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Nomura: Final Fantasy 15 on PS3 may have 'caused us to look inferior'
Square Enix game director Tetsuya Nomura has elaborated on the choice to bring Final Fantasy 15 – previously known as Final Fantasy Versus 13 – to next-generation consoles instead of PS3, the original platform when the game was first announced in 2006. In an interview with Famitsu (via Polygon), Nomura said Square Enix moved the game to Xbox One and PS4 because "the lifespan of the current generation of consoles was starting to pose a problem" to Square Enix. "We had originally thought about making this announcement last year, but due to assorted reasons that got delayed. This meant that the lifespan of the current generation of consoles was starting to pose a problem to us. If we were a year later, other companies will have more time to research the next generation, and releasing the game against their products on the older generation could have caused us to look inferior when people inevitably compared us." Keeping Final Fantasy 15 on the current generation posed too many concerns to Square Enix – concerns that the final game wouldn't match what the company set out to do. "With current-gen systems, we couldn't fully express what we wanted to do in this project," he said. "There were more and more things that we would've had to change the form of. However, the assumption was that we'd go ahead with a current-gen release, so went through a trial-and-error process to do as much as we could. So we built an alpha version about a year ago, and the company response was 'If you remained bound to the current generation, will it will be the product you envisioned?' They suggested shifting fully to next-gen, and that was the spark that led to the move." As for a PC port, Nomura says it largely "depends on the demand" – if enough people want it, then Square Enix may pursue it. The full interview can be read through the source link below.
Kingdom Hearts 3, Final Fantasy 15 coming to Xbox One
While featured heavily in yesterday's Sony E3 keynote, both Kingdom Hearts 3 and Final Fantasy 15 are also coming to Xbox One as well as PS4. Shinji Hashimoto, producer at Square Enix, announced the news this morning at a Square Enix event in Los Angeles (via Siliconera). Kingdom Hearts 3 is said to feature a more mature Sora, the Keyblade-wielding protagonist of the series. Final Fantasy 15 – previously known as Final Fantasy Versus 13 – will use DirectX 11, making it easier to develop for both Xbox One and PS4 since both consoles are built on x86 architecture.
Square Enix bringing Final Fantasy Versus 13 to PS4, now Final Fantasy 15
Square Enix showed a fresh trailer for Final Fantasy Versus 13 during Sony's E3 press conference today. At the end of the trailer, Square Enix's Tetsuya Nomura noted the game is now known as Final Fantasy 15, and the game will be coming to both PS3 and PS4.
Can I Get a Pulse?
You're reading Reaction Time, a weekly column that claims to examine recent events, games and trends in the industry, but is really just looking for an excuse to use the word "zeitgeist." It debuts on Fridays in Engadget's digital magazine, Distro. Psst. Hey, Final Fantasy Versus XIII. Are you dead? Don't answer that if you are.The fate of Final Fantasy Versus XIII, which has rarely been seen outside of lavish computer-generated video since it was announced in 2007 2006, has been debated and doubted enough to push the game well into the realm of vaporware. Yoichi Wada, the CEO of Square Enix, took to Twitter this week to euthanize our latest, seemingly premature obituaries. "It seems someone is spreading a false rumor about Versus being canceled," he wrote. I hope he lets us know as soon as someone starts spreading the real one.His comment, while without evidence, represented the first proper answer to come out of Square, which up until then had done nothing to mitigate the "false rumor." The games press would love nothing more than to quash or confirm the story, and it's one that shouldn't be simpler to resolve. Is your game still in development? Y/N.
Square reaffirms existence of Versus XIII, continues not to show it
Final Fantasy Versus XIII, it seems, may still be a project in the works at Square Enix. After rumors this week put the game out to pasture, CEO Yoichi Wada tweeted last night, "It seems someone is spreading a false rumor about Versus being canceled." He added that he had just exited "a regularly scheduled meeting for Versus," and that "if you were to see the city etc. presented today, you wouldn't be able to stand from surprise."Wada's talk, of course, doesn't change the fact that the game disappeared over a year ago. Having been announced back in 2007 2006, news about the game has been spotty at best. It wasn't at this year's E3 Expo or at last year's Tokyo Game Show. The last trailer we saw was back in January 2011.The last news we heard was that the game was getting help from Square's gorgeous Luminous Engine – could that mean it's making the jump to next-gen? We don't know, but you should probably watch this Luminous Engine demo and think about that possibility for a bit.
Final Fantasy 25th anniversary celebration includes FFXIII 'developments' talk
Square Enix's "Fabula Nova Crystallis" world – the occasionally bizarre and often beautiful universe of several Final Fantasy XIII titles – is scheduled for a big exposé as part of Square's 25th anniversary celebration for the Final Fantasy series. A stage presentation on September 1 in Tokyo's Shibuya district titled, "Final Fantasy XIII Lightnight Saga: New Developments Presentation" apparently features "details on the future of the FFXIII project" (via Andriasang's translation).Beyond Final Fantasy XIII and XIII-2, the Fabula Nova Crystallis series extends to Final Fantasy Versus XIII and Final Fantasy Agito XIII (renamed Final Fantasy Type-0). Of the planned "trilogy" of games, the only one yet to see release is Final Fantasy Versus XIII. In fact, nothing has been heard of the title in quite some time – it was a no show both at last year's Tokyo Game Show and this year's E3 Expo. A demo of the next-gen technology supporting Versus, the Luminous Engine, was given at E3, but Versus wasn't part of the presentation.Kotaku's reporting that the game may be in flux or cancelled, though Square Enix reps refused to comment on the status of the title. With any luck, we'll find out more this September.
Sample Final Fantasy Versus XIII music in Theatrhythm DLC form
Theatrhythm: Final Fantasy isn't just about celebrating Final Fantasy games of the past. New DLC coming to Japan this week features a song from a game that isn't even out yet. One of the four songs coming April 4 is "Somnus" from Final Fantasy Versus XIII -- making that song the first actual part of that game that can be played.Square Enix announced a localization of Theatrhythm for this summer. We feel a bit better talking about DLC, knowing that you'll eventually have the opportunity to experience it for yourself.
Final Fantasy Versus XIII getting help from Luminous Engine, Kingdom Hearts 3DS coming next spring
Despite Final Fantasy Versus XIII not appearing in any form at this year's Tokyo Game Show, project director Tetsuya Nomura shared some new details on it with Japanese magazine Famitsu. Apparently, the long-in-development Fabula Nova Crystallis game's lighting has been overhauled with some help from Square Enix' Luminous Engine, while Versus XIII's action is handled by another, unique engine. More excitingly, Nomura said that he recently ran through the game's entire world map, as well as its dungeons/side quests, and he's "impressed with how expansive everything is." He also spoke to his other project -- Kingdom Hearts 3DS, or "Dream Drop Distance" if you will -- pinning its release to next spring, at least in Japan. So, um, get your keyblades sharpened.
Final Fantasy Versus XIII gameplay detailed, trailer re-released in HD
An HD version of the recently leaked Final Fantasy Versus XIII trailer has been officially released by Square Enix, giving us a clearer look at the long-awaited game's battle system. Dengeki PlayStation (via Andriasang) offers a bit more insight. We joked that the game was a "Kingdom Hearts for adults," and in many ways, that comparison holds true. Like the Disney mash-up game, the combat system is party-based, giving you control of at most three characters at once. You'll be able to switch between the different characters, each with its own specialized type of attack. One character, for example, will be able to find enemy weak points and attack them with guns from a third-person perspective. Noctis, the princely main character of the story, is the only one able to use every weapon type in the game. You'll also be able to command vehicles: tanks, cars, air ships and, yes, Chocobos. If the trailer whets your appetite for more, director Tetsuya Nomura asks that you "forget" about the game for now. Why? With the next update on the game planned for E3 "at the earliest," it's clear that Nomura and company have a long way to go before they're finished. Check out the trailer (again) after the break.
Final Fantasy Versus XIII leaked trailer shows off combat, reality-based fantasy [update: trailer removed]
All of the trailers for Final Fantasy Versus XIII have begun with the tagline: "This is a fantasy based on reality." This new trailer, leaked from this morning's Square Enix conference, shows a city, not unlike Tokyo, under siege. Noctis and crew fight back with swords and, yes, turrets. It's unsurprising that this Nomura-directed game looks a bit like Kingdom Hearts -- for adults.
Final Fantasy Versus XIII and Agito XIII TGS trailers (finally) released
It's been a while since we've seen any media from the Fabula Nova Crystallis series' other two-thirds -- actually, scratch that. We saw a trailer for Final Fantasy Versus XIII and Agito XIII during TGS last month. Now, thanks to Square Enix's unswerving kindness, you can watch it too.
Nomura offers updates on upcoming Square Enix projects
We're pretty sure you'd need one of those bulletin boards from TV crime dramas -- you know, the ones with pictures of mafioso higher-ups with multicolored strings and push pins connecting them -- in order to keep track of all of Square Enix's upcoming games. The studio's resident star designer, Tetsuya Nomura, recently gave an update on these projects -- a laundry list which includes Final Fantasy Versus and Agito XIII, Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep and Re:Coded, The 3rd Birthday, and "a number of unannounced titles." According to Andriasang's translation, Nomura explained the dearth of news on Versus XIII was due to a number of hardships which have rendered the company's old developmental tricks "completely inapplicable," but that progress is being made. He couldn't be any more specific than that, due to Square Enix's policy of promoting games in the order they'll be released. In that case, we may not hear more on Versus or Agito for some time -- Nomura explained that some of the company's unannounced games would arrive before the next installment in the Fabula Nova Crystallis franchise. For more info on the fate of Square Enix's future projects, check out Andriasang's translation of the 3rd Birthday Twitter feed.
Square Enix 'looking into' Xbox 360 release of Final Fantasy Versus XIII
During an investor meeting in Tokyo, Square Enix president Yoichi Wada indicated that the company is considering a multiplatform release for Final Fantasy Versus XIII. An attendee asked Wada about the possibility of putting the currently PS3-exclusive Fabula Nova Crystallis game on Xbox 360 like Final Fantasy XIII, in order to boost sales outside of Japan, to which Wada responded (according to Andriasang's translation) "We'll be looking into it internally until right before the formal announcement." Wada did not mention when that "formal announcement" would take place. E3 is coming up, so it's entirely possible Wada is building up to that, having expressed his hope for an E3 unveil previously. But we've given up on expecting this game to become real any time soon. When it stops existing only in secret trailer form and becomes an actual, playable game, we'll be shocked, regardless of the platform (or platforms). Update: Wada responded on Twitter (via Andriasang) to speculation about his comments: "It looks like the 'net is heating up. Versus on Xbox? What I said at the earnings press conference was just that until a formal announcement is made at the announcement time, all points about all titles are not finalized." In other words, he is stressing that Square hasn't made any decisions.
Yep, there's a world map in Final Fantasy Versus XIII
With Final Fantasy XIII finally done and in stores, Square Enix fans are now scouring the internet for the next big project in the Final Fantasy series: The still-PS3-exclusive Final Fantasy Versus XIII. Character designer and director Tetsuya Nomura was interviewed on Twitter, an appropriate venue that forces brevity and a general lack of detail. According to Nomura (as translated by Andriasang), "not everything is connected together" in Versus, "so the various areas have different levels of progress." He did manage to reveal at least two facts about the upcoming game: "You can fly across the world map in an air ship." Adding both world maps and controllable air ships should help appease Final Fantasy fans disappointed by their absence in XIII. While Versus represents a spin-off for the franchise, it sounds like it may be closer to a traditional FF experience than its counterpart. For hardcore Square Enix fans, that news alone should be enough to restart the long wait to the next Final Fantasy game.
GDC: Toriyama explains the themes of the Fabula Nova Crystallis trilogy
The creators of Final Fantasy XIII have been notoriously tight-lipped about the Fabula Nova Crystallis trilogy, a series comprised of FFXIII, Final Fantasy Versus XIII and the PSP-exclusive Final Fantasy Agito XIII. During a GDC panel titled "The Crystal Mythos," director Motomu Toriyama gave a few scant details about the other two branches of the trilogy, and the few similarities connecting the entries in the franchise's 13th series. Toriyama's main point during his presentation is that Agito and Versus won't be sequels to the recently released Final Fantasy XIII -- they'll both have their own unique set of characters, gameplay systems and overarching stories. The only thing connecting them is the "Crystal Mythos" motif -- a theme where the fates of ordinary humans are controlled by omnipotent gods. Players of Final Fantasy XIII should already be acquainted with this storytelling device. The other detail about the series Toriyama mentioned was that, like XIII, the rest of the series will continue to focus on story-driven gameplay rather than allowing the player to explore an open world. For better or worse, it sounds like Versus and Agito will possess the same linearity for which XIII was frequently criticized.
Nomura 'not sure' about Final Fantasy Versus XIII at E3
As Square Enix developers are prone to do, acclaimed Final Fantasy lead Tetsuya Nomura recently dropped some vague information about one of the handful of Fabula Nova Crystallis Final Fantasy XIII games that was announced like, a million years ago (okay, okay -- in 2006). Apparently, due to the display of the world map not being up to snuff, Final Fantasy Versus XIII may not make an appearance at this year's E3. "We were hoping to debut it at E3, but we're not sure now," Nomura told Famitsu (as relayed by FF-Reunion.net). "For displaying characters on the world map, we were originally planning on using the method used by 'FF#,' with a small Noctus running about on the screen, but that didn't look too great, so we ended up switching to the method used by 'FF#.'" Allegedly, the "#" designations used by Famitsu in the preceding quotation were an effort to mask the particular Final Fantasy installments Nomura was referring to. "Famitsu had to block them out," explained Andriasang. Nomura also suggested that Versus might be benched for E3 2010 in order to give other Square Enix titles at the show more time in the spotlight. Nomura did not mention Agito XIII in the Famitsu article, but did note that, in terms of other projects, "There are a number of them, along with some for which we need to begin preparations for a reveal." That's right -- forget about finally showing us more of the game that was announced four years ago, bring on Final Fantasy XV! [Via Andriasang]
TGS 2009: The Recap Post
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)
TGS 2009: Impressions: Final Fantasy Versus XIII
Guess Square Enix lied when they said they weren't going to be showing off Final Fantasy Versus XIII at Tokyo Game Show this year. Once again, the company continued its Closed Theater antics by ... well, having one.This year's trailer for the still-only-for-PS3 Versus XIII broke the mold of all the previous ones by focusing exclusively on gameplay (gasp!). The trailer is barely a trailer at all, absent of the fancy editing and slick text overlays so common in a Square Enix trailer. Instead, we're treated to handicam footage of the game running off of a TV. The footage isn't particularly interesting: we see Noctis running through many different kinds of environments, such as European-inspired towns to grassy green fields that look like they're ripped straight from Final Fantasy XIII.Unfortunately, the trailer didn't answer the one question all Square Enix fans have on their minds: what will it play like? Sure, we know he can run, but we'd love to see how this trailer translates to gameplay (if at all!). This secret trailer reveal at TGS did answer one though, though: Versus XIII is actually in development and, from the looks of things, may be farther along than any of us had expected.
Don't get too excited by this new Final Fantasy Versus XIII trailer
We're not quite done with the Final Fantasy XIII onslaught yet. IGN has posted a new trailer for Final Fantasy Versus XIII. Those who attended the Tokyo Game Show closed theater presentation (umm, that's gotta be some of you, right?) will be familiar with it and probably recognize some of the real-time footage from the game. We see the two main characters of Versus chatting ... and not much else. The game is so far away from completion that it appears Square Enix hasn't hired voice actors for the game yet!Check it out after the break.[Thanks, Fidoboy17!]
Final Fantasy XIII and Versus XIII websites go live
Wow! The official websites for Final Fantasy XIII and Versus XIII have gone live, and at least one of them is jam-packed with direct-feed images of this hotly anticipated game series. (The Versus XIII website, we're afraid to report, is quite bare-bones right now.) No more scans, please! This is the real deal. Final Fantasy XIIIFinal Fanasy Versus XIII [Thanks, jason_fly_07!]%Gallery-12752%
