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Final Fantasy XIV adds direct subscription options
As Final Fantasy XIV forges ahead with its revived subscription model, Square-Enix is showing signs that it is listening to its customer base in regards to options. The company announced that players can now directly subscribe to the game with a credit or debit card through the account system. Previously, Final Fantasy XIV utilized a convoluted system that required players to purchase an intermediary currency called Crysta, which was then spent on monthly subscription options. Not only did players find this complex and unnecessary, but there were issues with buying more Crysta than one actually needed. According to the company, the ability to directly subscribe via credit card was "by far the most popular request received from the community." FFXIV began charging for subscriptions earlier this month after more than a year of free service.
Sony Ericsson's Nozomi gets handled, something awfully similar gets an official tease
Hello, New York! Oh, and a Sony Ericsson handset, too. SE may be on its way out officially, but there's still a product or two in the pipeline worth pushing out. We've heard whispers of a so-called Arc HD and Nozomi for months on end, and while it's unclear which of the two (if it's either) is shown above, there's no question that this is something that'll see the market. One shot is currently posted over at Sony Ericsson's German Facebook page (shown after the break), where a teaser line promises that "the new Xperia" to be officially unveiled "next week." Next week, as you may have guessed, is CES, and coincidentally, the fine folks over at ITProPortal have wrapped their paws around an SE handset (above) that they're confident is the aforementioned Nozomi. Weirdly, the camera location on the phone they procured is different than the official SE shot above, leaving us to wonder if two new superphones are on tap. Whatever the case, you can bet we'll be bringing the dirt as soon as it's hauled in. [Thanks, Shubham]
Final Fantasy XI goes 11-11-11 wild
You totally can't blame Square-Enix for taking advantage of the once-in-a-lifetime 11/11/11 calendar event to throw a Final Fantasy XI promotion. That's serendipity, right there. With the "11 on 11-11-11" sale, the company is unleashing a thunderstorm of lightning deals. Starting off, curious players can give Final Fantasy XI a try for free for 14 days with a new account. If the sampling is deemed subscription-worthy, the full Ultimate Collection Abyssea Edition can be purchased for 50% off the retail price. This package includes the core game, four expansions, three scenarios, and three Abyssea battle areas. And while you can't purchase it today on the 11th, Square-Enix wants to let you know that the Final Fantasy XI Plus soundtrack will go on sale on the 15th. This two-disc OST has previously unreleased tunes from the game and PlayOnline. Players who snag a first-edition copy will also get a code for an in-game keyboard that will play a random tune when you enter your house. You can only preorder this right now through the Square-Enix store.
Sony Ericsson's Xperia Acro and Xperia Arc get PlayStation Certified in Japan
Hello, PlayStation Certification! Looks like the Xperia Play is getting a bit of company in Japan, where Sony Ericsson's Xperia Arc and Acro are getting that coveted seal of approval. Updates are actually rolling out across a number of SE phones on NTT DoCoMo, enabling dozens upon dozens of new games to be tailored (and available) for the Arc and Acro in particular. Hit the source link for the official word, and if you aren't camped out in the Land of the Rising Sun, hang tight -- we get the feeling Sony proper is going to be pushing this initiative a lot harder than it has been thus far.
Sony Ericsson brings Gesture input to Xperia line, gives new meaning to 'Swiper, no swiping!'
Xperia-toting Scandinavians got to claim first dibs on Gingerbread 2.3.4 this past September. But now Sony Ericsson is looking to share that Android update love with owners worldwide. And when that firmware finally hits your handset, don't be surprised to find a pre-installed, Swype-like doppleganger on board. Dubbed "Gesture input," this SE-made mobile keyboard option shamelessly apes its competitor's sweep-to-type implementation for texting, tweeting and general emailing. Anyone who's spent quality time with the finger-dragging solution will know exactly what to expect. A roll call of devices set to get this feature upgrade is listed on the company's blog. So, if you're curious about your place in this upgrade line, check out the source for a little illumination.
Glyph Wakfu's Feca class a break, it rocks
With the nation of Sufokia on the horizon for Wakfu, it's easy for players to think, "They can't possibly top this!" But they can. Oh yes, they can. With the update will also come the newest class to the game, the Feca. Feca disciples utilize a mixture of protective shields and glyphs to protect themselves and lay down elemental law on enemies. They may not top the damage charts, but their durable nature and flexible spellcasting system allows Feca to fit in anywhere that's needed. Feca glyphs take a little bit of preparation to get going, but once they're up and running, they provide helpful area effects. Feca's water abilities focus on support, the fire branch is all about offense, and the earth branch is defensive in nature. It seems as though the Feca are geared toward jack-of-all-trades players, so if that fits the bill for you, you may be interested in reading more on this class in the latest Wakfu dev diary.
Sony Ericsson CEO says company 'should have taken iPhone more seriously'
Current Sony Ericsson CEO Bert Nordberg wasn't leading the company back when Apple introduced the first iPhone in 2007, but he still has some opinions about how it should have reacted to the phone's debut. In an interview with The Wall Street Journal today, Nordberg said, "it's safe to say that Sony Ericsson should have taken the iPhone more seriously when it arrived in 2007." He has nothing but praise for the company's commitment to Android, however, saying that "our Android strategy has been successful and the best choice we could have made," and that he "wouldn't feel comfortable investing in a platform that isn't as good as the one that we currently use." That last bit was in response to a question about Windows Phone, and it may sound like a complete slam if not for the fact that he went on to admit he is "quite curious" it. Exactly what that means isn't clear, but it sounds like the door still at least isn't completely shut for the OS it once toyed around with. Hit the source link below for the full interview.
FFXIV takes to YouTube Live for its one-year anniversary [Updated]
Lights... camera... internet connection... aaand action! To celebrate Final Fantasy XIV's first anniversary, Square-Enix's Naoki Yoshida will be taking the stage for a live edition of the Producer's Letter. This event will happen on October 4th at 8:00 p.m. a.m. EDT on YouTube Live. Yoshida will use the time to field player questions from around the world and will also talk about the future of the title as it heads into its second year of operation. Final Fantasy XIV will celebrate its first anniversary on September 30th. For Massively's musings on where the game's been and where it's going, make sure to check out this past week's Mog Log for the full skinny!
Artega SE electric supercar is coming to the US, we go eyes-on
With the Tesla Roadster's tenure drawing to a close and a proper two-seat replacement seemingly just a twinkle in Peter Rawlinson's eye at this point, there's something of a coming void in the world of the electric supercar. Artega would love to fill that with the SE. It's an all-electric version of the company's GT supercar, and while the GT will not see a release on American shores, we got confirmation from Artega that the battery-powered SE will -- eventually. The 375 horsepower motor drives the car to 62MPH in 3.9 seconds and a top speed of 126.5. Maximum range is 172 miles, but drive the car "more enthusiastically" and you can expect a more realistic 124. The car was announced earlier this year at the Geneva Motor Show and here in Frankfurt we were able to spend a few minutes ogling its curves in a variety of interesting colors, including one model with a cut-away fender showing off the positioning of some of the 16 battery modules. 12 of those are scattered around the rear of the car, while four are up front, giving the car a rearward-biased 40:60 weight distribution. Cost is said to be 150,000 euro, or about $207,000. That's nearly twice the cost of a Roadster. Worth it? We'll see. %Gallery-134029% %Gallery-134031%
Sony Ericsson's Xperia Play 4G hitting AT&T on September 18th for $50 on contract
We knew good and well it was coming, and come it has. Sony Ericsson's Xperia Play has made the natural GSM shift in the States in order to grace Ma Bell's airwaves, and despite the "4G" naming convention, this fellow will be topping out at HSPA+. In other words, LTE lovers will need to look elsewhere. This marks the first launch of a PlayStation-certified smartphone for AT&T, and given that it's been around the block a time or two, the carrier is (smartly) pricing it at just $49.99 on a two-year contract -- a buck-fifty less than what it launched for on Verizon Wireless. As we'd heard, it'll ship with Android 2.3.3, a 1GHz CPU, Adreno 205 GPU, a 4-inch display (854 x 480) and will arrive in an exclusive 'stealth blue' hue. AT&T customers will also be blessed with a gratis Multimedia Dock (DK300) and MC100 music cable, not to mention seven pre-loaded games at no charge. Full details on that are hosted up after the break, and interested consumers can line up to grab their own on September 18th. %Gallery-132961%
Fido outs the Sony Ericsson Xperia Pro
While Fido is sometimes known as a storehouse for the less-than-stellar handsets in the Rogers family, its launch of the Sony Ericsson Xperia Pro may well renew some of its gloss. Packing such niceties as an 8.1 megapixel camera, a 1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon MSM8255 CPU, 854 x 480 3.7-inch display, GPS, WiFi, and even an 8GB memory card, we're convinced it's set to become a rather popular device. With this launch, Fido's Android stable has now been bumped up to an even four sets -- including the Samsung Nexus S, Acer Liquid E, LG Optimus 2X -- and with pricing set at a pretty reasonable $50 for a three-year stint and $350 contract-free it's immediately the most affordable. Do feel free to drop us a line in the comments below if you find yourself inexplicably drawn into a bricks and mortar to pick one of these up.
Square Enix invites Championship Manager into the MMO club
The incredibly popular football (read: soccer) video game franchise Championship Manager is about ready to take the jump into MMO-space -- and Square Enix will be there to hold its hand all the way. The studio announced today that it will be publishing Championship Manager: World of Football, a free-to-play browser-based title for sports fanatics. Developed by Beautiful Game Studios and Shanda Games, Championship Manager will initially launch in China with a possible international release later down the road. A beta for the title is to be announced shortly. This is a further indication of the shape of the partnership between Square Enix and Shanda Games, which we reported on last year. The Championship Manager franchise dates back to 1992, with recent versions created by Beautiful Game Studios.
How would you change Sony Ericsson's Xperia Play?
It came with a bang, but even Sony Ericsson's Xperia Play seems to have already become yesterday's treasure in a world swamped with dual-core superphones. Still, the Play remains the only Android phone on the market with a full-on slide-out gamepad, and while the library's still lacking, there's oodles of promise here. And that, friends, is where you come in. For those that forked over whatever it took to snag one, we're anxious to know how you'd do things differently. We're guessing that SE didn't sink an absurd amount of resources into this thing without a successor in mind, so what are you hoping to see in Revision B? A higher-res display? A few more buttons to mash? Ice Cream Sandwich? Get as crazy as you wanna be in comments below, won't you?
One Shots: Shh, it's starting!
Eliot is our One Shots star today as staff pick week continues, and he's got a gorgeous nighttime shot from Final Fantasy XIV: This is from a fairly large roleplaying event that took place on the Besaid server in Final Fantasy XIV. The event was a large community sharing of stories, with each speaker getting up in turn and sharing a tale. It was a really nice event all around and a great chance to meet more people on the server. Keep your eyes on One Shots all week to see what the Massively staff loves playing and showing off. Next week's theme is all about gear. It'll be your chance to show off your most epic armor and weapons and tell us all about how you acquired them. The week after that is pet week, and we can't wait to see your awesome pet companions and hear all about them. Just send a screenshot to oneshots@massively.com along with your name, the name of the game, and a paragraph or two telling us about what we're seeing! %Gallery-112285%
Sony Ericsson introduces the Xperia ray and Xperia active for the fashion and fitness focused
Sony Ericsson has finally come clean about the Urushi or, as it's now known, the Xperia ray (SE spits in the face of your capitalization conventions). As we already heard, it's packing a 1GHz processor, an 854 x 480, 3.3-inch Reality Display, an 8.1-megapixel rear-facing camera, and Android 2.3, all while coming in at a svelte 9.3-mm thin. The company also unveiled another uppercase eschewing handset, the Xperia active -- a phone for those who spend as much time running or snow boarding as they do texting. The dust proof and water resistant phone also pushes Gingerbread with a 1GHz CPU, but scales the screen back to three inches and a 320 x 480 resolution, while going with a lesser 5-megapixel rear shooter. More importantly, it boasts both a barometer and an ANT+ wireless radio to compliment the usual GPS and compass for tracking your workouts. You'll find full specs for each in the PR after the break, though how much they'll cost when they land in Q3 is still a mystery.
Alleged shot of Sony Ericsson Xperia Duo surfaces
There's not really much more than the image above to go on with this one, but what you're looking at is purported to be the as-yet-unannounced Xperia Duo, which may or may not be Sony Ericsson's first dual-core phone. As you can see, it bears some resemblance to the Xperia Arc, with what appears to be a large, edge-to-edge display and a UI that's apparently been tweaked a bit from what we've seen previously on SE phones, including a different weather widget and media player controls under the dock. Of course, it is still just a single image, so we'd recommend taking it with the usual grain of salt for the time being. [Thanks, Daniel N]
Sony Ericsson Xperia Pro now available for pre-order in the UK
Outside of a bit of bootloader talk, we haven't heard much about Sony Ericsson's Xperia Pro since it made its debut at Mobile World Congress in February. The company's now gotten things rolling again, however, and has made the phone available for pre-order in the UK. As you can see above, it'll set you back £349.99 SIM-free (or roughly $575), and it should be available sometime next month. Not pictured above is one of the phone's main selling points: a sliding QWERTY keyboard -- but don't worry, you can get a good look at it in our hands-on. [Thanks, Amarjit]
Clearwire ditches plans to produce phones, satisfied Sony Ericsson drops logo lawsuit
We thought Clearwire might have had a chance at legal victory against Sony Ericsson, but the wireless carrier has apparently dropped out of the ring. Clearwire told a federal court it no longer plans to produce a smartphone -- which basically nullified Sony Ericsson's worry that upcoming Clearwire handsets would oh-so-similar swirling orb logo. As a result, Sony Ericsson's reporting today that it's dropped the trademark infringement lawsuit, which sounds good for all involved, except it leaves Clearwire not producing much of anything now.
One Shots: The delights of anticipation
The high-level and endgame theme continues today in One Shots with a peek at "someday." This Final Fantasy XIV screenshot from reader Jon holds some promise for the future: This view is from the Coerthas area in Final Fantasy XIV. The bridge is currently inaccessible but will someday become the entrance to the city of Ishguard. What do the endgame or high-level areas in your favorite MMO look like? Care to show them off a bit? Send a screenshot to us at oneshots@massively.com along with your name, the name of the game, and a description of what we're seeing. We'll show it off here on One Shots with a helping of public thanks to you! While we're still welcoming more high-level images, we're also preparing for next week, so send in screenshots for your favorite free-to-play games as well! %Gallery-112285%
Sony Ericsson teaches course on building custom Linux kernels, admission is free
When Sony Ericsson stepped out of line and opened its bootloader unlocking service, it provided a tacit acknowledgment that users should have the ability to use and abuse their phones however they see fit -- even if it voids the warranty. Frankly, we applaud SE's move, despite the caveat that supported handsets cannot be SIM-locked to a carrier (or CDMA, for that matter). Now, Sony's embracing its own movement and is teaching a free online class (of sorts) on how to build a Linux kernel and flash it to your phone. Of course, the article requires that you get comfy with the command line, but whether you're an Android developer, a casual enthusiast, or a curious observer, this tutorial is worth reading and learning from. Welcome to Computer Lib for the handset generation -- where you can and must understand smartphones now.
