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It's a Wonderful Music Sampler
Not only did people who went to the Square Enix Party get to try a bunch of new games-- and, well, a bunch of new releases of old games-- but they also got a bounty of free promotional stuff, including the set of CDs seen above. It contains songs from the soundtracks of two Final Fantasy spinoffs for the PSP, and from It's a Wonderful World, which is more in line with our interests.The CD's have been ripped, and we've got the Wonderful World sampler available for download. It's J-poppy and synthy! Is it ever synthy.1. Twister 2. Give me all your love[Thanks, Jamal!]
Would you like to read impressions of the DS Style series?
Game|Life's Chris Kohler got a chance to "play" with the DS Style collection at the Square Enix Party, and came away with positive impressions of the title we're most interested in: the classical music program which he translates as Would you like to listen to classical music on the Nintendo DS? The program sounds pretty interesting: it contains 100 pieces of music, a shuffle feature, and information and images related to each piece. It also gives users information about buying the music on CD. Kohler's impressions of the other titles weren't as positive, but it didn't sound like there was anything wrong with them. He just couldn't summon up the excitement for looking at maps.
Final Fantasy IV: Vocalist wanted
The official website for the recently revealed DS remake of Final Fantasy IV is now online. There's the usual logo and intro music by Nobuo Uematsu. If you're in Japan this summer, you can audition for the chance to sing the game's vocal track. You need to be over eighteen and have a voice that can make a grown man weep like a baby. Any Fanboy readers feel like heading along?[Thanks, Zshadow; via Exophase]
Dragon Quest, Super Mario, Boy and Girl in Itadaki Street DS
Itadaki Street DS apparently didn't have enough characters to choose from-- the entire Mario and Dragon Quest casts are just too limiting, you know? Besides, nobody can relate to wacky characters like a plumber and a plumber's brother, who is also a plumber. Square Enix has nicely included some characters who will do less to draw players' attention away from the serious business of strategic board game play: "Boy" and "Girl." They look just like we would if we were three feet tall and didn't have noses!We've got some screens of Boy and Girl, and of Itadaki Street in general, after the break. And check the link for character art and a few board layouts.
Chocobos Wark onto Wii
Why don't scientists show a little more imagination? Genetically engineered Chocobos would solve most of the world's problems in a stroke. Traffic jams would be a thing of the past and all those cute yellow beasties running around would keep everyone way too happy for war or, y'know, other bad stuff.It may be some time before this vision becomes a reality, leaving us with Chocobo's Dungeon: Labyrinth of Forgetting, which is heading to Wii in the not-too-distant future. The Chocobo's Dungeon games feature randomly generated levels, making them a little different every time you play. Details on the new title are pretty thin on the ground at the moment; expect more news at the end of the month.
Get serious with new DS Style screens
We're expecting a load of news when the Square Enix Party starts. For now, we've got new screens from the DS Style series, which is obviously too serious for parties. Specifically, new screens were released of Flower Blooming DS: Gardening Life, Shall We Listen to Classical Music on the DS?, and three World Walking map programs: Italy, France and Taiwan.We could kind of see picking up a DS map program instead of a guidebook when we go on vacation, since we tend to take the DS with us anyway. We are definitely feeling a strong urge to buy the classical music "game" as well, since it's being developed by iNiS. Smart move, Squeenix.
Revenant Wings 2: Revenant Harder may be coming
We doubt that's going to be the real title, but we never could avoid sequel humor. Apparently, director Motomu Toriyama enjoyed making Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings so much that he'd like to develop a sequel.This is by no means a confirmation or an announcement or any of the other things it'll be labeled on message boards. It's just a casual statement. But a Revenant Wings sequel seems likely, since the sales have been pretty good, and, most importantly, we're talking about Square Enix, who has kind of a thing for sequels.
New FFCC video: Selkies Gone Wild
If there's one thing that shouts "unprofessional" about an adventuring party, it's having a shirtless gypsy in your crew. How do you expect to battle monsters undistracted when your Selkie partner's pointy bits are out there for everyone to see? And you can forget about walking into any respectable restaurant. No shirt? Sorry guys, no service. Square Enix's latest preview clip of its multiplayer RPG, Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fates, features the useful acrobatics and archery of the game's Selkie hero, Nasche. The red-haired rogue is fun to watch, even if his topless outfit seems impractical. Check past the post break for the embedded video.
New Star Ocean forthcoming, reveals Famitsu
According to the latest issue of Famitsu, a very credible Japanese gaming periodical, Square Enix will announce a new chapter in the Star Ocean series at the Square Enix Party mid-May. The party is also purported to be showing off 10 Final Fantasy titles, including a "Final Fantasy that is not known by anyone," according to ad for the event.As for which console the next Star Ocean will appear on is unknown. Developer tri-Ace, who is also known for Valkyrie Profile and Radiata Stories, has predominantly worked with Sony hardware. Their most recently-announced project, Infinite Undiscovery, is the anomalistic Xbox 360 title.[Via Wii, PS3 Fanboy]
Comparing Square Enix's Japanese and US boxart
In a recent interview with 1UP, Square Enix's marketing communications manager gave us some insight on the process behind adapting Chocobo Tales' packaging for the US. We happen to prefer the Japanese version's modest artwork over North America's chaotic cover, but we understand that the company had a younger audience to appeal to and a different message it needed to convey. We've collected DS covers from Square Enix's Japanese and US releases after the post break for you to compare and decide which one you like best. To its credit, the company hasn't completely mangled its DS boxarts so far (The same can't be said about Nintendo's bastardization of Hotel Dusk's cover). How do you feel about Children of Mana's simplified design? Does Final Fantasy 3's stripped packaging appeal to your western tastes? And do you agree with 1UP that publishers have been doing a better job with dressing their products?
Square Enix hasn't sipped the Virtual Console Kool-Aid
It seems that Square Enix isn't quite convinced about the whole Virtual Console thing. In an interview with Nintendo Dream magazine, Square's Shinji Hashimoto was dubious about the prospects for Final Fantasy games on the Virtual Console, stating that the Japanese audience (which is, of course, the audience that matters) needs physical media for their games. And like the responsible, friendly, consumer-oriented company that Square Enix is, they are happy to provide physical copies of Final Fantasy games. Over, and over, and over, and over again. Of course they don't want to sell a $5 copy of NES FF1 when they've got the PSP remake coming out.We aren't that upset, since they've already released the best game in their library (in Japan and Europe, at least). Go ahead and argue with us. You know Actraiser is way better than Final Fantasy.[Via Game|Life]
Front Mission: The sale
We've been excited about Front Mission: The First since we saw the remake's trailer last month. While Square Enix's mecha-based SRPG has a cult following in the states, none of the original game's various versions have ever made it to the US. If you've been thinking about importing this introduction to the Front Mission series, you're in luck! Play Asia has the game on sale for $19.90 (while stocks last), less than half the price of what eBay stores are asking for!Political-drama-based plots are usually awash with text, but since the game's menus are already translated into English, Front Mission: The First should still be playable even if you don't know any Japanese. It's not like there are any good SRPGs released in the west yet, anyway.[Via CAG]
Deals of Mana
Amazon must have a warehouse teeming with Childen of Mana shipments, as the online shop seems to have a sale on the game every other week. Square Enix's dungeon crawler has sold for less in the past, but today's $17.99 pricing is still a significant discount from it's regular $29.99 tag. This offer disappears tomorrow -- likely reappearing in a fortnight -- so don't wait too long to drop the game into your cart.Play-Asia's Heroes of Mana sale will stick around until the end of the week, but there's no guarantee that the title will stay in stock. The Japanese text might be too much for first-time importers, but according to what we've heard, this RTS/RPG is a quality purchase. You can grab Heroes of Mana for $19.90, paying an extra $2.60 for shipping to the US. [Via CAG]
Final Fantasy Tactics Advanced 2 screens march forward
Famitsu has updated us with some brand-new screens for the highly-anticipated Final Fantasy Tactics Advanced 2: The Sealed Grimore. These new images confirm that the map system of old has been updated with what looks like smaller maps for each individual region, held together by one large over-map of Ivalice. Sure, there are other games with the label of Final Fantasy coming to the DS, but out of them all, aren't you most excited about this one? If not, why?We've gone ahead and put the images past the post break for your viewing convenience.
DS Style details emerge-- screenshot-style
The first screenshots of Square Enix's DS Style series of nongames have shown up, and they look ... well, functional. The problem with nongames is that it's impossible to build hype for something that is used just for looking at a map of France, or teaching yourself yoga, even if the software in question is extremely well-designed.These screens answer the biggest question we had about the series: how could a game about listening to classical music possibly fill two screens meaningfully? The answer: dog animations and quizzing you on your feelings about the music.
Square-Enix unveils yoga lessons and gardening for the DS
Square-Enix recently announced a handful of non-games for the Nintendo DS, proving they can do more than milk the Final Fantasy franchise. What sort of winning ideas are in the pipeline? How about DS Yoga Lessons You Can Start Today, Flower-Blooming DS Gardening Lite, and Why Not Listen to Classical Music On DS?. The company is also planning a line of practical applications for the DS, such as travel guides for Italy, Hawaii and New York.If Nintendo can score a goal with a brain training game featuring a jaggy-faced Japanese scientist, who's to say these won't catch on as well? Now all we need are You Can Knit! Easy Stylus Touch Fun and Organize Your Final Fantasy Re-releases and Remakes Collection and we're set.
Final Fantasy XIII demo statement due this month?
Nick Doerr taps his fingers impatiently, waiting to hear the mail delivery truck to roll past his apartment complex's mailbox hut. Every day, he wonders if that new issue of EGM will arrive. Since the month of the magazine and the actual month are never the same and the delivery dates appear arbitrary, it's little more than a guessing game. However, he's a reason to be excited this time around. Final Fantasy XIII is coming. Maybe.We reported a long time ago that there might be a demo coming out this year for FFXIII: Crazy Latinese Subtitle and estimated its arrival... let's see... after TGS'07 -- the demo itself was scheduled to be completed by E3'07. Apparently EGM had a little blip inside an issue (it may have been the April issue) confirming such a demo heading to the PS-Store. If we're already hearing that, can we expect it sooner? E3 is just around the corner and down a block, so maybe we'll get that demo then, instead? Whatever, keep your ears open.
Square Enix brings lifestyle titles to DS
Continuing its praiseworthy support for the Nintendo DS, Square Enix has announced DS Style, a new line of software for the casual gaming audience. According to the latest issue of Famitsu, the company is venturing away from its RPG franchises for a moment, focusing instead on leisure activities like yoga, classical music, and gardening. It might not sound as exciting as SRPG battles or Chocobo mini-games, but different strokes for different folks.Square Enix will also be releasing DS travel guides based on the popular World Walking tour book series in Japan. These guides will provide maps and other useful information for sightseers visiting countries like France or Thailand. Check past the post break for the full list of destination guides and verbose titles from Square Enix's DS Style lineup. [Via NeoGAF]
Rumor: Microsoft will publish bargain-priced US Project Sylpheed
Never trust retail listings as concrete evidence of future releases, but GameStop has an interesting page up on its website for Square Enix's Project Sylpheed, here spelled Silpheed. What makes the listing all the more bizarre is its bargain price of $39.99 and its publisher, Microsoft Game Studio (which, oddly enough, is also listed as the developer).Of course, the actual developer, Game Arts (Grandia, Lunar series), has used many publishers -- Grandia II, for example, saw Square Enix publishing the title in Japan and Ubisoft publishing in US and Europe. We don't feel this has anything to do with Microsoft trying to butter up Square Enix while Final Fantasy XIII's exclusivity is supposedly in discussion, but that Square Enix had no interest in distributing the title outside of Japan. But, if the $40 price is accurate, how much faith does Microsoft have that US audiences will embrace the game? There's so much about the listing that feels shaky.No announcements have been been made by Microsoft, Game Arts or Square Enix. According to the listing, Project Sylpheed will be released July 11.[Via Xbox 360 Fanboy]
A Wonderful World of brand new screens
Famitsu has some great new shots from It's a Wonderful World that reveal a little more about the protagonist, Neku, and the gameplay of the forthcoming Square Enix RPG -- if, of course, you can either read Japanese or feel like wading through an automatic translator. If you're anything like us, though, you'll probably just stare and poke the screen while babbling about the pretty colors. We're easy to please.
