Dissidia Final Fantasy NT Opening Cinematic

I have played almost every FF title except FFXIII-2, Lightning Returns FFXIII,  FFXIV,  FF Type 0, World of FF and the FFVII spin offs. So I'm a bit of a fan of the franchise, I'm also an avid fighting game fan...mostly SF.
So this seems like a match made in heaven for me, so I'm not sure why I'm not really feeling this game.
I think perhaps it's because I'm fighting game purist, what I mean is I prefer 1 on 1 simplicity over team battles like 3 on 3 with multiple classes and a multiple bars to manage...I know I'm getting old.
Anywho the opening cinematic is cool. Kefka looks crazier than ever, I'm glad we didn't get brow beat with Sepheroth/Cloud face off's in the intro.
Dissidia FF NT releases worldwide on the PS4 January 30th 2018!

Final Fantasy versus XIII new trailer

Now I remember why I was more interested in VS XIII than XIII! This trailer really showcases the power of the PS3, it is great to see actual gameplay footage also. I love the fact that there is framed Yoshitaka Amano artwork in the scene where Noctis Lucis meets Stella Nox!
The cityscape cut scenes are jaw dropping and from what I've seen it appears VS XIII may be less linear that XIII, which many complained about.
The other neat little thing I spotted was the animated avatars of the characters in the ATB gauge while fighting the behemouth. This one's on my launch day list!

Square-Enix announces FFXIII-2...thousands of voices cry out and are suddenly silenced

Whoa there Sqeenix! I'm still killing Adamantortoises on Gran Pulse trying to get the Treasure Hunter Trophy!
So FFXIII-2 is a direct sequel that will pick up right where FFXIII left off after defeating Orphan...I hope they figure in the hours spent on Gran Pulse after defeating Orphan doing hunts and upgrading and dismantling weapons for the treasure hunter trophy...
FFXIII-2 apparently will expand upon the events that we only got to read about between chapters.
FFXIII-2 will focus on the Goddess Etro...could she be the maker Barthadelus mentioned???
The ATB system will be "evolved", read as FFXIII's ATB system was a beta test...
The story will be darker and more mysterious...I hope they explore where the F everyone on Gran Pulse disapeared to.

Retro review CastleVania II: Simons Quest

One year after the original Castlevania was released, Konami followed it up with the first sequel, Simon's Quest. Like many NES sequels (SMB2), Simon's Quest didn't follow the original game's mechanics, Konami altered the platforming/action game play of Castlevania by adding RPG elements. Originally collecting hearts was simply for the amount you could use your sub weapon, in Simon's Quest collecting hearts also contributed to building your health bar and was used as the games monetary system. The game also adds NPC's to purchase items and weapons and get clues to next objectives.

One of the most prominent changes in Simon's Quest was the exploration aspect which had the player traveling the Transylvania countryside to find five mansions to reclaim five body parts of Count Dracula; his rib cage, heart, eye, nail and ring (not a body part). Each of these items had special attributes to help Simon on his....erm quest, the rib (cage) could be used as a shield, the heart was used to make the ferryman take you to an otherwise inaccessible area, the eyeball showed hidden items, the nail enables Simon's whip to break thru some walls that were otherwise inaccessible, and Dracula's Ring grant's the bearer access to Castlevania.

Other noteworthy new aspects of Castlevania II was the game had a quasi 24 hour clock that shifted from day to night and kept track of the players progress. The game also had three different endings based on the completion time which was pretty rare for console games at that time.

I remember being very excited on my way home from Software Etc. back in the day when I got Castlevania II and being a bit turned off at the radical change from the original, I also remember struggling with some of the games "puzzles" such as finding Rover Mansion under Yuba Lake and passing over Deborah Cliff to reach Bodley Mansion. I remember getting very frustrated because the info the NPC's gave me either was misleading or altogether useless...I think that can be attributed to poor English localization. Konami took a risk by departing so dramatically from the original; Simons's Quest may not have been perfect but it paved the way for one of the most popular titles in the series...Castlevania: Symphony of the Night.

Castlevania II had enough fresh idea's added to the core action to keep fans of the original cracking that whip, and the next Castlevania would see a return to the series roots and introduce one of the series most popular protagonists...that wasn't a Belmont!

8/10

E3 Final Fantasy XIII extended trailer

We still have over six months till we see FFXIII here in the States but I have a good feeling it'll will be worth the wait! I think Sqeenix is making sure you're gonna need a six pack of pheonix downs after completeing FFXIII!
Check out the extended trailer of FFXIII from E3 09 and get psyched....friggin chocobo chicks in Sazh Kalzroy's Afro!! Pure win!

Video Games Final Fantasy XIII E3 09: Japanese Extended Trailer

XBox 360 Playstation 3 Nintendo Wii

Final Fantasy Dissidia

Another Final Fantasy title announced during Jump Festa is FF: Dissidia. For the 20th Anniversary of Final Fantasy Sqenix is producing a very different type of Final Fantasy for the PSP, Dissidia is a fighting game of sorts that pits the protagonists and antagonists from FFI thru FFIX, maybe X.

The video below showcases fights between Zindane and Kuja from FFIX and Cecil and Kain from FFIV and closes with the Warrior of light facing off against....Sephiroth! The game is planned for the PSP, where was this title at the PSP's launch!? It would've /will sell many PSP's! Dissidia sounds pretty cool! Chaos vs Cloud, Sephiroth vs Ultimecia, Emperor Palmecia vs Tidus! Can't wait for this game to be released.

Final Fantasy Agito XIII

Returning to our coverage of the Fabula Nova Crystallis series, the third title in the series is Final Fantasy Agito XIII. This game is rumored to be for mobile phones but I suspect it will also be available for the PSP, but don't hold me to that as it's just a hunch of mine. The few scraps of media lead me to believe this title will be in the vien of Naruto as it appears there's 12 students in....Final Fantasy school. Perhaps we'll be see a trailer soon, for now check out the collection of images I have dug up.

Final Fantasy versus XIII Jump Festa Trailer

Plenty of Final Fantasy goodness from Square's Jump Festa this month. Below is the extended trailer for FF vs XIII. This title in the Fabula Nova Crystallis series still remains the most shrouded in secrecy. In the video it states it's a fantasy based in reality....not much to go on there. Enjoy the video and the scans from PS3 focus mag.

Final Fantasy XIII Extended Trailer

Check out this extended trailer for FFXIII, just one of several games for the Fabula Nova Crystallis series. The game is looking great, we get to see more of Lightning and her gunblade. It's strange that the two trailers released spotlight her yet Squeenix reported earlier in the year that she wasn't the main protagonist. The quality of the in game video and the cutscenes seem to be getting more and more difficult to distinguish. And we get our first glimpse of what is rumored to be Shiva. The game continues to appear to branch further and further from a traditional RPG and more like an action title, only time and PS3 owners will tell! I forsee PS3 console sales to continue to rise as the A titles like this get closer to release date.

Game Review: Final Fantasy XII

Developed from 2001 to 2006, Final Fantasy XII cost approximately 4 billion Japanese yen to produce (approximately $34.6 million [1) with a crew of more than one hundred people.

The story is a welcome change from the sometimes overly fantastic FF's of late. Gone are the stereo typical RPG themes such as go to the cave of ___ and find the monster that guards the ____ jewel. There's no lifestream, no giant meteor headed for the planet, no time bending sorceress, it's the story of the small kingdom of Dalmasca, strategically positioned between the two continents of Valendia and Ordalia and thus is geopolitically important to both warring states. The strong military kingdom known as the Arcadian Empire that rules the Valendia Continent and the Rozarrian Empire that rules the Ordalia Continent have had been continuously at war for many years. Prior to the invasion Prince Rasler Heios Nabradia weds Ashe B'nargin Dalmasca and shortly after the empire invades. In the midst of the Arcadian Empire's invasion of Dalmasca, Prince Rasler is killed in battle. After the Archadian empire's victory King Raminas B'nargin Dalmasca, is murdered while meeting to sign the terms of surrender apparently by General Basch von Rosenberg of Dalmasca. But all is not what it seems, alliances, loyalties, foes and friends can change. The story and characters are fascinating and very dynamic. Vaan may appear to be a fruitcup but the voice actor, Bobby Edner makes Vaan a believable.......vagrant. The voice acting in FFXII rivals that of the MGS series.
Vaan always dreams of someday becoming a sky pirate in command of his own airship. The rest of the cast are equally fascinating and well developed (not like Lulu)..
Ashe Vanalgan Dalmasca is the princess and heir to the throne of the kingdom of Dalmasca, She's fighting to liberate Dalmasca from the Archadian Empire. Ashe seeks not only freedom for her country, but also vengeance against the Archadian invaders and the former Dalmascan general Basch, who assassinated the king shortly after the Archadian army stormed the royal castle in Rabanastre.
Basch von Rosenberg served as a general in the Dalmascan army. During the Archadian assault on the royal castle, he discovered that the king had signed a treaty that would allow Archadian rule over Dalmasca and supposedly slew both the king and Vaan's older brother, Reks. He is now considered a traitor by most.
Penelo is an orphan who has known Vaan since childhood, the two act like brother and sister but aren't related.
Fran is a Viera (a race first introduced in FFTA) she is Balthier's partner aboard his airship. Fran is the only non-Hume (human) character in the main cast.
Balthier Bunanza is a sky pirate who pilots a small airship around the skies of Ivalice. He and Fran, remain strategically neutral in the war between the kingdoms of Ivalice.

The cast of FFXII is a nice change visually for the series, FFXII reunites us with the world of Ivalice and the character design from Final Fantasy Tactics and Vagrant Story. There's no denying that Star Wars has influenced prior FF titles; Biggs & Wedge anyone? But FFXII trully shows the most influence in my opinion, you might as well call Balthier and Fran Han & Chewie. As I played thru the game it became apparent Vaan is modeled after Luke Skywalker, young boy from a small town gets swept up with a band of rebels fighting aginst an empire. Before the game was released SE advertising put most of the focus on Vaan and the Judges, this was a bit misleading as you discover around 10 hours into the game. With past FF's there's typically a lead character like Cloud, Zindane or Yuna, this is not the case with FFXII. When the game begins Vaan seems to be the main character, but then the focus shifts to Ashe and Vaan seems to slip into obsurity story-wise. I think Yasumi Matsuno intended to try and have the story unfold thru the eyes of Vaan but not have him as the central character like George Lucas attempted with C-3PO and R2D2 in Star Wars: ANH.
Yasumi Matsuno, originally announced as both producer and director, was forced to bow out of both roles midway through the creation of Final Fantasy XII due to health concerns. FFXII took a significant delay most likely due to this, and after completing the game I can honestly say Final Fantasy XII is tremendously unbalanced. The story aspect of FFXII seemed interesting but extremely short, I could've completed the story in about 30-40 hours with all 6 characters only at level 50. But if you stop there you'll likely miss out on the other half of the game's experience, the hunts! More on that in a bit....All of the summoned creatures in Final Fantasy XII are named after boss enemies or other entities from other Final Fantasy games, most notably Final Fantasy Tactics and its spinoff Final Fantasy Tactics Advance. Cúchulainn, Belias, Zalera, Adrammelech, Hashmalim, and Ultima are all names of various Lucavi demons in Final Fantasy Tactics, though some of their names vary slightly from those of the Final Fantasy XII espers due to errors in translation i.e. Ultima's name is spelled in Final Fantasy Tactics as "Altima" and Cúchulainn was spelled "Queklain". Zodiac also made an appearance in the game as a summoned creature. Similarly, Famfrit, Exodus (Exdeath), Adrammelech, Ultima, and Mateus all appear in Final Fantasy Tactics Advance as Totema, guardians of the Five Crystals of Ivalice. Chaos, Mateus, Famfrit (Dark Cloud), Zeromus and Exodus (Exdeath) are all named after the final bosses of Final Fantasy I, II, III, IV and V. I enjoyed the fan service with the new espers names from FF lore and the fact thet the traditional Sumons like Ifrit, Shiva, Leviathan and the lot weren't left out but used as names for the Archadian Empires Dreadnaughts, that was cool, regrettably the Summons in FFXII were next to useless. Like FFX the Summoned Esper will replace the rest of the team except the summoner, so if the summoner dies the Esper leaves and the remaining party returns. Up until FFX, summons were more like a really powerful spell, in FFX summons became more like a powerhouse NPC that was upgradeable, FFXII is similar to FFX but the summons are'nt upgradeable and are easily overwhelmed before they can use their primary spell.

Another staple of the franchise is character's trance/rage/overdrive special attacks, in FFXII their called Mist and they take alot more presidence over Summons in this game. They are far more useful and powerful than any FFXII Esper.

As I mentioned earlier FFXII is tremendously unbalanced to the point where you wonder if when Yasumi Matsuno left the project whole chunks of the story were cut out. I had actually reached the end of the game with my party around level 50 and I hadn't even unlocked the entire license board. The License board replaces FFX's Sphere Grid, in FFXII you not only need to use LP (license points) to unlock access to weapons, armor, magicks, technicks, augments and accessories. Regrettibly this too seemed unbalanced as you could purchase or aquire weapons and armor but unless you unlocked the coresponding license on the board you couldn't use said item. The board resembles a chess board, as you collect LP thru battles you can use them to unlock adjacent spots. The fact I reached the final boss before unlocking the most powerful stuff on the board did not bode well with me. After reaching the point of no return in the story I literally switched focus to the hunts in the game. It felt like two separate games in one! I played FFXI enough to see that this aspect was an offline version of Vana Diel's HNM's. The hunts were alot of fun and thru them not only did I reach level 99 I unlocked the entire license board, and found locations in Ivalice that the core story doesn't bring you to. Unbalanced, very. I can proudly delare that I defeated Yiazmat, an elite mark (HNM) with 50112254 HP and collected all the espers including Zodiark. I'm one of those FF players that must explore every nook and crany of the game. I still need Tournsol and the Wyrmhero blade though.

One of Final Fantasy XII's hunts is a battle featuring Gilgamesh, an entity typically a summoned creature or other similar being, seen previously in many other games in the series. The battle is set to his musical theme "Clash on the Big Bridge" from Final Fantasy V and he wields eight replicas of swords from previous Final Fantasy titles, which are Cloud Strife's Buster Sword from Final Fantasy VII, Squall Leonheart's Revolver Gunblade from Final Fantasy VIII, Tidus's Brotherhood sword from Final Fantasy X, Odin's Zantetsuken, the Orichalcon, and Final Fantasy V version of the Excalibur and the Excalipoor. As a special surprise for fans, Gilgamesh's final sword is the iconic Sword of Loto, also known as the Sword of Kings or Erdrick's Sword, from the first Dragon Quest trilogy.

My final feelings about FFXII are; interesting story but too short. Visuals are top notch. Terrific voice acting. The hunt's were great with some of the best monsters in a FF game yet! I enjoyed reading the info about them in the database. Gambits = FFXI macros, I used them but I felt like they put the game on auto pilot. I loved the Judges and the core villian was badass by the end.

7/10

Game Review: Zenosaga: Episode I: Der Wille zur Mact

Synopsis: Thousands ofyears into the future, mankind has abandoned Earth and exists only in deep space. Having used their advanced technologyto unlock the secets of the universe, humanity hopes to do the same with the Zohar, a powerful and mysterious artifact reputedly existing since the dawn of time. But a hostile alien life form, the Gnosis, brutally attack at every turn.Why? Unbeknownst to mankind, the race to unlock the final mystery, and to embrace an uncertain destiny, has begun.
Namco brings us the first of a six part saga with Zenosaga Episode I, more of a prequel to the evnts of Zenogears from Square soft on the PS1. This first episode does a fantastic job of introducing us to the main cast, KOS MOS the cyborg uber-weapon to fight off the Gnosis, Shion the chief engineer of the KOS MOS project, Ziggy the combat cyborg hired to retrieve MOMO, the prototype 100 series Observational Realian (synthetic human) created by Joachim Mizrahi, Jr the 12 year old looking person who is one of the directors of the Kukai Foundation, a special organization based on Second Miltia.Ok there's more characters but you get the point, Zenosaga is attempting to tell a much bigger story, touching on so many different philisophical discussions, such as the value of life, human and otherwise, God vs Science, etc..Zenosaga boasts some of the most beautiful cutscenes ever in an RPG, rivaling the Final Fantasy series! And this game has quite a bit of cinemas, over three hours, but they realy help flesh out the story and the many different characters.Unlike the Final Fantasy series Zenosaga has an ongoing story with the same cast ISO each episode being a completely new story and new characters with repeating themes and items. The story is gripping and the characters fascinating, and Namco did a masterful job not revealing everything in this first episode, which makes you want to discover what will happen next. Unlike some games (soul reaver) there is an individual story within this episode that propels the larger epic....and it is concluded within itself, or is it?My only real gripe with the game is the oragami looking monsters and the AGWS weren't really necessary. I finished the game never using my AGWS once! The mini games were fun ZenoCard IS Tetra Master in space, and gambling in space rocks!I can't wait for Episode II! Oh KOS MOS is a cyborg HOTY!

8/10

Game Review: Final Fantasy X

Welcome to the booming Metropolis of Zanarkand! Home of the Zanarkand Abes Blitzball team, and their all star player Tidus, son of the former superstar blitzer Ject. For Squares 10th game (X) in the Final Fantasy series they really veered off in a completely different direction from your traditional RPG. In fact you can pretty much set any preconcieved notions for Final Fantasy to the side, in FFX there are no kingdoms in far far away lands, brave knights, magic crystals, princesses being kidnapped, time warping Sorceresses, or spikey haired guys w/ amnesia blowing up reactors, or crazy clowns killing summons and stuff. This game is much more personal with a likeable cast of characters that are (finally) well fleshed out.This game flows very much like Star Wars A New Hope. We start out with Tidus, a bright eyed adolescent boy who is suddenly whisked off on an adventure by a mysterious older man, Auron, who's been watching over him since he was a boy.Tidus awakens in an unfamiliar land, after being abuducted by a group that he can't understand on a salvage ship and escaping he washes up on the shore of a tropical paradise quite different from the city's of Zanarkand. This is where Tidus meets up with Yuna, daughter of High Summoner Braska who defeated Sin 10 years earlier with his guardians Auron and.....Ject, "the circle is now complete" This is where the story begins, Yuna is about to set out on her pilgrimage to become a summoner, accompanying her is Lulu who acts as Yuna's older sister, Kamahri Yuna's version of Chewbacca, and Wakka a Blitzball player who is the first to find Tidus. Thru Yuna's pilgrimage you learn about the religion of Yu Yevon, and the relationship between Yuna and Tidus blooms. Unlike FFVIII the romance between Yuna and Tidus seemed more genuine, perhaps because Tidus, aside from his choice in clothes, seemed more......normal.Right from the start you realize this isn't your traditional Final Fantasy, aside from the brighter pallet seen throughout the game and the rock music that fully utilizes your home theater's surround sound system. Other significant alterations to the FF engine are the good ol level system which is is enhanced by the sphere grid. The sphere grid resembles a constellation map, each of the party members starts in a different location on the map, after defeating creatures each member who participated in the fight gains Sphere points which can be used to advance thru the sphere grid (connect the dots). When plotting your course on the grid it is important to plan ahead, do you want the MP bonus or the new ability? Because you may find a fork in the grid and you don't have enough sphere points to get one then double back for the other. The idea is a nice way of making the leveling process more in your control in a more interactive way than watching numbers tally up. With more focus on individual leveling and sphere grid advancement per participating party members FFX allows manual swapping of active members during battle. That way each member can attain GP (grid points).In order to keep your party balanced it is important to ensure each member advances on the grid at an even pace, to do this FFX allows you to do something you could never do in any previous FF's, swap out party memebers mid fight, so in theory each member can contribute to the fight and recieve grid points. Final Fantasy X is a much more linear title than previous versions and much more personal. Instead of saving the whole planet from utter annihilation Tidus, LuLu, Wakka and Kamahri band together and set out on Yuna's pilgrimage, along the way they each must overcome their own personal challenges. Square delivers another gorgeous game, the most obvious change is the color pallet used throughout the game, the colors are vibrant and a nice change from the earth tones we're used to seeing in RPG's. The music is a far cry from the traditional Final Fantasy soundtrack, the hard rock theme of Zanarkand from the games begining screams "THIS AIN'T YOUR OLDER BROTHERS FF!"The sphere grid is a nice change from the traditional "reach a level and gain a new ability automatically. Now you have to make the choice of either going for that next spell/ability or grabbing the HP/MP boost instead. And one of the boldest changes to the series FFX is the first in the series to have total voice acting throughout the game. No text boxs with poorly localized translations here.The only aspect I was pretty let down about was the mini game, Blitzball. For Final Fantasy Fans a sports mini game in an RPG is like oil and water. I really enjoyed the card games of FFVIII and FFIX. Try as I did I just couldn't get into the game.FFX is another chocobo feather in Squares pointy hat! A quality story with drama, that touchs on topics of faith and religion, love, the relationship between a father and son, pride and prejudice, and multi culturism. WOW all that in a game and it's still enjoyable!

9/10