-
Behold the Awesome Power of Final Fantasy XIII-2‘s Moogle
They’re not just about floating about saying “Kupo” anymore. In Final Fantasy XIII-2, many of the game’s most important mechanics are Moogle-powered. I’m not a picky Final Fantasy fan. All I want is a lengthy adventure of some sort and an adorable little floating critter by my side at all times. So I think I’m…
By Mike Fahey Published January 5, 2012 -
It Only Takes 30 Games and 80 Movies to Get the Full Kingdom Hearts Experience
Does playing every game in the Kingdom Hearts series qualify you as a true fan? Commenter zombie711 thinks it might be a little more involved than that in today’s Speak Up on Kotaku. I love the Kingdom Hearts series. It remains today to be my favorite series of all time. What I don’t like is…
By Mike Fahey Published January 3, 2012 -
Hope You Like Final Fantasy XIII-2! There Will Be DLC.
Back in late 2009, Final Fantasy XIII director Motomu Toriyama wrote on his blog: “The world of Final Fantasy XIII is starting from here on out.” It hinted that FFXIII DLC was on the horizon. It wasn’t. And Toriyama apparently apologized later for the lack of FFXIII downloadable content. Now that the game’s sequel, Final…
By Brian Ashcraft Published December 29, 2011 -
The Five 3DS Game Demos Aren’t Unlimited. Some Are Nice, Though.
As first revealed during last night’s Nintendo Direct, the 3DS is getting five game demos in Japan: Theatrhythm Final Fantasy, Metal Gear Solid Snake Eater 3D, Rhythm Thief & The Emperor’s Theater, New Love Plus and Resident Evil: Revelations In this video, I showed off some of the game demos and talked a bit about…
By Brian Ashcraft Published December 27, 2011 -
You Want a Deal? Get Final Fantasy XIII-2 on the Xbox 360
When Final Fantasy XIII-2 launched in Japan earlier this month, it sold only half a million copies on the PS3 in its first week, which isn’t near the 1.5 million copies FFXIII moved in its first week in Japan. I say “only” like half a million is something to sneeze at—it’s not. And post release,…
By Brian Ashcraft Published December 26, 2011 -
Why Did Pretty Buckled Japanese Boys Go Out of Style?
In a world where rough and gruff is the new heroic norm, commenter Paradox Me wonders why everyone is hating on Japanese character design lately. What the heck happened in the last ~6 years that made Japanese character design into such an undesirable thing? I have never seen so many people rage over things like…
By Mike Fahey Published December 22, 2011 -
Only Xbox 360 Owners Will Be Able to Use This Exclusive Final Fantasy XIII-2 DLC Weapon
Remember when Final Fantasy games were a hot-damn, big-deal reason to get a PlayStation console? That era ended a little while back, and the very fact that Final Fantasy XIII showed up on the Xbox 360 meant that things would never be the same. Now that game’s sequel will be offering an exclusive weapon that…
By Evan Narcisse Published December 21, 2011 -
Who’s Who in Final Fantasy XIII-2
In case you were having trouble telling your pink-jaired girls from your purple-haired not-quite-girls, Square Enix has released a handy video pointing out which character is which in the upcoming Final Fantasy XIII sequel. It’s pretty easy to pick the characters out if you’ve been playing attention. Lightning is the one everyone cares about; Caius…
By Mike Fahey Published December 20, 2011 -
Can You Tell These Multiplatform Final Fantasy XIII-2 Screens Apart?
Because, honestly, it’s getting to the point where I cannot. And that is not a bad thing! Multiplatform games should look relatively the same. But here we have the Xbox 360 and the PS3 versions of role-playing game Final Fantasy XIII-2 facing off in a screenshot battle of who’s prettier. You’re both pretty, Final Fantasy…
By Brian Ashcraft Published December 20, 2011 -
Final Fantasy XIII‘s Lightning Strikes Skyrim
It’s East meets West. A Japanese gamer has inserted Final Fantasy XIII heroine Lightning into The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim with a character mod. Here are the results. What do you think? The stockings and starch white outfit look out of place, but Lightning sure can pull off a simple tunic. Japanese role-playing game Final…
By Brian Ashcraft Published December 19, 2011 -
Person Buys New Final Fantasy. Won’t Leave Home for a Week.
Final Fantasy XIII-2 is on sale in Japan. On the Japanese internet, one commenter posted the above photo, noting that he (or she) stocked up on enough food to last a week in order to avoid leaving the house. Nothing says prepared like a half-eaten strawberry cake. Or healthy, for that matter. 1週間引きこもって「FF13-2」を遊ぶために買い込んだ食料がカオスwwww [はちま機構]
By Brian Ashcraft Published December 16, 2011 -
From Concept Costume to Cosplay
Idol Yuko Oshima didn’t only work as the “official” Final Fantasy XIII-2 tester, she also designed outfits for the game. Above, you can see her original concept art and how Square Enix cleaned it up. Oshima, a member of the popular group ABK48, wore the outfit to the game’s promotional launch event at the Bic…
By Brian Ashcraft Published December 16, 2011 -
Another 18 Screens Showcase Final Fantasy XIII-2
Longtime readers know that hilarity abounds when you ask the sports guy to write about Final Fantasy. I have not once ever so much as pressed a button in this series. So here you go, 18 new shots from Final Fantasy XII-2 The game’s “Master of Monsters” concept sounds a little bit like Pokémon to…
By Owen Good Published December 15, 2011 -
Final Fantasy XIII-2 Soundtrack’s Descent Into Self-Parody is Audio Metaphor for Series
Oh hey, there’s a new Chocobo song in Final Fantasy XIII-2! I do so love hearing the new arrangements of Nobuo Uematsu’s whimsical theme that arrive with each new iteration of the series. Let’s give it a listen! Oh. Oh god. While I’ve been a bit more forgiving than most concerning the quality of recent…
By Mike Fahey Published December 13, 2011 -
How To Talk to Your Children About Classic Video Games
It’s a delicate subject but one that will inevitably come up for any parent, and you’ve got to be prepared. In this age of bright and shiny high definition games, how can we force our children to play through the games we grew up on first? This is commenter Balmung‘s question in today’s Speak Up…
By Mike Fahey Published December 13, 2011 -
Everything You Need to Know About Final Fantasy XII-2 In Four Minutes
After spending months handing out information on the follow-up to Final Fantasy XIII one snippet at a time, Square Enix brings the accumulated sum of Final Fantasy XIII-2 knowledge together in one handy-dandy four-minute-and-change primer video. We’ve got the story, the characters, the battle system in all its newfound complexity, and anything else that might…
By Mike Fahey Published December 12, 2011 -
OC ReMix’s Latest Free Album Explores the Evil Themes of 18 BadAss Video Game Bosses
What happens when 20 top video game music remixers take on 18 of the biggest, baddest bosses ever committed to CD or cartridge? That would be OC Remix’s 30th free album, BadAss: Boss Themes Only the amazing artists of the OC Remix community could collectively take on the likes of Sephiroth, Donkey Kong, Astaroth, Shredder,…
By Mike Fahey Published December 9, 2011 -
Dear Square Enix, Please Make Final Fantasy XV More Like Final Fantasy IX
In today’s fully Fahey-approved edition of Speak Up on Kotaku, commenter Paradox Me makes an argument for the greatness of Final Fantasy IX that’s more than just saying the name Vivi over and over again. Why is this game so amazing? These characters, world, music, etc. Shmowzow! That’s what XIII was missing. Characters and a…
By Mike Fahey Published December 8, 2011