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Rumor: Japanese Final Fantasy XIII to include Final Fantasy XIV content

by JC Fletcher { Nov 9th 2009 at 12:30PM }

In addition to some awesome shots of Hope's summon, Alexander, a Jump scan reveals that the first printing of Final Fantasy XIII will include a campaign code for Final Fantasy XIV. That's right, a game will include content for its own sequel as an early buyer bonus. That's the world Square Enix has constructed for itself.

Beyond the term "campaign code," we aren't actually sure what the content is. Is it a pre-release demo of the MMO? A beta? An exclusive quest to be downloaded in the final game? It isn't clear. But it's definitely some kind of Final Fantasy XIV content, and it's sure to entice those three guys in Japan who were going to buy XIV but not XIII.

[Via CVG]

Final Fantasy XIII announcement possibly due on Nov. 13

by Griffin McElroy { Nov 8th 2009 at 7:30PM }

"A Henchmen Inventor Tent Unto."

Before reading on, why not try to solve that puzzle for yourself? It's an anagram, which means you can mess the letters about to spell a secret message. Here's a hint: It was posted by Square Enix as a tease for Final Fantasy XIII, meaning it probably has something to do with that game. What's that? "A Chevron Non-nineteenth Mutt?" We suppose that's a pretty good guess, but unfortunately, it's the wrongest thing ever. A Final Fan-site recently had better luck uncovering the message's true meaning: "Announcement Nov Thirteenth."

The nature of this "announcement" is still up in the air, though our money's on an official North American release date for the super-anticipated RPG. Though, considering the speed at which the series is growing now, we wouldn't be surprised if Squeenix went ahead and dropped the Final Fantasy XV bomb on us.

Final Fantasy XIII character progression system explained

by Griffin McElroy { Nov 1st 2009 at 1:30PM }

Though the effeminate hairstyles have managed to stay in tact as the Final Fantasy franchise has evolved, one element seems to change from game to game: The character progression system. From Materia to Guardian Forces to the Sphere Grid and plain ol' leveling up, the series has introduced some novel forms of strengthening your characters. It sounds like Final Fantasy XIII will be no different -- according to the latest issue of Shonen Jump, the RPG introduces a new progression system called "Crystalium."

Andriasang laid out the gist of how the system operates -- instead of gaining experience from battles, players earn "Crystal Points," which they can then spend on new abilities and stat boosts which are arranged on a circular chart. As you progress down one of the chart's specialization trees, you unlock stronger abilities; Fire leads to Fira, and so on. Sounds a lot like the aforementioned Sphere Grid -- but we suppose we'll have to wait until we get our hands on the game before we can make a more insightful assessment.

New Final Fantasy XIII screenshots reintroduce Oerba

by Andrew Yoon { Oct 23rd 2009 at 4:30PM }

Click to summon bigger pictures.

We're still dumbfounded by the fact that -- after years of endless CG teases and countdowns -- Final Fantasy XIII is actually coming out. While still pegged with a vague "Spring 2010" release, Square Enix has made good on its promise of a hastened localization. Already, the HUD sports English text, and the characters have been dubbed in English.

The latest batch of screenshots released by Square Enix focus on Oerba Yun Fang, a character introduced at Tokyo Game Show as a traitor working for the government. She may start out as a villain, but it seems one way or another, she's bound to join your party: these screens show her (and her summon) in actual gameplay screens, proving there will be some interactivity between the hours of cutscenes FF13 is bound to have.

Gallery: Final Fantasy XIII (10/23)

No install for Final Fantasy XIII on PS3

by Richard Mitchell { Oct 22nd 2009 at 3:45PM }

If you were planning on making yourself a nice sandwich for your first session of Final Fantasy XIII, it looks like you'll have to make it before you pop the disc in your PS3. According to IGN, director Motomu Toriyama told Famitsu that FFXIII will not require an install on PS3. Furthermore, other than the transition between town and field segments, the game won't feature any loading screens at all. Toriyama stated that loading time was one of the biggest concerns from the beginning of development.

We're sure there were at least a few folks out there looking forward to watching a Chocobo take a smoke break. Alas, it just wasn't meant to be.

TGS 2009: The Recap Post

by Xav de Matos { Oct 2nd 2009 at 10:10PM }

Last week, the Tokyo Game Show brought in over 100 posts worth of news, previews, interviews, galleries, and videos. Clearly, a lot happened. If you're looking for a comprehensive list of all the goings-on during TGS 2009, Joystiq has you covered -- and organized!

Click on a platform below to scan the highlights:

(On the far right: that's "News" and "Culture" on the top and bottom, respectively)

Continued →

Final Fantasy XIV beta will be PC-only

by Ben Gilbert { Oct 2nd 2009 at 1:01PM }

For those of you holding fast to the hope that you'll get your hands on Square Enix's next MMO, Final Fantasy XIV, before the game's eventual release, it appears as though you'll need to get your hands on a Windows PC first. In a recent interview with Game Watch, FFXIV director Hiromichi Tanaka said the game's beta release will be on PC only.

Starting with a closed population of 10,000 people and eventually opening up to the public, the beta could be running at full capacity by as early as Summer 2010, according to Tanaka. Hopefully, by that point we'll be playing Final Fantasy XIII -- in English -- and no longer cracking jokes about FFXIV releasing before XIII ... Hopefully.

Gallery: Final Fantasy XIV

[Via RPG Site]

Final Fantasy XIII TGS trailer -- this time dubbed in English

by David Hinkle { Oct 2nd 2009 at 12:00PM }

Don't worry, you won't find any master of unlocking–level voice work in this Final Fantasy XIII trailer, as all the character actors totally bring their respective A-games. It's the same trailer Square Enix released for TGS, although now that it's in English, you can actually understand what's going on.

There's combat, engagements and some totally badass summons to see, so waste no time hitting that play button. Still reading -- what are you waiting for? Hop to it!

Square Enix expects Final Fantasy XIII sales to exceed 6 million

by Randy Nelson { Sep 29th 2009 at 3:59PM }

Speaking to Reuters Japan, Square Enix CEO Yoichi Wada told the news service that the publisher expects Final Fantasy XIII to sell more than its predecessor, which has sold close to six million copies worldwide since its release in 2006. According to Andriasang, Wada remarked that he's hopeful recent price cuts on PS3 and Xbox 360 will drive up sales of the game when it arrives in Japan on December 17 and the rest of the world next spring.

Considering XIII is this console generation's first traditional Final Fantasy installment, we don't imagine Square Enix will have any problem moving units. After all, to hit the six-million-sold mark, only about 11 percent of the combined worldwide PS3 and Xbox 360 userbase will need to buy a copy.

[Via Andriasang]

TGS 2009: New Final Fantasy XIII trailer is heavy on story, light on English

by Xav de Matos { Sep 28th 2009 at 10:00AM }

Square Enix has finally released its TGS 2009 trailer for the hotly anticipated Final Fantasy XIII. In it, players can watch nearly seven full minutes of the game's story. Sadly, the entire trailer is in Square Enix's native tongue -- unsurprising since the trailer comes straight from the TGS 2009 show floor. Know what's going on? Sound off in the comments.

TGS 2009: Hands-on: Final Fantasy XIII

by Xav de Matos { Sep 25th 2009 at 8:15PM }

Arguably the most anticipated game of the show, Final Fantasy XIII is prominently featured at Square-Enix's TGS 2009 booth. The newest demo for the game features two combat systems -- Optima and Driving -- absent from the demo included with Final Fantasy: Advent Children Complete. The two modes, while polar opposites of each other, do a great job of giving gamers a wider variety of strategic options.

Gallery: Final Fantasy XIII

Continued →

TGS 2009: Sony Japan unveils 250GB Final Fantasy XIII bundle

by Andrew Yoon { Sep 24th 2009 at 1:00AM }

Click to embiggen.

The 250GB PS3 is real! Sony is taking advantage of its exclusivity of Final Fantasy XIII in Japan by introducing a new bundle. For 41600 yen, Japanese gamers will get a special limited edition system with Lightning (the main character, not the weather condition) printed on the body. It'll be available for purchase on 12/17 (so importers, get ready!).

We'll upload images as soon as we get them. In the meantime, you can download Final Fantasy VIII from the Japanese PlayStation Store for 1500 yen.

Gallery: Final Fantasy XIII 250GB PS3

Final Fantasy XIII 'Episode Zero' not as exciting as it sounds

by Andrew Yoon { Sep 18th 2009 at 10:00PM }

When we first saw a promo for Final Fantasy XIII "Episode Zero", we got pretty excited. Could this be a PSP prequel? An anime OVA? A PSN/XBLA playable teaser? Nope, Episode Zero is none of these things.

Instead, Episode Zero is a series of text stories written by Jun Eishima that lead up to the main FF13 story. Unfortunately for most of us, they're currently only scheduled for release on the official Japanese Square Enix website. While we're certain some fans will appreciate these short stories, we think it's a total missed opportunity to cash in on an eager fanbase.

[Via Andriasang]

Enterbrain's absurd prediction: Final Fantasy XIII will help sell PS3 in Japan

by Randy Nelson { Sep 14th 2009 at 4:00PM }

Don't mind the well-dressed Japanese gentleman in that tree. It's just Hirokazu Hamamura, president of Famitsu publisher Enterbrain, going out on a limb to predict that Final Fantasy XIII's arrival on December 17 in Japan will help sell a whole bunch of PS3s. He's talking 500,000 more of Sony's system sold during FFXIII's launch period alone. Crazy talk!

Unless, that is, you consider the fact that Final Fantasy is a franchise that's popular enough in Japan (and around the world) to prompt the purchase of a console. Oh, and that there was this kind of significant "new PS3, hardware price cut" thing that just happened. Okay, so Hanamura isn't nuts ... he just makes a lot of sense. We like this guy!

[Via Andriasang]

PS3 sales up 300% for first week following price cut in US

by Randy Nelson { Sep 10th 2009 at 6:28PM }

Sony Computer Entertainment America has some good news and some bad news to share. The good: Sales of PS3 hardware at its "top retailers" jumped 300% for the first week of September versus the week before the system's price was cut to $299 for the 120GB "slim" unit. The bad: Um, well ... okay, we lied. Everything's pretty good for a change at SCEA HQ, considering people are actually buying its console. (Although 300% pales in comparison to Europe's totally legit 999% increase ... or Japan's 7,350% increase).

The hardware maker also noted that, as of August, five of consumers' top 10 most-wanted games (as surveyed by OTX's GamePlan Insights) -- Gran Turismo 5, Final Fantasy XIII, God of War III, Assassin's Creed 2 and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 -- are on PS3, in case you somehow didn't know this. We would like to note (mainly for Sony's information) that Modern Warfare 2 is also on Xbox 360, and that version was No. 2 in OTX's survey results, whereas the PS3 version placed 10th. (Assassin's Creed 2 for 360 is No. 3 and No. 8 for PS3.) In fact, if you calculate the "purchase intent index" for the top three (all Xbox 360 games) and the lower five (all PS3 games) they're nearly identical. But still, we'll give it to them.

Maybe it's more worthwhile, though, to point out that Uncharted 2 didn't even make the top 25. What's up with that?

Source -- GamePlan Insights Survey Data [PDF file]