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Nomura has more unannounced games, one 'not entirely new'

by David Hinkle { Dec 22nd 2009 at 10:00PM }

If you're reading gaming blogs on a regular basis, Tetsuya Nomura needs no introduction. While Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep is by no means finished, Nomura is already talking about what's next. In the latest issue of Famitsu (via Siliconera; scan can be seen here), he confirms two additional projects: one that is already fairly far along in development and another unannounced project that's "not entirely new."

Aside from Birth By Sleep, Nomura's other known projects include Final Fantasy Agito XIII and 3rd Birthday, a new game in the Parasite Eve series. Keep an eye on Famitsu's site, where the full interview will soon be available.

Final Fantasy XIII launch day sales exceed 1 million in Japan

by Ben Gilbert { Dec 18th 2009 at 4:40PM }

In the roughly 24 hours since Square Enix dropped Final Fantasy XIII into retailers across Japan, over 1 million consumers have snagged the game for their PlayStation 3s. The Japanese publisher says that the number doesn't include the Lightning Edition PS3 hardware bundles, which would presumably add another handful of copies to the grand total. With another few months to go until North American gamers can hungrily grab up the sequel, we'll have to focus our time on jewelry contests instead.

[Via Kotaku]

Gallery: Final Fantasy XIII

Final Fantasy XIII sweepstakes offers up merch, still no English demo

by Ben Gilbert { Dec 18th 2009 at 2:00PM }

There's nothing quite like being placated by material things -- it's what gets us by in this cold, Capitalist world. Knowing that us North Americans are heart-hurtin' over the lack of a localized Final Fantasy XIII demo, Square Enix recently announced plans to give us merchandise based on the upcoming game though a sweepstakes, as teased by Square's Sonia Im on her Twitter account recently.

Starting December 23, the contest website will open for entries and 13 "lucky winners" will get their hands on the FFXIII-inspired merchandise seen in the gallery below. More specifically, four people will get their necks adorned with one of the four pendants while nine others will get an "accessory" (keychain or card holder). Sure, you might want to play the game instead, but isn't getting stuff nice?

Gallery: Final Fantasy XIII Sweepstakes Prizes

Square Enix accepting beta applications for PC Final Fantasy XIV

by JC Fletcher { Dec 16th 2009 at 8:05PM }

Final Fantasy XIII? Totally old hat, even though it's not out yet. Square Enix has just opened applications for a Final Fantasy XIV beta, for the Windows version only. "All individuals are invited to apply," the page reads, "regardless of their past MMORPG experience."

Slow down, chocobo! Before applying, you need to be 18 years old, have plenty of hard drive space and an internet connection (obviously), be fluent in Japanese, English, French or German for the purpose of bug reports, and have a Square Enix ID account.

Though the current round of applications is only for the PC version, Square Enix indicates that a PS3 beta may be on the way later. And if you don't get in this time, don't worry -- the company says there will be "several rounds of tester selection, with the total number of participants increasing each time." And if there's anything Final Fantasy fans are good at, it's waiting their turn.

Gallery: Final Fantasy XIV

Final Fantasy VIII 'coming soon' to PlayStation Store

by Griffin McElroy { Dec 16th 2009 at 2:30PM }

Though Japan finds itself awash in Square Enix RPGs in the PSOne Originals channel of the PlayStation Store, the American PSN is suffering from an inexplicable drought. Fortunately, that situation will be rectified shortly -- according to a recent email bulletin sent out to its customers, Sony revealed Final Fantasy VIII will be coming to the U.S. PlayStation Store. No exact timeframe was given for the game's arrival, but it's listed under a section of the newsletter titled "Coming Soon." We've contacted Sony to try and get something more concrete than that.

[Thanks, Solace.]

Unboxing the Final Fantasy XIII limited edition PS3

by Andrew Yoon { Dec 16th 2009 at 1:45PM }

Click to start the unboxing.

Japanese gamers are braving the cold right now, waiting on line to pick up Final Fantasy XIII. Square Enix and Sony have partnered up to create a limited edition bundle that includes a copy of the game, a white controller, and a pink Lightning-emblazoned 250GB PS3 Slim system.

It's unlikely this system will ever be officially released outside of Asia. Unless you're looking to do some import shopping, these pics from Joystiq Japan's Ittousai are the closest you'll get to owning the first-ever special edition PS3 Slim.

Gallery: Final Fantasy XIII Limited Edition PS3

Square Enix teases something 'stylish' for FFXIII

by Justin McElroy { Dec 14th 2009 at 2:31PM }

As if the wait for Final Fantasy XIII wasn't already difficult enough, Square Enix's assistant PR director, Sonia Im, is making it even more torturous. On her Twitter account, Im teased "something cool most of you can participate in a few days from now" within a mysterious Square Enix memo. Im later added that the memo "eluded [sic] to something stylish." If you squint, the date in the memo seems to be December 17, which would coincide with a PSN update.

It's anybody's guess past that, but we're hoping for a totally magical Final Fantasy-themed fancy dress party for us and a few of our closest friends, set inside PlayStation Home. Can you even imagine?

That, or a demo like the one our Japanese friends already have. Either way.

Gallery: FINAL FANTASY XIII (12/14)

Final Fantasy XIII soundtrack site launches with samples from game's four-disc score

by Randy Nelson { Dec 11th 2009 at 3:45PM }

The official Japanese site for Final Fantasy XIII's soundtrack has gone live, offering the ability to listen to the first ten tracks from the four-disc mega-album. Andriasang reports that the site will be updated with all of the discs' contents over time, along with notes on the tracks by composer Masashi Hamauzu, who worked with Nobuo Uematsu on the score for Final Fantasy X.

You can listen to the tracks by heading to the site and clicking on the "track list" tab at the bottom of the page. The album releases in Japan on January 27 in both standard and limited "first cut" editions. If Square announces a domestic release, it'll be music to our ears.

[Via Nobuooo]

New Crystal Bearers trailer is exciting, a little mean

by JC Fletcher { Dec 7th 2009 at 9:00PM }

Square Enix has created a thrilling, cinematic trailer for Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers -- and it didn't even have to lean on the Bon Jovi crutch! The latest trailer for the Wii action title makes it look kind of like a Final Fantasy take on the Indiana Jones style of adventure story -- complete with the hero being a total jerk. Instead of a whip and years of archaeological study, however, Layle has the ability to lift stuff with his mind.

We always feel compelled to remind everyone about this game, especially since it's tucked away the day after Christmas. So here it is. Once again, that's Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers.

Mega64 makes its own mind-blowing Final Fantasy XIII announcement

by Andrew Yoon { Dec 2nd 2009 at 5:03AM }

When Square Enix unveiled the English-language release date of Final Fantasy XIII, Joystiq commenter Chedder dared to ask the one question on everyone's mind. "Is it me or has the host of this video been drenched by a douche nozzle before they turned the cameras on?" Mega64 has the answer: yes.

Mega64's parody announcement one-ups Square Enix's hyperbolic ~~infomercial~~ trailer with hilarious real-world "interviews." Oh, and if you're like Anemos, you'll probably love the ending. Check it out after the break.

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Lightning strikes the UK and US cover art of Final Fantasy XIII [Update]

by Griffin McElroy { Dec 1st 2009 at 10:30AM }

The Final Fantasy series has been known to have some truly epic box art in the past, such as the man vs. machinery motif of the Final Fantasy VII cover, or the lovely, all-inclusive tableau featured on the front of the last entry in the core franchise. Imagine our surprise when we received the images above from Games Press -- it seems the cover for the UK version of Final Fantasy XIII will be considerably more simple than the box art of its predecessors. [Update: The US version of the box art will be identical to the UK version.]

We've posted larger versions of the two boxes in the gallery below. Check them out, but don't let those eyes of yours wander. Yes, we know her skirt is hiked to a precarious degree. We also know that the baby Jesus is watching your every action.

Gallery: Final Fantasy XIII UK cover art

Japan facing Final Fantasy XIII oversaturation crisis

by Griffin McElroy { Nov 28th 2009 at 3:30PM }

And you thought Halo 3-themed Game Fuel was bad. A recent round of advertisements have taken Japan by storm, all of which either shill for Final Fantasy XIII, or some product based on the unflagging RPG franchise. Posted after the break are a series of videos, including a short TV spot for the game, two ads for the presumably refreshing Elixir beverage, and a commercial for a commercial (well, a behind-the-scenes documentary) which will be released shortly after the game is released in Japan.

Also, they're making a perfume based off the game's main character. It's called Lightning eau de toilet. There's no video advertisement to accompany this news, but we'd have been remiss had we not mentioned it to you.

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Japan summons one more Final Fantasy XIII trailer

by Andrew Yoon { Nov 25th 2009 at 12:15AM }

Square Enix has released yet another Japanese language trailer for Final Fantasy XIII, likely the last one before the game hits retail stores across the Pacific. This five minute video features a lot of recycled footage from earlier trailers, but attentive fans will notice the reveal of new characters (villains, perhaps?).

The highlights of this lengthy preview are the franchise's trademark over-the-top summons -- made even more spectacular and grandiose for this generation's first numbered entry in the Final Fantasy series. Of course, Square Enix fans would have it no other way.

[Thanks, Brandon S.!]

Gallery: Final Fantasy XIII

Crystal Bearers dives into Europe February 5

by JC Fletcher { Nov 20th 2009 at 11:45AM }

The good news: no Boxing Day shopping trips are in store for European gamers eager to telekinetically grab Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers. The (relatively) bad news: that's because it's coming out more than a month later. Square Enix announced today that Crystal Bearers will be available in PAL territories on February 5, 2010. As waits for Final Fantasy games go, it doesn't seem that bad.

In fact, with the game being released on a normal day instead of the day after Christmas, maybe someone in Europe will notice its release -- something we suspect may be a problem for a game that has been under the radar for most of its development.

Gallery: Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Crystal Bearers

NintendoWare Weekly: WiiWare demos, Pokemon Rumble, Indiana Jones' Greatest Adventures

by David Hinkle { Nov 16th 2009 at 11:30AM }

This week, we get our first taste of Nintendo's new WiiWare demos. Surprisingly, it didn't take Nintendo that long to flip the switch for North America, considering the company revealed the long-overdue feature -- and day-one annoyance -- only earlier this month. And on top of the free trial versions of select WiiWare titles (five total this week!), there are also two new Virtual Console titles to enjoy, as well as three new DSiWare games. Hit the break for the full list.

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