News

RPG fans planning on purchasing an Xbox 360 or just even in the console's development might be slightly disappointed. Neither of former Square producer Hironobu Sakaguchi's Xbox 360 titles will be presented in a playable state at the upcoming Tokyo Game Show in September.

However, he says the games'--Blue Dragon and Lost Odyssey--development is progressing smoothly. "The screen is starting to get developed, and we've been able to decide on the orientation of its graphics, and what kind of lighting and effects we want. We're currently in the process of making tons of [additional] graphics," commented Sakaguchi. "Lost Odyssey is progressing about the same. The characters are starting to move in the game screen little by little, and we're figuring out where we want to go with its graphics."

Much more information about the games will be released later in the year. Fans of character designs in Chrono Trigger and Dragon Quest VIII (as well Dragonball fanboys) should be pleased to hear that Akira Toriyama is behind the character design for both games. Neither is planned to be a launch title, however. One will ship within a year of the 360's launch, while the other will be released within two years.

Source: GameSpot

Square Enix has announced Radiata Stories, an RPG by Star Ocean and Valkyrie Profile developer tri-Ace, will hit American stores on September 6 for the Playstation 2.

Radiata Stories take place in a world in which humans and fairies live together in harmony. The game follows the lives of Jack and Ridley, two who have become knights for different reasons. And to quote a really lame line from RPGamer, "When war breaks out between humans and fairies, Jack and Ridley must become much more than just knights. They must become heroes."

Apparently, the game claims to feature of 175 NPCs. The environment in Radiata Stories is fully interactive (like any good game should be, really). Players can kick objects, structures, animals, and people to discover secrets. Time also has an effect on the game's environment. The game's battles are fought in real time with party formation being important to combat strategy.

Here is a screenshot of the battle system in action.

Source: Source: RPGamer

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I'm finding myself a bit tired of Japanese RPGs as of late. So far this just sounds like the same old stuff. How about some real innovation from over there?

The Lunar Series, which has not had an original title developed for it since Lunar 2: Eternal Blue for the Sega CD back in 1995, is set to have its first completely new title. Lunar: Dragon Song will be released on July 16th in the United States.

Dragon Song is a prequel to the original Silver Star Story. As the title of the topic says, the game will appear on the Nintendo DS. The story takes place in a time in which beastmen are the dominant race. While not the dominant race, humans peacefully coexist with the beastmen, living in the countryside. This peace is disrupted, however, when the goddess Althena powers begin to fail. It is rumoured that a tribe of black-magic wielders have kidnapped her. The story follows the adventures of Jian and his journey to save her.

There are some changes from the previous Lunar games in Dragon Song. Game Arts has switched to an isometric view for dungeons, towns, etc. instead of the old top-down perspective. Some changes have been made in the battle system as well. First, there will be no more random encounters (enemies will appear on screen as in the remakes). A "Battle Card" system has been added as well. Players will be able to equip their characters with cards to gain additional abilities. One way Dragon Song will make use of the DS's two screens is by placing aerial enemies in the upper screen.

Source: RPGamer

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Even though I find myself to be increasingly tired of anime-style games, I would probably check this out if I had a DS as I enjoyed the earlier Lunar games.

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Advent Children has been given an official Japanese release date of September 14, 2005. Tetsuya Nomura, director of the Final Fantasy VII digitally animated movie sequel, announced the date and promised that the movie will experience no further delays. US release is expected to closely follow that of Japan.

According to previous announcements from Sony Computer Entertainment, Advent Children will be available in DVD and the Sony-PSP-friendly "UMD" formats. It will carry a price tag of 4,800 yen ($44-$48) in Japan. No word has yet been given on a US price tag.

This will be Tetsuya Nomura's first feature-length film, though he has long been affiliated with Square Enix and the Final Fantasy series. Nomura has worked on character design and graphics for such games as Final Fantasy X and Chrono Trigger, as well as the original Final Fantasy VII.

Further information may be found at Square Enix's Official Advent Children Site and the unofficial AdventChildren.net.

Square Enix announced Saturday that it would be offering original Final Fantasy soundtracks for download via iTunes.

Soundtracks for all eleven numbered Final Fantasy games, from I to XI, are represented, as well as a few other series-related albums, such as a live recording of the 2002 FF-themed concert put on by the Tokyo Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra. This marks the first time any of these albums have been available in the United States.

A complete listing of Final Fantasy soundtracks now available on iTunes can be found at Square Enix's Official Website.