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According to Famitsu, the storyline of Final Fantasy XIII will center on the roles of two races within a caste system - the Falsi are an extremely wise people that built the Cocoon protecting the city from the outside, and the Lusi are humans chosen to work for the Falsi. It's unclear where the game's protagonist falls in this cultural hierarchy, but the young woman shown as a friend of the main character is confirmed to be one of the Lusi. Details on the exact nature of the Falsi-Lusi relationship are unclear, but it will take an important role in Final Fantasy XIII's plot.

In addition, summons are revealed to be tools created to assist the Lusi in whatever tasks they need to perform, In addition to Shiva (as in Shiva the motorcycle), traditional Final Fantasy summoned monsters Ifrit, Siren, and Carbuncle are slated to be in the game.

Final Fantasy XIII has no release date in any region thus far, but Famitsu mentioned that FF XIII "begins in earnest" in 2008, whatever that's supposed to mean.

Source: RPGFan
A nifty image
A second nifty image

Yes, you read that headline correctly. It's probably safe to say that this will bring new fans to the series.

While the inclusion of the unlockable characters of Link, Spawn, and Heihachi in Soul Calibur II was a very popular move, the Namco series of fighting games has hit a low point recently with the critically reviled Soul Calibur Legends for the Nintendo Wii. Hopefully SC IV retains the high production values and tight gameplay of it's more popular predecessors while keeping the cast of characters diverse and entertaining.

Source: 1UP

The Sony PlayStation 3 is changing up the gigs and dollars on each of its units again, with the recently-announced 40-gig PS3 retailing for $399 US and the 80-gig PS3 retailing for $499 US. Both models at these prices will be available in the United States on November 2nd.

The 40-gig model was actually revealed a few weeks ago, but until now there was no confirmation as to whether it would ever make it outside Japan, Europe, and Australia. The new price point for the 40-gig version marks the first time that a PS3 is available for under $400 US.

Source: Gamespot

At a news conference earlier today, the big N made an announcement that for the past couple of years seemed like an inevitability: the Fire Emblem series of strategy RPGs will have an incarnation on the Nintendo DS. No additional info was provided with that announcement, not even a title or screen; just the knowledge that the long-running series will be on the world's most popular handheld in the future.

Source: Kotaku

Yesterday Nintendo announced a special new accessory, the "Wii Remote Jacket," to be used in conjunction with the Wii Remote. These new covers will reportedly both serve as a protection for your Wii Remote and also provide a firmer grip to prevent from slipping out. These new protective sleeves will be bundled with all new Wii systems, but current Wii orders can receive one for free from Wii.com or nintendo.com if they can provide their Wii's serial number over the phone.

Hopefully, this should reduce the number of Wii accidents that were so widely reported following the release of the system. Nintendo claims that these new sleeves will "supplement, not replace, the basic game-play instructions: keep a firm grip, don't let go of the controller, use the wrist strap and make sure your play area is free of people or objects."

Source: Nintendo's Press Website

Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core, the PSP prequel to FF VII starring Zack Fair, is selling awfully well for only a week on the market. According to VGChartz (linked below), Crisis Core sold approximately 350,000 units on its first day and an additional 100,000+ units in the following week - VGChartz admits that these estimates, while impressive, are still probably lower than the true numbers. And These sales figures don't include the special limited-edition 77,777 units sold along with a customized new-model PSP, bringing the total to a minimum number of 527,000.

There is still no confirmed release in North America or Europe for Crisis Core, but once it's announced it should be posted here shortly after. With sales numbers like those in Japan and FF VII's popularity in the United States, it's a foregone conclusion that we'll see it eventually.

Source: VGChartz, via Digg.com