PAX East 2012: Square-Enix

In PAX East, a number of larger third party developers showed off their lineups for the Summer and early Fall, and we were able to get a few clips of footage of some of those games from Square-Enix.  Unfortunately, we did not get to play too many of their games, as lines were a factor, and we did not get to interview anyone or get too much footage of any of the games shown.  So, rather than provide three very short videos, we have compiled them into one.

Square-Enix had a number of games shown off, though the three we have video footage of are United Front Games' Sleeping Dogs, Theatrhythm: Final Fantasy, and Airtight Games' Quantum Conundrum.  We were not allowed to film any of Heroes of Ruin, which was a shame, but at least we got footage for the games we did.  I was able to get a few minutes with Heroes of Ruin, but the game does not lend itself to a showfloor playthrough, particularly with character creation, lots of reading, and looting.  On that note, enjoy the footage we got and stay tuned for our final PAX East videos next week!

Sleeping Dogs is slated for August for PC, Xbox 360, and Playstation 3.  Theatrhythm: Final Fantasy is slated for release early July for 3DS.  Quantum Conundrum is expected for digital release this Summer.

NYCC 2011: The Miscellaneous Montage

Our adventure into this year's New York Comic Con was not exactly as peachy as we would have liked, but when is a convention not stressful? We were only able to attend the Thursday and Friday events for both economical and physical reasons, but we got a handful of videos and impressions to make for you all.

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Just under a month after New York Comic Con 2011 finished, we are winding down with a few more videos to finish off the event and look out into 2011's holiday season (which has already started, thank you, Modern Warfare 3).

This video is dedicated to the remainder of game footage we took over the course of the day-and-change we were at the convention. We talk about our impressions or thoughts on the games while we show clips of our scraps. We felt the footage shown here was not up to par with fitting into individual videos and put them together right here!

The games covered are as follows:
Resident Evil: Revelations
Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City
Ultimate Marvel Vs. Capcom 3
Final Fantasy XIII-2
Rayman Origins (with some Just Dance 3)
Fusion: Genesis (out now on XBLA!)
Prototype 2

Stay tuned for our postmortem, in which we discuss final impressions and the games we did not even cover this year!

Kingdom Hearts 3DS Title Features 3 D's

At the Square Enix 1st Production Department Premier event today, the company announced the full title and showed a trailer for its upcoming Kingdom Hearts game for the Nintendo 3DS.

Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance is the full title, and Birth by Sleep co-director Yasushi Yasue explained that the title actually has some meaning behind it. For one, the game stars both Sora and Riku as they enter a world of dreams to go through the Mark of Mastery in order to become Keyblade Masters and prepare to face off against the return of Xehanort. "Dropping" and "distance" sum up some of the game's fast-paced action, using the 3DS's effects for a more dramatic experience.

The trailer released along the announcement showed how the gameplay has changed. Battles are fast-paced and rely on special "glide" abilities which Sora and Riku can use to jump from wall to wall or run across rails scattered around the fanciful worlds. Switching between the two becomes another major factor, as the two will swap places very quickly to fit the pace of the action sequences. While most the trailer took place in Traverse Town, there was a clip taking place in Notre Dame, but no other Disney characters were shown outside of Yensid and Mickey.

No release date has been given, and seeing as the Kingdom Hearts team has been focusing on the completion of Birth by Sleep Final Mix, which releases this month in Japan, we should probably expect a 2012 release.

OFFICIAL SITE (Trailer Upload by the 27th)

SOURCE: Andriasang

Final Fantasy Type-0 Unveiled, is XIII Agito Renamed

At today's Square Enix 1st Production Department Premier, the company unveiled that its PSP epic Final Fantasy XIII Agito would be changing its name to Final Fantasy Type-0, turning it into a new franchise.

Final Fantasy Type-0 was originally planned as a mobile game, under the Final Fantasy XIII Agito name, but it was moved to Playstation Portable following the success of the company's other ventures on the handheld in Japan. After years of development, the game's release in Japan has been set: it will see its release this Summer, spanning two UMDs.

The name change is the result of two thoughts that director Hajime Tabata brought out into the open. First of all, the game had delved so far away from Final Fantasy XIII that he felt the game did not need to be part of the XIII line, which currently has three games in it. Secondly, Tabata stated that the new name would allow it to lead a new direction for the Final Fantasy series. This explains why Square Enix trademarked Final Fantasy Type-1, 2, and 3, as well. It appears the company is anticipating a great reception to the game and is planning on a series for the future.

The game will still be considered part of Fabula Nova Crystallis, which combines it with Final Fantasy XIII and Final Fantasy XIII Versus, as all three games share a similar game philosophy.

A trailer was also shown, but the game will not be fully unveiled to the public until the HD version of the trailer releases on the 27th.

OFFICIAL SITE

SOURCE: Andriasang

Lightning in Final Fantasy Strikes Twice

At today's Square Enix 1st Production Department Premiere, the massive RPG publisher announced Final Fantasy XIII-2, a direct sequel to the hit adventure which released early last year in America.

Final Fantasy XIII-2 was unveiled with a teaser trailer, showing the main character Lightning in a new suit of armor, along with a new character who joins her in battle. Square Enix states that the game's battle system will be evolved greatly from the original, and the story will carry onward from where the first game left off.

Motomu Toriyama, the director of Final Fantasy XIII, will retake his role as director for the direct sequel. Its release is planned for this upcoming Winter, and it was further emphasized by the US Playstation Blog. So, we can expect this game by March 2012 for both Xbox 360 and Playstation 3.

This is not the first time that Square Enix has made a direct sequel or prequel to a mainline Final Fantasy title. The company's first major sequel was the Playstation 2's Final Fantasy X-2, in which the female protagonist Yuna swapped wand with guns and clothes with less clothes. Since then, Square Enix has released a sequel series for Final Fantasy IV, entitled "The After Years" for WiiWare and Japanese Mobile services (as well as part of a Final Fantasy IV PSP game to come), and it also released a number of prequels and sequel products based on the Final Fantasy VII world.

OFFICIAL SITE (to have trailer on the 20th)

SOURCE: AndriaSang

Square-Enix is getting Gun Loco

Square-Enix has announced a third-person action arcade shooter exclusive for the Xbox 360: a crazy-looking title appropriately named Gun Loco.

The setting of Gun Loco is in the far reaches of the solar system, where the worst, craziest criminals are sent. Instead of having them in the highest security prison possible, they are blasted into a prison planet given free reign and all the guns they can handle. Of course, the criminals do not want to stay on the planet, and so they are all killing each other to get out!

The characters are reminiscient of Twisted Metal, in that not a single one is as level-headed as they could be. They range from a gun-touting nutjob aptly named Nuts to a bunny-head wearing psychopath named Mifune. These odd character designs were all made by Kenny Wong, the co-creator of Brothersworker action figures. In fact, the models are scanned-in figures, rather than hand-modeled game characters.

The main gameplay elements appear to be a mix of Mirror's Edge and Third-Person Shooters. Players run their characters around the massive levels, sliding under or leaping over cover. While doing all of that acrobatic action, the players can aim and shoot at each other like the madmen they are. Of course, each character has their own special abilities, just to add a bit more insanity into the fast-paced shooter.

Gun Loco will be releasing exclusively for Xbox 360 in 2011, and the site will be launching this week on the 18th.

SOURCE