Square has officially announced a direct sequel to last year’s Final Fantasy XIII to be called Final Fantasy XIII-2. You’ll notice that this is the same numbering system that Square used when it unveiled Final Fantasy X-2 that continued the saga of Yuna, Tidus, and the dozens of androgynous supporting characters. Details are extremely scarce in the press release and the it leaves us with only a cryptic phrase.
“Why does mankind deny its fate?”
Square promises that this new title will improve on the former in almost every respect, even going as far as promising the evolution of the battle system that is considered one of the best in the genre. The game is currently slated for a release next Winter; that is an extremely ambitious goal considering the time it took for Final Fantasy XIII to materialize.
It is quite possible that the amount of content manufactured was much more than could fit in one game and Square has decided to cash in on the title that sold 6 million worldwide. I’m waiting with bated breath, all I ask is that Square gives Hope a better weapon than a damn boomerang or kills him altogether. I hate whining.
For those of you who can’t wait, a trailer was leaked to the internet. I, of course, will save you the trouble of hunting it down by embedding it below (because I’m nice like that.) I’m not going to bother deconstructing it, because I don’t speak Japanese; I’ll leave that to the comments section.
The full press release is below:
London (18 January 2011) – Square Enix Ltd., the publisher of SQUARE ENIX® interactive entertainment products in Europe and other PAL territories, today announces a new release for next winter, FINAL FANTASY® XIII-2 for the PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system and the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft. A sequel to “FINAL FANTASY XIII” originally released in Europe in March 2010 that has since shipped a cumulative total of 6 million units worldwide.
“Why does mankind defy its fate?”
“FINAL FANTASY XIII-2” is currently in production with an aim for producing high quality game content which exceeds “FINAL FANTASY XIII” in every aspect; namely, a brand-new story which stems from the previous title as well as a battle system which has evolved further since “XIII” – and more. We will be disclosing further details about the new game in the future.
From the release of the first FINAL FANTASY in 1987, this unique RPG series has continued to offer the industry’s most advanced graphics, highly imaginative worlds and rich stories as it gains the highest accolades from users around the world. Titles in the series have so far achieved a cumulative shipment of over 97 million units worldwide (* as of September 2010).
For more information about FINAL FANTASY XIII-2 please visit the official website at http://www.finalfantasy13-2game.com
Product overview
Title: FINAL FANTASY XIII-2
Platform: PlayStation3, Xbox360
Genre: RPG
Release date: Coming next winter
RRP: TBD
Copyright: ©SQUARE ENIX CO., LTD. All Rights Reserved. CHARACTER DESIGN: TETSUYA NOMURA
Website: http://www.finalfantasy13-2game.com
