Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fates, the Nintendo DS sequel to Square Enix's somewhat popular (and somewhat unorthodox) GameCube Final Fantasy, is one of the furthest along titles Square had to show off at this year's Party.

The game shares some things in common with its predecessor--a focus on exploring dungeons and fighting baddies, though some new moves have been added to buff up the gameplay, and puzzle elements have been implemented into the dungeon design.

Players can now hop on top of enemies and perform a brutal downward attack, or pick them up and attack them from underneath.  In addition, a Special attack can be performed after it is built up.  Normally, all the action takes place on the top screen of the DS, but when the right trigger is held, the screens switch positions, and a special attack can be performed by tapping the appropriate enemy with the stylus.

To keep the multiplayer spirit of the first game alive, Ring of Fates will make use of the DS wi-fi abilities.  Presumably, more than one mode will be available for online multiplayer, including some sort of co-op play; in the version IGN briefly demoed, players were able to race against each other to "score points by plucking little critters out of the ground."  They could also attack each other to attempt to gain the upper hand.

Ring of Fates doesn't look quite as good as Final Fantasy III or the newer Chocobo Tales, but its charming visual style and fairly robust ...

The follow-up to Sqauare Enix's maddeningly addictive Final Fantasy Tactics Advance for the GBA, Tactics A2 for the Nintendo DS, hasn't received as much publicity thus far as the PSP remake of the original Tactics for the Sony PSP.  But with the recent release of The Lion War in Japan, all our eyes can now switch to Final Fantasy Tactics A2--and it doesn't look like it's going to disappoint.

At this time, we don't know what changes are being made for the DS sequel.  However, the game is looking great, with sharp 2D graphics and sprites and some pretty visual effects.  Apparently, the only surprising aspect of the game thus far is a lack of stylus control on the DS, which is surprising given the nature of a turn-based strategy title.  But with no release date for the game yet given, it's entirely possible Square Enix could add such a feature before the game's release.

Check out A2's logo and a couple images (courtesy of GamesAreFun) below:

   

[Source: IGN, GAF] ...

Square Enix's upcoming Final Fantasy VII prequel for the PSP, Crisis Core, is looking better all the time.  Already confirmed as one of the best-looking games for the PSP, Square Enix is adding the polish to Crisis Core and wrapping the game up for its newly announced September 13th Japanese release date.  No US release date has been announced yet, but check out a host of new Crisis Core images, courtesy of GamesAreFun:

     

Even better, IGN had a chance to test out the game at this year's Square Enix Party.  Their hands-on time sounds like it proved to be overwhelmingly positive, with a flashy interface and a fun menu-based combat system.  To read the full article, click here.

[Source: IGN, GAF] ...

In one of the first games unveiled by Square Enix to kick off their 2007 Party, Final Fantasy Dissidia for the PSP is taking the RPG giant in a direction they haven't been since the Ehrgeiz days--fighting games.  Dissidia has been confirmed to feature characters from Final Fantasy I and Final Fantasy IX, including the protagonists and antagonists: the Warrior of Light, Zidane, Garland, and Kuja.

Not much has been spilled about the game thus far, but it looks to be along the lines of a 3D brawler.  Power Stone: Final Fantasy, anybody?  Check out the official logo and a magazine scan below.

 

[Source: GAF] ...

With the Square Enix party taking place next week, most fans are eagerly anticipating upcoming information for Nomura's newest title, Final Fantasy XIII for the Playstation 3; however, Famitsu seems to have gotten slightly ahead of Square Enix with an information leak. Final Fantasy IV, the first of the legendary series to feature the Active Time Battle will shed its dark, 16-bit armor and be reborn as a Paladin on the Nintendo DS handheld!  It appears to utilize the engine of Final Fantasy III, brought to American shores for the first time last winter. 

Venturing away from the handheld market and onto the console and PC front,  Square Enix's highly successful MMORPG FINAL FANTASY XI has a new expansion titled "Wings of the Goddess", scheduled for release this Winter.  While no new gameplay information has been explicitly revealed to the public at this current date, the trailer seems to focus highly on the player traveling back through time to re-write pages in Vana'diel's ...

Good news for old school Final Fantasy fans--the remakes of Final Fantasy I and II, both headed for the PSP in celebration of Final Fantasy's 20th anniversary, are coming to North America!

Previously given Japanese release dates only, Final Fantasy I and II can now be penciled into your gaming calendar for late June and late July, respectively.  Final Fantasy I will be released on June 26th, while Final Fantasy II will hit approximately a month later, on July 24th.  Each game will cost you a cool $29.99, making these entries a bit more pricey than some of the previous ports.  But you get what you pay for, right?

To read up on the full meat of these new renditions of the classic titles, check out some of our older news bits, or Square Enix's official press release.  New character art?  16x9 presentation?  New camera angles?  Oh my!

[Source: Square Enix] ...

The Japanese site for the long-awaited PSP prequel to Final Fantasy VII, Crisis Core, has finally gone live!

The stylish site has some gorgeous CG video clips of Zack, a downloadable wallpaper, and bits and pieces of information about other aspects of the game.  Of course, it's in Japanese, but you can still marvel at the pretty pictures.

Give it a look! ...

The Japanese site for Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings, Square Enix's DS offshoot of their latest successful entry in the long-lived franchise, has recently been updated.  Why waste time with screenshots when you can watch eight videos of the game in action?

All of the information may be in Japanese, but there's still plenty to be excited about.  Aside from the gameplay videos, the site features a "Characters" section that confirms the existence of old favorites and mysterious newcomers.  It looks as though Balthier, Fran, Ashe, and Basch are all returning in at least small roles, as is Larsa.  And the menacing Judge of Wings looks to be a potential villain for the title.

The site is chock-full of beautiful artwork, brand new characters, and a handful of videos.  So what are you waiting for?  Hurry up and check it out! ...

The next entry in the Final Fantasy Tactics series, FFTA2, has been planned for the DS for some time now.  Unfortunately, there hasn't been much in the way of news about the game, nor has Square Enix released screenshots or other tantalizing hints of how the game looks.

But now we've gotten our hands on the first magazine scan of A2!  Check it out below.  It appears as though the game's protagonists are named Adel and Luso.  With the enhanced processing power of the DS, Square Enix is obviously pushing to create some gorgeous backdrops for the grid-based battle system.  The magazine scan doesn't show off a lot, but it's a safe bet we can expect some beautiful spritework and maddeningly addictive strategic combat.

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As we've previously mentioned, Square Enix is celebrating the 20th anniversary of their esteemed franchise with ports of Final Fantasy I and II to Sony's Playstation Portable.  While we knew that Final Fantasy I would be released in Japan on April 19th, an exact date for FFII wasn't mentioned--until now.

Final Fantasy II for the PSP will be released in Japan on June 7th, for 3800 yen, or about $32 US.  Like the PSP version of FFI, FFII will be overhauled with new graphics, a bonus dungeon, and the content added to the PS1 and GBA versions of the game--meaning more added content and some FMVs, to boot.

Unfortunately, there's been no word on whether or not these titles will be made available outside of Japan.  But it's not all bad--take a look at the official 20th anniversary image for the Final Fantasy series, and hope these games make their way to the US.  Or just import them, if you really feel like playing yet another version of these classic titles.


[Source: IGN] ...

The title says it all--those of you who have been waiting for the DS version of Final Fantasy III don't have much longer to sit and twiddle your thumbs.  The PAL version of FFIII will be released on May 4th, 2007.

Assuming you haven't already imported it, mark your calendars, European gamers!

[Source: TVG] ...

As the PSP version of Final Fantasy Tactics draws closer to its Japanese release, more details are being released about the changes in place and the additions Square Enix is making to the now-classic Ivalice adventure.

A new Player vs. Player mode has been introduced, and the winner of each match can be rewarded with a bevy of treasure chests.  Players will also be able to set up battles in Tactics on maps of their choosing, and even set up detailed battle rules and restrictions for individual encounters.

There's no North American release date for The Lion War just yet, but check back frequently for more updates on Square Enix's portable Final Fantasy Tactics.

[Source: RPGamer] ...

To quickly get the Kingdom Hearts news (or lack thereof) out of the way first: Tetsuya Nomura has stated that Kingdom Hearts II: Final Mix+ will be his last Playstation 2 title.  The new events added to the game will also not feature English voice acting, and for those of you who were hoping for a Kingdom Hearts III announcement at this year's Square Enix party in May, prepare to be disappointed: you'll have to wait a bit longer to hear anything about KHIII.

Now, on to Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII, the PSP-exclusive prequel that focuses on Zack, Sephiroth, and the events that caused Cloud Strife to change forever.  Zack's last name has finally been revealed as "Fair," which is meant to contrast with "Cloud Strife" in a strange weather-emotion tie-in.

New characters have also been revealed: Angeal Hewley and Genesis, both First Class Soldiers like Sephiroth.  One of the screenshots (check below!) reveals these three characters facing off--perhaps as a result of Sephiroth going a bit crazy?  Another new character, named Lazard, apparently oversees the operations of the Turks.

Square Enix has also talked a bit about the game's battle system, saying that it's a combination of the classic ATB and fresh action elements.  Limit Breaks and materia are back, and according to what materia is equipped, different commands will appear in the menu, replacing everything but the standard "Attack" and "Item" options.

The gauge in the top left corner of the screen, previously shrouded in mystery, has been given a name--the DMW, or Digital Mind Web.  The DMW will fulfill a myriad of functions, allowing players to perform Limit Breaks, perform Summons, or restore health.  The DMW is also in some way connected to each character's stats, and moves automatically, freeing players from worrying about controlling it.

Here are some magazine scans of Crisis Core ...

On March 30th, Square Enix is launching Final Fantasy XI 2007 Edition in Europe for Windows and the Xbox 360.  This new European compilation will contain all three Final Fantasy XI expansions: Rise of the Zilart, Chains of Promathia, and Treasures of Aht Urhgan.

More importantly, this release of FFXI will mark the first time players can buy a copy of the game that contains language options for both German and French in addition to English.

For those Europeans gamers who already own Final Fantasy XI, we've got even better news--via Square Enix's PlayOnline website, you can download language packs for both German and French starting today.

So what are you waiting for?  Get out there and start wishing all your friends Guten Tag!

[Source: TeamXbox] ...