Frankenreview: Final Fantasy XIII [Round-up]

Come, brave adventurers, and witness the Final Fantasy XIII Frankenreview, a Franken so disparate we decided to run the graph right at the top of the post. More

Small Differences Between Japanese Final Fantasy XIII and International FFXIII [Square Enix]

Final Fantasy XIII on the Xbox 360 and the PS3 are different . But that’s not all. More

Here Is Some Info About Final Fantasy XIV [PS3]

Upcoming online role-playing Final Fantasy XIV will take place in a sci-fi meets fantasy universe. That we know. But that’s not all. More

Guess How Many Copies Of Final Fantasy XIII Are Out There [Final Fantasy]

Go on. Guess. Or, if you don’t feel like guessing, read on to see the shipment figures for Final Fantasy XIII Square Enix released overnight. More

Guess How Many Copies Of Final Fantasy XIII Are Out There [Final Fantasy]

Go on. Guess. Or, if you don’t feel like guessing, read on to see the shipment figures for Final Fantasy XIII Square Enix released overnight. More

In Japan, Getting A Tattoo Means You Can Never Go Home [Final Fantasy XIII]

At last night’s launch event for Final Fantasy XIII, Square Enix boss Yoichi Wada showed up with a Fal’cie symbol from the game tattooed on his hand. He tweeted that he “probably” would not be able to return to Japan. Wada, of course, was being lighthearted. The tattoo, of course, is fake. It appears in the game, and this is a publicity stunt. It is worth noting that there has been a bizarre thread of sorts in which game execs have gotten game titles tattooed on their bodies. Actually, it’s not really that big of a trend. As far as Kotaku can tell, Wada is the second to do this. The first is former Microsoft exec Peter Moore who apparently got Halo 2 and its release date tattooed on his arm. Later, he got what was supposed to be a Grand Theft Auto IV tattoo emblazoned on his bicep in white and black. Moore later joked how upset his wife was about his decision. But if Wada actually did get a visible tattoo on his hand, he’d have more to worry about than Mrs. Wada. During the 20th century, tattoos have meant one thing in Japan: organized crime. They are the mark of the yakuza. The intricate full body tattoos are not only expensive and artistic, but they also are dangerous, as the way the ink is inserted under the skin used makes it impossible for the skin to breathe, turning the tattooed flesh clammy even in the dog days of summer. These tattoos show that the individual has konjyou , or “guts”. The image of tattooed yakuza is both striking and frightening, while at the same time being oddly beautiful. Since the past ten years or so, tattoos have taken on a different meaning for Japanese youth. They’re fashion. The tattoos that some twenty-something year-old guy or girl gets are drastically different from the tattoos gangsters get. The fashionable tattoos are decorative in the Western sense and stylistically very similar. That still has not stopped public bathhouses, swimming pools and hot springs from turning away individuals with tattoos. The rationale is that traditionally only yakuza have inked their bodies, and they obviously do not want any trouble that could arisen. Discerning between yakuza tattoos and fashion tattoos could lead to awkward situations — hence why the blanket ban still remains in many places. This carries over to the business world, where younger gangsters working in white collar crime do not even get tattoos. And even those who do have tattoos make sure that they are hidden under shirt sleeves and not displayed openly like this Final Fantasy Fal’cie tattoo. When Wada talks about not being able to go home, joking or not, he means it. Good thing he washed his off at the end of the evening. [ Pic , Pic , Pic ]

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In Japan, Getting A Tattoo Means You Can Never Go Home [Final Fantasy XIII]

Square Enix "Suspicious" That Avatar Was Influenced By Final Fantasy XIII [FFXIII]

Avatar, the biggest grossing film ever, looks familiar, says Square Enix’s Motomu Toriyama, director of Final Fantasy XIII. A little too familiar. “The in-game universe this time around is quite fantasy based, but also futuristic at the same time,” Toriyama told website Tech Digest in a recent interview. “We never really had any particular reference points for Final Fantasy XIII, in terms of places where we drew inspiration from. That said, we’re a little suspicious that the world famous Avatar movie might have take inspiration from us!” That’s right, because Final Fantasy XIII invented the fantasy-based, futuristic look! Of course it didn’t, and like me, Toriyama might have been joking. James Cameron began work on the script during the 1990s, but production on the film did lurk forward until 2006 — and Final Fantasy XIII was not officially shown until the E3 gaming expo of that same year. Avatar is a CG heavy film and took years to development. While it’s possible that the movie’s visual look was influenced by FFXIII (anything is possible), would the look of the entire film be based off a few trailers and a handful of screenshots? Final Fantasy XIII is the second game which has placed claims on Avatar inspiration. Previously, a group of gamers said Avatar looked too much like Halo, which is an assertion that director Cameron later refuted . Final Fantasy XIII ’s Motomu Toriyama and Yoshinori Kitase [Tech Digest via はちま起稿 ]

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Square Enix "Suspicious" That Avatar Was Influenced By Final Fantasy XIII [FFXIII]

How Many Gigabytes Is FFXIII’s Xbox 360 Install? [Xbox 360]

The Xbox 360 of multi-platform role-playing game Final Fantasy XIII is shipping on three discs . For those curious as to how much space installing the game on the Xbox 360, read on. According to website Ve3tro.com, the totally optional install for all three discs is: • Disc 1: 5.9GB • Disc 2: 5.8GB • Disc 3: 6.6GB That’s a grand total of 18.3GB. In comparison the PS3 version of the game is 38GB. Final Fantasy 13 (XIII), Whopping 18.3GB Install for Xbox 360 [Ve3tro Thanks, Steve!]

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How Many Gigabytes Is FFXIII’s Xbox 360 Install? [Xbox 360]

Final Fantasy I & II Available Now on iPhone [IPhone]

For those of you chomping at the bit for Final Fantasy XIII, here’s a fun little surprise to tide you over: Both Final Fantasy and Final Fantasy II are now available on the iPhone for $9 a pop. The original Final Fantasy includes the five bonus dungeons, The Soul of Chaos pack and The Labyrinth of Time, added to later editions of the game. While Final Fantasy II contains the five bonus dungeons added with the Soul of Rebirth and Arcane Labyrinth pack. Both games are also available for the iPod Touch as well. Final Fantasy Final Fantasy Final Fantasy Final Fantasy Final Fantasy Final Fantasy II Final Fantasy II Final Fantasy II Final Fantasy II Final Fantasy II [Thanks Daniel]

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Final Fantasy I & II Available Now on iPhone [IPhone]

Kitase: FFVII Remake Only Possible If It Can Be Done In A Year [Final Fantasy VII]

Final Fantasy XIII releases in less than three weeks, but people still can’t stop pining for Final Fantasy VII, released XIII years ago. But Yoshinori Kitase, answering hypothetically, said a remake by modern standards might take XIV years to make. Speaking to TechDigest, Kitase, the producer of Final Fantasy XIII (and director of VII) said a remake would be attempted if it were feasible to complete in a year. And that’s hardly likely. His complete answer: If it were possible that we had all the right facilities and the right environment to be able to make and prepare a Final Fantasy VII remake within a year, we’d very much like a go at it! But even Final Fantasy XIII has taken over three and a half years to create. If we were to recreate Final Fantasy VII with the same level of graphical detail as you see in Final Fantasy XIII, we’d imagine that that would take as much as three or four times longer than the three and a half years it has taken to put this Final Fantasy together! So it’s looking pretty unrealistic! But if any such situation came about by any remote chance, then yes, we’d do it! Granted, we’re extrapolating his offhand calculation that a remake would take 4 times as long to create as an original on a three-and-a-half-year development cycle. The operative concern here seems to be whether Square Enix could pull it off in a year. And no, that doesn’t sound likely. Final Fantasy XIII ’s Motomu Toriyama and Yoshinori Kitase – Interview [TechDigest via Connected Consoles ]

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Kitase: FFVII Remake Only Possible If It Can Be Done In A Year [Final Fantasy VII]

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