In a continuing trend, Square Enix has announced the development of what is to be a ten piece collection of Final Fantasy XIII musical pieces, arranged for piano. Based on previous piano collections, the CD will very likely appeal to any number of listeners, both casual and serious collectors of music, and be of exceptional quality.
In other news, the SE E3 lineup has been announced, as well, featuring the newly revealed DS game, Kingdom Hearts Re: coded. The flip side is that the lineup does not appear to feature any mention of FFXIII Versus, the mysterious sister title of flagship game Final Fantasy XIII.
It may also interest some to know that the illegal download community is alive and well.
Source: andriasang, IGN, FFXIII.net, FFUnion (Piano, Downloads)
...For every brick in the Great Wall of China there is a dead man. For every angry fan, there is someone else who gets sued.
A class action lawsuit has been filed against Square Enix on the grounds that the company knew about the defective properties of flagship game, Final Fantasy XIII, on PS3s. The plaintiff, Daniel Wolf, or rather, his attorneys, argue that such neglect is a violation of state consumer laws.
Source: IGN, FFUnion, Kotaku, FFXIII.net
...
Square Enix has recently announced the availability of two new iPad applications, FFXIII Larger-Than-Life and Chocobo Panic. Both items can be purchased in the app store for 6 and 4 US dollars, respectively.
In related news, Tetsuya Nomura is set to appear at summer gaming convention, E3. For what reason, it can be speculated to have something to do wither with upcoming Kingdom Hearts installment, Birth By Sleep, or the under-the-radar FFXIII spin-off, Versus.
Lastly, for those in dire need of more Nobuo Uematsu music and for those who plan to be in Germany in the near future may be interested in two concert performances.
Source: Square Enix, RPGFan (iPad, Music), FFXIII.net (E3), FFUnion (E3)
...For those in the United States, happy America Day, thank your troops, and get great deals on sales at the store. Welcome back to the regular world after the extended weekend. The regular world features Final Fantasy.
Firstly, a release date has been announced for Final Fantasy: The Four Heroes of Light. Look forward to October 5, 2010.
Moving backwards in time, another Final Fantasy XIII record has been announced. The previous record for FFXIII, looking like a large success, has warranted the creation of a second one.
And lastly, located sometime in the last decade, CEO Wada has spoken about the feasibility of a Final Fantasy VII remake. The prospects are bad. But, for those who continue to live in the past instead of the present, one can analyze two of the older games through the modern lens.
Source: Square Enix, andriasang (FFXIII Vinyl, FFVII Remake), RPGFan reviews (FFVII, FFVIII)
...What, indeed. New details about MMORPG installment, Final Fantasy XIV, courtesy of Famitsu, reveal the inclusion of a deity-changing system and horse-drawn transportation, among other features. Join in on the conversation with our very own forums thread on the subject.
Source: andriasang. Discussion Thread
...Solace may result for those who can not get enough of the FFXIII heroine. Lightning along with several characters from Final Fantasy VII are set to appear in the latest installment of Itadaki. The official site is also live.
In other news, several screenshots of FFXIV have been released, including what appears to be a comparison between the Alpha and Beta versions.
Source: andriasang (Itadaki, FFXIV Gallery, FFXIV Comparison), Itadaki Official Site
...FFXI is set to receive the first of three new add-ons. Vision of Abyssea, the title of the first expansion, is designed for high-level characters, and includes a level cap increase. The release will be the same time as a patch planned for June.
Source: RPGFan, Official Site
...It has been announced that the latest entry into the Kingdom Hearts series will be making its way stateside on September 7, 2010. For those who are unaware, Birth By Sleep is a prequel to the series, as evidenced by the appearance of the secret videos at the end of Kingdom Hearts II. The game alone is said to be priced at $39.99; a bundle is set to be priced at $199.99.
In other news, Square Enix CEO Yoichi Wada has answered the suggestions that FFXIII: Versus become multi-platform. Also included is a link to a follow-up interview with the CEO.
Source: Square Enix, Magic Box, Andriasang (FFXIII, FFXIV)
...Rejoice, (relatively) old school Final Fantasy fans. Final Fantasy IX has been confirmed as "soon to be available in the US" on the Playstation Network. Like the other re-released FF games before it, FFIX brings back the PSX generation games for those who did not have it available to them originally.
In other news, some FFXI music will also be released on vinyl record in the coming future.
...Square Enix has started a video blog called "Life in Eorzea" which looks to feature select aspects of the Final Fantasy XIV alpha test. It is in Japanese, but it'll give you a look at the game as well.
Also interesting is that the YouTube account that they created just for Final Fantasy XIV has existed since 2006.
Source: Final Fantasy XIV YouTube
...The official Japanese site for Final Fantasy XIV updated with more information on the different races and their tribes, with several new images for each. Check the site out to hear a neat arranged version of the classic Final Fantasy theme, and then head over to RPGLand where they've translated all of the new information into English. For the rest of us, beta signups for the game have been going on for a while, so you might want to check it out if you have a PS3 or a PC that you think can handle it.
For a different Square-Enix MMO beta that you can actually play right now though, the free-to-play Fantasy Earth Zero is on its 2nd round of its Open Beta.
Source: Official Final Fantasy XIV site, Famitsu, RPGLand
...Speaking of games with 'Heart' in the title, this one is actually making it out of Japan. Not that it should be any surprise, but Square Enix announced about a week ago that Kingdom Hearts Birth By Sleep for the PSP should be out in the US by the summer.
Over in Japan though, they've just released the 'Ultimania' guide book for the same game. Technically it comes out tomorrow, but it's already 'tomorrow' in Japan. In case you're not familiar with SquEnix's Ultimania brand, they are basically enormous super duper guidebooks that cover every single thing in the game. For their bigger games they would even have one Ultimania book for all of the story and scenario stuff, and a separate Ultimania book for all of the battle information. The Ultimania book for Birth By Sleep is 656 pages.
In the back of the Birth by Sleep Ultimania, there is an interview from game director Tetsuya Nomura. You can read a translated version of it on Heartstation.org, as he covers a few things regarding the future of the series. One thing I thought was interesting was that Nomura says that Sora will always be the 'Hero' of the series. In an earlier interview that ...
Ever Heart Odyssey is the name of the game, which is currently in a closed beta over in Japan. Despite the name it appears it has nothing to do with Kingdom Hearts (or Etrian Odyssey, but I'd think that much would be obvious...). The screen shots over at Siliconera show off the character art style which is based off of the avatars from the Square Enix Members community site.
Before you start wondering when this comes out in English, think about how often a Square Enix Cel Phone game comes out here. We got lucky with FF4: The After Years
Source: Siliconera
...I hope you weren't waiting for me to tell you that the game came out this week. Here's some 'news' that's happened since the game came out:
Square-Enix boasts that they've shipped 5 million copies worldwide. Should be interesting to see how that translates to actual sales in a few weeks.
British Final Fantasy Fans hate on the Xbox 360. Though I guess it could apply to Final Fantasy Fans in general...though that Asian guy really seemed into it.
Game Director Toriyama keeps saying that it's too hard to do certain things in HD games.
You know where there's a great place that doesn't complain about Final Fantasy XIII? Our own forums. Quite a few people are giving their impressions as they play, and Cid's Knights are patrolling the threads carefully to make sure we are all safe from spoilers. Go check it out!
...