin90
In a meeting with Japanese press to discuss their financial forecast, Square Enix Holdings were quizzed about both Dragon Quest IX and Final Fantasy XIII. Both are obviously huge titles from an investors standpoint, and the answers given weren't exactly endearing.
When asked specifically about whether Final Fantasy XIII will be released within this fiscal year, the following reply was given:
"God knows. ... Is the truth (laughs). I'll try!"
So, although the Final Fantasy XIII demo issued Winter 2009 as the prospective Japanese release date, it looks like it might not even appear until after April 2010. Definitely not good news for Western gamers.
Tags:
Final Fantasy XIII, Final Fantasy XIII Release Date
Final Fantasy XIII Delayed
Final Fantasy IV: The After Years First Gameplay
Posted on 2009/05/17 by Ronin90
After what some people might consider a long wait, new gameplay footage for Square Enix's upcoming WiiWare game, Final Fantasy IV: The After Years, has been released.
Tags:
Final Fantasy IV, Square Enix, WiiWare
Final Fantasy IV: The After Years
FXN Podcast: Episode 18
Posted on 2009/05/17 by Kyle
David, Lauren and Kyle are back with discussion of what's going on with Fabula Nova Crystallis, 360 vs. PS3 versions of FFXIII, and lots of discussion about Advent Children Complete, as Kyle and Lauren have now watched the film.
The FXN Podcast will also be getting back to it's normal schedule soon, technical problems delayed this episode a couple days.
Listen / Subscribe to the FXN Podcast on iTunes
Direct Link: FXN Final Fantasy Podcast Episode 18
RSS Feed
Podcast music "Adrenalyne Kyck" is by Big Giant Circles, Liontamer, zircon of OCRemix.
Tags:
FXN Final Fantasy Podcast, Final Fantasy XIII, Final Fantasy VII Advent Children, Final Fantasy Versus XIII, Final Fantasy Agito XIII
Episode 18
Dissidia: Final Fantasy North American Release Confirmed
Posted on 2009/05/14 by Ronin90
It was announced earlier on the PlayStation Blog that Sony would be releasing a new PSP Bundle for the release of Dissidia: Final Fantasy.
The bundle will be released on the 25th of August, but no release date for the actual game was confirmed at the time. Many thought that it could come after its release, like with God of War: Chains of Olympus. However, after contacting Square Enix we can officially confirm that Dissidia: Final Fantasy will launch on exactly the same day.
To repeat: Dissidia: Final Fantasy will launch on the 25th of August, 2009 in North America
Dissidia: Final Fantasy sold almost 1m copies in Japan, and it's set to be a huge success when it's released in North America.
Tags:
Final Fantasy Dissidia
Dissidia: Final Fantasy
Dissidia: Final Fantasy Limited Edition PSP Bundle Announced
Posted on 2009/05/14 by Ronin90
Sony have just announced on their PlayStation Blog, that Dissidia: Final Fantasy will be seeing a PSP bundle when it's released in North America in the summer.
The Bundle is currently scheduled to go on sale on the 25th of August, 2009 and will only be available at GameStop. The bundle will include the PSP-3000 in Mystic Silver, Dissidia: Final Fantasy, Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children on UMD and a 2GB Memory Stick PRO Duo. It'll have a retail price of $199.99.
This obviously means that Dissidia will be coming out before the 25th of August in North America.
Tags:
Final Fantasy Dissidia, Dissidia PSP Bundle
Dissidia PSP Bundle
Get Your Final Fantasy XIII Lighter & Pendant
Posted on 2009/05/13 by Ronin90
Square Enix have just announced some new products relating to Final Fantasy XIII, in the form of a pendant and lighter. It appears that Snow's arm marking actually bears some kind of significance, since that's what the pendant and lighter has been made to signify.
Tags:
Final Fantasy XIII, Fabula Nova Crystallis
Final Fantasy XIII Pendant
Final Fantasy Tactics Available On PSN In Japan
Posted on 2009/05/13 by Ronin90
Following the release of Final Fantasy VII on the PlayStation Network in Japan, Square Enix has decided to follow that up with Final Fantasy Tactics.
Tactics is considered a classic amongst many Final Fantasy fans, and there have been a few spin-offs from the original PlayStation One version, which are a testament to its success.
The game is now available on the Japanese PlayStation store, and can be played on the PlayStation 3, or PlayStation Portable. It's available for ¥1,000 (approx $10).
Tags:
Final Fantasy Tactics, Square Enix
Final Fantasy Tactics PSN
Crystal Defenders: Vanguard Storm Released
Posted on 2009/05/13 by Ronin90
Today, Square Enix launched a new game in their Crystal Defenders franchise called The Crystal Defenders Vanguard Storm. While The Crystal Defenders borrowed from Final Fantasy Tactics, Vanguard Storm features jobs seen in Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Griomoire of the Rift.
It's available for the iPhone and iPod Touch exclusively, unlike The Crystal Defenders, which was also seen on the Xbox Live Arcade, WiiWare and soon PlayStation Network.
Vanguard Storm looks to expand upon the stereotypical Tower Defence model, but offering an increasing level of depth. Players must scramble for strategic positions in order to prevent advancing enemies.
The game is out now, and there is a free version available called Crystal Defenders Vanguard Storm Lite. For those who wish to forego the demo, it costs £2.99 in the App Store.
Tags:
iPhone, Crystal Defenders, Crystal Defenders Vanguard Storm
New iPhone Game
Square Enix: We're Extremely Worried About Piracy
Posted on 2009/05/09 by Ronin90
Sony have been very vocal about their piracy fears on their Playstation Portable system, and they've been trying to think of ways to counter the issue. Square Enix are obviously one of the biggest publishers in the world, and they've supported the PSP quite strongly recently, with the releases of Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII and Dissidia: Final Fantasy.
Takeshi Arakawa, the director of Dissidia: Final Fantasy spoke about his fears regarding piracy on the system:
"We are really worried about this issue [piracy]... extremely worried."
Read more about Mr. Arakawa's views in the rest of the story, after the jump.
Tags:
Square Enix, Final Fantasy Dissidia
PSP Piracy Issues
Dissidia: Final Fantasy Q&A Session
Posted on 2009/05/09 by Ronin90
As mentioned in the previous three parts, Final Fantasy Union had the opportunity to interview Yoshinori Kitase, Dissidia's Producer, and Takeshi Arakawa, Dissidia's Director. The event took place in London, England and as well as interviewing the development staff, the opportunity to play the game was also offered. Please feel free to check out the full preview for Dissidia over at Gaming Union: Dissidia Nearing Western Release, Looks Very Solid.
Over the past few days, some important pieces of information have been shown from the interview and after the jump the full transcript will be provided. We hope you enjoy.
Also, feel free to discuss this interview on the forums
Tags:
Final Fantasy Dissidia, Final Fantasy Interviews
Exclusive Interview With Dissidia Staff
No Japanese Voice Option In Final Fantasy XIII For Xbox 360
Posted on 2009/05/09 by Ronin90
IGN recently had the chance to talk to Yoshinori Kitase about Final Fantasy XIII, and one of the things discussed was the option to have the Japanese voice work present in the Western versions of the game. This is something that many Western gamers crave, as typically the English voice actors don't capture the essence of the characters as well.
Kitase stated that:
"Obviously, when we talk about XIII it's for PS3 and Xbox - with PS3 being on Blu ray there would be enough memory, but on Xbox probably not. At the moment we're thinking of releasing the voice in English only. Are there many people who would like to play with Japanese voices? "
So, it's still a possibility on the PlayStation 3 due to the Blu-ray disc, but the Xbox 360 version definitely won't be seeing any Japanese voice work.
Tags:
Final Fantasy XIII, Fabula Nova Crystallis
English Voicework Only
New Characters In Western Dissidia, Amongst Other Additions
Posted on 2009/05/08 by Ronin90
Welcome to Part Three of Final Fantasy Union's Dissidia Interview series. As mentioned in the previous parts, Final Fantasy Union was fortunate enough to be able to sit down with Dissidia: Final Fantasy Director Takeshi Arakawa and Producer Yoshinori Kitase and ask them about the forth coming Dissidia's western release. Part Three focuses on what's going to be different about the two versions.
It's not uncommon for Square Enix to alter aspects of their games when they are released overseas, with Final Fantasy VII being probably the most prominent example. It's been noted that Dissidia will have a timely delay between its Japanese and Western releases and the answers about why, are after the jump.
Tags:
Final Fantasy Dissidia, Square Enix
Extra Content For The West
No DLC Planned For Dissidia: Final Fantasy
Posted on 2009/05/07 by Kyle
Welcome to Part Two of Final Fantasy Union's Dissidia Interview series. As mentioned in yesterday's Part One, Final Fantasy Union very recently had the opportunity to sit down with Dissidia: Final Fantasy Director Takeshi Arakawa and Producer Yoshinori Kitase and ask them about the forth coming Dissidia's western release.
One particular area PSP games have surprisingly early roots in is downloadable content. Thanks to the Playstation Store and Xbox Live, downloadable content has become a well worn term to gamers of today, with such extra content as Fallout 3 story expansions, maps in Halo 3, and added sack boys in LittleBigPlanet.
WipeOut Pure, one of the first PSP games launched, featured a multitude of extra downloadable tracks and racing ships long before the PSP even had a web browser. Killzone: Liberation went as far as to add online multiplayer and a whole 20% more story as downloadable content, and free at that. Most PSP games would work with downloadable content, so why not the ever technologically leading edge Square Enix in their first Final Fantasy brawler on PSP?
Continues after the jump.
Tags:
Final Fantasy Dissidia, Dissidia II, Square Enix
DLC a No-Go
Dissidia II Dependant On Western Sales
Posted on 2009/05/06 by Ronin90
In a recent Dissidia press tour helmed by Dissidia: Final Fantasy producer Yoshinori Kitase and director Takeshi Arakawa, Final Fantasy Union had the opportunity to ask about a series of topics concerning the forth coming western release of Dissidia.
Furthermore, as Square Enix was happy to cover a wide range of Dissidia topics, we here at Final Fantasy Union are taking the opportunity to launch our 3-Part Dissidia Interview Series.
Dissidia was received extremely well in Japan, with it scoring well with critics and also posting very high sales figures. A few months ago we commented that Tetsuya Nomura said Dissidia II would happen if fans wanted it and at the time there was a lot of mystery shrouded around the comment as it was found in the Dissidia Ultimania guide.
Tags:
Final Fantasy Dissidia, Dissidia II, Square Enix
Dissidia II Highly Likely
Final Fantasy XIII Isn't Actually Taking That Long
Posted on 2009/05/05 by Ronin90
On the eve of the Eidos takeover, Yoichi Wada, Square Enix's CEO, came out and fielded questions about how things will work moving forward. One of the questions pertained to how Square Enix will influence their qualities on Eidos and Wada proceeded to offer a response that was rather unexpected.
Instead of suggesting that Eidos games will be approached with the same diligence that Square Enix titles are, he suggested that Square Enix actually spend too long developing titles and that he'd like to see shortened development cycles with the same amount of quality. Now, it's unknown how long games are actually in development for, but it's assumed that Square Enix have two teams that work on Final Fantasy titles, and that work on the new title generally starts 1-2 years before the release of the previous title.
When looking at a graph of how many years there have been between the releases of main Final Fantasy games, it doesn't necessarily back Yoichi Wada up; unless he wants more than one main Final Fantasy game a year, a move which would obviously saturate the market.
More after the jump.
Tags:
Weekly Musings, Final Fantasy XIII, Final Fantasy Release Dates, Final Fantasy XIII Release Date
Final Fantasy XIII Release Date
