Final Fantasy XIII and Versus Megathread

[jefXfree]

Final Fantasy XIII is an upcoming console role-playing game being developed by Square Enix. It will be released exclusive for PlayStation 3 in Japan, then for PlayStation 3 worldwide in Europe and North America. First appearing at the 2006 E3, the game features a futuristic, high-tech world.

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Final Fantasy XIII is the flagship title of the Fabula Nova Crystallis Final Fantasy XIII collection. The game shares a common mythology with Final Fantasy Agito XIII and Final Fantasy Versus XIII, but they are not directly related to each other. Motomu Toriyama, a director and scenario writer of previous Final Fantasy titles, will direct and write the game's story.

The concept for Final Fantasy XIII's battle system is to maintain the strategic nature of command-based battles. The system stemmed from a desire to create battles similar to those found in Final Fantasy VII Advent Children. Like those in Final Fantasy XII, battle sequences are integrated into the world environment. The Active Time Battle (ATB) system will return, but is expected to work differently from its predecessors.

The battle system that was shown during the E3 2006 trailer was only a prototype. Recently, Square Enix showed battle footage in various Japanese magazines and trailers which introduced a new interface. You can only control one character at a time in battle, although battle parties of up to three characters have been shown. You can stack up to three commands per turn and release them all at the same time to form a combo. These commands include series staples such as Attack, Fire, Blizzard and Cure, as well as new ones such as Launch, which sends the enemy up in the air. The game does not make use of MP but introduces "cost points" for each command. Cost points determine how many times the commands can be used per turn. The overclock gauge from the prototype battle system is replaced with a break bar. The minimap shown earlier has also disappeared from the battle interface. The player is able to view the HP and name of the enemy before engaging it in battle. When the player engages an enemy, the camera moves to another position and the battle menu appears, making the battle transitions nearly seamless.

The classic summoned creatures will return in Final Fantasy XIII. Carbuncle emerges from a disc-like object when it is touched by the character Vanille, Ifrit and Siren also appear doing performances in a trailer. Shiva will return and takes the form of a pair of sisters who can merge into a motorcycle, which the character Snow rides, and can use ice to create a path to drive on.

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[mobius387]

i tend to agree with halon, i just maybe wouldn't say it as intensely

with all the negative info mixed in with the hype of this game, its easier to just stop caring about it then to keep the hopes up any longer. a year ago both these games were must buys, at this point, i am certainly not buying XIII and im not sure about buying versus. we'll see when they actually come out, but count me in for those who are uninterested with everything FF right now.

 

[Horhay]

LOL. It is true. The demo was the only REAL great thing they've done lately, but sucks it's japan only

Makes me want to go home open my FFVII ACC and popping the FFXIII demo and give it another play through!!

 

[jefXfree]

Kitase: Xbox 360 FFXIII will not compromise PS3 version

Square Enix?s Yoshinori Kitase has reiterated that the developer is committed to offering gamers an ?equal experience? for both the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions of Final Fantasy XIII.

Kitase?s comments come following news that the 360 version of the eagerly anticipated RPG hadn?t entered development until after the PS3 FFXIII demo hit Japanese stores in April.

?The team is targeting to create an equal experience on both the 360 and the PS3, so there are no limitations. For example, right now we?re working on the PS3 version first, and once we?ve completed that we?ll really know how much game there will be to fit onto the Xbox 360 discs,? he told VideoGamer.com.

?So we don?t know how many discs it?ll be housed on for 360, but there won?t be a chance that we?ll compromise anything because, oh it didn?t fit in the 360 discs so we?ll have to take it out of the PS3 version, or vice versa.?

Final Fantasy XIII is due out in Japan later this year, with a North American release arriving in 201
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[dboy99]

yeah they say the xbox version is about 2 months old so the ps3 version should be bout done if not done already.

 

[j_rocca42]

FFXIII on Costco.com

It's listed on costco.com right now with a 12/31/09 release date. No 360 version listed... could it be a mistake?

 

[DaMexiRican]

Weird....Amazon has the same date and Gamestop has June.

 

[jefXfree]

FFXIII date announcement coming soon, says Square

Yoichi Wada, president and CEO of Square Enix, has let slip that the Japanese giant is planning on announcing a release date for Final Fantasy XIII within the next couple of weeks.

Speaking during a Q&A session in Tokyo last week, Wada commented, “We’ll be making an announcement in a few weeks.” In addition, he also confirmed that the hotly anticipated RPG will be making an appearance at the Tokyo Game Show in September.

Final Fantasy XIII is pencilled in for release in Japan later this year, with a western release scheduled for spring 2010.

 

[jefXfree]

New Final Fantasy XIII scan revealed

Fresh info on Final Fantasy XIII has surfaced in the latest issue of Japanese publication V-Jump, focusing primarily on the mysterious blonde female depicted in the DKS3137 and E3 trailers of the console RPG.

According to a translation by the chaps at FinalFantasy-XIII.net, the female is known as Jill Nabato, and features as one of the game’s primary antagonists, commanding the unscrupulous outfit known as the Holy Army. Elsewhere, the mag also depicts Lightning’s Odin summon. Check out a scan of the article below.

 

[jefXfree]

An English FFXIII demo would have new content

If you are anxious to get your hands on a demo of Final Fantasy XIII in America, it sounds like you may have to wait as Square Enix is still undecided on if it will release an English language demo. The only demo is available on the Japanese Blu-ray copy of Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Complete -- North American audiences only received a new video of FFXIII.

If we do see a stateside demo of FFXIII it will not be on a disc, rather; Square Enix’s Yoshinori Kitase said “we are thinking of providing it in a downloadable format.” The demo would be a new version, not an English translation of the current Japanese demo, as the game has progressed since the release of the Japanese demo.

No word at this time about a demo for Europe, but we’ll be sure to keep you updated on all your FFXIII news.

 

[jefXfree]

FFXIII hitting Europe in spring 2010

Final Fantasy XIII producer Yoshinori Kitase has revealed that the eagerly awaited RPG will receive a simultaneous launch on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in Europe next spring.

Speaking to VG247 at GamesCom this week, Kitase stated, “We don’t have the actual month down yet, but in Japan it’s scheduled for a winter release, and in Europe and North American territories it’s spring 2010.”

“For Europe and North America, the PS3 and 360 versions are going to be released simultaneously.”

Traditionally, fans of the legendary franchise have been kept waiting up to six months for the European conversion following the North American release. Fortunately that’s not the case this time, Kitase added, with Square having made significant headway in reducing the wait time between the U.S. and PAL versions of the title.

“For previous titles it took usually about a year to localise each version and bring it over to Europe, but for this title there should be a considerably shorter gap and [we'll] bring it to European territories as close to the North American release as possible.”

 

[jefXfree]

FFXIII story to last 50+ hours

The FFXIII producer, Yoshinori Kitase, let slip that the game’s story will clock in at over 50 hours, not including any side-quests. English dubbing has also wrapped, he continued, stating that the title will feature English and Japanese sound dubs only. Subtitles will be available in your native language.
Stay tuned to PSU for more information on Final Fantasy XIII in the coming months.

 

[jefXfree]

FFXII Two new characters announced

Two new characters announced during a presentation of the game earlier. The first one doesn’t have a name for now, just that she wears a sort of summer dress, white top, pink mini-skirt and a pink braid, but more info will be coming at Tokyo Game Show next month.The second character announced is the son of the already announced Sazh, but there was no more info then that.

 

[jefXfree]

Other announcements

Kitase announced that the English dubbing for the game is finished and that the game will have English and Japanese sound dubs only, but will have subtitles in your native language. Kitase confirmed to VG247 earlier this afternoon that the game will be out in the US and Europe in spring 2010, although a specfic date is to be confirmed.

He also told us that they are trying to make sure the Xbox 360 version of the game will only hold three discs.

 

[DaMexiRican]

While Final Fantasy XIII might be hogging all the limelight away from the PS3-exclusive outing in the eagerly anticipated Fabula Nova Crystallis series – otherwise known as Versus XIII – producer Yoshinori Kitase has revealed that development of the latter is actually progressing at a “comparatively faster rate” than its multiplatform counterpart.

Apparently, this is down to the fact some of the staff involved with FF Versus XIII were pulled off the project to work on the core entry, FFXIII, and subsequently their "knowledge and experience" has greatly facilitated development of the action-orientated PS3 entry.

Final Fantasy Versus XIII has been keeping a low profile for the past six months or so, with a firm release date yet to be pinned down. Meanwhile, Final Fantasy XIII will be hitting stores in the U.S. and Europe in spring 2010. A Japanese PS3 release is due this winter.

 

[Horhay]

I got to pop in the demo again and give it another go, the game is so damn sweet!

 

[mobius387]

more excited about Versus than XIII. ill probably wait till the summer to play XIII when i have more free time.

 

[dboy99]

i haven't seen alot on versus but i feel people will flock to it more cause it's exclusive..... for now.

 

[jefXfree]

Square hopes to have playable FFXIII demo at TGS

Final Fantasy XIII producer Yoshinori Kitase has hinted that gamers might be able to get their mitts on a playable demo of the hotly anticipated RPG at this year’s Tokyo Game Show.

Speaking with Dengeki, Kitase said that Square are hoping to have a playable demo of the game out prior to FFXIII's Japanese PlayStation 3 release this winter, with September’s Tokyo Game Show being the only viable option.

“Well, because we’re aiming for a winter release date, we’d like to have users play the game before then,” he said, adding, “Timing-wise, since there’s only TGS, we’d definitely like to shoot for that.”

Industry reports indicate that the PS3 version of the title is roughly 90 percent complete. A demo of the game was previously included in the Japanese release of Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children earlier this year.

Final Fantasy XIII will be released in western territories next spring.

 

[dboy99]

90 percent done it should be more they already done with the english voice .

 

[jefXfree]

No plans for FFXIII DLC at present, says Square

Final Fantasy XIII producer Yoshinori Kitase has said that Square has no firm plans to release any downloadable content for the highly anticipated RPG as of yet, though hinted it may be on the cards for "future projects."

Speaking to the chaps at VG247, Kitase said via a translator: “As far as DLC is concerned, there is no solid plan at the moment for FFXIII,” adding, “However, we’ve been listening to overseas fans in Europe and North America and are aware that DLC is very popular and something that people really want.”

“So it’s definitely being considered for future projects.”

Square previously touched on the possibility of FFXIII DLC earlier this year, suggesting it would not likely tie directly into the game’s story line, instead focusing on additional content such as items, enemies and areas – that’s assuming it ever sees the light of day, of course.

Final Fantasy XIII is due out on PlayStation 3 in Japan this winter, followed by a western release on PS3 and Xbox 360 in spring 2010. The game will be featured at the Tokyo Game Show later this month.