Back in August 2006, series composer Koichi Sugiyama confirmed that Dragon Quest IX: Defenders of the Starry Sky was in development for DS.
At the time, no timeframe was given for a release.
“I’m not sure when Dragon Quest IX will be released, but it seems that progress is continually being made. I’m personally excited,” he told Famitsu.
It looks like Level-5 president Akihiro Hino has the answer.
In the latest issue of Famitsu, he said that his goal was to have the DS title finished by the end of the year. And just to make things interesting, he added that he’s shooting to finish White Knight Chronicles, Inazuma Eleven, and even the third Professor Layton game by the end of 2008, too.
Level-5 is going to be busy this year.
Source: Revolution Portal
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The Game Developers Conference 2008 is only a week away, and there is the possibility we will see the official unveiling of Square-Enix’s new MMORPG for the PS3.
According to the official GDC 2008 website, four members of the veteran publisher will be speaking at the event, and one of them is Taku Murata, the head of Square-Enix Research & Development. He’ll be talking about the process regarding engine development, plus the confirmation of a new MMORPG. “The new game engine will be used for FINAL FANTASY XIII, new MMORPG under development, and other titles in the future.” Now, Forever-Fantasy is speculating this mystery game is actually Final Fantasy Haresis XIII, a MMO scheduled to be released for the PlayStation 3 at some point down the road. It uses the White Engine - like FFXIII - and it could be one hell of a great addition to the PS3’s library. Besides, it’s always good when a console gets one of the MMO genre.
Obviously, this should be confirmed at the conference, so we’ll just wait for the final word in one week’s time. However, in the meantime, it’s always fun to wonder, speculate, and even expect.
Source: PSX Extreme
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Square Enix Ltd. has announced that ‘Final Fantasy’ and ‘Final Fantasy II’ will both be on sale in the UK on 8th February, 2008 on the PSP system.
Experience the classic gameplay, captivating storylines and unforgettable characters that gave birth to the Final Fantasy phenomenon. Completely re-mastered exclusively for PSP, Final Fantasy and Final Fantasy II are the definitive versions of the epic games that established the biggest RPG brand in the world.
These new editions feature redrawn graphics and character art, exclusive all-new dungeons, full 16:9 widescreen visuals and an updated camera view that gives players a new perspective on these two timeless classics that defined the RPG genre.
John Yamamoto, president and chief executive officer of Square Enix Ltd. comments, “Final Fantasy and Final Fantasy II represent the foundations of the Square Enix success story. They are the first two imaginative steps in the long and distinguished history of the Final Fantasy franchise. With these beautiful new versions, fans can now experience the origins of Final Fantasy wherever they go.”
Source: Game News
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Dragon Quest Swords: The Masked Queen and the Tower of Mirrors for the Wii is closer than you think. Sources at Square Enix have announced that the title’s shipping date has moved up from the original February 26 date. Look for the latest installment of the Dragon Quest Swords franchise to ship February 19.
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PlayOnline and Square Enix are once again winding up for another update to their online RPG title Final Fantasy 11 (also available on Xbox 360). The FFXI official website has announced today that the newest version update of the game will be going live this March and will feature a lot of new content.
The newest update will include many brand new quests and areas that the developers have hinted at since the release of their previous expansion Wings of the Goddess. Around six major areas are still closed off as of the release of the expansion and this new update may be the official opening of some, if not all, of them.
It was also mentioned that some adjustments and tweaks are being planned out, focusing on several different elements such as the Campaign battles and other battle related items.
While this was all the information Square Enix released so far, they promised more details to the list of features in the near future. Updates as we get them!
Source: MMORPG
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Square Enix announced today a final Japanese release date for Star Ocean 2 Second Evolution. The PSP remake of the PlayStation classic will hit Japan on April 2, carrying the standard price point of 4,800 yen.
Those who pre-order the title will get a very special bonus. Square Enix will be giving away a DVD containing promotional clips for future tri-Ace titles, along with the latest footage of Star Ocean 4. Maybe this means we’ll at last have learned a platform for the mysterious fourth entry in the series in time for the remake’s release.
The remake of Star Ocean 2 features new character designs, battle scenes, animation from Production I.G, and full voice for event scenes. The game will presumably see an international release following the first one, which hit Japan in December.
Source: IGN
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Rumors come, and then they’re smashed. That’s just how this industry goes. Sometimes they actually turn out to be true, but I’d venture to say that a vast majority of them turn out otherwise. Such is the case of Final Fantasy XIII’s 2008 release date.
This one actually came from the mouth of a Square Enix employee, so it seemed to have a bit of credit behind it. Unfortunately, it sounded too good to be true, and was later proven to be so. Square Enix made an official statement saying that they have made no official statement, and anything we’ve heard so far is nothing more than hearsay.
I’d say that it may still be safe to hope for a playable demo sometime this year, but I wouldn’t hold my breath. Sure, I’m a bit bummed to hear this, but I can’t say that I’m too surprised. Besides, the year’s barely begun, there are plenty of other good games to look forward to.
Source: Square-Enix
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Square Enix promises that “2008 will be the year” for new info (and maybe the release?) of the latest in its epic RPG series, Final Fantasy XIII, as it reveals plans to release a demo.
Not even a rough date was given for the demo, only that it main objective will be to give fans a hands-on with the new battle system.
The only hint of the full game’s release was the quote: “I wonder when we’ll be able to sleep…”. Eh? We plan to have a kip tonight - is that when it’s coming out?
Because we know you FF fans are keen on the smallest of details, here’s a few more tid-bits plucked from the translations of the Japanese mags, courtesy of FF-XIII.net.
-Nomura: “2008 will be the year. There will be tons of news bits, info on characters and summons, and an unexpected connection between the keywords Cocoon and Farushi.
- We’re aiming for a demo to give players a hands on on the battle system.
- FF13’s theme: determination.
- Farushi: Their existence surpasses humans.
- Rushi: Those chosen by Farushi to carry out a mission. The pigtail girl is a Rushi. Farushi is not the Crystal.
- Mr. 33cm is also a Rushi.
- This time summons are in digital form.
- A new monster that looks like a cross between a turtle and elephant.
- The red thing on Carbuncle’s head is a ruby.
- Hint on release date: “I wonder when we’ll be able to sleep…”
Source: Computer and Video Games
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You’d be justified in arguing the PSP needs another action RPG like it needs another peripheral announcement - in theory we all love them but you can have too much of a good thing. And if you don’t believe us, just check out the commercial performance of high quality games like Jeanne d’Arc and Final Fantasy Tactics: The War of the Lions.
Still it seems that when it comes to Coded Soul from Japanese studio Gaia, the hybridisation of genres is the key element with the action RPG meeting and breeding with monster collection and evolution games such as the hugely successful Monster Hunter Freedom series (hugely successful at least in Japan).
There are plenty of hackneyed elements though. Playing the character of soldier Jay, your girlfriend May needs to be saved and only you can do it. So, heading through the Monolith Gate, into the world of Idea, off you go.
Your power, as the game’s title suggest, is the ability to suck up the souls of defeated enemies, transforming them into potential allies you can add to your group. As you can see from this rather smooth video (click on the video button), the real-time action takes places in Final Fantasy-style battle arenas in which you have direct control over Jay and has various sword and gun-based weapons, while your two artificial intelligent-controlled allies fight alongside you. To that degree, it reminds us a bit of DS monster battler Spectrobes.
And similar to that title, you’ll be able to choose your group from a range of different captured creatures that will learn new skills and attacks as you level them up.
In keeping with Sony’s connectivity push between PSP and PS3, you’ll be able to send special items between Coded Soul and PS3 RPG Folklore to unlock new quests. The game also share a loose collection of monsters with Coded Soul developer Gaia assisting Folklore developer Game Republic in terms of character design.
Coded Soul will be released in Japan on February 7th. As yet, there’s no news about the likelihood of a US or European release.
Source: Pocket Gamer
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