tetsuya nomura
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Beloved RPG 'The World Ends With You' will get a sequel, 14 years later
'The World Ends With You' is getting a sequel 14 years later with 'Neo,' which arrives on PS4 and Switch in summer 2021.
'Final Fantasy VII Remake' still exists, and here's video proof
Final Fantasy VII Remake is a big deal. It's the upgraded, high-fidelity version of a legendary installment in the Final Fantasy franchise, and it's been blanketed in mystery since its announcement four years ago. Today, Sony revealed a new trailer for the game, complete with a promise from series shepherd Tetsuya Nomura that more information is coming in June.
Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate's wardrobe involves Mega Man, Tetsuya Nomura
Lest you worry that your battle-accompanying Felyne (or Palico, as Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate refers to them) fight beside you without armor recalling your favorite classic series, Capcom has revealed another aesthetic crossover for MH4U. Players will be able to forge replicas of the Blue Bomber's iconic armor for their Palico friends, as well as arm them with a weapon seemingly made from the skull of Rush, Mega Man's four-legged robotic sidekick. For those more keen on Tetsuya Nomura's legacy of character design, MH4U will also feature a pair of outfits designed by the longtime Final Fantasy contributor. The crimson-hued suit of armor seen in its debut image also bares resemblance to two images tweeted by Hidemi Matsuzuka, director of Square Enix's Play Arts Kai brand of figures. At the time of this writing, pricing and release details for the figure are absent from Matsuzuka's feed and the Play Arts Kai store. We do know, however, that fans can hunt down Mega Man apparel when MH4U lurks onto the 3DS in early 2015. [Image: Capcom]
Hatsune Miku stars in Nomura collaboration, Letterman show
In take-stock-of-reality news, vocaloid virtual star Hatsune Miku starred in a double-whammy of surprising reveals this week. For starters, Square Enix designer Tetsuya Nomura provided his own Final Fantasy-esque take on the aqua-haired diva in a New York art exhibition devoted to her, which opens to the public starting today and runs through to October 19. You can check out more details on the exhibition's site, while Famitsu's report of the opening event has more images to peruse if you're intrigued by Nomura's latest design - not forgetting his recent, similarly inimitable take on Batman. As for the other surprising reveal, it's perhaps even more of an eye-opener. As you can see in the video below the break, Miss Miku strutted onto primetime US TV by performing her song "Sharing the World" on last night's Late Show with David Letterman. As the bemused host put it at the end of the surreal performance, "It's like being on Willie Nelson's bus."
Report: Kingdom Hearts 3 jumps to Unreal Engine 4
In lieu of utilizing in-house technology, Square Enix has opted to shift development of Kingdom Hearts 3 to the ubiquitous, heavily-supported Unreal Engine 4. "Surely and steadily, we're progressing on schedule," stated director Tetsuya Nomura in a recent Famitsu interview (translated by Gematsu). "For various reasons, we've changed the game engine to Unreal Engine 4, because of which we've been facing rendering troubles. But Epic Games has been really cooperative and helpful, so we're progressing just fine." Unfortunately, Nomura makes no mention of when we can expect Kingdom Hearts 3 to reach the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, only adding that currently his development team is working on "scenario writing and world selection" along with new outfits for series mainstays Sora and Riku. [Image: Square Enix]
Nomura no longer directing Final Fantasy 15, new TGS trailer [update]
Square Enix announced designer Tetsuya Nomura is stepping away from Final Fantasy 15 to focus on other projects, with Final Fantasy Type-0 and Before Crisis: Final Fantasy 7 director Hajime Tabata appointed as the game's new director. In a statement released today, Square Enix CEO Yosuke Matsuda said Nomura will shift efforts to "production of titles that can only be made possibly by Nomura himself," and that includes the upcoming Kingdom Hearts 3. The news comes as Square Enix confirmed reports of the Episode Duscae demo for Final Fantasy 15, which players can access via vouchers included with copies of Final Fantasy Type-0 HD. The PS4 and Xbox One versions of the 2011 PSP game are due in North America on March 17, 2015, Japan on March 19 and Europe on March 20, with a US price-tag of $60. As for the Duscae demo, Square Enix said the it's based on the game's opening sections "but alters story progression and more to create a unique first-play experience." [Update: On the PlayStation Europe Blog, Square Enix's Daniel Seto says the demo will be available for PS4 on March 20, which suggests it'll likely also be available on the same day Type-0 releases stateside] Square Enix marked the news with a two-minute Tokyo Game Show trailer for Final Fantasy 15 featuring some of the combat, and you can check it out below the break. The trailer closes with main protagonist Noctis saying, "It's been a long time coming. Almost there." That said, the PS4 and Xbox One JRPG remains without a release window.
Kingdom Hearts dev's Batman comes from a canceled project
Whether you love it or loathe it, the Batman Play Arts statue dreamed up by Final Fantasy and Kingdom Hearts designer Tetsuya Nomura is a curious beast. After revealing the very dark knight yesterday, Nomura told Siliconera the design goes far back in time to a "game-related" project that was eventually canceled. It goes so far back, Nomura said, that it began before Kingdom Hearts was even conceived. So if you're seeing a bit of keyblade armor in there, that's because the canceled project went on to influence the Disney series and its armor design, and not the other way round.
Final Fantasy's Tetsuya Nomura envisions a new Batman
Square Enix unveiled a new Play Arts Kai statue that provides a glimpse of what a Batman game might look like in the hands of Tetsuya Nomura. The figure is one of a new Batman line dreamed up by the Final Fantasy and Kingdom Hearts designer, and it's on display at the San Diego Comic Con, which kicks off today. The word that springs to mind for us is sharp, literally. The cape looks sharp, the horn-like ears look sharp, the additional claw things look sharp - generally the caped crusader looks dangerous to even touch. The most surprising aspect? We can only see the one belt. Check out a larger shot of the very dark knight below the break. If you prefer your Batmen more 8-bit and purpley-blue (who doesn't?), take a gander here.
Lightning Returns, bearing prizes for fan art competition winners
Square Enix has announced that Final Fantasy series character designer Tetsuya Nomura has chosen three grand prize finalists for a fan art competition. The competition was organized by Square Enix and DeviantArt to celebrate the recent release of Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy 13, and was the first time Nomura, who designed Final Fantasy 13 heroine Lightning, has acted has a judge. The winners, in no particular order, are Marga Donaire, Nicolas Barge and Randis Albion - or KarmaLizzard, ArisT0te and randis, as they're respectively known on DeviantArt. The three winners will receive an original sketch from Nomura, $1,000, a keychain, a shirt, a custom Xbox 360 and controller, and the complete Final Fantasy 13 trilogy. Each winner will also be the header image at the top of DeviantArt for a day. More than 4,000 creations were entered in the competition, which garnered more than 1.5 million views. We've included a smaller resolution of Donaire's piece, "Wilhelmina" at the top of this article, but you can see the full-resolution image, along with the other two winners, by checking out the gallery below. You can also check out the official DeviantArt contest page to see the rest of the entries. [Image: Marga Donaire]
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.
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.
Nomura: 'It'd be unusual' if Kingdom Hearts II HD didn't happen
"It'd be unusual" for there not to be an HD update for Kingdom Hearts II, series director Tetsuya Nomura told Famitsu magazine. As Gematsu reports, following last month's announcement of 1.5 HD Remix, Nomura admitted a second HD update for the Kingdom Hearts series is probably going to happen.With Kingdom Hearts, Chain of Memories, and 358/2 Days being bundled in 1.5 HD Remix, we'd wager our limited edition Goofy figurine on a second update including the remaining major releases, namely Kingdom Hearts II, the PSP's Birth by Sleep, and the recent 3DS game 3D: Dream Drop Distance.Nomura also dished a few more details on 1.5 HD Remix. Rather than upscaling old character models, the update will simply feature those used in Dream Drop Distance. Also, the gameplay is being tweaked to be closer to Kingdom Hearts II's - which should mean there's no need to fear the return of the first entry's temperamental camera.
Square Enix hints, nudges and winks about The World Ends With You sequel
The World Ends With You is, besides being an excellent name for a My Chemical Romance song, one of the few non-Final Fantasy RPGs from Square Enix to obtain cult classic status. The last we heard of a potential sequel to the teenager-infused romp through Shibuya was in August of 2010, when series artist Tetsuya Nomura said "I definitely want to make a sequel."Fast-forward about a year, and The World Ends With You protagonist Neku is spotted as one of the many cameos during Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance's Tokyo Game Show demo. Now, Nomura has said that TWEWY supporting character Raimu, who never spoke during the original game, will also be in Kingdom Hearts 3D and will be fully voice acted "out of consideration of the future of The World Ends With You series," according to an interview translated by Andriasang.If that weren't powerfully tantalizing on its own, Nomura also said that "there probably is something" coming in the series' future, though he couldn't speak in specifics at the time. He also laughed mid-sentence, according to the translation, although there's no context provided to indicate whether the laugh was the playful chuckle of an appreciative artist, or the maniacal cackling of a man manipulating the hearts of thousands. Without this vital context clue, we'll just have to wait and see what happens.
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.
The World Ends With You cameo in Kingdom Hearts 3D notice of 'something' new
Kingdom Hearts producer (and theoretical Final Fantasy Versus XIII lead) Tetsuya Nomura told Famitsu that the appearance of The World Ends With You's Neku Sakuraba in Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance portended other things for the character in the future. According to Andriasang, Famitsu asked Nomura if Neku's appearance provided notice of a sequel to the Shibuya-based DS RPG. Nomura didn't quite confirm a sequel, but he did say that the appearance suggested "something" that Square Enix is working on. Last year, Nomura said he wanted to make a sequel to TWEWY "when the time is right." Perhaps the time will be even closer to right two minutes from now, when you've watched the new trailer above (featuring Neku).
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.
Kingdom Hearts 3D to feature all new Disney worlds, Nomura says
Famitsu recently had a chance to chat with Tetsuya Nomura, the zipper-loving director of the Kingdom Hearts franchise. In the interview (translated by Andriasang), Nomura revealed that new "gameplay systems" are in the works for the next iteration of the game, Kingdom Hearts 3D for the 3DS, and that some of these mechanics may even find their way into the long-awaited (but still unannounced) Kingdom Hearts 3. For example, both Sora and Riku will be playable characters in the upcoming game, and Nomura is promising some differences between the two characters. The reason why Sora and Riku appear as they do in the first Kingdom Hearts game hasn't been explained, with Nomura simply teasing that it is "a secret" and necessary for the story. Perhaps the most exciting revelation from the interview is Nomura's intention to include brand new Disney worlds for the upcoming sequel. Although Traverse Town and "other original creations" will make a reappearance, it'll be interesting to see exactly what Disney worlds make it into the next game. Frankly, we're not even entirely sure what Square Enix has yet to dig up from the Disney vault.
Kingdom Hearts 3DS development underway, to follow Re:Coded
Fans eager for a new Kingdom Hearts console game will have to wait even longer, it seems. In an interview with Famitsu, designer Tetsuya Nomura revealed that the next game in the franchise will be the 3DS game, first unveiled at E3 earlier this year. "Next is Kingdom Hearts 3D," he told the magazine. "The time frame for 3D is after Re:Coded." According to Nomura, development is already underway on the project and will only accelerate once the Final Mix team is done working on that Japan-only PSP release. "We'd like to announce it as soon as possible," Nomura said of the 3DS game, seemingly ignoring the fact that he was technically announcing the game as he spoke.
Dissidia: Duodecim Final Fantasy playable at TGS, first screens released
Square Enix has released the first images of Dissidia: Final Fantasy sequel Dissidia: Duodecim this morning, also announcing the game as playable at this year's Tokyo Game Show. Unfortunately for Dissidia fans, nothing firmer than the already revealed "2011" release window was given. Acclaimed character designer Tetsuya Nomura will once again lend his talents to the Dissidia franchise, which can be seen in the first four pieces of art from the game in our gallery below. The only two characters revealed thus far are FFIV's Kain and FFXIII's Lightning, but we're sure to hear about more as TGS opens this week.%Gallery-102167%
Nomura wants Parasite Eve and its sequel on PSN before 3rd Birthday
Were you thinking that right about now would be a good time to make Parasite Eve and Parasite Eve 2 available via PSN, given the upcoming release of the third game in the series on PSP? Then, dear Reader, you have something in common with series character designer Tetsuya Nomura. He recently tweeted that he wants just that: a digital re-release of the PSOne titles, before The 3rd Birthday -- the game whose success could lead to a PS3 title in the series -- hits Japan. "Archives versions of the 1st and 2nd [Parasite Eve] are in demand, so I'd like to do something about them before the 3rd is released," reads Nomura's tweet. He's referring to the Japanese PSN equivalent of PSOne Classics, the Game Archives, and we agree: we'd like Nomura to do something about them, too -- only globally, kudasai?
