Tag: Final Fantasy

Random Thoughts For A Random Evening

February 13, 2017 / admin

I’ve been trying to think of a way to communicate random thoughts I have about games, the industry, and such. Until I figure out a proper platform for such thoughts, I will try to store them up and aggregate them here! Feel free to share responses or thoughts of your own in the comments.

Switch VR

More Switch content? No way! President of Nintendo, Tatsumi Kimishima has spoken out about Nintendo’s stance on VR. According a statement made during an interview, Kimishima has said that Nintendo already has the core technology of VR worked out. The only road block for them releasing it is that they haven’t found a way to make it comfortable for long play sessions. Once they overcome that hurdle, they will release the tech. A patent filed by Nintendo shows Nintendo has a VR headset already in mind, in which the Switch would dock similar to the way Google Cardboard or Samsung Gear work currently. Coupled with the Joy-Cons, you have a full virtually reality experience primed for release. People are bemoaning the power of the Switch’s main hardware, saying it wouldn’t be able to power a proper VR experience. Either Nintendo has faith that it will (and honestly, their games are almost always polished excellently) or they have plans for an updated version of the main hardware unit down the road. Either way, the modular design of the console would allow for a relatively inexpensive VR setup, even if upgrading the body was required.

With the tantalizing option of Nintendo VR being dangled in front of us, it begs the question: What Nintendo franchises would show off the tech appropriately? My thoughts are dwelling on Retro Studios. They’ve been hard at work on an undisclosed title for a few years now. If you put the mystery surrounding their new title up against the news of Nintendo VR and the Metroid 30th anniversary that passed rather uneventfully last year, it makes me think they could be working on Metroid Prime 4, fully playable in VR on the Switch. Doing so would be a fantastic show for fans of the series who have felt snubbed by recent releases in the series (I use that term loosely) AND it would simultaneously be a great showing for Nintendo’s first foray into VR. People have already been porting various Nintendo titles in to VR with the Dolphin emulator, so the interest is clearly there. If the Switch is capable of pulling this off, Nintendo would be wise to not sit on the news for too long. They’ve done a good job so far of showing the hybrid nature of the new console, so once it’s built a bit more momentum, drop the classic, “But wait. There’s more!” It would be a fantastic value add for an already promising value proposition.

Final Fantasy XV: Chapter XIII

My God. You’ve probably read about this on the internet already or at least seen a headline. I’ll keep it spoiler-free, but man, you’re being funneled towards a conclusion and things are exciting, then all of a sudden a poorly sequenced stealth chapter appears! Everything slows to a grinding halt and you’re helpless to do anything about it. I understand for the story why this segment works and was needed, but maybe introduce it a bit sooner or else make it a less jarring transition. The Spring Update is set to address this chapter, though in what capacity, I’m not sure. After having finished the game and loving the journey, I’m excited to know I can put this to rest for about a year and then pick up a New Game+ with all the Season Pass content released for a second play through. Hopefully, the characters and their relationships are more fleshed out and less reliant on expanded universe content (though Kingsglaive and Brotherhood were pretty good, watch them).

New Blog Content

I’m working on ideas for new blog content besides the walls of text I subject you all to on a semi-regular basis. I hope to have an introductory video posted soon (using my limited recording tech), as well as reviews, streams, and other such video content. Don’t hold me to it, but that’s tentatively the plan. Look forward to it!

Drawrings! (Intentionally Misspelled)

I doodle! Occasionally, I pull out my Surface tablet and draw things on it. Most recently, I’ve worked on a slightly stylized series of Nintendo consoles (because of my Switch hype). Take a look a let me know what you think or what you’d like to see! I’ll probably move on to the Sega consoles when the mood strikes again.

Giveaway!

I may try to do these periodically. I recently bought a Humble Bundle that included several Star Wars games I currently own. To kick off my random giveaways, I’ve got a copy of the Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic games, 1 and 2, to present to one person who wants them. Both of these titles are fantastic and would be a great addition to any Steam library that is currently lacking! Leave your e-mail address and I’ll send you the codes.

As always, thanks for reading and until my next post, happy gaming!

Final Fantasy 30th Anniversary News!

February 2, 2017 / admin

#FF30th Logo from Final Fantasy 30th Anniversary Site
(All pictures from Final Fantasy 30th Anniversary Site unless otherwise noted)

2017 marks the 30th anniversary of the Final Fantasy series! 30 years is pretty solid since the original title was supposed to be a swan song for a struggling company, but here we are! We’ve just received Final Fantasy XV, a couple of remakes/remasters are in the works, Final Fantasy XIV continues to be successful in a market that many fail to break in to, and a plethora of mobile titles have launched in recent years as well. I’d say the brand is alive and well, despite a few stumbling points along the way. That said, with Square-Enix gearing up for 30th anniversary shenanigans, let’s take a look at their first round of announcements!

Shall I give you DIS PEAR!?!?

(Silly meme from KnowYourMeme.com)

If I have to explain the above to you, you may not be terribly interest in the Final Fantasy VII Remake that fans have been clamoring for since the days of the PS3. 20 years after its original release, we may see the first episode of the promised remake. Square-Enix released new key art as part of the 30th anniversary celebration. The image (shown below) depicts Cloud doing what he does best (looking emo) and the good ol’ One-Winged Angel looking rather emo himself, all framed by the Midgar skyline. You can almost smell the mako!

From the FF30th Anniversary Site

No other details were given. Tetsuya Nomura, who is currently working on the remake AND Kingdom Hearts III, released a statement expressing to fans that he needs us to hold on a bit longer for the teams to deliver the promises made for both of these games. When so much nostalgia is on the line, they should take every precaution necessary. Whether the statement was meant to hint that the first episode of the remake will miss 2017 remains to be seen.

The Ivalice Alliance Returns!

From the FF30th Anniversary Site

Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age was given a release date of July 11th, 2017 during the first set of announcements. This remaster brings the Final Fantasy XII International: Zodiac Job System version of the game to the states for the first time. One of many “director’s cuts” for the series that the US never received, the Zodiac Job System version of the game offered just that, a job system with each job having its own license board, to allow for more party variety in the game. With trophy support, hunts, and all those license boards to fill out, I’m sure this will keep players coming back for a good while (or at least letting the game run while the Gambit system does the work). I look forward to stepping back into the shoes of Balthier…. I mean, Vaan, when Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age releases in a few months.

#Chocobros Receive New Content!

The fantastic foursome of Final Fantasy XV are receiving a solid amount of new content in the coming months. Starting with Power Rangers! Wait, that’s not right… Magitek Exosuits! Easily mistaken for the rangers of our youths, the squad is getting some mighty powerful armor that they can morph into once daily. While in the exosuits, the quartet will be invulnerable. Additionally, we’ll see the first episode focusing on a solo bro: Gladiolus. The content of the DLC was not revealed other than you’ll get to pal around with Cor and Gilgamesh since no bro should go it alone!

Mobile Fantasies

The final announcement in what I assume is just the first wave was the Mobius Final Fantasy will be headed to Steam in just a few days. On top of that, a crossover promotional event will take place in the game, offering players a variety of in-game bonuses.

Hopefully, in the coming months there will be more announcements celebrating the Final Fantasy series. Rumors had previously stated there would a compilation of the main series Final Fantasy titles, along with a fancy collector’s edition called the Crystal Edition. When more news breaks regarding the Final Fantasy festivities, I’ll be sure to have a new write-up!

More Switch News (& Other Tidbits)

October 29, 2016 / admin

Nintendo Switch, from Polygon
(Image from Polygon)

The Nintendo Switch is on everyone’s minds after last week’s unveiling of the new system. Nintendo’s president, Tatsumi Kimishima, has given a few cryptic hints to further whet our collective appetites for more info and rumors continue to fly as Nintendo closes the vault door again after only giving us a peek at the wonderful, nerdy treasures inside. For more concrete details, we will be waiting until January 12. Waiting until after the holidays/new year when the system would potentially be forgotten in the hustle and bustle of the season is smart on Nintendo’s part and it kickstarts the new year with an updated look at the system, as well as starting the ~2 month countdown until the system’s release in March.

Speaking with Bloomberg, Kimishima didn’t give away much. He mentioned that Nintendo has only shown the core concept of the system, not what it is fully capable of. It seems they have more accessories up their sleeves, potentially a few that will be interchangeable with the Joy-Cons strapped to the side of the Switch. Rumors have been flying about the potential add-ons here, everything from infrared pointers to projectors that register motion.

An interesting bit of phrasing to note was that Kimishima said they want people to touch they console in January and experience it for themselves to fully understand what Nintendo is trying to do. The use of the word “touch” here is probably reading into it a bit much, but rumors are saying that the system will feature a 720p touchscreen, which has yet to be confirmed by Nintendo. I believe the comment was made more in the vein of getting hands-on time in order to truly understand what the system can do. Nintendo did not do a good job explaining this with the Wii U and all the cool things/ways of play that it could muster, or of differentiating it in their marketing so parents understood this was a new system, not just a Wii add-on (much like the DS/3DS). In breaking with the “Wii” branding and giving people the opportunity to actually play the console in a sufficient amount of time prior to launch, I think they are setting themselves up to be heard and understood this time. One of their main design philosophies has been to make hardware around their games, not the other way around. So if people don’t understand the hardware, then they’re not going to understand the unique ways to play the games that the company is publishing either. But I digress…

Those of you who were worried about the longevity of the 3DS need not be concerned, as Nintendo’s president has confirmed that they will continue pushing the 3DS as they feel it has a market separate from what the Switch will inhabit. That doesn’t mean consumers will see it that way. If you can play console quality games on the go, why would you settle for a (probably fantastic) 3DS title? Portability, battery life, established install bases, and plenty of other things will factor into this, for certain, but I can’t help but think that Nintendo is going to be stealing a portion of its own market (or maybe occupying the Vita’s shrinking real estate).

2 months and 15 days (but who’s counting?) will tell what we actually receive. Hopefully at that time, they give us a firm release date, price, and what’s included in the launch bundle(s). I assume there will be multiple configurations available, both varied in hard drive space and bundled accessories. Also, if by some chance you’re reading this Nintendo, give us some news about the Breath of the Wild amiibo while you’re at it! I’m going to need one of everything (Switch and Zelda amiibo), please and thank you!

In Other News

Square-Enix had a couple of exciting announcements this week. In addition to releasing the opening cinematic for Kingdom Hearts HD 2.8 Remix, we were treated to the news that 1.5 Remix and 2.5 Remix are being bundled and remastered for the PS4 so for the first time, the entire series, in all its convoluted glory, will be available on one console. So anyone who has been living under a rock for the past 15 years (Yeah, it’s been that long. I know it’s weird and we’re old. Take a moment, if you need it.), can play/watch from start to finish to prepare you for Kingdom Hearts 3, which is set to release next year. Now, you just have to decide the order in which to play the games. It’s kind of like a Star Wars dilemma. Chronological according to release date? Chronological according to the game’s story? Or some butchered version, hopping around to not spoil any plot points until they were intended to be revealed? I’ll leave that up to you to decide.

Not be left out, Final Fantasy XV also had a new bit of info drop. There’s going to be a DLC pack that allows you to play multiplayer, online, with each of the main 4 heroes being controlled by a human player! I assume this will be in some segmented story arc, rather than in the main campaign but since a good bit of the story revolves around Noctis and his band of brothers, it would be cool if you could experience the game with a brotherhood of your own at the helm. We’re almost exactly a month away from the game’s release and I’m ready to dive in and find out whether the 10+ year wait has been worth it!

The last bit of news was slightly more recent than even the above tidbits. Square-Enix has launched a teaser site, currently with a 5 day countdown, for a new Final Fantasy title for iPhone/Android. While there have been plenty of Final Fantasy titles of varying degrees of quality for mobile already, the interesting part of this is that it features a note from Chrono Trigger’s director, Takashi Tokita, as well as the fantastic art of Yoshitaka Amano (who has had ties to the Final Fantasy series since its inception, I believe). This already bodes incredibly well for the title as many JRPGs fans hold Chrono Trigger in very high esteem and having this duo on-board shows that Square-Enix (hopefully) isn’t “phoning” this one in. *insert pun husky photo here*

I’ll see myself out…