New Versus XIII Trailer

YouTube - PS3

It's the leaked one from this morning. Shows some of the gameplay mechanics along with showing some more of the characters. With dialogue. If anybody speaks Japanese and would like to translate, that would be fantastic.

Of some interest is that Nomura said that he has held firm on FF Versus XIII remaining a PS3 exclusive. Not getting into a console flaming war but commenting that it would appear that Nomura is receiving some autonomy if he is able to resist the executives above him. Which hopefully means that there won't be a XIV fiasco.

Final Fantasy Versus XIII stays PS3 exclusive in seven glorious minutes | Warp Zoned

Another vid with commentary by yours truly, in what I am sure is horrible grammar (which i almost spelled with an e)

I think it's looking really good. I was surprised to see just how much gameplay they showed and how diverse it is, with the sword swinging, shooting, and hopping on turrets and mechs all seeming really different. The cutscenes look insane and it looks like there's going to be tons of interactive set pieces in and outside of combat, which is something XIII definitely lacked.

In other words, it's a good thing they kept it exclusive :)

At first, i thought more like KH1 but looking around it seems like its more of BBS.

It looks awesome and....so grimdark and gritty...I can't wait. Shame there's still no release date. But at least I finally know what the battles look like.

I just wish they characters didn't have that supergay androgenous design.

By the looks of it I figured we'd might get it by years end. I hope at least. Didn't they start this in 2007?

PS3 exclusive! I'm so glad, cos a lot of people say the 360 version gimped XIII so this way we have no fear of that happening. And besides 360 sucks, they don't deserve this. It's looking really awesome now and I'm so glad that you have other characters fighting with you (I had thought that all along but now it's been confirmed). I wonder how the controls will work with all of Noctis' weapons and moves. And I was wondering, can you switch who you control in battle?

Is it me or does Noctis' Father look like a slightly older Reeve?

Well it looks like that they change character from Noctis to guy with gun midway through one of the fights, so that suggests you can change characters mid battle. If you look in the top-right corner, there is also a bar that either counts down or counts up.

And I'm not amped that it isn't multi-platform because I think the PS3 is such a superior platform (if it is, it is going to be marginal). I'm amped that Nomura decided it was going to be a PS3 exclusive and the executives who were pushing for multi-platform had to stand down. With XIII, I think that was the problem - the executives had too much of a hand in it and that diluted whatever vision the developers wanted to take.

EDIT: They said a while back it's unlikely to make 2011. So 2012 release in Japan, meaning either a late 2012/early 2013 release for the rest of the world.

If theres one thing you can't fault Square on its the quality of their CGI. That stuff looks damn impressive.

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Originally Posted by champagne supernova

EDIT: They said a while back it's unlikely to make 2011. So 2012 release in Japan, meaning either a late 2012/early 2013 release for the rest of the world.

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2011 is still possible, they just weren't willing to promise it, so we may as well just call it a 2012 game.

But keep in mind that FFXIII's Japanese release and rest of the world release was only different by a little less than three months. There's no reason it can't be the same with this game.

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Originally Posted by Dreddz

If theres one thing you can't fault Square on its the quality of their CGI. That stuff looks damn impressive.

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Agreed.

Square Enix Seeking Final Fantasy Versus XIII Planners (andriasang.com, 10.18.2010)

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Square Enix seems to be serious about this whole Final Fantasy Versus XIII thing. In fact, to speed up completion of the project, they're taking the extraordinary measure of actually hiring new staff.

A visual from a recruitment page off the Square Enix site:

The notice says that Square Enix is seeking a large number of planners for Versus XIII. There are two specific listings: battle planner and level design planner.

Battle planner requires such work as creation of enemy characters for an action RPG, "creation of the battle concept for each chapter, field and dungeon," formation of "enemy character algorithms, parameter settings and other data work," and management of graphics resources. This position asks for people with experience making PS3 and Xbox 360 package games and those with knowledge of battles and level creation.

Level design planner requires such work as "development of action games" and "creation of level design based off the scenario." This position requires that candidates have experience making action games.

Both jobs are out of Square Enix's Shinjuku studio.

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It's like they care more about VersusXIII than main series entry XIII.

I'm sure there's some way of blaming the 360 for this that Sony fanboys can conjure up.

I'm waiting for people to take the part of the job description section that says:

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This position asks for people with experience making PS3 and Xbox 360 package games and those with knowledge of battles and level creation.

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and start saying that SE has unofficially hinted that Versus will go multi-platform. Seriously, I will so laugh if Wada shows up in the Microsoft event at E3 this year and announces Versus will be on the 360 in North America and PAL regions again. ;)

anyone have an alternate link, the video was taken down and I'm having trouble finding another video of it?

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Originally Posted by Elskidor

By the looks of it I figured we'd might get it by years end. I hope at least. Didn't they start this in 2007?

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More like 2009, i think building world based on actual world is very time-consuming especially getting the right scale of these locations. Also, we only saw the first Area and random region.

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Originally Posted by Wolf Kanno

I'm waiting for people to take the part of the job description section that says:

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This position asks for people with experience making PS3 and Xbox 360 package games and those with knowledge of battles and level creation.

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and start saying that SE has unofficially hinted that Versus will go multi-platform. Seriously, I will so laugh if Wada shows up in the Microsoft event at E3 this year and announces Versus will be on the 360 in North America and PAL regions again. ;)

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I won't be. Nomura doesn't want to go multi-platform. If there's one thing we've learnt of late, corporate interference messes up games. If Wada announces that, it just means Nomura has lost his independence, and then we can get to see more 'good ideas' from the executives in the game.

Can someone direct me to a link where Nomra specifically says he is eternally in love with Sony and won't allow Versus XIII to go multi-plat? He seems like a responsible developer who is trying to ensure quality over anything else but never seemed against the 360. At the end of the day if the game is good who cares.

I've watched the trailer a few more times (which is much harder to find now that Square are on the prowl). I like how the artists restrained themselves with the overall look of the game. Giving the game a more realistic look was the best decision Square made. Parts of the game look right out of Yakuza......and thats awesome. One exception is the character that pops up near the end (the one with the lance type thingy), who's design is simply god awful.

The combat looks like Crisis Core which is both good and bad. The good is that Crisis Core was a great game. The bad is that it was a great game.......for the PSP. I hope they expand on what they did with Crisis Core and offer more than button mashing. When I'm sat on my sofa pumped up on Red Bull I'd rather play a game that offers some degree of challenge. Also Crisis Core wasn't a particulary open game, which is something I hope Versus XIII is. I'm all for spectacle but I hope Versus XIII is more than just that or it'll likely be another XIII.

Finally I'm just glad that we have some proper footage to look at. Square are still slacking considering the game was announced nearly 5 years ago but it does look good Ill give them that. Fingers crossed for a 2012 release date.

I think the battle system is more like KH than CC, which I personally prefer. KH's battle system felt faster paced, more engaging and visually was better than CC imo. The only reason it may resemble CC over KH is that the games is less cartoony and darker looking. But execs should realise that they're not the makers of a game. All they need to do is sign cheques and leave the creative side and decisions involving the direction of the game(including which platform to release it on) to Nomura and his team.

As for it being a PS3 exclusive I'm oretty sure Sony are happy about that. It may boost sales of the PS3 for a short time. I mean, after watching that trailer how can you not want to play it? If I never had a PS3 I would have bought one for this (which I actually did). I don't buy a lot of games and stuff, so when I do, price is not an option, especially for quality. Take a hint 360 owners :P

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Originally Posted by Dreddz

Can someone direct me to a link where Nomra specifically says he is eternally in love with Sony and won't allow Versus XIII to go multi-plat?

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http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/20...-ps3-exclusive

It doesn't really say that he is in love with the PS3 platform. I just like the fact that it says: he stood his ground. It could be on anything and I'd like.

It looks just like Crisis Core... Button Mashing with no real strategy. :/

I hope I'm wrong.

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Originally Posted by Lusty Justy

It looks just like Crisis Core... Button Mashing with no real strategy. :/

I hope I'm wrong.

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Of course, it would be easy-mode if you're like over-leveled and over-powered. This is common in most RPG games. So, in this case, don't expect the game to be harder if you grind.

If Versus remains an exclusive and turns out to be far, far better than XIII upon the release, then it will be proof that it was 360's fault for making XIII so crappy. Of course, you could argue that the KH team is developing Versus and that XIII had a different team, but still...

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Originally Posted by Dreddz

The combat looks like Crisis Core which is both good and bad. The good is that Crisis Core was a great game. The bad is that it was a great game.......for the PSP. I hope they expand on what they did with Crisis Core and offer more than button mashing. When I'm sat on my sofa pumped up on Red Bull I'd rather play a game that offers some degree of challenge. Also Crisis Core wasn't a particulary open game, which is something I hope Versus XIII is. I'm all for spectacle but I hope Versus XIII is more than just that or it'll likely be another XIII.

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Actually, it just the visual presentation feels more grounded unlike KH which is more of cartoony and flashy experience but i can see your point. Anyway, At this point it is really hard to read the moveset of characters not to mention they still hide some parts of "command menu" and stuff.

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Originally Posted by Lusty Justy

It looks just like Crisis Core... Button Mashing with no real strategy. :/

I hope I'm wrong.

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If you look at the top-right corner, there is some bar that is filling up or counting down. It could be some form of ATB perhaps? But seeing that this is a Nomura game, it is most likely going to be like Kingdom Hearts than Crisis Core.

Anyway, I'm still excited.

And as a PS3 owner, I am going to come out and say this: you can't blame Xbox for the way XIII turned out. Blame the executives perhaps, but the multi-platform release is marginal. As far as I recall, they only really started with the port after the Japanese release anyway.

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No ATBs/turns in Nomura games.

Here's another link for the trailer. Watch it before SE finds it. :shifty:

I'm actually really surprised. I finally got to see what I wanted from this game and that was actual live gameplay footage and I must say I'm pretty psyched for the gameplay side of things. I'm still counting on Nojima to ruin the plot for me by having lame ass plot twist that will ruin most of the good ideas of the game and feel completely out of left field but seriously, Versus just showed a ton of crap that makes me actually hope for a moment that FF is not dead.

It looks more like KH, CC was not nearly that fluid and always felt more like a poor man's action rpg as opposed to KH which has evolved into something interesting with BbS. I'm curious to know how the battle system will work and if the game has any major customization systems or even stuff like summons. The game looks pretty bad ass in motion and I like the cinematic camera work with the dungeon explorations. Despite the straightforward designs, of some of the city parts, the camera creates a sense of motion that makes you forget about it. Finally someone payed attention to Suikoden III. Getting into vehicles was also pretty bad ass. I sort of have to laugh cause while Toriyama and Kitase were brainstorming ways to redefine the JRPG genre and create a new genre with XIII by cutting out everything that makes the genre enjoyable, it looks like Nomura may have actually done it, by actually adding back all the stuff Square and SE have removed from the genre since FFX.

Yeah, it does look too quick to be ATB. But I am very curious as to what that bar is. To be honest, ATB doesn't faze me too much. Vagrant Story wasn't ATB and is probably my favourite Squenix game of all time (I still need to finish Chrono Trigger though).

I think that Versus XIII could have something that has been lacking in the last who knows how many FFs - an epic villain who appears at a decent time in the game instead of being tacked on at the end. Reckon Sephiroth was the last of those (although some might argue Kuja).

And that is what I've liked about Versus above XIII. It looks like it's had a clear vision from the beginning instead of having a whole ideas thrown into it and then sort of meshed together to work as a story (and of later FFs, gameplay).

EDIT: Oh, did you look at the outdoor areas. They look big. Like properly Gran Pulse centre area big.

What is with Square Enix taking down these videos? I swear to god, this company has no idea how to actually interact with their customers. If they don't want random Youtubers uploading the trailer, then they should just upload it onto their own youtube channel. Sheesh.

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Originally Posted by champagne supernova

Yeah, it does look too quick to be ATB. But I am very curious as to what that bar is. To be honest, ATB doesn't faze me too much. Vagrant Story wasn't ATB and is probably my favourite Squenix game of all time (I still need to finish Chrono Trigger though).

I think that Versus XIII could have something that has been lacking in the last who knows how many FFs - an epic villain who appears at a decent time in the game instead of being tacked on at the end. Reckon Sephiroth was the last of those (although some might argue Kuja).

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Yeah you had problems with the last boss too?
I don't see why would anybody argue that Kuja was tacked on til the end of the game. He was present on the first disc and you had to know he was evil on first sight and he was the primary enemy in the later part of disc 2.

I hope Veruss turns out good. I noticed a fire spell that looks almost identical to the one in KHII.

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Originally Posted by Miriel

What is with Square Enix taking down these videos? I swear to god, this company has no idea how to actually interact with their customers. If they don't want random Youtubers uploading the trailer, then they should just upload it onto their own youtube channel. Sheesh.

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SQUARE-ENIX
Videos are bit laggy, SQEX will put HD videos soon.

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Originally Posted by Depression Moon

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Originally Posted by champagne supernova

I think that Versus XIII could have something that has been lacking in the last who knows how many FFs - an epic villain who appears at a decent time in the game instead of being tacked on at the end. Reckon Sephiroth was the last of those (although some might argue Kuja).

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Yeah you had problems with the last boss too?
I don't see why would anybody argue that Kuja was tacked on til the end of the game. He was present on the first disc and you had to know he was evil on first sight and he was the primary enemy in the later part of disc 2.

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Not arguing about when he was appeared but about him being an epic villain. I never found him particularly evil or intensely powerful like Kefka or Sephiroth. He was a villain in my mind, not an epic villain.

I know this has been said before but I wish they would change the name of Versus XIII to something else. I really enjoyed XIII but think that renaming Agito XIII was a step in teh right direction and they need to rename this one too. Heck, maybe even Final Fantasy XV if the game is fleshed out enough and similar enough to the games in the seiries. I am guessing it won't be so they won't do that. Still, I think renaming it would help the especially after the mixed reception XIII got. Regardless, it's just a title...

As far as the trailer goes, I am hoping the battle system isn't like KH. It has been established that I am a XIII fan but I will admit that XIII has little replay value and I need more FF! Big console FF, not psp or DS FF. I don't know why everyone thinks hack 'n slash gameplay is the future of FF or should be, the ATB/turn based battles set FF apart combat-wise. I hope it is some type fo ATB system or at least not purely hack 'n slash, I want some restrictions on my characters so I will have to strategize, no button-mashing! Theer are pletny of games to play if you want a button masher, such as Bayonetta and Darksiders were button mashing leads to somehow triggering a obscenely powerful and flashy move. Anyway... the art style of Versus XIII is different, and I am against the grain on this aspect as well, as I don't think FF needs to start featuring more guns. I don't know why people are tired of swords and sorcery... but at least there is magic and swords (which there appears to be, Noctis has a sword) I can dig it. Final Fantasy has always been about mixing fantasy with technology (steampunk) and this inner-city/modern theme might be cool but I just hope there is plenty of magic and fantasy as well. Anyway, Squeeniz change the name of this game.

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Originally Posted by Serapy

If Versus remains an exclusive and turns out to be far, far better than XIII upon the release, then it will be proof that it was 360's fault for making XIII so crappy.

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This is void of any logic or reason whatsoever.

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Originally Posted by champagne supernova

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Originally Posted by Depression Moon

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Originally Posted by champagne supernova

I think that Versus XIII could have something that has been lacking in the last who knows how many FFs - an epic villain who appears at a decent time in the game instead of being tacked on at the end. Reckon Sephiroth was the last of those (although some might argue Kuja).

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Yeah you had problems with the last boss too?
I don't see why would anybody argue that Kuja was tacked on til the end of the game. He was present on the first disc and you had to know he was evil on first sight and he was the primary enemy in the later part of disc 2.

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Not arguing about when he was appeared but about him being an epic villain. I never found him particularly evil or intensely powerful like Kefka or Sephiroth. He was a villain in my mind, not an epic villain.

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I'm not going to argue epic as that is a matter of taste, but he is evidently more powerful than Sephiroth. It takes a week for Sephy to destroy a planet and it only takes Kuja minutes.

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Originally Posted by Lamia

I don't know why everyone thinks hack 'n slash gameplay is the future of FF or should be, the ATB/turn based battles set FF apart combat-wise.

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Though I think Versus 13 looks interesting I have to agree with you there. It really doesn't seem "Final Fantasy-y". I don't see this as 'hope for the series' as some have dubbed it, it just seems too far removed.

As for my impressions: The combat looked cool but there is one thing hanging around that I didn't like. The AI characters running around. If I am hacking and slashing things up the last thing I want to worry about is some dumb ass AI running around and getting itself killed. They better be able to take care of themselves.

^ If it's the KH team, chances are your A.I. friends non-consequential. Though it does appear in the trailer that you can switch to a few of them so maybe there is more to the party system than it seems.

I'll admit I'm not wild about it being an action RPG cause they usually feel imbalanced in some way and often times developers make them too easy. Still, I've kinda grudgingly accepted the fact that developers don't want to use ATB or turn base combat anymore for their high profile console games. Considering the huge outcry from critics and detractors about Lost Odyssey and Blue Dragon using traditional ATB and not feeling "next generation" I'm pretty sure most developers won't touch those types of battle systems when even the original creator of FF can't get away with using it anymore. Not that I agree with people who don't like command based combat, or the developers who feel that fans won't like their games if they happen to use it.

Still, its starting to become more of a niche and RPG combat systems are merging with action games. Players want speed and flash, not strategy.

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Originally Posted by Wolf Kanno

Still, its starting to become more of a niche and RPG combat systems are merging with action games. Players want speed and flash, not strategy.

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This is 100% correct. It saddens me because turn-based RPGs in the vein of the classic FF titles are my favorite games.

I did enjoy the KH games though and this basically looks like a dark gritty grown up version of the battles in KH so it should still be cool. I would like another FF where I get to control all my characters someday though.

Interesting. I can't think of a much more descriptive response really at this stage

Battles look suspiciously hack-and-slash, but then XIII basically *was* hack-and-slash and managed to make it interesting so we'll see (I still miss strategic turn-based stuff. FFX had the best battle system that way, IMO).

The world is not very fantasy, I've accepted different types of fantasy one of which is the futuristic style of VII and VIII (and to a lesser extent X) but this is basically the real world. To be honest we see the real world every day, I want Final Fantasy not Final Realstic Fiction. But again, we'll see.

The character design is typical of modern FF, lots of recycling. The love interest, visually, is Sarah with a hint of Yuna and a dash of Lightning.

I'd have to agree with it being the last hope for fans of the PS1 and pre-PS1 golden era. It looks like it's likely to be very different, and I suppose if there's one constant in FF it's how much it changes.

Apparently SE is releasing the "super secret" trailer themselves January 27th I believe. Have seen it a bunch of times and can't help but wonder whether or not the more action-oriented combat will be good for the series from now on? I mean a big reason why they didn't just rename this game to FFXV was because this had a darker story, more mature themes and instances of blood (which believe it or not is a first for the series).

But the KH-CrisisCore battle mechanics look alot better than the ATB system implemented in FFXIII. Seeing how soo many RPG series are taking the action route, mabey Final Fantasy should start doing it too? I know this'll upset the majority of the Old school-Hardcore fans, but the newer generation doesn't seem to be interested in traditional RPG styles. That said ME2 sold a little under 2 million units while FFXIII is closing in the 6 million mark, so there's definitely an audience that doesn't want action-heavy RPG's.

Can't help but think that this game is really putting JRPGs in the all-or-nothing spot. Like it's deciding the future for JRPGs (whether to stay traditional or follow WRPGs in the action category)! I still have hope that SE will redeem it's name with Versus and I know this'll be my favorite game of this gen (Bought a PS3 just for this game back in 2007 after seeing a trailer for it).

Can't wait for 2011 or 2012!

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Actually, Versus XIII is the last hope for traditional Action Adventure RPGs, stuff like Illusion of Gaia and Terranigma which are don't exist anymore because they do take a long time to make them, probably some of the hardest and most time consuming genre.

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Originally Posted by ShinGundam

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Actually, Versus XIII is the last hope for traditional Action Adventure RPGs, stuff like Illusion of Gaia and Terranigma which are don't exist anymore because they do take a long time to make them, probably some of the hardest and most time consuming genre.

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Thank you. All this talk of it being the last hope of the JRPG is driving me nuts.

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Originally Posted by VeloZer0

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Originally Posted by ShinGundam

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Actually, Versus XIII is the last hope for traditional Action Adventure RPGs, stuff like Illusion of Gaia and Terranigma which are don't exist anymore because they do take a long time to make them, probably some of the hardest and most time consuming genre.

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Thank you. All this talk of it being the last hope of the JRPG is driving me nuts.

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You can't blame anyone for that, it is been a while for game like this and the genre is far more obscure/niche than turn-based. :eep:

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Originally Posted by ShinGundam

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Actually, Versus XIII is the last hope for traditional Action Adventure RPGs, stuff like Illusion of Gaia and Terranigma which are don't exist anymore because they do take a long time to make them, probably some of the hardest and most time consuming genre.

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Ahh I understand my mistake. But I have to disagree with your statement of the ARPGs dying. Action Adventure RPGs are some of the best selling RPGs this gen, not to mention some the highest rated. Everything from Dragon Age, Fable, Mass Effect, etc. (most WRPGs) are under that banner, so no, VERSUS will not be deciding that genre's fate.

What I had meant to say was that VERSUS XIII might be showing other Japanese developers to see a less traditional style to the genre and take a more action-esque route in the future. I agree that for us, the gamers, this is bad. It'll mean that there's less variety out their in types of genres (read: most new IPs are FPS nowadays). But in the business stand point it'll be better for the company to sell more units if they're appealing to a broader audience. Don't get me wrong, I love JRPGs, but at the same time I want to see more innovation so that the Japanese industry will still have a place 5-10 years from now. Japanese presence in the gaming industry is in an alarming decline and more and more closures mixed with amalgamating studios is making the industry alot tougher to survive in. I just want to make sure that JRPGs have a place in the future.

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Originally Posted by nirojan

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Originally Posted by ShinGundam

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Actually, Versus XIII is the last hope for traditional Action Adventure RPGs, stuff like Illusion of Gaia and Terranigma which are don't exist anymore because they do take a long time to make them, probably some of the hardest and most time consuming genre.

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Ahh I understand my mistake. But I have to disagree with your statement of the ARPGs dying. Action Adventure RPGs are some of the best selling RPGs this gen, not to mention some the highest rated. Everything from Dragon Age, Fable, Mass Effect, etc. (most WRPGs) are under that banner, so no, VERSUS will not be deciding that genre's fate.

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That is why you had to put a "traditional", When I think of traditional action adventure RPG, I don't think of "levels/hubs", but instead a connected world like old FF where the player go through a big adventure, and that is what i want from Versus XIII but it would be better to wait a little bit and see how they will deal with world map.

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Originally Posted by nirojan

Seeing how soo many RPG series are taking the action route, mabey Final Fantasy should start doing it too? I know this'll upset the majority of the Old school-Hardcore fans, but the newer generation doesn't seem to be interested in traditional RPG styles.

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Then they should play something else!

It's annoying that FF is changing to suit these people. I can understand why S-E are doing it (biggest audience = highest profit) but they're not doing what they're best at which is frustrating for long term fans and probably won't even be effective in the long run.

What they're doing is still good, but it could be so much more and it worked so much better as a game aimed with passion at the specific JRPG niche it had than it will ever work as a brand milking exercise. And whilst you can kill a brand, you can't kill a concept.

@Cloudane

So your basically telling SE to make games how they used to fit the "niche" you were describing. And by "these people", what exactly were you refering to? The brain dead gamers that are caught in the cliche action game? They're the majority, Live with it! And unfortunately for you, SE is a business and as a successful publisher i don't think them prioritizing on a method they used back in the day is gonna cut it in today's world. I hope you understand that they can't keep publishing these low selling games, that's why they tend to "milk" the brands that do sell well, cause at the end of the day, they need PROFIT. If they can't show their making money then investor confidence will go down and the company will begin to drag and that will reciprocate back to you, the gamer.

This really is a no-brainer, but apparently some old-school fans have a hard time adjusting to it. You said "frustrating long time fans"? I've been a fan since VI, and other than XIV, I think they're doing a pretty good job. Not the best I admit, but sales talk louder than any stupid comments ever will. Not a shot @ you BTW.

By "these people" I mean people who have decided they want to play FF because they've heard of it, and found that they didn't like it. Yet instead of playing something else they demanded that FF itself change to suit their tastes. It reminds me of what happened to Everquest 1, amongst other things.

Being very skilled at serving a niche (which Squaresoft were) can be highly profitable.. it doesn't have to be all about finding the biggest market. Cars are more popular than motorbikes so does that mean all motorbike manufacturers should give up and make cars?

Instead of doing the unique thing they did and doing it very well the focus seems to be shifting (albeit gradually) towards making average action games. I just find that to be a shame and don't know if it'll even work once people get past the brand recognition phase.

I know it's a company and companies are all ultimately driven by profit maximisation, but some of them do have a "soul" and a desire to excel above others in more ways than just finding the easiest way to rake in money. Sadly most of Square's soul went to Mistwalker, who don't seem to do much.

It'd just be nice if they'd throw the odd bone to the fans that brought them to fame and fortune in the first place... by all means make mass market action games and rake in money but perhaps leave FF as it is and have a division to look after it?

I think that the age of traditional ATB JRPGs are long gone. Even the people who enjoyed them will be able to deal with a continuous rehash of (insert favourite FF battle system) because of the evolution of all the games around it.

More importantly, FFs have always evolved. This is why they haven't gotten stale. And another important fact is that Versus XIII is not being called FFXV because it is considered to be too far away from a traditional FF. Why it's still being called Final Fantasy is a bit unknown, but I'm hoping (begging/praying) that it ends up like Vagrant Story.

Anyway, let's see how XIII-2 turns out. Maybe it'll surprise us and show that FF still has soul.

And Mistwalker is stuck in the past. That's why their titles are average.

I loved Lost Odyssey deeply, not just for its traditional FF style but also the passion that went into fleshing it out (especially the absolutely brilliant dream stories). If that's being stuck in the past, fair enough, I guess I am too ;)

There's hope in the market that iOS is generating, which is revitalising the oldschool to some extent (not just this type of thing but also the long missed click - or now tap - adventures like Monkey Island). I'm not overly enchanted by Chaos Rings, but it's a start.

@Mistwalker haters:
My god have any of you even seen The Last Story? It's an RPG for the Wii (and as of right now, only in Japan), but it is definitely looking to be the next big JRPG! It has the whole pause and plan out your squad's moves (like in PC version of Dragon Age) and mixed with unparalleled 3rd person Action RPG looks to be the best RPG on the Wii.


NEW INFO ON VERSUS:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by IGN

Square took one of the thousand-or-so layers off the veil covering Final Fantasy Versus XIII at last week's 1st Production Department Premier event. Today, thanks to Japanese publication Dengeki PlayStation and a few trustful Japanese blogs that managed to get magazine's latest issue a couple of days in advance, we have new details, some good and some bad.

We'll get the bad out of the way first. There's no way this thing is coming out this year. Director Tetsuya Nomura is interviewed in the magazine and said that because they're trying to do a number of incredible things and the focus is on quality, they will need more time. He joked that because Duodecim Final Fantasy, Final Fantasy Type-0 and Final Fantasy XIII-2 are all due out this year, players should forget about Versus for the time being.

That's going to be tough to do, as the details the magazine has on the game do have us excited. Most of the information can be discerned from the Premier trailer, which will be released in HD later this week.

Versus has a party-based combat system where you switch between three character, Nomura confirmed. The game will have more playable characters than just the four who were shown in the trailer, he also said, although the number of such characters won't get too high.

Each character has different abilities, both in weapon use and in the effect of their magic calls. Main character Noctis can use all the game's wide variety of weapons. One character, a blonde guy who appeared in the trailer, is skilled with guns, and he alone can be switched to a third person aiming mode for precise aim.

The Versus development staff seem to be going for an eventful gameplay experience. Nomura highlighted the game's real time event system, where some wild things will happen as you're moving about. This was seen in the trailer as a giant behemoth beast attacked when Noctis approached a bridge, and as ships crashed to the ground around Noctis and crew. The game transitions to these events seamlessly, a system that's taking some time to develop, said Nomura.

Other intriguing features mentioned by Nomura are a day/night cycle system for the game's world map (in the trailer, the world map parts are the nature areas towards the end), and the ability to ride cars, air ships and chocobos. You can also steal military use vehicles, although Noctis is such a good guy that he won't steal from common folk. Noctis can also kill off enemies to steal their mechs and other mechanized war machines. All these features can be seen in the trailer.

The trailer also shows some vague story and character details if you can read the subtitles. In the Dengeki story, Nomura cleared up a few incorrect assumptions people have made regarding these areas.

Towards the middle of the trailer, an old man in a throne, confirmed to be Noctis' father, says something along the lines of "You cannot be king." He's saying this not to Noctis, as many had assumed, but to someone whose identity Nomura would not disclose.

More significantly, the end of the trailer shows an armored lady in an apparent confrontation with Noctis. Many assumed this was heroine Stella. But it's not. Nomura says the lady is a dragon knight and an enemy.

Our next update on Final Fantasy Versus XIII will come at E3 or beyond, Nomura told Dengeki, so you're going to have to make the most of the new trailer when it hits later this week.

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I have to say, I'm cautiously looking forward to this, quite a bit. It's heartening to hear that they're taking the time to do it right rather than forcing it out of the door ASAP. So they should - no rush! (Well the PS3 has reached that time of starting to feel dated but there's no sign of a PS4 around the corner and anything they do for the PC is a disaster, so... go for it :))

Maybe I've been a bit harshly cynical with these guys after all if they're not going to just churn another spin-off out as quickly as possible to make the fastest money etc.

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Originally Posted by nirojan

Nomura highlighted the game's real time event system, where some wild things will happen as you're moving about.

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Active Time Event! Press Select

Much more seamless by the sound of it :D

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the ability to ride cars, air ships and chocobos.

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Very promising. Hopefully no "cheating" like fixed point-to-point airships or treating them as like a hover-car within a limited area.

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You can also steal military use vehicles, although Noctis is such a good guy that he won't steal from common folk.

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I'm warming to the main character already, which is interesting, even the best FFs rarely managed that.

TRAILER IN HD:
Final Fantasy Versus XIII Video Game, Japanese Gameplay Reveal Trailer HD | Video Clip | Game Trailers & Videos | GameTrailers.com

Did some analysis of the trailer, now that we have a clearer version:
-The ETC toll booth's are actually a real toll system used in Japan around the Tokyo metropolitan
-Noctis's hairstyle changes slightly during his encounter with Stella
-City scape is actually really well done (studying architecture, reason why I noticed this) all infrastructures are accounted for.
-Some things in the battle menu include Magic, Item, summon, EX arts
-During combat names disappear and face cuts of what the character is doing at the moment appear.
-Health bar, MP bar, MP number and EX bar are present
-MP gradually builds up with melee attacks and when you use a spell/special it uses up a MP number

*Some of the other character names:
Ignis (the guy with the glasses) weapon:katana type
Gladiolus (the big guy with the scar) weapon:buster sword-type
Prompto (blondie) weapon:gun type

What is this feeling I'm experiencing? Anticipation for an FF game? Haven't felt that in a looooooong time.

Not looking like the thing for me. All I could think of was a list of RPG's or Action games I would rather play, which funnily enough was how I felt when trying to play that strangely-popular-and-not-good Kingdom Hearts series. Also, I personally never find the stories of Nomura's games to be anything to really write home about for whatever reason, so that's not gonna hook me either. Looks pretty though, but whatever.

Hope it's good though. I'm sure I'll get to watch my friend play through it, and if it looks decent enough I may give it a spin eventually.

Nice trailer.

It's probably just Nomura's limited diversity in character design, but Stella is still totally Sarah. Cue theories about her being some sort of female Jesus sent to both worlds by that same creator they both have.

P.s. Is that a Buster Sword I see before me? :hyper:

It all does look promising. I liked the bits where they were out in the wildst most, though. Maybe because it's a break from all the night scenery we've constantly been seeing since this game was revealed back in 2006. Gameplay I'm cautious about. It looks interesting, with its mix of so many styles all rolled into one, but, though I have no experience with it myself, enough people have complained about Final Fantasy games taking on a new style of gameplay (Dirge of Cerberus, for example). Having never played Kingdom Hearts, and never planning to, I'm not sure what to expect. I just hope the game itself can live up to its trailers, something XIII could not do.

I repeat: it looks promising. But what value does that have if the game itself can't live up to its promise? I'm not anti-Nomura like some people are, so I'm fully willing to give this game a chance. It seems to deserve it, judging from the trailers, but won't know for sure until there's a demo or until the first reviews roll in.

I'm crossing my fingers.

PS: This game should have treasure chests. Classic ones. Like in IX. I miss opening treasure chests.

This game is looking to be SE's best title in years. The more I read/see of this game, the more I'm liking it. Prompto's probably gonna be my favourite character (I always like long range fighters and from his first appearence in the trailers, I liked him straight away) but all the characters look interesting. And *gasp* there doesn't seem to be a cliched annoying girl character (like Rikku, Selphie or Vanille). Still early days but I'm hopeful. I'm looking forward to this game, I can't wait!

PS: I too want treasure chests in the game like IX has.

Alright people, mystery character quiz time! Please note that I haven't analyzed every single millisecond of this trailer and these are some options off the top of my head. Enjoy and discuss!

Attachment 34003

Is this:

A) The villain.
B) The same person as in the second picture.
C) Evil ruler/king/emperor and such.
D) Noctis' dad.
E) Other, please state below.


Attachment 34004

Is this:

A) Noctis' dad.
B) Noctis, but old.
C) Noctis' uncle, relative, etc.
D) Other, please state below.


Attachment 34005

Is this:

A) Noctis' dad.
B) Noctis, but old.
C) The same person as in the previous picture.
D) Other, please state below.

Just for kicks, I'd like a game where the events span out over a character's lifetime instead of the usual weeks/months. So just for fun, I'll say the person in the last picture is Noctis, but old. :choc:

The second picture has been confirmed to be Noctis' father. And I assume the last one is too. And if I had to guess I'd say the first picture is Noctis' uncle or some other relative who wants the throne. I know, it's a bit cliched, but there's a part when Noctis' dad says "you'll never be King" and I belive Nomura said that he isn't speaking to Noctis, so it may be him. He is pointing a gun at him so it is plausible.

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Originally Posted by Hot Shot

The second picture has been confirmed to be Noctis' father. And I assume the last one is too. And if I had to guess I'd say the first picture is Noctis' uncle or some other relative who wants the throne. I know, it's a bit cliched, but there's a part when Noctis' dad says "you'll never be King" and I belive Nomura said that he isn't speaking to Noctis, so it may be him. He is pointing a gun at him so it is plausible.

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Not to sure about the uncle part, but I definitely think this is who Noct's father is referring to with the whole "you cannot have the throne" bit. If you remember the 2006 TGS trailer, where Noctis enters a room and there's a mage figure and both of them enter a standoff, I think that's him. And your right about the second and last picture. The last picture is just the CGI rendering of Noct's dad.

Reminds me of The Lion King if the first pic is of another relative who wants to be king. Isn't The Lion King based on Hamlet or something? And didn't the first Versus XIII trailer have a Shakespeare quote in it? Coincidence? That could be part of the plot right there.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Sword

Reminds me of The Lion King if the first pic is of another relative who wants to be king. Isn't The Lion King based on Hamlet or something? And didn't the first Versus XIII trailer have a Shakespeare quote in it? Coincidence? That could be part of the plot right there.

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Lol, let's please not go back to the Shakespearean thing again. I remember when the international trailer came out and everyone jumped the gun saying it was "Romeo & Juliet" and "Hamlet", etc. It was just a stupid quote, doesn't prove anything.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Pete for President

Attachment 34003

Is this:

A) The villain.
B) The same person as in the second picture.
C) Evil ruler/king/emperor and such.
D) Noctis' dad.
E) Other, please state below.

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E - Cid. He looks like a Cid. Whether he's a villain or not is pretty uncertain these days.

Quote:

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Attachment 34004

Is this:

A) Noctis' dad.
B) Noctis, but old.
C) Noctis' uncle, relative, etc.
D) Other, please state below.

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A - as we know

Quote:

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Attachment 34005

Is this:

A) Noctis' dad.
B) Noctis, but old.
C) The same person as in the previous picture.
D) Other, please state below.

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D - Random additional playable character.

The quality of the character renderings really is incredible. I remember when I thought Spirits Within was stunning (it's a bit so-so now)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by nirojan

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Sword

Reminds me of The Lion King if the first pic is of another relative who wants to be king. Isn't The Lion King based on Hamlet or something? And didn't the first Versus XIII trailer have a Shakespeare quote in it? Coincidence? That could be part of the plot right there.

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Lol, let's please not go back to the Shakespearean thing again. I remember when the international trailer came out and everyone jumped the gun saying it was "Romeo & Juliet" and "Hamlet", etc. It was just a stupid quote, doesn't prove anything.

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Heh I never knew the shakespearean thing was such a big deal in the past. Anyway I wouldn't dismiss the possibility so easily, and I think it should be back up for discussion.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by nirojan

It was just a stupid quote, doesn't prove anything.

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"There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so."

Could just refer to the game being grey instead of the typical black & white, hero versus villain of most FFs/games. And it's not a stupid quote; Shakespeare is awesome :p

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Cloudane

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Pete for President

Attachment 34003

Is this:

A) The villain.
B) The same person as in the second picture.
C) Evil ruler/king/emperor and such.
D) Noctis' dad.
E) Other, please state below.

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E - Cid. He looks like a Cid. Whether he's a villain or not is pretty uncertain these days.

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Surprising answer, very plausable!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by champagne supernova

Quote:

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Originally Posted by nirojan

It was just a stupid quote, doesn't prove anything.

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"There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so."

Could just refer to the game being grey instead of the typical black & white, hero versus villain of most FFs/games. And it's not a stupid quote; Shakespeare is awesome :p

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I believe it is from Hamlet when refering to Denmark as a prison (I studied it at A level much to my discontent) so it might be referring to the state of Noctis' country seeing as they are at civil war. The quote may not directly refer to the plot but I think they are just showing a similarity of themes (Nation is at war, struggle for power as the King, son trying to protect his father's legacy etc.) And people may complain how the plot of son-trying-to-reclaim-his-fathers-throne-from-uncle is way too cliched and overused but I was taught in media, in essence, there are only seven or eight (I can't remember the exact number) stories that are told over and over again (so we shouldn't be too harsh on XII lol). Even Shakespeare 'stole' quite a few of his stories from older sources (Hamlet was originally an Dannish story, hence it being set in Denmark)

I'll stop my little history lesson for now lol.

I thought that the third picture was the same person in the second picture personally. It's just that the second was in-game graphics and the second was from a cutscene. But I dunno, I'm probably wrong.

Edit: Shakespeare's over-rated

why do we need to see numbers popping up displaying the damage on every hit? Do they think I'm some math loving azn or something? When I hit a mothersmurfer I want to see the actual damage, not having to interpret it through some numbers. Our modern age hardware is more than up for that task, so why are they using these outdated methods.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by kotora

why do we need to see numbers popping up displaying the damage on every hit? Do they think I'm some math loving azn or something? When I hit a mothersmurfer I want to see the actual damage, not having to interpret it through some numbers. Our modern age hardware is more than up for that task, so why are they using these outdated methods.

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It's probably to keep it more 'traditional' or something. In KH, there wasn't any numbers. I personally like it tbh though.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Hot Shot

Quote:

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Originally Posted by kotora

why do we need to see numbers popping up displaying the damage on every hit? Do they think I'm some math loving azn or something? When I hit a mothersmurfer I want to see the actual damage, not having to interpret it through some numbers. Our modern age hardware is more than up for that task, so why are they using these outdated methods.

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It's probably to keep it more 'traditional' or something. In KH, there wasn't any numbers. I personally like it tbh though.

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The numbered Final Fantasies had it, so I think Nomura is paying homage to them. Besides it's not like you HAVE TO count the numbers or something, there's still the old health bar, so you can guesstimate if you want! This is just one of those quirks that FF has to keep the old fashion crowds engaged.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Pete for President

Attachment 34005

Is this:

A) Noctis' dad.
B) Noctis, but old.
C) The same person as in the previous picture.
D) Other, please state below.

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Quite simple - D) Alan Rickman. Am I the only one who sees Hans Gruber from Die Hard in the picture? ;)

Holy Crap this actually looks awesome, It's been awhile since I got this excited for a Final Fantasy title.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Hot Shot

Edit: Shakespeare's over-rated

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People may have gone overboard on their opinion of him, but he was still insanely good.

This was an interview Nomura did later with Famitsu that got translated. It details some interesting new pieces of info about the scenes showed in the trailer as well as some gameplay details.

That interview sounds like we've definitely got some good things in store for us. I'm genuinely excited for this, and for the first time in a while I'm really not expecting a significant disappointment.

I am glad I got a PS3, I am really looking forward to this installment.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Wolf Kanno

This was an interview Nomura did later with Famitsu that got translated. It details some interesting new pieces of info about the scenes showed in the trailer as well as some gameplay details.

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Nice read Wolf! Guess I was wrong about the 2 robed mages being the same (dammit it seemed so obvious)! Anyways like how the large World and combat are really being defined. Apparently there's an older article on the site:Final Fantasy Versus XIII Update (andriasang.com, 01.25.2011) and apparently everyone in the royal family has the "eye's turn red then go supersayin" power. Able to control multiple weapons and have them spinning around Noct and the ability to do short instant teleportations. Definitely looking cool!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Ouch!

That interview sounds like we've definitely got some good things in store for us. I'm genuinely excited for this, and for the first time in a while I'm really not expecting a significant disappointment.

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I have to agree. I was not impressed with the early info on XIII, but Versus really has shaped up to be the game that is doing some good things.

Yeah, that interview has me stoked. I also find it interesting that he mentioned that l'cie and the Goddess Etro will be part of the game.

It seems that it really is connected to FFXIII more than just through a "vague crystal theme". Huh.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by DMKA

Yeah, that interview has me stoked. I also find it interesting that he mentioned that l'cie and the Goddess Etro will be part of the game.

It seems that it really is connected to FFXIII more than just through a "vague crystal theme". Huh.

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I'm guessing you havn't read the mythology thing? L'cie and Fal'cie are a part of the world. And of Course Etros is gonna be there. From the first trailer, they've been starring at her picture (Noctis and Stella)!
http://images.wikia.com/finalfantasy...s_of_Death.jpg

It was indeed a good read. A lot of freedom, villages and exploration sound like music to my ears.
Wish Nomura confirmed there were going to be treasure chests, though.

The inconsistency of the graphics is pretty weird. Some of it is nearly indistinguishable from live-action and some of it is below FFXIII's quality. Not that I'm complaining P:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Jessweeee♪

The inconsistency of the graphics is pretty weird. Some of it is nearly indistinguishable from live-action and some of it is below FFXIII's quality. Not that I'm complaining P:

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CGI vs In-Engine footage? FFXIII had it too, not only in it's trailers, but in the actual game as well. Get the 720p version of the VERSUS XIII trailer that i linked on this thread earlier. The In-Engine scenes are alot better than XIII's, so unless you saw a low res version of the trailer, I really don't know what your talking about when it comes to being worse than XIII.

The "castle" based on the Tokyo metropolitan government building with 4 towers instead of 2.
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/26/65...13a97d32d4.jpg

I find myself getting excited about this for no real reason, which was very weird. I normally get excited about particular bits of a trailer or things that I think look particularly well executed. But there was none of that, no real analysis at all. It took quite a while sitting down and thinking about what my reaction was to realize why.

It reminds me of Persona. I see a dark fantasy atmosphere in a modern day setting, and my mind just sort of jumps track and goes "Persona, yay!". I don't have much of an opinion of the game itself beyond that. Rather worrying.

Im right there with Nomura when it comes to the release for VERSUS XIII!
In 2011, just in the Final Fantasy series they have: FinalFantasy012DuoDecim, Final Fantasy XIII-2, FF Type-0, FFIV: Complete Collection and FFXIV (PS3 Version). On the Eidos Front they got Deus EX:Human Revolution, Laura Croft Tomb Raider Trilogy (HD collection), Hitman 5, Tomb Raider reboot, etc. Not to mention all the other general SE releases like 3rd Birthday, Tactics Ogre: Let us Cling Together, Dungeon Siege 3, etc.
They don't want to oversaturate the market and suck all the available $$ out of it all at once and compete with themselves. Plus with all these big releases they need something for next year. If they have a killer 2011 fiscal year, what will they have in 2012? I'm pretty sure SE will gear FF VERSUS XIII for a 2012 fiscal year launch so that investors will stay happy. btw fiscal 2012 starts in April 2012!

Just my thought as to what Nomura was talking about "being patient this year" probably a financial move (they probably still need development time too of course)!

wow that game looks so epic the word epic cant even decribe it... gameplay and all... but it looks like we still have quite some time to wait before they release it. and thank God i have a ps3 :D