• Final Fantasy XIII




















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• Final Fantasy Versus XIII



















• Final Fantasy Agito XIII

New Websites -

• JP Fabula Nova Crystallis Official Website
• NA Fabula Nova Crystallis Official Website
• JP Final Fantasy XIII Official Website
• NA Final Fantasy XIII Official Website
• EU Final Fantasy XIII Official Website
• JP Final Fantasy Agito XIII Official Website
• JP Final Fantasy Versus XIII Official Website

New Release Dates -

• Final Fantasy XII
  JP – 2009
  NA – 2010
  EU – 2010
• Fina Fantasy Versus XIII and Final Fantasy Agito XIII still TBA

Breaking News -

• Final Fantasy XIII is now multi-platform. It will be releasing on the PS3 and Xbox 360 in North America, although it is still a PS3 exclusive in Japan.
• Final Fantasy Agito XIII is now in production for the PSP. Originally a mobile phone title, the project completely switched over to the PSP for unknown reasons. The game will have gameplay similar to Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII.
• Final Fantasy XIII’s gameplay is similar to Final Fantasy XII, but is not as open.
• A Final Fantasy XIII demo and a Final Fantasy Versus and Agito XIII trailer will be featured as an added bonus on the Blu-ray release of Final Fantasy VII Advent Children Complete. This bonus is said to only be on the first initial shipments of the DVD. The DVD is set for an April 16th release in Japan and a June release in North America. No Europen release date has been announced as of yet.
• Art from Final Fantasy XIII is featured in Dissidia: Final Fantasy as an unlockable. Dissidia was released December 18, 2008 in Japan and is set for a Summer 2009 release for North America and Europe.
• A DVD released by Famitsu on December 13, 2008, titled “Re: Riplai”, features trailers from all three games.
• The names of the characters in both Final Fantasy XIII and Final Fantasy Versus XIII have been revealed. See our Character pages for them.

And that’s it! Now that we’re all caught up from the past year, we can start providing up to date news, interviews and scans! We will also be updating all of our content pages over the next few days to fit the revealed information. Look forward to brand new information about all three games as the Japanese release inches near!

This information is from a rough/pretty accurate translation.

Final Fantasy Agito 13 wil be released onto mobile phone at the end of 2007 in Japan.

Besides the picture, the entire game will be in 3D.

The Hero is supposed to be protecting a crystal.

Translation: http://ff-xiii.net/

WebSite: Fabula Nova Crystallis – Jump Festa 2006

On the introduction page of this pamphlet, there is a new CG image of Final Fantasy Agito 13. The image shows a blonde haired character, possibly the boy who was described in the trailer shown at the Tokyo Game Show.

Update: Here is a better quality image of the Tokyo Game Show pamphlet.

Thanks to commenter “tipper” for the find!

Final Fantasy Agito 13 Trailer – GameSpot

“The three Final Fantasy XIII games all apparently tell tales set in different worlds, so it’s difficult to tell how the story told in this trailer will tie in with the other Nova Crystallis games. At first, we see a large amount of wreckage floating in shallow water, underneath a blackened sky. After a few moments, the camera zooms in on the word “Agito” emblazoned on the side of a metal scrap. It’s unclear whether the wreckage is that of a ship or of a city, and whether or not Agito refers to a construction or a place.

Off in the distance, beyond the wreckage, a white city is seen, shining atop a large green mountain. After a series of zooms, the camera resolves on a large cathedral at the top of a hill, which is surrounded by red-robed acolytes. After the camera focuses in on one of them, a blonde-haired boy, he turns around to view the courtyard. Although it was fully populated moments before, his view reveals it to be void of anyone but him.

After he heads inside, he stumbles across a large, floating crystal, suspended above a structure that appears to make it levitate. After activating the device with his thumbprint, the structure starts to glow bright red, and the crystal follows suit. The thumbprint machine then spits out five cards, which the boy spreads out and examines; apparently it’s some sort of fortune-telling device. Unfortunately, before he can do anything more but frown at what’s revealed, the clock atop the cathedral strikes noon, which in turn triggers the explosion of the crystal.

The crystal apparently contained power beyond its small size would indicate, as the entire island is quickly shattered by the explosion, resulting in a towering inferno. Despite the destruction, the last moments of the cutscene return to the cathedral’s innards, where the boy is lying unconscious but apparently unharmed. A few screenshots of the game float by the camera’s view, imprinted on the cards the boy was holding earlier. The last image of the trailer shows a close-up of the boy, who’s lying on the floor as his cell phone rings.”

WebSite: Gamespot.com

The interview mainly talks about how mobile games will be brought to the US and also the differences in the mobile genre between Japan and the US.

In the interview there is a little mention of Final Fantasy Agito 13, with Kosei Ito saying that the mobile title is up for a release in both Japan and North America.

Gamespot Interview:

“We asked Kosei Ito, head of Square Enix’s mobile game division, a bit about the company’s approach to the marketplace. We caught up with the exec (who recently relocated back to Tokyo) one day after he presented Dirge of Cerberus: Lost Episode at the recent BREW 2006 Conference in San Diego.

GameSpot: First of all, we notice that Square Enix isn’t the sole developer of the game. Why is that?

Kosei Ito: Dirge of Cerberus is a collaboration between the Square team that worked on Final Fantasy Before Crisis, based in Japan, and Ideaworks 3D in London.

GS: Why the split dev team?

KI: The Japan team has some great knowledge about Java, but when it comes to BREW, it’s not quite up to speed. Ideaworks has a strong knowledge of BREW. Also, our team in Japan is great when it comes to working on 2D games, but Ideaworks is experienced working with 3D, especially on the technology front.

GS: Will there be different versions of the game based on territory?

KI: So far, we are planning to distribute the game only in North America. I created this title specifically for the North America market while I was here [based in Seattle].

GS: So it will never get a release in Japan?

KI: It may be released in Japan later on, but no plans have been made so far.

GS: Why rely on such a hardcore franchise when the data points to mobile gamers being more inclined to play casual games?

KI: That’s exactly what I was told when I created Final Fantasy I for mobile handsets in Japan. I was told that mobile gamers in Japan were only playing Tetris, and that none would play an RPG on a phone.

GS: What happened?

KI: Well, we created a new market.

GS: Why didn’t you chase the bigger, casual game market?

KI: True. The causal game market is bigger–and we do create titles for the casual gamer–but let’s say we are preparing for next and the following year. We want to be number one when more hardcore titles start to appear on mobile platforms.

GS: How about cross-platform gaming, one that includes gamers on cell phones and consoles?

KI: In my opinion, it requires much more time for cross-platform development. There are [so many] technical differences between the mobile and console platforms at this point. Also, a gamer usually picks the best title for the platform. Some titles play better on the PS2 and others play better on the Xbox 360. The mobile handset is still special as a device.

GS: What’s your response to Microsoft’s Live Anywhere initiative?

KI: Square Enix is a company that has always created new markets in terms of creative content and innovative technology–and we’ve done that every time a new console comes out. We are taking the same approach with this game and the mobile market.

GS: What’s the long term plan for this game?

KI: After a few months in release as a single-player game, we will release a multiplayer version. However, it will not be able to connect with PS2, just mobile to mobile.

GS: Do you see the US following Japan in terms of the development of mobile games?

KI: The two countries are definitely different. In Japan, a wide range of high-end titles and causal games coexist in the market–unlike here, where a mobile game automatically means “casual game.”

In addition, mobile games in the US are clearly separated–there are hardcore games and there are casual games. In Japan, the casual gamer and hardcore gamer overlap…there is no clear separation.

GS: Some say that this Fanal Fantasy-based game could be a tough sell in the US, due to its title–not recognizable to the mainstream–and the fact that it’s not a casual game.

KI: It is not important to get recognition from the name, necessarily, but by the content. When gamers realize the quality in the content and enjoy it, then they will be able to connect the name of the game.

I’m not interested to market the game by using the Final Fantasy affiliation but by using the game’s quality, graphics, gameplay, and so on. The console versions of Final Fantasy all attracted gamers by their graphics and gameplay. I’d like to use the same strategy for mobile.

GS: Why go with Amp’d as the carrier at launch?

KI: The image of Amp’d was what we were looking for: such as “cool” and “cutting edge.”

GS: Do you find it easier or tougher to work with US carriers, compared to Japan?

KI: Tougher. The size of market for mobile games is too small.

GS: What lessons did you learn from your previous mobile release, Final Fantasy VII Snowboarding?

KI: In my view, it was pretty good work. But when it comes to entertainment, the expectation in the US is higher than in Japan. People here won’t accept “good enough” content; it has to be “wow” content that they have never seen before.

GS: How do you think the game was received?

KI: It was just “good enough.”

GS: Why did you relocate back to Japan?

KI: To produce the upcoming title Final Fantasy Agito XIII, a mobile game for both Japan and North America.

GS: Do you have a new set of responsibilities now?

KI: I am no longer part of the mobile division, but I am still working on mobile. Since Square Enix positions mobile the same as console, DS, and PC, mobile games are treated the same as any other platform.

GS: Why the change?

KI: The cost of development for mobile games has increased, and the sales can sometimes be as high as a console title.

GS: How are revenues from mobile tracking?

KI: The rate of growth is faster than for any other platform.

GS: Why do you think the US marketplace is so slow to embrace mobile games?

KI: Mobile games are still “killing time” entertainment, while you move from place to place. In North America, where cars are the main transportation, it is hard to build the market. Also, Japanese carriers have made a big commitment to sell not only games but also ring tones and wallpaper. Also, they did a very good job of educating consumers on how to enjoy new applications. I don’t see the same commitment from carriers here. For instance, on TV [in Japan] carriers not only advertise handsets but also software, games.

GS: Can you educate carriers here?

KI: Of course, we tell them how we do business in Japan, but carriers here are still focused on selling handsets.

GS: Why not allocate money toward ad campaigns for your games?

KI: It’s risky to put money toward that kind of campaign. We’d rather put money toward building innovative games rather than on marketing at this point.

GS: How much are mobile budgets these days?

KI: I can’t tell you exactly, but it is not that different from a Game Boy Advance title, and it’s climbing as high as what we invest in for a DS title.

GS: Can you beat EA Mobile in this market?

KI: I am not really trying to beat EA Mobile (laughs). But we will compete with them. EA has good titles, and the Jamdat catalog is strong in casual mobile titles, but we cannot just compete straight on with them.

GS: So where do you see the opportunity for Square Enix in the US mobile marketplace?

KI: No one knew Final Fantasy titles in the US until the original PlayStation came out–even though we already had six Final Fantasy games in Japan. We are trying to do the same in the mobile market, releasing innovative titles and creating our own market.

GS: Thanks Kosei.”

GameSpot.com

Image: IT Media