News

With Final Fantasy XIV looming very slowly towards us like a slightly sped up glacier, some new screenshots have been released. And like a glacier, they're very pretty.

The screenshots showcase a handful of the new environments for the MMO-inclined to grind and grief in, as well as showing off the fashion models of the races which as previously noted, have been renamed from FF XI, and are now the Not-Humes (Hyur), the Not-Mithra (Miqo'te), the Not-Tarutaru (Lalafell), the Not-Galkan (Roegadyn), and the Not-Elvaan (Elezen).

These screens add very little to what is already known about the game except to assist the Eorzea tourist board in selling their region to tourists, presumably Americans, Europeans and Japanese with the ability to pay a monthly fee and not, say, an invading Imperial army with flamethrowers.

For those who were not previously interested in this game or MMORPG's in general, the screens of the glacier are unlikely to interest you, but for those wanting their next dose of monthly fee MMO, Square-Enix ought to have you salivating. Personally, I think they should liven up this glacier with a polar bear or two. Or telling us more about the people with the flamethrowers.

Source: FF Insider

New or old?

Admittedly, not a whole lot to see, but it's a start! Oh, and they're revamping all the race names again. So, what was Human and then Hume, is now Hyuran. So, based on this formula, Final Fantasy XXVII online will have so many vowels in the name of the human race it'll be pronouncable only by those who have no tongue.

Sarcasm aside, i'm sure these announcements are very important to fans of Final Fantasy XI. And they can tell us just how different things seem so far. As a pure observer of both, they look pretty similar. I'm personally more interested in XIII - it seems prettier. And cheaper. And single player.

Source: Kotaku

As posted earlier today by bigfootmike, Square-Enix has a new countdown clock up on their Japanese site.

While the mystery will be revealed in approximately five days, the internet may have some clues. Members of the Neogaf forums believe this countdown to be related to Lord of Vermillion, a popular arcade game that Square-Enix operates in Japan. While the game is over a year old and no home version or port looks likely, Square-Enix did register Lord of Arcana with the U.S. Patent and Trademark office.

Anything at this point is speculation, but the art styles of the game and the teaser site do look similar, and the URL for the countdown does not mention anything Final Fantasy-related. Time will tell, but it doesn't look like this is news will mean much to non-Japanese gamers.

Source: Neogaf Forums, Siliconera, Lord of Vermillion Site

Well, what have we here. A number of assorted snippets from this week, some interesting, some annoying, and some just silly. Let's looking!

Number One
Final Fantasy Anedote Release Date
The Anecdote will be released in Japan on October 29th, so it will reach international shores in 2010. If we're lucky.

Number II
0807
Remember how countdown clocks were used for Final Fantasy Anecdote, and everyone groaned because it's the most boring way to announce a new game? Square Enix are NOT LEARNING! We have about VI days and XXII hours before we know what this, so be sure to throw a brick or II through their official building's windows before that time.

Number Three
Final Fantasy XIII Screenshots
And there are many of them. They look cool; and by cool, I mean totally sweet.

Number Four
Star Ocean 3 != PS3?
Star Ocean 3 being listed as a PS3 game temporarily was confirmed as a database error. All seventeen PS3 owners that play Star Ocean can hang their heads in disappointment.

Well, that's all, folks. Isn't there more important event today you should be reading about?

Source: Kotaku

Edit: Josh can take his news system and put it where the sun don't shine.

At the San Diego Comic-Con, a model of a large horse was unveiled by Square Enix as Sleipner: Odin's armour-clad, red-eyed mount. Odin himself will be in Final Fantasy XIII, but not atop his trusty steed of old. Rather, he will transform into it for Lightening et al to ride, much like Shiva changing into a motorbike.

According to certain sources, familiar summons Ifrit, Carbuncle and Siren have been revealed in non-public trailers of Final Fantasy XIII. What could they possibly transform into? Siren the dolphin? Ifrit the bull? I, personally, would be thrilled to see Carbuncle the helicopter.

Aside from this, there have been more screenshots made available for our collective criticism to feed on. Most notably, we see Hope's dual boomerangs and Vanille's fishing hooks in action. The battles do indeed seem very similar to those of Final Fantasy X-2, with individual positions changing and a more fluid succession of actions than the typical Active Time Battle. Interestingly, we can also see what looks like Bravery and Faith from Final Fantasy XII returning on the character's status in the battle alongside old favourites such as Protect. Overall it still looks like The Bouncer, but with more to do in battle.

Final Fantasy XIII is currently due for a Japanese release in the fourth quarter of 2009, and the second quarter of 2010 for all other regions.

Source: FF-XIII.net, Destructoid (screenshots), Destructoid (Odin)

For those of us who do not yet know, Eidos has been acquired by Square Enix in a bid to involve itself more in western markets. Eidos, based in south London, is responsible for the iconic Tomb Raider series as well as more recent titles such as Age of Conan and the upcoming Arkham Asylum. The reported price of acquisition was £84 million.

It was announced earlier this month that the name 'Eidos Interactive', which was believed to remain the name of the newly acquired company, will be changed to 'Square Enix Europe'. The merging will change more than just the name of one company. Larry Sparks, current vice-president of Eidos, will be in charge of Square Enix's Japanese catalogue of titles. It appears that Square Enix is entrusting many of the current employees of Eidos with its future development in the west.

This lends credence to the claim that the assimilation of Eidos into Square-Enix will provide faster release dates in North America and Europe, and also that more previously-exclusive Japanese titles will be brought to the fans in other countries. Direct leadership and investment in the west are certainly how Square-Enix could go about accomnplishing this. Maybe we will finally see a Final Fantasy XII: International Zodiac Job System, which is currently limited to the international boundary of Japan and South Korea. Or maybe that is setting expectations a little too high.

Source: Play.tm