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E308: Final Fantasy IV speaks our language -- probably yours, also

Posted Jul 17th 2008 6:00PM by Chris Greenhough
Filed under: News

If you've already played the SNES version of Final Fantasy IV and think you'll find the DS remake a breeze, then here's one way to make things tougher (which doesn't involve remixed bosses): try playing it in a different language.

Siliconera's Spencer Yip discovered that the North American version of Final Fantasy IV will ship next week with the French, German, Italian, and Spanish dialog from the European edition included. Accessing any of these is easy -- just change the language setting on the main DS menu. Perfect for anyone in the States who doesn't use English as a first language, or any non-English-speaking Europeans who want a cheap import!

Join us after the break, where we'll teach you how to say a popular and useful phrase in many languages!

Gallery: Final Fantasy IV

Continue reading E308: Final Fantasy IV speaks our language -- probably yours, also

Wark! Two Chocobo trailers waddle into view

Posted Jul 9th 2008 9:00PM by Eric Caoili
Filed under: Video

Making sure that you get the message -- the message being "Chocobos are really cute; buy our Chocobo games" -- Square Enix has posted trailers for its two recently revealed fall-bound Chocobo titles, Cid and Chocobo's Mysterious Dungeon: Maze of Time DS+ and Chocobo and the Magic Storybook: The Witch and the Girl and the Five Heroes.

As you might be able to tell in the promotional clip and the game's title, Cid and Chocobo's Mysterious Dungeon is an enhanced port of Chocobo's Dungeon (released in the U.S. for the Wii this week) with more focus on Final Fantasy regular Cid. Given the nature of roguelikes, this DS release doesn't look like that much of a "downgraded" experience compared to the Wii version!

The Chocobo and the Magic Storybook clip isn't nearly as epic, but if you're enough of a Chocobo fan to have read this far into the post, you'll likely want to watch it anyway. Jump past the break for more of the flightless, chubby bird.

Gallery: Cid and Chocobo's Mysterious Dungeon: Maze of Time DS+

Continue reading Wark! Two Chocobo trailers waddle into view

DS Fanboy Review: Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift

Posted Jul 7th 2008 10:15AM by Alisha Karabinus
Filed under: Reviews

If you have a taste for strategy gaming at all and are looking for a way to spend the entire summer, then Square Enix's latest, Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift is not only a game with a very long title, but it might just be the answer to all your handheld gaming needs.

But length and depth aren't the only measure of a game. For some the latest Tactics may be a great way to while away the month(s), but others will find the paper-thin story and the hand-holding approach a turn-off. In a field of excellent Square Enix titles, Grimoire of the Rift isn't exactly a stand-out, but mediocre Square Enix still tends to be pretty good in the long run.

Gallery: Final Fantasy Tactics A2

Continue reading DS Fanboy Review: Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift

Comparing the old and the new: Final Fantasy IV

Posted Jul 2nd 2008 2:45PM by David Hinkle
Filed under: Video

A comparison video between the original SNES game and new DS remake of Final Fantasy IV is available for your viewing pleasure above. As one might expect, the DS title dwarfs the SNES game graphically, showing us a much more alive game world and bringing the events to life in better fashion. But, hey, we're not knocking the SNES game. We're all for the retro around here.

With the release of Final Fantasy IV getting closer and closer, who's ready to ignore their responsibilities for a week to play through this one?

Gallery: Final Fantasy IV

[Via Go Nintendo]

Show and Tell: The Final Fantasy challenge

Posted Jun 26th 2008 1:16PM by Alisha Karabinus
Filed under: Show and Tell

What? No new awesome project this week? Don't worry -- we'll get back to showing off your stuff next week, and we've got a ton submissions just waiting to be seen. But this week, we're taking a break in favor of a request. Are you a Final Fantasy fan? Have some Final Fantasy stuff? We want to see it! Show us your figures, your doo-dads and gear, because we're going to do a special Final Fantasy-themed Show and Tell set soon.

Of course, we know Final Fantasy fans are probably busy burying their noses in Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift this week, but maybe you can take the time out to snap a few pictures of your stuff and send it in to us at showmeit [at] dsfanboy [dot] com. We'll take care of the rest.

Show and Tell is all about your stuff, so long as it's Nintendo-related. We love to see your collections, your crafts, your frosted creations, your t-shirts and swag of all sorts. Just snap a few pictures, tell us what's up, and send it all to showmeit [at] dsfanboy [dot] com. We'll take care of the rest.

Square Enix fulfills your FFIV screenshot fantasy

Posted Jun 24th 2008 7:00PM by Eric Caoili
Filed under: Screens

With FFTA2 now shipped and out of its hands, Square Enix has turned its attention to building up the release of its next summer title, Final Fantasy IV. The publisher has fired out over two dozen new screenshots for the RPG, all of them in our gallery below!

For those of you who aren't sure what the 3D remake promises to add to the almost 17-year-old game, here's a quick recap: touchscreen controls, a dungeon-mapping system, additional episodes, a system with which characters can learn abilities from friends, fully voiced cutscenes, an Event Theatre mode for watching past cutscenes, and a minigame for raising your own summon monster. So, there's quite a lot of new stuff!

Look for Final Fantasy IV to ship out to stores on July 22.

Gallery: Final Fantasy IV

Metareview: Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift

Posted Jun 23rd 2008 7:00PM by JC Fletcher
Filed under: Metareview

This week marks the auspicious arrival of a new Final Fantasy game on the DS. Fans of the two previous Tactics games, or of the Ivalice Alliance, or the beloved strategy developer Quest (Ogre Battle), who began the Tactics series once absorbed into Square, may have even more reason to rejoice; fans of the traditional Final Fantasy RPG series should be warned, as they always should with a spinoff, that Tactics is way different.

Is the sequel to the GBA spinoff of the PlayStation spinoff of the Final Fantasy series worthy of its various progenitors? It sounds like it just may be!

IGN: 90% -- Daemon Hatfield misses the PlayStation iteration, but can't deny the addictive quality still present in the Advance series: "It would be nice to get another mature Tactics game like the original, but A2 won me over quickly with its beautiful visuals and deep, strategic gameplay. This is one of those desert island games you'd want with you if you were stranded with nothing to do."

GamesRadar: 80% -- Carolyn Gudmundson of GamesRadar thought the game coddled the player a bit more than strategy games typically do, but still worthy of hundreds of hours of your attention: "Like its predecessor, A2 presents a kinder, gentler tactical RPG (it's much easier than the original FF Tactics on PS1 or any of the Advance Wars titles, for example), so if you like your tactical action rough and punishing, we still recommend giving Tactics A2 a try, but skip straight to hard mode. "

GameSpot: 70% -- GameSpot's Shiva Stella found the opposite: a bit too much difficulty, and overcomplicated play. "One of Grimoire's setbacks is the amount of time that it takes to accomplish even the simplest of tasks, with most quests lasting 45 minutes to an hour, although there is a handy quicksave feature. Grimoire also sports a steep learning curve for both its combat and micromanagement elements, and is a bit slow to pick up because you spend the first 10 to 20 hours mastering basic abilities, unlocking classes, and gathering equipment to play the jobs that you want."

Gallery: Final Fantasy Tactics A2

Promotional Consideration: Tactical advertisements

Posted Jun 22nd 2008 8:00PM by Eric Caoili
Filed under: Video, Promotional Consideration

Did you forget that Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift ships in North America this week? We wouldn't be surprised if you did, as, aside from two magazine advertisements, Square Enix hasn't done much to promote the SRPG sequel.

In fact, unless we've missed something, the only two handheld game commercials Square Enix has aired in the U.S. since the GBA were for the Final Fantasy III remake and Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker -- Mario Hoops 3-on-3 doesn't count. That's a shame considering how creative the original Final Fantasy Tactics Advance commercial was!

Bring your mages, ninjas, and gunners past the break for the GBA clip and the two FFTA2 magazine pieces we mentioned above!

Gallery: Final Fantasy Tactics A2

Continue reading Promotional Consideration: Tactical advertisements

Brits: Drill your way to HMV for cheap games

Posted Jun 20th 2008 6:00PM by Chris Greenhough
Filed under: Sales

Summer in the northern hemisphere officially starts today, which means one thing: sharing strawberries with a loved one in a tranquil hay meadow as you soak up the rays grabbing cheap games in the sales! The folks at HMV know the heat turns us Brits into mushy-minded impulse buyers, and so they've gone and slashed prices on approximately 30 DS titles to around the £12 - £15 mark. Here's the best of what's on offer:

• Mr. Driller: Drill Spirits for £11.99
• Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings for £15.99
• Drawn to Life for £11.99
• The Simpsons Game for £12.99
• Geometry Wars: Galaxies for £12.99
• Sim City for £11.99
• MySims for £14.99
• Magical Starsign for £11.99
  

Remember also that HMV offers free shipping to the UK, so you won't need to leave your La-Z-Boy and expose yourself to that nasty summer sun.

Gallery: Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings

Train for next week's release with FFTA2 screens

Posted Jun 20th 2008 10:15AM by Alisha Karabinus
Filed under: Screens

You know a game is epic when the publisher can release dozens of screens -- dozens -- and you still feel as though you're only getting the barest glimpse of the depth that awaits. We've seen so much of Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift, from videos to screens, and previews of jobs to boot, and none of that is even a patch on the hours of gameplay that awaits. For once, we're not even upset about the Square Enix "tax" that elevates the price of their games; here, we'll know where those extra dollars went. Sometime next year, we might have finally finished everything there is to finish.

Maybe.

If we're lucky.

Gallery: Final Fantasy Tactics A2

[Via press release]

Final Fantasy tracks remixed for new album releasing to Japan

Posted Jun 18th 2008 2:00PM by David Hinkle
Filed under: News, Fan stuff

When asked by Final Fantasy junkies what their favorite aspect of the franchise is, you're likely to get a variety of answers. From the battle system to the epic tales weaved by each game, Square Enix has accrued quite the fan base over the years. If you ask us, one of the things we've always loved about those games were the music.

And here comes one more reason to be jealous of the Japanese. Famitsu reports that Square Enix will be releasing a remix cd on August 6th that focuses on Final Fantasy tracks. Nobuo Uematsu's famous songs will be remixed by Ante.

If you'd like a taste for yourself, check out the official site for the remix right here.

[Via Famitsu]

Three for two at Toys R Us next week

Posted Jun 17th 2008 6:00PM by JC Fletcher
Filed under: Sales

Toys R Us is holding its annual "buy two, get one free" DS promotion again starting on Sunday the 22nd, according to the latest weekly ad (as transcribed by CAG denizens). It's a great time for it, too: people getting Guitar Hero On Tour should be able to defray some of the cost by bundling it with two other games. Of course, even if you don't care about On Tour, you can get a great deal on some DS games. We just focused on that because it's new and it's so expensive that any other DS game comes in at an "equal or lesser value."

Guitar Hero is expensive enough that, under the right conditions (purchasing two Square Enix games along with it), you could get a free Square Enix game! Final Fantasy Tactics A2 comes out next week, for example -- $90 for Guitar Hero, FFTA2, and The World Ends with You is a relatively non-terrible deal.

[Via CAG]

Friday Video: Professions of the Rift

Posted Jun 13th 2008 9:00PM by Eric Caoili
Filed under: Video, Friday video

With our economy in its current dwindling state and the unemployment rate rising, it's nice to hear that some people are still able to find jobs, even if they're fictional jobs for fictional members of a fictional race existing in a fictional game world.

Square Enix has released several short video clips introducing five of Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rifts' new jobs -- Chocobo Knight, Seer, Berserker, Geomancer, and Arcanist (above). They're not nearly as interesting as the "rejected FFTA2 professions" we featured, but these jobs are at least a little bit more real than the ones we made up.

Gallery: Final Fantasy Tactics A2

Get a job: Final Fantasy Tactics A2 preview

Posted Jun 11th 2008 9:30AM by Alisha Karabinus
Filed under: News, Screens

Chocobo Knights and Geomancers! If those words make your heart go a-flutter, it's probably a good time to check in with GameSpy's preview of some of the more inaccessible jobs in Final Fantasy Tactics Advance 2: Grimoire of the Rift. Sure, the game comes out later this month, but according to them, you're going to be playing for a long, long time before you see any of these jobs.

Check out five of the jobs, complete with super cute outfits and videos, at the source ... and work your way into our newly-expanded gallery for an explosion of English-language screenshots sure to whet your appetite for the game's upcoming release.

Gallery: Final Fantasy Tactics A2

[Via GoNintendo]

Etrian Odyssey, FFTA2 developers want to speak with you

Posted Jun 10th 2008 10:15AM by Chris Greenhough
Filed under: Interviews, News

Even if it is really all about plugging their products, we love it when game developers choose to communicate directly with us, the dirty, huddled masses, and today has brought news of two studios who are inviting questions from gamers.

First up is Atlus, or more specifically Nich Maragos, Atlus USA Editor and Project Lead for both of the Etrian Odyssey games. Between now and June 17th, he'll be answering as many of your Etrian-related queries as he can here. Maragos is accepting questions about either of the two DS games, perhaps to accommodate for PAL region players, who only just received the first game last Friday. Ask him why Europe had to wait so long, if you like. Go on, do it.

Next in line is the entire development team for Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift, who are clearly pretty confident that they'll be receiving an absolute avalanche of questions, as they're doing this as a group. You'll have to be a signed-up Square Enix member, though, which will mean having to fill in this form.

Ask Atlus!
Ask Square Enix!

Gallery: Etrian Odyssey II

Gallery: Final Fantasy Tactics A2

[Via Go Nintendo and NeoGAF]

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