The Last Remnant, a game previously doomed to the bargain bin before it was even released, has received a near perfect score from prestigious Japanese gaming mag Weekly Famitsu. The game got a 10/10/9/9 and a shiny Platinum Award. One review remarked:

Players might be confused at first because you’re unable to select specific commands in battle, but once you learn how to form a Union and play around with the options of Formations and their arrangements, the game gets really fun.

What the hell? Since when is this game supposed to be near perfect? I’ll admit to judging this game without even playing it - I mean, come on, it sounded kinda interesting but overall it never looked like you know, Platinum Award material. Even Amazon thought so - they were pricing the game at a $20 discount before it even came out. Now just today, it’s back to $56.99. Guess they read Famitsu too.

Source: NeoGAF

Several new FFXIII screens surfaced on Famitsu’s website today and I’ve got them, along with a Google translation of the copy from the page, included for you after the jump. Read more…

Just last week, we reported that the Japanese magazine, Shonen Jump, had uncovered the identity of that blonde haired boy from the Square Enix FFXIII trailer we’ve all seen about a million times now. His name — “Snow”.

Some of the older gamers out there may be thinking of this guy, and as shown in the image above, they aren’t the same — but they might as well be. Anyway, the latest Famitsu scans of the game, available after the jump, reveal Snow’s last name to be “Villiers”. Not sure how I feel about that just yet, but I guess it’s better than “Cone” or “Ball”. Hit the jump. Read more…

The latest issue of Shonen Jump in Japan finally revealed the mysterious blonde character who has appeared in trailers and screenshots for Final Fantasy XIII. His name is Snow, and the new render shown in this issue does make him look a bit psycho, but that’s always welcome in video games.

Anybody notice the pattern of weather named characters in Final Fantasy XIII? Okay, sure there is only two named so far, but they are Lightning (the girl) and Snow (just revealed). What an odd mix.

We have gotten a hold of several images depicting Crystal Tools in-game renders from Final Fantasy XIII, and may have visual proof that the Xbox 360 version of the game is already being developed.

Several Final Fantasy XIII in game renders utilizing the Crystal Tools engine surfaced online after apparently first appearing on the Japanese television channel TV Tokyo.

While this great news for Final Fantasy junkies like myself looking to drool over anything remotely associated to the game, the even bigger news is that a 360 controller was spotted on the desk of what appears to be one of the games developers.

Could the 360 version of Final Fantasy XIII already be underway despite Square Enix stating otherwise? Have a look at the images after the jump. Read more…

You know, I kinda like Infinite Undiscovery. Despite being the “latest” from Square Enix and tri-Ace, it is not the “greatest,” and when I started playing I was sort of disappointed.

Though it sets aside the old school menus in favor of a more active, action-RPG style of gameplay, I found the Connect Action system clumsy and the on-the-fly inventory navigation an unmitigated hassle. As neat as it is to be assisted by your party members, battles often turn into a button-mashing “clusterfight”. I could go on complaining (and probably will) but I still kinda like Infinite Undiscovery. How can this be? Read more…

August kicked off with news straight out of Square-Enix’s DKΣ3713 event that a 90 minute FFXIII demo would be included in the Japanese Blu-ray release of “Advent Children: Complete” sometime during March of next year.

However, recent news being reported by finalfantasy-xiii.net points to a possible stand alone demo release. Read more…

Square Enix has confirmed it has approached Tecmo’s board to make a friendly takeover – and it’s doing it for the good of Japan, by the sound of the official spiel.

The JPY 22.3 billion (USD 205 million) offer comes off the back of Itagaki’s departure and president Yoshimi Yashuda’s resignation, which Square Enix believes have left the company rather vulnerable. Apart from all the usual guff about how brilliant and beneficial the move would be, their statement included the following: Read more…

The conversation I envisaged at Taito about this tribute, celebrating 30 years of Space Invaders, never happened it seems – parent company Square Enix has come out of the flutter, claiming the exhibit at Leipzig was planned without Taito’s knowledge or consent.

But they didn’t pass comment on the art’s message. According to their press release:

“Taito is seriously considering all available options–including legal actions against the infringer and, if necessary, the Games Convention exhibitor involved–in order to end this unauthorized and impermissible misuse of the Space Invaders content and to protect Taito’s intellectual properties.”

It’s since come to light that the Computer Game Museum in Berlin, which is running the exhibit, didn’t see fit to get sign off for the project. From their own website:

“Note: The artwork “invaders!” is not approved by Square Enix/ Taito.”

No doubt that will come back to bite them if Taito decide to unleash the lawyers.

Retro enthusiasts and JRPG lovers alike will be pleased to know that in a press release issued today, Square Enix revealed that the DS remake of Chrono Trigger will be hitting stateside on November 25th, 2008.

Complete with the DS’s touchscreen functionality, Chrono Trigger DS will feature brand new dungeons and arenas that weren’t in the 1995 classic. Hit the jump for Square Enix’s full press release. Read more…

The latest issue of Famitsu is all about the recent Square Enix DKS3713 event, and according to reports, the Playstation 3 exclusive Final Fantasy XIII demo that comes bundled with the upcoming Blu-ray edition of Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Complete will actually run longer than the CGI film.

The FFXIII demo will come on a separate Blu-ray disc to the film, is reported to be from the begining of the game, and will run at least 90 minutes long, if not longer. That’s tight shit!

Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Complete is scheduled for a March 2009 release.

Source: Famitsu, via PSU.com

Microsoft marketeer Albert Pennello claims that they didn’t have to line Square Enix’s pockets to break FFXIII’s exclusivity – the publisher was attracted by the success of 360.

The global marketing director claimed that “a publisher like Square can’t ignore” the size of its install base.

“I think the most obvious reason that [Square Enix] made the announcement is just looking at the success of our console. I mean, we’re the leading console on a worldwide basis, we’re more than double the install base on the US.”

“I think it’s easy to assume that something is going on behind the scenes, I think the more obvious answer is we’re doing really well and the game creators want their games to be where the most people and the most consoles [are], and right now that’s the Xbox 360.”

Notice how he craftily avoids mentioning Japan though.

Source: Mundorare (via Videogaming24/7)

This story starts with a young boy and a subscription to the MMO Final Fantasy XI. After a few months with the game, he grows tired of it and decides he’s going to cancel. Great, so how do you do that? What seems like should be a simple task ends up an exercise in frustration. Little did Square Enix know — they just messed with the wrong guy. Read more…

Perhaps the most oddly named gaming event of all time, SquareEnix’s DKS3713 is also the same event that’s ringing with a ton of news. Day 1 is over and with it came the expected and not so expected. Read more…

Square Enix President and all around peaceful guy Yoichi Wada recently stated that his company remains neutral in the ever flame-inducing console war. Read more…

Everybody loves a Chocobo, and what better way to show it than by restoring memories to the inhabitants of Lostime with the help of Raffaello, a boy who fell from the sky and hatched from an egg? Dungeon crawling isn’t a new experience for Chocobo, but Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo’s Dungeon offers some twists that enhance the Final Fantasy flavor of this friendly Roguelike.

Treasure Hunter Cid and his sidekick Chocobo get whisked into an alternate universe while on the hunt for mad loot. In this bizarre town, people think that forgetting everything is a great way to never worry about anything, so they don’t mind that whenever the Bell of Oblivion rings they forget their own names. Cid does sort of mind, though, and they meet a girl, Shirma, who also thinks something is amiss. Together, Raffaello and Chocobo have the power to enter peoples minds (randomized dungeons) and retrieve the lost memories.

So that’s where the gameplay shows up! It’s a classic tiled-based dungeon crawl where you lose your inventory and cash upon death. Actually, though, you get to keep anything you have equipped (that is: your talons, saddle, and collar), plus all your experience for both your character level and job level. Read more…

Infinite Undiscovery is an action role-playing game developed exclusively for the Xbox 360 from Tri-Ace/Square Enix and I just happened to get my hands on the demo at E3. Read more…

Well, by now you must know that Final Fantasy XIII is coming to the Xbox 360. Yes, Microsoft have sealed the deal, most likely with an attractive Western install base and some cake. The key word in that sentence is not “cake”, but “Western.” Read more…

With the 2008 Electronic Entertainment Expo less then a week away, the time for Square Enix fans to get excited has arrived. Today, the renowned RPG developer announced their full E3 line-up including a handful of remade classics, as well as their new intellectual properties (IPs).

In the last two console generations, Square Enix (then, Squaresoft) primarily developed for only Sony platforms, so it was a surprise to see not only Sony games on the list, but Xbox 360, Nintendo DS and iPod games on there also.

The following games will be at this year’s E3: Read more…

Those equipped with an iPod nano with video, iPod classic, or fifth generation iPod can do more than just listen to their iTunes– they can wage tactical battles with them in Square Enix’s new RPG, Song Summoner: The Unsung Heroes.

The protagonist, Ziggy, is on a quest to save his brother, Zero, from the Mechanical Militia. Luckily, he is a Conductor, and can turn your music into “Tune Troopers.” It’s most beneficial to pick your favorite songs, since even listening to them outside of the game powers them up.

Click Wheel controls keep the turn-based combat system simple, but it sounds like there is some strategy to do with interactive environments. Maybe traps or terrain bonuses? Song Summoner is now available in English and Japanese for $4.99 on iTunes. Check the jump for more screens and a story overview. Read more…