FFXIII
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Watchdog group dubs Xbox 360 FFXIII ad 'misleading'
According to Telegraph.co.uk, the UK group Advertising Standards Authority has concluded that a recent advertisement for the Xbox 360 version of Final Fantasy XIII is "misleading." It seems the commercial in question used footage from the PlayStation 3 version of the game. While it's acknowledged that the Xbox 360 version looks slightly inferior to the PS3 version, what makes the ASA's claim interesting is that the commercial is composed entirely of pre-rendered FMV footage. Using a side-by-side comparison of each version of the game, the ASA reached the conclusion that the PS3 version "appeared sharper and colours were more vivid" and thus the commercial "exaggerated the quality of the footage available on the XBOX 360, albeit marginally." For its part, Square-Enix admitted that the FMV was captured from a PlayStation console but added that there was "no substantive difference" between the footage on either console and that only those watching in HD would notice the "slight difference." The ASA has ordered that the commercial not be shown again.
Final Fantasy XIII Xbox 360 bundle discounted to $249.99 at Amazon
If you pounced on what was already a good deal for the Final Fantasy XIII bundle, then we apologize, because it's been discounted again. Amazon has knocked another $50 off the price tag, bringing the console down to a very appealing $249.99. For a 250GB HDD, two wireless controllers, a copy of Final Fantasy XIII and the console itself (plus the custom faceplate, which Amazon is still throwing in), that's a damn good price -- even if there is a sexier, slimmer console on the block now.
Learn your Roman numerals with Amazon's Final Fantasy sale
If you've always struggled keeping your XIIIs and IIIs straight, you might just need the assistance of a few handy flash cards. Hey, the covers of all the Final Fantasy games that Amazon just discounted across multiple platforms should suffice! Check out the full list of offers below, courtesy of Thrifty Nerd.
Final Fantasy 13, Just Cause 2, Supreme Commander 2 cheap on Amazon today
Last Thursday, Amazon discounted a random trio of Square Enix games for its Deal of the Day. Today, three more Squeenix games receive a temporary discount -- and this time, none of them are Nier. If you have yet to decide whether the time-release fun of Final Fantasy 13 is for you, the decision is slightly easier today: it's available for $29.99 on both Xbox 360 and PS3. It's joined by revolutionary mayhem simulator Just Cause 2, which is down to $36.99 on the same two platforms, and $26.99 on PC. Finally, Supreme Commander 2 is supremely cheap at $26.99 on Xbox or $19.99 on PC. Given Amazon's recent Deal of the Day history, if you were planning to buy any other recent Square Enix releases, perhaps you should sit on that purchase for a week, just in case.
Amazon's FFXIII 360 bundle to include UFC 2010 and Bioshock 2 on August 2
Amazon's upping the ante to try and move more units of its recently discounted Final Fantasy XIII Xbox 360 bundle. According to the retailer's Twitter account, the $300 package will come with free copies of UFC Undisputed 2010 and BioShock 2 when purchased this coming Monday.
Final Fantasy XIII Xbox bundle $50 off on Amazon
If you value function over form -- or, rather, Fantasy over form -- you may want to examine an alternative to purchasing the newer, slimmer Xbox 360. Amazon's current Deal of the Day is the Final Fantasy XIII Xbox 360 bundle, which has had its price reduced by one Grant, down to $300.
GDC10: PS3 FFXIII gives you an extra shot at the FFXIV beta
Big news for Final Fantasy XIV fans today, especially if you're biting your nails waiting to get into the beta. The official PlayStation Blog has announced that the initial production run of Final Fantasy XIII on the PS3 will come packaged with a special offer for an in-game item, and an extra shot at a potential beta spot for Final Fantasy XIV. While it doesn't guarantee a beta key, anything that increases your chances of playing the game sooner is a good thing. But act now, because once those launch copies are gone, so is the offer.
Two Xbox 360 FF13 bundles for Europe, faceplate pre-order bonus for all
Clearly not content with just one measly Final Fantasy XIII Xbox 360 mega bundle, it looks like Europe will be receiving a second bundle as well. Europe will be receiving the same Final Fantasy XIII Special Edition bundle that was revealed at X10, which includes the game, a 250GB hard drive, two wireless controllers and downloadable Avatar goodies. Speaking of Avatar items, the release actually reveals what they are: a Rosch outfit, a Nabaat outfit and a Chocobo pet (the same one you might already have, we're assuming). The release didn't specify a price, though Amazon UK lists it for £249.99 ($391). In addition to that bundle, however, the region will also be receiving the Final Fantasy XIII Elite bundle, which includes the game, a single wireless controller and the standard 120GB hard drive. Again, no price was revealed, though Amazon France has it listed for €249.99 ($340). Finally, the press release reveals just how you can get your hands on one of the limited edition, promotional FFXIII faceplates. The faceplates will be offered as a bonus for anyone who pre-orders the 250GB Special Edition console. Major Nelson also revealed on Xbox Live that the faceplate will be a pre-order bonus for the North American Special Edition console as well. So, if you really want that faceplate, you'd better be ready to plop down 400 bones for it.
Pixar, Molyneux and Schafer also giving talks at GDC 2010
Worried that you're only gonna get one legendary game developer speaking at this year's GDC? Well quit it, because it turns out that March's pontification festival will also feature the likes of Double Fine's Tim Schafer, Lionhead/MGS Europe head Peter Molyneux, Square Enix FFXIII director Motomu Toriyama, a couple of "Pixar notables," and fantasy wordsmith R.A. Salvatore. According to Gamasutra's announcement of the speakers, the gentlemen will join "almost 350 other lectures, keynotes, and panels" taking place at the early March event, giving speeches on everything from comedy in gaming (Schafer, of course) to intuitive game design (Molyneux), and even a sneak peek (the first, actually, if we're not mistaken) of 38 Studios' upcoming MMO (with R.A. Salvatore). For all you zipper and chain-clad folks, Toriyama's speech on creating "The Crystal Mythos" might be more up your alley. If none of that sounds exciting to you, then there's always the other 345 or so folks at the event or ... umm ... a bar down the street maybe? Listen, are you alright?
Square Enix posts an 83% drop in operating income
The headline may seem like doom and gloom in the land of Final Fantasy, but it's important to note that the Eidos purchase price is included in this latest report. The silver lining here is that the company's game business sales saw a 7.2 percent increase in the last quarter, so even with the operating loss there's a strong chance of quick recovery due to sales.For one thing, Square Enix's mobile sales have seen a record sales increase. Additionally, new titles like Dragon Quest IX are raking in the cash and probably won't stop for a while.Then there's that impending release of Final Fantasy XIII in Japan, so we're really not surprised that Square Enix is predicting a full year net income even now. Next year should be even bigger for the company, as Final Fantasy XIII and Final Fantasy XIV both release globally. After that? Why, they're going to buy the moon, Clarice -- the moon!
FFXIII producer says FF franchise 'straddles genre,' not just a JRPG
Yoshinori Kitase, producer of Final Fantasy XIII, is getting older. Running into his 40s and still at the helm of one of Japan's biggest franchises, the man has been employed by Square Enix for 19 years now. In his time, he's headed up production of classics from Chrono Trigger to Final Fantasy VII to Kingdom Hearts. And you'd think, after all those games and all that time, the man wouldn't react bitterly if the newest entry in the FF series were characterized as a JRPG ... and you'd be wrong."There's a trend these days to strictly categorize games as western RPGs or Japanese RPGs, but Final Fantasy is something that we don't try to categorize as either/or," Kitase told Edge Magazine. Forgive us if we're mistaken here, but we were quite under the impression that the FF franchise more or less defined what a JRPG is. Continuing, he says, "For us, the game straddles genre." We're not sure what game he's playing, but early reports of the recently released FFXIII demo in Japan lead us to believe turn-based battles and spiky-haired androgynous characters are still par for the course. Guess we'll have to find out for ourselves when the game releases in North America sometime next year.
85 million Final Fantasy games sold, global takeover imminent
Hot on the heels of yesterday's official acquisition of "the house that Lara built" (Eidos, folks), Square Enix has released a load of numbers on its biggest IPs -- including some that it just acquired yesterday. Unsurprisingly, the Final Fantasy series flies high above its brethren (in a fancy airship, of course) with over 85 million units moved over the series' lifetime. We imagine after the company releases its flurry of FFXIII titles, that number will jump considerably.Among other details in the release is Dragon Quest's lifetime sales, reaching nearly 50 million units, and the Tomb Raider series showing up with 30 million units sold in the past 13 years. Also of note is Kane & Lynch: Dead Men selling nearly two million shameful, shameful copies. Can we expect the layoffs to stop for now?[Via Edge]Source (warning: PDF)
Special Edition Advent Children PlayStation 3 unboxed in all its matte glory
There's a lot to love about the special edition 160GB Final Fantasy VII Advent Children Complete Cloud Black PlayStation 3 bundle that was unleashed this week in Japan -- a fancy Strife Wolf emblem, a copy of Advent Children Complete on Blu-ray, and a Final Fantasy XIII demo you can't play anywhere else -- but perhaps our favorite part is the console's matte finish. For us, a smudge-resistant PS3 is well worth the 49,980 yen (US $505) price of admission. 1UP has the unboxing, hit up the read link for more pics.[Via Joystiq]
Three new Final Fantasy XIII characters revealed
The next issue of V-Jump magazine has the scoop on three characters that appear in the upcoming Final Fantasy XIII demo, set to be included in Final Fantasy Advent Children Complete. From left to right, we've got Rebro, Gadou, and Marquis, each of which will be playable in the demo. All three are supposedly part of "Team Nora," which is lead by Snow Villiers. Not much else is known about these characters, except that it's said Gadou is deathly afraid of barbers, Marquis is a "Toys R Us kid" and Rebro is a big fan of pancakes -- when asked if waffles were a suitable substitute, he described them as "the devil's cranny treat." We're totally not lying. It's in the V-Jump article.**No, it's not. You've been hoodwinked.
Re: Final Fantasy XIII DVD trailers released
How long will these trailers stay online? We're not exactly sure. Hopefully, you'll be lucky enough to catch these Final Fantasy XIII trailers, captured from the recently released "Re: Final Fantasy XIII" DVD. Check out XIII and Versus after the break.[Thanks, Torgo!]
The stories of Final Fantasy XIII, according to TGS press kit
How helpful are TGS press kits? Well, let us know. Here's word-for-word what we're told about the stories of FFXIII and Versus. (Let us know if you see any similarities.) Final Fantasy XIII:Experience stunning graphics and immersive controls as you delve into the tale of a world where crystals steer the course of human destiny. Final Fantasy Versus XIII:In a kingdom where the order of sword and sorcery reigns, conflict erupts over the last remaining crystal. Experience gravity-defying, action-packed battles in a modern setting.
What's playable, and what's not, at Square Enix's TGS booth
2008 looks to be yet another excellent year for Tokyo Game Show. There's a lot of excitement over the potential surprises at the show. Square Enix has posted its lineup for this year's show, and we're a little saddened to see Final Fantasy XIII (PS3) still not playable. At the very least, we'll be getting some one-on-one time with Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep (PSP). Check out the full PlayStation list here:Playable Dissidia: Final Fantasy (PSP) Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep (PSP) Trailers-Only Final Fantasy XIII (PS3) Final Fantasy Versus XIII (PS3) Final Fantasy Agito XIII (PSP) The 3rd Birthday (PSP) Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Complete (Blu-ray) We're expecting many of these trailers will be shown behind closed doors. Fear not, though. We'll provide detailed impressions of the trailers live from Tokyo next month.
Final Fantasy XIII demo could be two hours long
A recent issue of Famitsu revealed a startling fact about the upcoming demo for Final Fantasy XIII -- the playable preview will apparently last longer than the film that it is packaged with, Final Fantasy: Advent Children Complete. For those of you keeping score at home -- the original Advent had a runtime of 101 minutes. Assuming this length will only increase with the director's cut of the film means Square-Enix's eagerly anticipated demo could last longer than two hours.To put that in perspective, here are a few things that the demo (which the same Famitsu article revealed will cover the very beginning of XIII) will likely last longer than: an expeditious playthrough of Portal, the Anglo-Zanzibar War, an international soccer match (barring any lengthy penalties), and the celebrity status of Lou Bega. (Who? Exactly.)[Via PS3F]
Final Fantasy Agito XIII to use Crisis Core's ATB system, will support Infrastructure
The revelation that Agito, the former Final Fantasy XIII cell phone game, was coming to the PSP was a nice revelation for many. Apparently, the developers were tired of waiting for cell phone tech to advance to the level they wanted for Agito. While details are far and few between, the latest issue of Famitsu PS3 (via FinalFantasyXIII.net) says that Agito will use an advanced version of Crisis Core's ATB system. Fans of the PSP-exclusive prequel should be familiar with the real-time battle system. However, unlike Crisis Core, players can look forward to controlling more than one character.Another bonus is the addition of Infrastructure online play to Agito, a rarity for more Japanese-developed titles. Games with community aspects, such as Monster Hunter Portable and Phantasy Star Portable have opted to use Ad-Hoc multiplayer only. Although that hasn't hindered the popularity of either of these games, players across the Pacific understand that Infrastructure makes online play much more accessible. We approve.[Thanks, Monkey!]
Final Fantasy XIII demo to be over 90 minutes long
The latest issue of Famitsu PS3 is all about the recent Square Enix DKΣ3713 event, and FinalFantasyXIII.net has a few juicy scans from the magazine. One of the more interesting things to point about the upcoming FFXIII demo bundled with Advent Children Complete: the demo will be on a separate Blu-ray disc (meaning it will unlikely be region locked), and the amount of gameplay is promised to be longer than the length of Advent Children. That means the FFXIII demo should be at least 90 minutes long, if not longer. That's huge! The demo will supposedly come from the very beginning of the game, so players won't have to worry about spoiling the later parts of the game.[Thanks, Monkey!]
