New real-time (rendered using the game engine) video of Final Fantasy XIII recently appeared on the TV Tokyo channel in Japan.
Some early development Final Fantasy XIII footage rolled as Square Enix president Ya?ichi Wada discussed the game’s current progress. A viewer captured these images from the program (likely by taking images of the TV screen, which accounts for the sub-par quality of the shots). Rendered using the highly-acclaimed Crystal Tools, these images depict Nomchan, a character exiled by Cocoon’s dictatorial government.
Once again, these low resolution shots don’t represent the visual quality of the game, they simply serve as a “suggestion” of sorts. The third screen is the only one that hints at the immaculately crafted detail in the game. Anyway, enough disclaimers; the images are below.

#img1# #img2# #img3#

Source: PSU

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The cute little Chocobo has really warked his way into the spotlight: after Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo Tales on the DS, Square Enix was inspired to revive the Chocobo’s Dungeon series on Wii … and then, this summer, Square Enix announced one of each for the DS, as a follow-up to the success of Chocobo Tales. That’s one busy little bird.

New details and screenshots are available at last on Chocobo’s foray into the land of Final Fantasy Fables. Chocobo to Mahou no Ehon: Majiyo to Otome to Gojin no Yuusha (Chocobo and the Magic Storybook: The Witch, The Maiden, and the Five Heroes) follows the fat chocobo as he ventures, this time, into a story book drawn by Cid. Both of Square Enix’s new Chocobo games focus heavily on Cid, so we’re not surprised to see the franchise staple putting pen to page in this game. Players will tackle more than 40 mini-games when the title is released in Japan this December.

Source: DS Fan Boy

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Square Enix Ltd., the publisher of Square Enix interactive entertainment products in Europe and other PAL territories, today announces that Nippon Ichi Software’s Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure will be released by Square Enix across PAL territories in Spring 2009, exclusively on the Nintendo DS handheld system.

If music be the food of love, then prepare to fall all over again for Rhapsody ~A Musical Adventure~. Available for the first time on Nintendo DS, this musical RPG classic has been redeveloped to utilise the interactive capabilities of the handheld console.

“Following the recent announcement for Disgaea 3 and Disgaea DS, we’re delighted to be growing our relationship with Nippon Ichi by publishing Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure across Europe and PAL territories. The game looks set to appeal to gamers of all ages.”
- John Yamamoto, president and chief executive officer of Square Enix Ltd.

Story
Marl Kingdom, the land of hope and dreams! This story follows the adventure of Cornet, a young girl who can communicate with puppets. Cornet is just like any other girl, dreaming of her perfect prince and hoping one day to fall helplessly in love? Then one day, she hears a rumor that the Royal Family of Marl Kingdom will hold a contest to find a suitable wife and Princess-to-be for the dashing Prince Ferdinand. Cornet and her best friend, a puppet named Kururu, set off on their quest to meet and fall in love with the prince of Marl Kingdom. But before she gets that far, Cornet will encounter gangs of evil witches and sorcerers. And so, Cornet’s “Operation Snag a Prince” is destined to become more complicated than she ever expected?

Features

• Redeveloped to take advantage of the dual screen layout
• An all-new easy to follow navigation map allows players to look around and navigate dungeons with greater ease
• Intuitive Touch Screen controls allow you to control all actions including character movement
• Simplified yet intuitive dual screen battle system
• Additional playable characters

Source: Go Nintendo

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After taking control of Atlus’s release of Vanillaware’s PlayStation 2 game ‘Odin Sphere’ for the European market, Square Enix is at it once again, choosing this time to pick up Nippon Ichi Software’s Disgaea DS, which will be released in Spring 2009 across all PAL territories.

Simple yet highly addictive, Disgaea DS is an updated portable version of the classic Strategy RPG Disgaea: Hour of Darkness, previously available on the PlayStation 2 and also remade for the PlayStation Portable. Since its release, Disgaea has won over a loyal following of fans that have grown to love the quirky humour and deep, long-lasting challenge. Now Nintendo DS fans will finally be able to get a piece of the action.

Disgaea DS does not just let you take the Disgaea madness on the road, but introduces exciting innovations such as the new duel system multiplayer, complete with masses of customisable rules and game options. You’ll also be able to connect to your friend’s Nintendo DS to swap and share items, take your battles to a new strategic level with Geo Cubes and there’s an added exclusive new story mode dedicated to Etna and her quest to become Beauty Queen Ultimate Overlord.

“I am delighted that we are able to bring Disgaea DS to players in Europe and PAL territories. Nippon Ichi has created a game perfectly suited for portable play that will entertain and challenge in equal measure.”
- John Yamamoto, president and chief executive officer of Square Enix Ltd.

Story
The Netherworld: a place darker than a pitch-black cave, located deeper than the depths of the seas. It is a cursed land where evil reigns and foul beings dwell. Nobody knows its whereabouts, but everybody fears its existence. The story takes place two years after the death of King Krichevskoy, the ruler of the Netherworld. His son Laharl slept for two full years, unaware of his father’s death, while demons fought for supremacy over the Netherworld. With the help of his vassal Etna and her underlings, the egocentric, megalomaniac Prince Laharl fights his way to become the next king.

Features

• Discover who is the best strategist with the all-new duel system for multiplayer battles;
• Multi Customisation lets you customise the multiplayer mode, with changes to game rules, field and win/loss conditions and much more;
• Geo Cubes. These cubes have very special effects and are dealt equally to each player, use them carefully as they can both delight and infuriate;
• Shop and Share with Wireless Communication Mode, trade with friends and share your item data;
• Exclusive New Story. A dedicated story for Etna and an all-new ending if you defeat this mode;
• Guest Appearances: you never know who you’ll run into next with hidden characters waiting to be unlocked.

I personally never enjoyed Disgaea or any other games that are of this type, but because it is on the Nintendo DS, maybe I will give it a go and see if it is any good. Stay tuned for more.

Source: Nintendic

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Level-5, developers of “Jeanne d’arc” on PSP, have just announced a new horror-themed RPG called “Ushiro”. Players will take on the role of a death god “shinigami” to help people fulfill their wishes, and fight monsters along the way. It’s scheduled for a release next year. Check out a scan here

Source: PSP Fanboy

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Given the most recent Japanese sales figures (360 sold 30,000 units in a single week), one might expect Final Fantasy XIII to appear on the Xbox 360 in Japan as well, however head of Xbox Japan, Takashi Sensui says that there are no plans for this.

“We have similar high hopes for the upcoming launch of other RPGs such as The Last Remnant, Star Ocean 4: The Last Hope and Fable II. However, we have no plans to launch Final Fantasy XIII in Japan.” - Takashi Sensui

Source: FF-XIII

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We thought this had been cleared up, but it appears Final Fantasy XIII producer Yoshinori Kitase may still be getting some heat over the decision to bring the big-budget RPG to the Xbox 360. Kitase told GameSpot early last month that the 360 version wouldn’t go into full production until the PS3 one was complete and burned to Blu-ray. He also wanted to calm fears that the already long wait for FFXIII will be even longer, now that it’s coming to Microsoft’s console.

Furthermore, Kitase wants to set aside any fears that the PS3 version will suffer in an attempt to fit onto an Xbox 360 DVD.

“The PS3 version is what is in development right now and the team is looking to specialize it for the PS3 so that the game is maximized,” Kitase said in a OPM Australia interview. “And then they will port it over to the 360 and fully utilise the capabilities of that console.”

Funny, we actually thought it was the other way around, as PlayStation 3 games have been somewhat lagging behind their 360 counterparts as development teams come to term with its oddball architecture. Fortunately, most of that seems to be behind us PS3 owners. If Square Enix is really pulling off FFXIII’s graphics on the PS3, we’re not too worried about it.

Source: Kotaku

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Ignition Entertainment announced today that it is releasing Blue Dragon Plus, a Nintendo DS entry in Mistwalker’s Blue Dragon (X360) series, in North America and Europe in March 2009.

Directed by Final Fantasy creator Hironobu Sakaguchi, Blue Dragon Plus features character designs by Dragon Ball creator Akira Toriyama, and a soundtrack by famed composer Nobuo Uematsu. The game, which takes place one year after the conclusion of the Xbox 360 original, recently released in Japan to high marks in gaming magazine Famitsu.

Developed by AQ Interactive, makers of Bullet Witch and Driver: Parallel Lines, the DS title promises 30 hours of gameplay and one hour of dual-screen full-motion-video cutscenes. Ignition’s press release promises “Exciting RPG Elements Such As Item Collection, Character Progression and Robot Customizations” in addition to a real-time battle system like the first.

Source: Shack News

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Encompassing a variety of different characters while exploring many exotic locations and cultures across the game’s universe of parallel worlds, Suikoden: Tierkreis will expand the bounds of the handheld RPG. Featuring the franchise’s established gameplay while maximizing the technological capabilities of the DS to provide all-new online elements, this epic RPG consists of many cinematic experiences that will drive the grand storyline of the 108 Stars of Destiny as they battle to thwart the powerful One King.

Using the Nintendo Wi-Fi connection, Suikoden: Tierkreis offers a rich online community experience that allows players to send their characters on quests that other members of the community will complete for them, eventually returning the player to their party with new abilities and treasures.

With its grand adventure and larger than life scale, this story is told through rich animation sequences and a gripping dialogue, allowing gamers to fully immerse themselves and experience the world of Suikoden. For the first time ever, players will begin with the last three members of the Stars of Destiny and are tasked with resurrecting the other 104 in order to restore order in the universe and defeat the almighty One King.

The Suikoden series launched in 1995 in Japan and was released in the U.S. on the PlayStation® game console in December of 1996. Instantly hailed as one of the most innovative RPGs, Suikoden delivered a unique battle system, an intriguing storyline with numerous plot twists and multiple endings to provide a fun experience for all RPG fans. Since its debut, the Suikoden series has received numerous industry accolades for being one of the top RPG games of all time.

Source: Worth Playing

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Hey, is October big enough for you yet? No? Want another title that could be well worth playing? Then welcome the PS3 version of Eternal Sonata.

According to Kotaku, the anticipated RPG silently acquired a release date of October 21, and this is good news for all role-playing fans. It’s a much-updated version of the game Xbox 360 owners saw a while back, and for those seeking their first PS3 RPG, Sonata should be a solid choice. There’s going to be new characters, a bunch of extra cut-scenes, new outfits, and more, and the premise of the game is also unique and intriguing. While the 360 continues to horde many of the RPGs this generation, the PS3 is slowly but surely starting to churn a few out. Disgaea 3 - while technically a strategy/RPG - is already out, and we can all look forward to a few more, including the still-exclusive Final Fantasy Versus XIII. Japanese RPGs are taking a backseat to Western-developed RPGs this generation (at least, that’s how it seems so far), but provided the fans still get quality titles, is this really a problem?

We’re hoping Eternal Sonata turns out to be a worthy holiday purchase for many, and it starts a mini-avalanche of PS3 RPGs. No, really…we can always hope for a mini-mini-mini-avalanche, right? Come on, pray with me.

Source: PSX Extreme

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