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The Music and Maker of the Final Fantasy Rhythm Game Theatrhythm Revealed
Square Enix has made the unusual mash-up of music and role-playing game known as Theatrhythm: Final Fantasy official. The Nintendo 3DS game will span the music and characters of thirteen Final Fantasy games and comes from a promising developer. Theatrhythm: Final Fantasy is in development for the 3DS from Tokyo-based studio indieszero. The developer’s credits…
By Michael McWhertor Published July 11, 2011 -
The Cost of One Man’s Irrational Fear of Turn Based Role-Playing
Commenter Mudson has spent his life in fear of the glory that is turn based role-playing games. Now he’s overcome that silly fear and wants to know what he’s been missing in today’s Speak Up on Kotaku. I’ve been playing Chrono Trigger recently. I was a late gamer starting with the Gamecube so I missed…
By Mike Fahey Published July 8, 2011 -
Culture
Tony Holmsten’s Video Game Art Is a Final Fantasy
Tony Holmsten, formerly of Sweden now living in Japan, has been working as a video game artist since 2002 at two of Sweden’s biggest studio’s, Battlefield developers DICE and the now-defunct Grin. In that time, he’s done concept art, level art, promo art and lighting for games like Battlefield 2142, Bionic Commando and Fortress, the…
By Luke Plunkett Published June 29, 2011 -
Mass Effect is Inspired by…Final Fantasy?
Yes, while there are some obvious influences on BioWare’s Mass Effect series – like Syd Mead and Star Trek – there’s one that may have slipped under most people’s noses. And it’s not hard to see why. In an interview with Xbox World 360 magazine, Mass Effect 3 art director Derek Watts says that Final…
By Luke Plunkett Published June 28, 2011 -
Did this Beautiful Drawing Foretell the Wii U?
A Square Enix Final Fantasy music website went live this past January to promote the More SQ album, remixes and reworkings of iconic Final Fantasy themes. But what’s got Japanese netizens talking is the website’s splash art. Drawn by Akihiko Yoshida, Square Enix artist and character designer, the image features what looks to be the…
By Brian Ashcraft Published June 24, 2011 -
World Of Warcraft and Final Fantasy Take Turn Trading Blows
8-bit SoupRobot is a new web comedy series focusing on current affairs, country & western music, vintage automobiles, and 18th century German literature. Oh, wait. No, it’s about video games. The clip above is taken from the series’ first episode, which you can find on Vimeo here. The premise of the show is “what happens…
By Luke Plunkett Published June 13, 2011 -
Final Fantasy XIII-2 Has Transforming Moogles, Recruitable Monsters and Rap
I’ve always thought that Final Fantasy XIII didn’t get a fair shake. Admittedly, it was an overwhelmingly linear journey—player agency wasn’t topmost among the priorities incorporated into its development. But it was an extraordinarily intentional game; nothing about it ever felt accidental or unplanned. It did a few things, but it did them exceedingly well:…
By Drew Cohen Published June 8, 2011 -
Don’t Worry, in Deus Ex’s Dark Future, There Is Still Final Fantasy
Deus Ex is being published by Square Enix. You wouldn’t know it from first appearances, what with it not being called Deus Ex Cerebellum Equilibrium Perineum XIV-2 or starring teenagers with big hair, but a closer look in this screenshot gives the game away. Final Fantasy XXVII coming 2027! (Deus Ex:HR) [Reddit]
By Luke Plunkett Published June 2, 2011 -
Bankrupted Studio Says Square Enix Demanded Code by Fax, Didn’t Recognize FFXII Screenshots
In a feature story published today in Sweden, the founders of GRIN lay their studio’s precipitous demise at Square Enix’s feet, saying the publisher reneged on payments during the development of a Final Fantasy game and saddled them with ridiculous requirements as the project went sour. This is according a story (translated via Google) published…
By Owen Good Published May 28, 2011 -
You Can Now Buy Almost Every Final Fantasy Game Ever Made (For $15,000)
A guy from Thailand is selling his collection of Final Fantasy games. Normally, not so big a deal, but this isn’t your average collection, since it includes over 70 titles. eBay seller undkodlor is offloading Final Fantasy games from the Famicom, Super Famicom, Game Boy, DS, PS1, PS2, PS3, PSP, GameCube, Wii, Xbox 360, PC,…
By Luke Plunkett Published May 25, 2011 -
Japan’s Oldest (And Most Famous) Hardcore Dragon Quest Player
Actress Keiko Awaji is proof of two things: video games have no age limit and even pretty ladies get old. Getting old is not a bad thing! It’s even better when you have something to look forward to, like new Dragon Quest games. Awaji is a giant of Japanese cinema, but best known in the…
By Brian Ashcraft Published May 19, 2011 -
We Knew Samus Was a Girl, but Master Chief? Black Mage?
This clip from The Game Station is pretty great. Once it’s wearing out its welcome taking the piss out of secret game gender reveals, it turns into a never-ending shampoo commercial and gets funny all over again.
By Luke Plunkett Published May 4, 2011 -
Bringing Mass Effect To Life Before Your Very Eyes
Most of these “Fancy Pants” galleries we run are full of great photos of people in great costumes, but a few of this week’s pictures go the extra mile. Leading the charge is this Aria T’Loak, which is not just an amazing piece of costume play, but an amazing choice of character. Joining her this…
By Luke Plunkett Published April 25, 2011 -
The Clever Art Of Stealing
The quote “Good artists borrow, great artists steal” is often attributed to Pablo Picasso. There doesn’t seem to be solid evidence that he actually said it, but the quote is often misinterpreted anyway. It’s not that stealing is okay, but rather, stealing implies taking something and making it your own. What’s more, not every artist…
By Brian Ashcraft Published April 21, 2011 -
Is This Game Ripping Off Final Fantasy?
Pandora’s Tower, an upcoming Nintendo-published role-playing game, looks great. It also looks a lot like Final Fantasy. Japanese netizens are quick to point out that images on the box art for Pandora’s Tower look incredibly similar to character art for Square Enix’s most recent role-playing games, Final Fantasy Versus XIII and Final Fantasy XIII. Pandora’s…
By Brian Ashcraft Published April 18, 2011 -
Japan Sure Loves Those Role-Playing Games
Bookmark this post. Because, if you ever need proof that Japan loves role-playing games, you’ll have this to refer to. CESA, the group that organizes the Tokyo Game Show, polls visitors year after year about their gaming preferences. And since 1997, TGS attendees listed role-playing games as their favorite genres. CESA began organizing the Tokyo…
By Brian Ashcraft Published April 15, 2011 -
Ryu, Ken, Yoshi, Sheik And Some Creepers Star In Convention Fighter II
Remember, remember, the Lara Croft in poor weather, and the girl who loved Aion a lot. I see no reason why Star Wars or Creepers should ever be forgot. There’s been plenty of great cosplay going on over the past week or so, some of it in the US, some of it in Australia, all…
By Luke Plunkett Published April 11, 2011 -
Final Fantasy Gets Its Own Holy Shit Moment
While AR Games might be the 3DS’s holy shit moment, there are plenty of holy shit moments to go around. Final Fantasy has its own on the iPhone. New app Dissidia Duodecim Final Fantasy AR allows folks to downloaded AR models of Final Fantasy XIII’s Lightning, Final Fantasy VII’s Cloud, Warrior of Light from the…
By Brian Ashcraft Published March 30, 2011 -
It’s Not A Real Adventuring Party Until The Cover Bard Shows Up
In Dorkly’s latest Final Fantasy-inspired short, the oft-maligned bard is oft-maligned once again, and Sugar Ray is sung with great gusto. When I first started playing Dungeons & Dragons way back in the day, bards were the laughingstock of our adventuring group. Back then, being a bard took a tremendous amount of hard work and…
By Mike Fahey Published March 29, 2011
