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Medals fuel the kingdom in My Life as a King
Aside from being one of the most high-profile games coming to Wii Ware (come on, May!), Final Fantasy: My Life as a King will have an interesting dynamic involving medals. The medals will apparently have three different categories: power, endurance and special.The power and endurance medals will affect your character specifically, while the special medals look like they will have more of an affect on your game world than your character. Also, it would seem that medals can be used as a kind of currency and, as one might assume, awarded for completing tasks in the game. Thanks to machine translation, we can't really get much more information than that, so head on over and check out the new screens. %Gallery-12067%[Via Go Nintendo]
FFCC: My Life as a King to be WiiWare launch title, price revealed
A Square-Enix insider recently revealed that Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: My Life as a King (formerly The Little King and the Promised Land) would share a May 12th U.S. release date with the WiiWare service, joining Defend Your Castle and Major League Eating: The Game for the somewhat less than auspicious WiiWare launch lineup. The game will set you back 1,500 Wii points, or $15, if you prefer an actual monetary system.We never thought we'd be hotly anticipating a Final Fantasy/Sim City mash-up, but when our other choices are limited to a once-free flash game that's been available online for nearly five years, or a game that crudely depicts the action-packed world of aggressive binge eating, the least of the three evils is abundantly clear.
Square Enix wants you to know what the Young King looks like
Since the Wii Ware title was first announced, we've had no shortage of peeks at Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Young King and the Promised Land, but many of the screens have been small, grainy, or watermarked. Today, we're finally getting a new set of larger, pristine screens that show the forthcoming title off to its full advantage, and there's a lot to see. Not only are there a number of Final Fantasy trademarks, from costuming to characters, but the environments are lush and detailed. Length aside, it really looks like we're going to get plenty of bang for our buck on this one, and we can't think of a better way to get the Wii Ware party started.%Gallery-12067%
Streaming Ring of Fates video returns ... in English!
Remember back in June when we had a new video every week for Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fates leading up to its launch in Japan? Well, with the cooperative ARPG's North American release imminent (March 11, 2008), Square Enix has set up a developer blog similar to the Japanese one we ripped wholesale for its movie updates, except in our barbaric language.The latest multimedia update on the site has a localized version of the game's opening cutscene many of you have only seen in Japanese, complete with English voice overs! The script isn't as sophisticated as we would like, and the voice acting is far from stellar, but, uh, at least we can understand it all now!
Chronicling the Young King and the Promised Land with goodies galore
Another trailer has popped up for (deep breath) Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Young King and the Promised Land, which introduces two of game's main characters. Aside from that (and some pretty Wii Ware graphics), though, this true-to-form Square Enix trailer doesn't really show us much in terms of gameplay. Still, the mystery of it all is enough to make us want it, and we're really looking forward to the coming of Wii Ware ... since, you know, we hate money and want to get rid of it as fast as possible.Also, the game has stopped bumming off the offical Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles website, as its own official site launched this week. You can check it out here, if you feel so inclined.If that's not enough to quell your burning desire for Promised Land goodness (insatiable pigs, the lot of you), check after the break for some Famitsu scans.
Ubisoft to bring Square Enix games down under [update]
Ubisoft loves Australia, it seems, as they've worked out a deal with RPG powerhouse Square Enix to bring some of their games to the region. Ubisoft will be bringing two titles to the country in Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker and Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fates. Gamers down under can look forward to getting these titles in early 2008.Any Aussies here glad they won't have to import these games?Update: According to JeuxFrance, Ubisoft is going to be bringing the games to not only Australia, but also to Europe. So, good news is now made even better.
YesAsia clearance may be worth clearing your wallet out for
Importer YesAsia has a clearance sale going on right now, and, as may be expected of clearance sales, the stock is limited to things they couldn't sell before. In terms of DS stuff, that means Japanese versions of games that saw domestic releases, and items that nobody in the U.S. has heard of, for the most part.While some of the imports are either too Japanese or still too expensive, sifting through the stock does reveal a few interesting items, like the Japanese version of Card Fighters DS for $11.49, Heroes of Mana for $17.99, and Slide Adventure Mag Kid, which gets a small, but meaningful, discount at $43.95. Or, if you have a bunch of money to spend on "clearance" items, you can pick up the Ring of Fates DS bundle for $300.The sale is also a great opportunity to pick up a Japanese DS Lite case, as there are many variants in stock, including (continuing with the Ring of Fates theme) the Ring of Fates accessory pack. We've only linked to the DS items (for some reason ... ) but YesAsia is clearing out items for other systems as well.[Via NeoGAF]
FFCC: The Little King and the Promised Screenshots
In these latest screens of Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Little King and the Promised Land, we can begin to see some hints of gameplay. Like King Story, the game involves building up a town using earned crystals. The crystals allow you to build different kinds of structures, like residences or weapon shops, that can increase different attributes of the town.There are dungeons, but because young King Leo is too little a king for fighting, you choose parties of adventurers to explore them. It is unlikely that you as the player take part in this dungeon exploration, instead receiving treasure on a scale based on the attributes of the party.It sounds like people expecting an action RPG like the first Crystal Chronicles game may be in for a disappointment when the game launches in March; however, if you're looking for something on the order of MySims with a coat of Final Fantasy paint, this might be worth your time. If it takes a Crystal Chronicles-style, uncomplicated approach to resource management and town-building, we may be up for it.
WiiWare Final Fantasy due March 2008 in Japan
Japan's weekly Famitsu magazine has divulged more details about Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Little King and the Promise Country, the new Final Fantasy title recently revealed for Nintendo's online distribution channel Wii Ware. According to 1UP, the article reveals the game to take place after the Gamecube original, with the main character as the Little King, whose task is to create towns in order to populate a barren land with a new country. The Little Prince King uses special powers to collect elemental skills and develop the land, deferring to upgradeable side characters to do a lot of his dirty work.Famitsu reports that the game has a March 2008 release date in Japan, and will be priced at 1,500 Wii points (Or $15 USD). Now, given that we haven't heard anything from Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers -- the other new Crystal Chronicles Wii game -- in quite some time, are we to assume that this game is an entirely separate venture, or simply Crystal Bearers reborn as DLC? Talk amongst yourselves.
Slew of new titles announced for Wii Ware
Though its potential can't be denied, Nintendo's Wii Ware channel, an upcoming download service for new Wii games, didn't impress us much with the seemingly low-budget titles announced for it so far. Nintendo amended that worriment today at its Tokyo conference by revealing a lineup of impressive projects in progress, turning our "Excitement Level" knob to eleven, one measure greater than what we previously thought the mechanism allowed. Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Little King and the Promised Land (1500 Wii Points, March), a "country-building sim," stands out from the bunch, promising an exclusive side story which takes place after the original GameCube game. This marks the fourth entry to the series and the second Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles title announced for the Wii. Square Enix has already made a teaser site for you to load up and immediately close once you've realized that there's almost nothing there yet. Hudson, having kept things on and poppin' on the Virtual Console side for some time now, demonstrated its commitment to the new service by announcing new games like Bomberman, Star Soldier R, and Joysound, the last of which will be a karaoke title. Namco Bandai also chimed in with Mojipittan, a Japanese word puzzle game. As for Nintendo's contributions to the Wii Ware channel, the company announced Dr. Mario (!!!), Pokemon Farm, Puzzloop for Everyone, and Maruboushikaku, all of which appearing to have some form of Mii integration. You can preview screenshots for those titles at the Famitsu links below. Read - FFCC: The Little King and the Promised Land teaser site Read - FFCC: The Little King and the Promised Land screenshots Read - Star Soldier R screenshots Read - Mojipittan screenshots Read - Dr. Mario, Pokemon Farm, Puzzloop for Everyone, and Maruboushikaku screenshots
FFCC: Ring of Fates media, constipated face
Square Enix's much anticipated -- at least on our end -- cooperative ARPG hits Japanese stores next week, half a year before we see it here in North America. New commercials advertising Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fates have already started to air, featuring music from Japanese pop star Aiko Yanai. Aiko even appears in one of the TV spots, making some strange faces while playing the game in her dressing room with several friends. We usually doubt the authenticity of these scenes of celebrities enjoying the products they're paid to push, but ever since we saw Utada Hikaru demolishing opponents in Tetris DS, we've been a lot more open-minded about the phenomenon. As usual, we've got the commercials embedded past the jump, but if you've got an acute fear of Japanese women with strained expressions and would rather avoid Aiko's grimace, you can check out the Ring of Fates screenshots that Famitsu posted at its website instead.
Massive Ring of Fates trailer, miserable WiFi feature
Square Enix's newest Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fates trailer is packed with nearly six minutes of boisterous combat scenes, dungeon-roaming recklessness, and much more! The clips that show everyone working together to put out a spreading fire with water barrels are definitely our favorite parts; it makes our hearts ache knowing that we'll never find more than one other person to play with, if even that many, when the game finally comes to North American next spring. The brief preview of the cooperative ARPG's online component is nothing to get excited about -- players can trade their painted and personalized moogles. Yep, Square Enix actually managed to come up with something worse than MogNet.Being able to customize your character's appearance (ninjas!), though, as you can see from the screen grab above, is the dog's bollocks. The extended movie also demonstrates that you'll be able to flip the action from the top window onto the bottom screen, using your stylus to direct spells and ranged weapons. Jump past the post break for the embedded video.
New Ring of Fates video: Jumpin' Yuke Flash
Square Enix is keeping up its media push for Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fates with yet another video, adding onto its bombardment of scans and screenshots to draw in anyone who hasn't already decided to pick up the game's special-edition DS Lite bundle. This week's clip features Alhanarlem, one of the main characters from the ARPG's spellcasting tribe of Yukes, leaping from platform to platform in what looks like a competitive minigame in which players race through a stage to find a hidden blue switch. Power-ups are scattered around the field, but their effects aren't revealed until they're grabbed. Vault past the post break for the embedded movie.
Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fates DS Lite
Another Square Enix game, another special-edition DS Lite. SE seems to have set up a template for these: logo on the left, line art on the right, money in the bank. This time, Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fates gets the special-edition treatment on a Crystal White DS Lite. For Japan, obviously. We like the pseudo-stained-glass look, which can be found in full color on the box. This new DS variant is great news for people who were holding out on a DS purchase until the Japanese Ring of Fates came out. It's probably a little irritating for Square Enix fans who already have a plain DS.
New Ring of Fates video: The whole is greater than the sum of its parts
We've been clamoring for a proper follow-up to the Seiken Densetsu series for over a decade now, and by the looks of the Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fates videos we've seen so far, we might finally be getting one. The first Crystal Chronicles entry on the GameCube was by no means disappointing, at least in our opinion, but hardware and link cable requirements made getting a group together much harder than we would've liked. Its handheld sequel seems free of those problems without losing that multiplayer ARPG's cooperative fun. Square Enix's latest Ring of Fates clip demonstrates the teamwork involved in getting through the game's dungeon puzzles. Carrying around a huge block of wood can be difficult if someone isn't knocking back the enemies coming at you! Bring your crew past the post break for the short movie.
FFCC: The Crystal Bearers trailer finally revealed [update 1]
After weeks of teasing us with screen captures from its Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers trailer, Square Enix made the 55-second video public early this morning. Though a third of it is taken up by an animated, spinning crystal, the movie still manages to pack in plenty of airship shots, city scenes, and even a tender, tearful moment with the RPG's blonde-haired protagonist. Jump past the post break for the clip and some skydiving action.[Update 1: We mixed up our Ring of Fates with our Crystal Bearers, citing this trailer as belonging to The Ring Bearers. How embarassing.]
Extended Ring of Fates trailer
If previous Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fates clips have left you wanting, look no further than the multiplayer ARPG's latest trailer from last week's Square Enix party. The four-minute video has everything you could ever ask for -- story cutscenes, cooperative puzzles, touchscreen elements, topless Selkies, hectic combat, boss fights, peanut butter jelly, and a baseball bat. Carry your bucket past the post break for the movie, but don't expect to get much use out of it.
Crystal Chronicles details for the FF enthusiast
It's been awhile since we've heard a peep on Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers for the Wii, but with a recent Square Enix event in Japan coming to an end, IGN has a few details regarding the game. They were privy to a video showing off some gameplay, but Square Enix has requested they not present any screens or footage of the video. We can confirm though that the game stars a blond-haired fellow with goggles and the video presented "was real-time, and it looked sharp and smooth, and it looked like the game's going to be in widescreen." 16:9? Rock!
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 FF:CC video like a date without the goodnight kiss
Square-Enix has posted another cutscene from its action-RPG title, Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fates. The short clip doesn't have any of the voice acting that was featured in the introduction movie, but we do get to see some interaction between Cherinka, one of the game's two Clavat heroes, and Alhanarlem, a spellcasting Yuke.The 3D looks great, but we were hoping for more of the lively combat and cooperative gameplay that was in the original trailer and screenshots. Even if you can understand the Japanese dialogue, the only action you'll see in this clip is a platonic hug exchanged between the two characters. Check past the break for video of the awkward moment.
