Learn more about ‘Final Fantasy XIII-2′ straight from the makers in this trailer

Afraid that you weren’t going to get your Final Fantasy XIII-2 fix? Okay, I don’t think anyone’s actually afraid of that. In any case, here’s a trailer for the game (which includes actual gameplay) featuring commentary from XIII-2 producer Kitase Yoshinori. This does spoil the end of the first game (as trailers for sequels tend to do), so watch with care:

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‘Final Fantasy XIII-2′ lands in the U.S. January 2012

Thanks to Twitter (and a tweet from @SquareEnixEmily), we now know that Square Enix is bringing their next Final Fantasy title, Final Fantasy XIII-2, to North America next January, only one month after its Japanese release. Hopefully fans are much more receptive to this title, which promises to bring back a more open world as opposed to the incredibly linear storyline of its predecessor. Are you willing to return to the series, if you weren’t such a fan of the last title?

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Time for your Sackboy to transform into Sackiroth

Sony announced yesterday via PlayStation.Blog that the long-awaited Final Fantasy VII-themed costume DLC for LittleBigPlanet 2 is arriving later this month! July 13, to be exact. You’ll have access to four costumes for $1.99 a piece — Aeris, Tifa, Cloud and Sephiroth. However, buy the full bundle for $5.99, and you’ll get Vincent Valentine added to the mix. He’s not available to buy individually, so think of him as a bonus to your party. I’m trying to think of proper Sacknames for each character. So far I’ve only got Tifa Sackheart, Cloud Strack, Sackiroth (obviously), Aeris Sackborough and Vinsack Valentine. Can you think of any more? Also, the PlayStation folks also announced an inFAMOUS 2 costume pack, a Killzone 3 set, one for Toy Story that also includes a level pack and some sort of MotorStorm: Apocalypse set. The PlayStation Move-related level packs are also on the way soon. Here’s

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Check out the E3 trailer for ‘Final Fantasy XIII-2′

Gamespot posted an exclusive trailer for the next Final Fantasy title — XIII-2 — this weekend. Watch to get a look at the latest adventures for the crew.

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Review – Dissidia 012: Duodecim Final Fantasy (PSP)

Technically a prequel for the first game, we discover that the ever raging war between Cosmos and Chaos has occurred 12 times during the time frame of 012; and our roster of new characters are the ones who enabled the 13th cycle of the war to occur.

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Musings of the Video Game Industry: WRPGs and JRPGs, Part 1

Musings of the Video Game Industry: Volume I Part 1: The Rock ‘em Sock ‘Em Robots of Cyrodiil – Why have the Gallians retreated to the PSP? For me, the PlayStation One era was the golden age of RPGs. Yes, I know that sentiment made you SNES loyalists gasp in horror. I’m well aware that PSX era RPGs are the byproduct of games like Final Fantasy IV, VI, Chrono Trigger or Secret of Mana. But the peak for me personally are the countless middle school memories I have; whether it’s fighting back tears over Aeris’ death, messing up Additions in Legend of Dragoon, replaying Chrono Cross til I got every last star, party member and niche ending, or just ruing the difficulty of Vagrant Story. RPGs were easily the premiere genre games that were selling PlayStations, and I enjoyed every little gem Japan, and predominantly Squaresoft sent our way. And

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“Dissisia 012[duodecim]” hits PSPs this March

The Dissidia follow-up with the funny name, Dissidia 012[duodecim] Final Fantasy is out for PSP in North America on March 22 with a suggested price of $29.99. The game adds Lightning, Kain and Tifa to the mix, which, much like the original, comprises fighting and RPG elements. Square Enix also revealed some members of the voice cast – Ali Hillis returns as Lightning, Rachael Leigh Cook is reprising her role as Tifa, and George Newbern plays Sephiroth. In addition, Keith David and Steve Burton play Chaos and Cloud, respectively. Other voice actors are also returning to their previous roles. To preorder or learn more about the game, visit http://na.square-enix.com/dissidia_012. Here’s short summary from Square Enix: Story The divine conflict between harmony and discord rages on, the fate of the world its promised prize. Fighting to secure it are brave souls summoned for that solitary purpose. These warriors, relying on what

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Review: Arc Rise Fantasia

The story of L'Arc the mercenary and his struggle to bring peace between kingdoms plays more like Ignitions take on a Wii version of Final Fantasy, instead of a stand alone title.

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Turning Japanese Holiday Guide

The Holiday season is now upon us, and it’s never too early to begin shopping for the anime/Japanese culture fan in your life. Two of my personal favorite sites for this are; Play Asia and the official Square Enix Shop. You can find a variety of wonderful gifts here, and many for an affordable price. (Square Enix also features a nice line of expensive jewelry themed after many of their successful games.) Square Enix Shop Bleach Play Arts Kai, Volume 1; $42.99 (each) The newly released Bleach Play Arts Kai, Volume 1 were released this fall and would be the perfect present for any Bleach fans, like myself. Play Arts Kai are some of the best articulated figures on the market, and look wonderful on display or simply left in their box. Volume 1 includes Ichigo Kurosaki, Rukia Kuchiki and Toshiro Hitsugaya, each complete with their Zanpakuto. I’m personally hoping

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Hands on with Sage Sundi, director of Final Fantasy XIV at NYCC

Final Fantasy XIV was released on September 30th worldwide (or September 22nd for those with the Collector’s Edition) and has been met with quite a fair deal of criticism. While there are still some highly praised aspects of the game, for each one of these, there seems to be an issue to match it. I was about to meet and experience the game first hand at New York Comic Con with the game’s director, Sage Sundi and his team. They guided me through the game and were able to answer questions for me, as well as addressing many of the concerns players have had, along with explaining their plans to further develop and improve the game. I started out creating my own character–a “Keeper of the Moon” Miqote with pale pink hair and blue highlights. The character creation process was highly in depth, which was a refreshing change of pace

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