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A tale of two Crisis Core covers
Oh no, Square. You've just made your hungry Final Fantasy fans purchase two copies of your game. Crisis Core will include two covers, one for those that are purchasing the game by itself, and one for purchasers of the (highly) limited edition PSP system. It goes without saying that these Crisis Core systems are going to fetch a high price on eBay. Who will you kill for one of these? Pre-orders for the game are now available on Play-Asia. [Thanks, Thien!]
Limited edition FFVII: Crisis Core PSP Slim bundle coming to Japan
Excited for Crisis Core? And the PSP Slim? Then prepare yourself to be double mega super excited (that's almost a Street Fighter title). Square Enix, king of the limited edition handheld hardware, is releasing a very limited edition PSP Slim for its release of Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core. The console will be bundled with the game as well as a Buster Sword wrist strap, to make you look extra geeky. The PSP itself will be silver in colour and will feature the Final Fantasy VII 10th anniversary logo as well as some artwork of Zack, Sephiroth and Cloud, presumably drawn by Nomura. The special edition PSP Lite will be limited to only 77,777 pieces, with each one bearing its serial number on its back. The other interesting thing is that it releases on September the 13th, a week before the PSP Lite itself launches in Nihonland. We expect it to sell out on day one, though we hope it'll still be available when we touch down for the Tokyo Game Show. We would pay ridiculous amounts of money for one of these. Honestly. Ridiculous amounts.
Square Enix in your pocket: PSP edition
This week marks the release of the Final Fantasy remake on Sony PSP, the first Square Enix title to make it to the US. The RPG powerhouse showed a multitude of appetizing titles coming to the portable earlier this summer at their massive party at Tokyo's Makuhari Messe. Long-time Square Enix fans will find yourselves either dismayed or curiously nostalgic (probably a bit of both) by the sheer number of enhanced remakes -- five of the seven PSP titles are ghosts from the company's past with upgraded visuals and new content. What's left is a brawler with an assortment of fighters from the Final Fantasy universe and a long-in-development (though visually impressive) extension of the Final Fantasy VII lore. Take a gander at the upcoming games after the break.
Breaking news: Crisis Core is still incredible
Every day that passes inches us closer to the inevitable release of Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core. Like a hungry vulture, we've been searching for the tiniest new bit of info on the game ... and today, we're finally treated to new scans, courtesy of Jeux-France. These new images don't tell us anything significantly new except that the game still looks awesome. The graphics engine of this game may make your system catch on fire. Oh, Crisis Core, we want to buy you so hard.
New Crisis Core scans show a couple of familiar faces [UPDATE]
JeuxFrance have some scans of the latest issue of Shonen Jump, which show a page of info about Crisis Core. As well as a clarification of the Japanese release date, September 13th, there are a couple of interesting images. They show characters which we, previously, hadn't expected to be in the game at all. Namely, the Turk Shizune from Before Crisis and our favourite Wutai Flea, Yuffie. Despite being shy and facing away from us, the character in the picture is obviously Yuffie. If you're still not convinced, then the accompanying writing definitely includes her name. It's official, she's in the game. As for Shizune, we're intrigued to find out why she's such a prominent figure in the FFVII prequels, but never shows up in Final Fantasy VII itself. Presumably we'll find out when we finally get to play Crisis Core. [UPDATE] Shizune information corrected. She first appeared in Final Fantasy VII: Before Crisis, not in Advent Children. Sorry for the error.
FFXIII interviews extracted from LEVEL magazine
A NeoGAF forum member has put together a collection of quotes from interviews with Square-Enix developers culled from the latest issue of LEVEL magazine. Motomu Toriyama, Tetsuya Nomura and Hajime Tabata, of Crisis Core, Final Fantasy XIII, and Final Fantasy Versus XIII all have something to say about the three-game Fabula Nova Crystallis set. The biggest nugget of info comes from Toriyama who says the games in the Fabula Nova Crystallis series will be kept separate. The teams are working independently of each other and don't share so much as a water cooler, meaning no cameos, cross-overs, or other links between the titles. Bummer. The only thing binding them is a "vague crystal theme", which also connects them to every role playing game created since the beginning of time. Also touched on: next-gen Final Fantasy games on consoles other than the PS3. The developers seem smitten with the horsepower under the PlayStation's hood and insist they couldn't re-create the experience on other systems. Guess that rules out an EVO: Phase One port. [Via PS3 Fanboy]
Hi! PlayStation magazine launches
Oh, another online magazine? Haven't we had enough? Maybe. But, you should still pay attention to this one. Sony has launched a new PlayStation magazine, and it's pretty good. The first issue features some crisp direct-feed images of the upcoming PSP Final Fantasy games, including Dissidia and Crisis Core. It's not anything we haven't seen before, but it's nice to see these pictures with newfound clarity. While our inability to decipher Japanese certainly hampers some of the experience, the pretty pictures are more than worth the (nonexistent) entrance fee. Besides, magazines are always about the pictures, right? Download the issue here.
Crisis Core almost done, to feature 100 hours of gameplay
According to a new interview with the Crisis Core team, the PSP-exclusive prequel to Final Fantasy VII can feature up to 100 hours of gameplay. Tabata, one of the game's producers, admits that the title is about 90% complete, with compressing everything to fit on UMD one of the few remaining tasks for the development team. The game's main story will most likely take players about 30 hours, but "getting all of the materia in the missions and going out into Midgar for Sub-Events" can boost play time to the triple digits. Crisis Core is certainly not the last project in the Compilation of Final Fantasy VII. The project's end will be determined by the likes of Nomura and Kitase. Fans of the series can expect a "wonderful" special edition, with details to follow soon. For the rest of the interview, visit NeoGAF, where it's translated into English. [Via Exophase. Translation via NeoGAF. Thanks, Joel!]
Even more Final Fantasy screenshots
Have you heard of "Final Fantasy"? It's supposedly a big deal. In fact, it's such a big deal that two all-new Final Fantasy games are coming to the PSP handheld. Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core and Final Fantasy Dissidia are amongst the best-looking titles on the system, showcasing the technical prowess of one of the most beloved game publishers. Check out new pictures from Famitsu: Read - Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core Read - Final Fantasy Dissidia [Thanks, Joe!]
The sounds of Dissidia and Crisis Core
Attendees of the Square Enix Party received a music sampler CD featuring some tracks from the upcoming Final Fantasy Dissidia and Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core. GameFAQs poster NeoStrikeDamon has been kind enough to rip these tracks for our sampling pleasure. Feel free to download a zip file of all the tracks, or download them individually below: Dissidia Overture to Dissidia (Secret) Crisis Core Theme of Crisis Core Last Order -Crisis Mix- [Thanks, Jamal!]
Special goodies to accompany Crisis Core's release
It's not surprising that Square Enix plans on releasing a limited edition collection of goodies to accompany Crisis Core's Japanese release. The "Final Fantasy VII 10th Anniversary Pack" will be released on September 13th. The bundle will include Crisis Core's single, "Why" performed by Jpop star Ayaka. The Anniversary Pack will also include the new Shinra Potion, an energy drink in the same vein as the popular Final Fantasy Potion from FFXII's launch. While these two are certainly nifty, we're surprised that a special Crisis Core-branded PSP hasn't been unveiled yet. If Monster Hunter and Tales of the World can get one, then so should Final Fantasy VII. We're sure a new color bundled with Crisis Core will effectively destroy the Japanese economy. In fact, if Sony doesn't plan on making one, we will ... and reap the profits. [Via The Magic Box]
Six Square Enix trailers in three and a half minutes
Let me guess. You couldn't make it to the Square Enix Party in Tokyo last weekend? Me neither. Thankfully, however, youtube user 'Mirafi' did. Whilst there they took some video footage of the (very) big screen which showed trailers for six of Square Enix's upcoming games. The games are, in order: Subarashiki no sekai (DS) Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core (PSP) Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Complete (Blu-Ray) Final Fantasy XIII (PS3) Final Fantasy Agito XIII (Mobile) Final Fantasy Versus XIII (PS3) Nothing there that takes your fancy? Yeah right. The only way I could be more excited about Square Enix's upcoming offerings right now would be if they'd included footage of The Last Remnant and Dissidia. Granted these 'trailers' aren't very long, but seeing six new titles sit back to back like that, all due for release within the next year or so, is quite a wonderful sight. Especially considering we've only had two new games from Square Enix in the last few years: Final Fantasy XII and Kingdom Hearts 2. It looks like we're going to be up to our ears in Final Fantasy before too long. For the record, my favourite piece of footage was the battle between Sephiroth and Gackt Genesis. Crisis Core cannot come out soon enough. [Via PSU]
The critics agree: FFVII: Crisis Core is incredible
For most of us, we're stuck simply looking at pictures and videos of Crisis Core, dreaming of how it plays. However, those lucky enough to be in attendance at the Square Enix party in Japan have had the chance to play the game ... and it's good. Let's here a few excerpts from the critics: IGN can't help but gush at the graphics: "This is the watershed game that genuinely demonstrates just how powerful the PSP is." 1UP seems to love the new real-time battle system: "Combat looks to ultimately be Crisis Core's defining element ... Battles erupt frequently while players are running around the environments, but simple controls make these melees fast and enjoyable. Zack even auto-targets and runs up to his nearest foe, meaning that you can quickly dispatch weaker enemies with little effort." Finally, Games Radar seems to love the story and how it really does expand greatly upon the original Final Fantasy VII: "We're very impressed with just how good it looks and how well it plays - and we're really excited to dive into a story that seems to have much, much more to do with the core story of FFVII than any of the other spinoffs." With such glowing praise, the wait for Crisis Core has become physically painful. Who's going to join us in importing the game when it comes out this September?
Crisis Core: FFVII dated September 13 for Japan
It's official: the Final Fantasy VII PSP spinoff Crisis Core will be released before the three year anniversary of its initial unveiling in late October 2004. At the Square Enix Party, the publisher announced the game has a street date of September 13 in Japan. No release date has been given for other regions, but we'd suspect seeing the game hit North America within eight months. [Via PSP Fanboy]
Sephiroth joins Dissidia and Crisis Core gets a date
Square Enix news continues to trickle in, as the Square Enix Party finally begins. Two new tidbits from NeoGAF involve the two exclusive Final Fantasy games for our platform: Dissidia and Crisis Core. It appears that Dissidia will also feature Sephiroth, much to the joy of fangirls everywhere. The perpetually developed Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core also has a concrete release date: September 13th in Japan. PSP fans already have a lot to be excited about -- let's hope that Square continues to announce even more for our favorite handheld. [Via The Platformers; Thanks, Eric!]
New Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core scans [UPDATE]
New scans from Japanese magazine 'Dengeki PSP' offer some fresh insight into Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core. While we've seen the first scan before, the other two appear to be new and include details on story and characters. While the meaning of the words alludes us, we can still take great pleasure in staring at the pretty pictures. Speaking of which, the caption for the image above mentions Visual Kei singer Gackt, who did two great songs for Dirge of Cerberus. Will he be doing some more music for Crisis Core? We hope so. Perhaps the most exciting parts of these scans are the fully CG images of Genesis, who we saw a sneak peek of in the secret ending to Dirge of Cerberus. The game is still looking beautiful and we at PSP Fanboy cannot wait to finally get our hands on it. Check out the scans yourself over at GameSwank. [UPDATE] A Japanese friend of mine (thanks Zak!) tells me that the caption in the above image says that Genesis will be modelled on, and voiced by, Gackt. Doesn't surprise me. I thought I saw a passing resemblence when I first saw the picture. Hopefully Gackt will be doing some music for the game, as well as starring in it. [Thanks Joe]
Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core still looks beautiful
All this hype about Final Fantasy Dissidius may have distracted you from Square Enix's other big exclusive heading to PSP. Crisis Core, the prequel to Final Fantasy VII, pushes the system to graphical limits many have never dreamed possible on a handheld. New (blurry) screenshots from The Magic Box show off some more of this incredible-looking game; they simply must be seen to be believed. As the Square Enix party continues to draw near, it's clear that PSP fans will have a deluge of information to sort through. Can you feel that anticipation already dripping down your pants? [Update: There's also a new scan, revealing a new character named Loveless. Thanks, Joe!]
FFVII: Crisis Core release date revealed?
Could it be true? Could Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core actually be coming out? After years of development, this hotly anticipated prequel is ready to strike Japan on August 2nd--at least, according to GameFront. Their source? Apparently, the most recent issue of Jump reveals the startlingly early release. However, as no scan was provided, we have our doubts. If this release date holds true, EGM's Rumor Mill recent story about a year-long Crisis Core delay would be debunked. Certainly, with pre-orders already reaching overwhelming limits, an earlier release would be wise. We're keeping our fingers crossed. Until we find out more, join us in drooling at these new direct-feed screenshots at Ultimagame.com. [Via IGN & NeoGAF]
More pictures from Crisis Core and FF Anniversary
Final Fantasy fans are getting a lot of love on their PSPs. Square has a handful of new images from their upcoming Crisis Core and Final Fantasy Anniversary projects. This is just the beginning of Square's support on the system, with a surprise announcement supposedly coming on May 12th. Hopefully, all will be well, but according to The Magic Box, there is an unconfirmed rumor that most of Square's handheld lineup has been delayed to 2008, including Final Fantasy Tactics and Crisis Core.
Crisis Core website updates; subtitled trailer available
The official Japanese website for Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core has been updated. On the site, you'll be able to gawk at some more CG movies, character designs, and gain a few tidbits about the game. There's even a PSP formatted wallpaper that you can download here. If that isn't enough, YouTube user Kadaaju has translated the most recent Crisis Core trailer so that us English-speaking fans can understand what to expect from this PSP-exclusive prequel to one of the most popular RPGs ever made. Check it out, after the cut. [Via IGN]
