Tag: Square Enix - Page 7
News Kingdom Hearts, NieR Automata Teams Assisted on Final Fantasy 16 for PS5
Calling in the big guns
We know that Sony has helped Square Enix optimise Final Fantasy 16 for the PS5, and now we have confirmation that both PlatinumGames and also SE Creative Business Unit 1 were involved. During yesterday’s pre-launch livestream, it was confirmed that Takahisa Taura of NieR Automata fame led a team from within PlatinumGames to...
News PS5's Final Fantasy 16 Marketing Onslaught Has Started with Sick London Buses
The marketing wheels go round
Sony may be frustrating beyond belief at times, but when it’s got a big game in its portfolio, you can bet your bottom dollar it’s going to make sure you know about it. Final Fantasy 16 is the next major PS5 console exclusive on the horizon, and with the release of today’s demo, the marketing onslaught is well...
News Sony's Partnership with Square Enix Has Never Been Stronger, Says Jim Ryan
He values "everything we do together"
PlayStation bigwig Jim Ryan made a surprise appearance during Final Fantasy 16’s pre-launch livestream overnight, where he said that his company’s relationship with publisher Square Enix has “never been stronger”. In the brief speech, he mentioned that Sony’s collaboration with the company “goes back...
News Final Fantasy 16 Demo Out Now on PS5, Progress Carries Over to the Full Game
Over two hours of gameplay
The highly anticipated demo for Final Fantasy XVI is out right now on PS5, giving everyone a chance to play through a generous chunk of the game's opening act ahead of its full release on the 22nd June. Just to be clear, the exact launch time for the demo is 9AM BST / 10AM CEST / 1AM PT / 4AM ET on the 12th June (today, at...
Preview Ignore the Snark, Foamstars Is Good
Bubble trouble
If the Internet is already dead set on writing Foamstars off completely, then it'll be red in the face come PS5, PS4 launch day. Despite the comparisons it's attracting, this isn't really a Splatoon rip-off, and most important of all: it is really quite enjoyable to play. We had the chance to compete in multiple local matches at...
News Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth's PS5 Trailer Compared to PS1 Original
Iconic scenes revisited
We glimpsed some iconic moments from Final Fantasy 7 during yesterday’s Rebirth trailer, including Cloud’s arrival at the Chocobo farm and the first footage of Elena. It’s interesting, then, to see some of these iconic scenes compared to the PS1 original – and an industrious TikToker, as spotted by GamesRadar
News Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth Will Ship on Two PS5 Discs, Square Enix Proudly Points Out
It's a big one
Final Fantasy VII Rebirth will be spread across two discs when it launches on PS5, Square Enix confirmed — seemingly with some amount of pride — at the end of the title's new trailer. This suggests that the anticipated sequel is simply too big to fit on one Blu-ray disc, despite the fact that these days, discs are essentially just...
News Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth Gets PS5 Gameplay as Early 2024 Release Window Is Confirmed
The unknown journey continues
Despite the fact that Final Fantasy XVI is out in just a couple of weeks, Square Enix has been bombarding us with new Final Fantasy VII Rebirth news. The anticipated sequel ended up being the closer to Summer Game Fest Live, and we saw a lot more of the game than we thought we would at this point. The new trailer shows...
News Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth PS5 Gameplay at Summer Game Fest? Nomura Promises More Soon
Latest daily update is light on details
Square Enix’s week-long trolling exercise appears to have concluded with the vaguest Twitter update on Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth yet: “More information will be revealed soon.” That it! That’s the sole confirmation from creative director Tetsuya Nomura, following previous Earth-shattering reveals about...
News Square Enix Doesn't Think You've Seen Enough Final Fantasy 16 PS5 Gameplay
Make them stop
At this point, Square Enix appears to have taken several chapters out of the Jim Ryan Marketing Playbook, inundating fans with so much Final Fantasy XVI gameplay it appears that the Japanese firm aims to achieve Total Mindshare. Despite politely requesting an end
News In a Shock Twist, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth Will Have Music on PS5
Bizarre development updates continue
Oh, this is just getting silly now. We were willing to entertain the idea of these daily Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth updates when the development team was vaguely discussing the release’s progress, but now we have the Earth-shaking confirmation that the title will have music in it. The
News Acclaimed PS5, PS4 RPG Sequel Octopath Traveler 2 Tops One Million Sales
Milestone maker
There were concerns that Octopath Traveler 2 may have underperformed, despite it receiving a stellar reception from critics, but news today confirms that title has topped one million units. Obviously, we’ll need to wait and see whether that measures up to Square Enix’s notoriously aggressive targets, but it certainly paints a...
News After a Year of Silence, the Final Fantasy 9 Remake Rumours Have Re-Emerged
White Mage Grubb casts Esuna
As if hit with the recommended dose of Echo Screen, the silence surrounding the long-rumoured remake of Final Fantasy IX has lifted once again. Noted industry insider and White Mage Jeff Grubb has fanned the flames of speculation this time, reigniting the unholy conflag
News Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth PS5 Has 'New Comrades' You Can 'Cooperate With'
Wow!
The breaking news just keeps on coming out of Square Enix: today it's been confirmed Final Fantasy VII Rebirth on PS5 will feature "new comrades" that you can "cooperate with". Wow! This is the fifth development comment the company has issued, and none except the first have been of much — if any at all — substance. Still, now you know...
News Odd Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth Quotes Continue, Don't Need to Play the First Remake
Square Enix has "made preparations"
Square Enix is back for the fourth day in a row with a slightly strange Final Fantasy VII Rebirth quote, today announcing you don't need to have played PS5, PS4 title Final Fantasy VII Remake in order to enjoy the sequel. The company says it has "made preparations so that players who did not get a chance to play...
News Breaking News! Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth Will Have a Story
And characters!
In what is a shocking new direction for Final Fantasy — and the role-playing game genre as a whole — Final Fantasy VII Rebirth will have a story as well as characters. Hard to wrap your head around isn't it? But it's apparently the truth. Square Enix has released another weird developer update on the upcoming sequel. This...
News Square Enix Allegedly 'Slightly Panicking' About Final Fantasy 16 PS5 Pre-Orders
Apparently tracking behind Final Fantasy 15
We’ve played quite a lot of Final Fantasy 16 now at various preview events, and as we’ve described it in past write-ups, we believe it’s going to end up a bonafide Game of the Year contender. However, there are the slightest rumbles beginning to
News Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth Will Offer a 'High Degree of Freedom' on PS5
Another vague update on Square Enix's remake sequel
Is this a bit weird now? Following on from yesterday’s unexpected Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth update, where publisher Square Enix promised the game was progressing smoothly and that a release date would be nailed down soon, the firm has offered a vague update on how traversal and navigation across...
News Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth PS5 Dev Progressing Smoothly, Release Date Being Nailed Down
An unexpected update
Out of seemingly nowhere, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth producer Yoshinori Kitase has provided an update on the upcoming game. In the short Twitter statement, he says “development is progressing smoothly and according to plan”. He adds: “We are currently working on nailing down a release date for the game.” And that’s it –...
News Final Fantasy 16's Liquid Flame Boss Battle on PS5 Will Melt Your Eyes
Ifrit, eat your heart out
It's been nine long years since the launch of the last mainline Final Fantasy game, and the anticipation for Final Fantasy XVI (launching 22nd June on PS5) is becoming an all-consuming conflagration. Dumping further fuel on the flames (pardon the pun), Square Enix, via IGN's First series, has debuted some scintillating new...
Random Final Fantasy 16's PS5 Performance Mode Made Moogles Look Like Hedgehogs
Kupo!
As Final Fantasy fans well know, Moogles are a mainstay of the series (introduced in Final Fantasy III), and are as iconic as they are capricious. The little blighters made life difficult during the development of the imminent Final Fantasy XVI, too, according to some amusing anecdotes from the game's developers. In a new interview, XVI...
News Final Fantasy 16 Demo Spotted on PS Store
It's almost time
The long-promised playable demo for Final Fantasy XVI will obviously have to release in the near future, since the full game is out on the 22nd June. And as spotted by users on Reddit, the demo now shows up on the PS Store, specifically if you're browsing via mobile. We weren't able to replicate this ourselves, but it's possible...
News Final Fantasy 16 Devs Considered Hybrid Combat System, But Craved Something 'Complete'
All-in action
Final Fantasy XVI developer Creative Business Unit III — an internal studio at Square Enix — set out to try something new with the series' latest instalment. The team's goal was to create a Final Fantasy title that could attract a "new generation" of players, and the main thrust of its plans manifested as an all-action combat...
Praise Bahamut
A PS4 version of the upcoming Final Fantasy XVI was in development at some stage, although getting it up to snuff would have added years of dev time, producer Naoki Yoshida has revealed. In an interview with Final Fantasy Union, Yoshida said on the matter: "What I can say is that while developing, we originally had a plan to release...
News Action RPG Infinity Strash: Dragon Quest Adventures to PS5, PS4 in September
Worldwide release date confirmed
The shockingly named Infinity Strash: Dragon Quest The Adventure of Dai now has a release date. It launches worldwide for PS5 and PS4 on the 28th September, and it's nice to see Square Enix committing to releasing new Dragon Quest titles on the same day all over the globe. We're sure Dragon Quest XII and Dragon Quest...
News Final Fantasy 16's Harder New Game + Difficulty Will Keep Players Busy for a Long, Long Time
Final Fantasy Mode
Once you beat Final Fantasy XVI, you'll be able to play through it again with all of your abilities and equipment intact, thanks to a dedicated New Game + mode. But if you really want to dig deeper into the game's combat system, then you might want to try Final Fantasy Mode — an exclusive difficulty option that's available on a...
News PS5 Fans Were Hoping for an Update on Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth This Week
Nomura no-show
Final Fantasy VII Rebirth was nowhere to be seen during yesterday's PlayStation Showcase, a conspicuous absence which fans were quick to note. Now, to be entirely fair to Square Enix, it probably didn't want to split focus so that it could show us more Final Fantasy XVI gameplay (even after we did everything in our power to stop...
Review Forspoken: In Tanta We Trust (PS5) - Better Than the Main Game
Square Enix just did that
In Tanta We Trust is a rare example of DLC better than the main game it's based on, but that doesn't mean you need to rush out and buy a PS5 copy of Forspoken in order to play it. This optional expansion trumps the original campaign purely because it doesn't need to bother with the baggage of an open world experience: vast...
News Foamstars Is Square Enix's Answer to Splatoon on PS5, PS4
The sincerest form of flattery
Announced during today's admittedly tepid PlayStation Showcase is Foamstars, a fresh new 4v4 party clearly taking more than a couple of pages from Nintendo's immensely popular Splatoon franchise. Perhaps not the freshest take, but these characters certainly look like they might smell better than the Squid Kids, that's...
News Final Fantasy 16 Gets Another Really Good Trailer, But No PS5 Demo Yet
Not long now
It was one of the most popular pre-PlayStation Showcase predictions: the anticipated demo for Final Fantasy XVI would drop just after the Sony's event. Sadly, it hasn't happened, so you'll just have to make do with yet another trailer for the upcoming action RPG (which is now just under a month away from release, it should be noted)...
News Now May Be the Best Time to Play Forspoken on PS5
Cut the chatter, Cuff!
Square Enix has detailed some of the new additions coming to Forspoken in a free update which will launch alongside the impending In Tanta We Trust DLC (available now if you sprung for the Digital Deluxe Edition). Outside of the aforementioned paid prequel, all players can look forward to new gameplay con
News No Final Fantasy 16 DLC Planned, Said to Be a 'One-Off Game'
Unless PS5 players want it
Final Fantasy XVI producer Naoki Yoshida has revealed there's currently no post-launch DLC in the works for the Square Enix RPG. In a new interview with Game Informer, he calls it a "one-off game" containing an experience to match the full price cost. Yoshida wishes to give fans "satisfaction equal to what they paid or...
News Forspoken DLC In Tanta We Trust Out Now on PS5
For all Digital Deluxe Edition owners
Forspoken DLC In Tanta We Trust is now available for PS5 players who bought the Digital Deluxe Edition version, giving them three days of early access ahead of the main release on 26th May 2023. The expansion is a prequel to the main game and sees protagonist Frey journey back to when Athia was at war with...
News PS Plus Members Can Get a Free Fast Travel in Final Fantasy 14
Available until 1st June
Final Fantasy XIV players looking to save some Gil will want to take advantage of a new PS Plus bonus that went live on the PS Store earlier today. Available until 1st June 2023, active members can claim a free Aetheryte, which acts as a fast travel point for you in the game world. You will eventually need to renew it, but...
News Final Fantasy 16 Is So Polished, It Doesn't Need a Day One Patch
That's what we like to hear
In contrast to the majority of games that release these days, Final Fantasy XVI probably won't have a day one patch. In other words, the development team thinks the game is complete and polished, and that it doesn't need any post-ship adjustments. Director Hiroshi Takai told Game Informer that there are currently no...
News Final Fantasy Could Ditch Numbers for Future Instalments
But how would that make you feel?
One of the things we’ve observed during recent preview events is just how eager Square Enix is to underline that Final Fantasy 16 is a standalone game. While enthusiasts will already know that each mainline Final Fantasy includes its own cast of characters and storyline, it’s easy to imagine how more casual...
Interview Final Fantasy 16's Devs on Clive's Name, God of War's Leaves, and Fulfilling Fans
We chat for 20 minutes with Naoki Yoshida et al
Earlier this month, we were lucky enough to be invited by Square Enix to play almost four hours of Final Fantasy 16 amid the picturesque backdrop of the English capital’s iconic Tower of London. At the location, presumably selected to reflect the obvious European influences in the upcoming PS5...
News Final Fantasy 16 Will Get a PS5 Demo Which Lasts a Couple of Hours Prior to Launch
Focuses on Clive during his youth
Final Fantasy 16 is very close and seriously impressive, but you’ll be playing it even sooner than you think. Square Enix has confirmed that it’s plotting a full-length demo prior to release, which will last a couple of hours and focus on Clive in his youth. It’s the same segment of the game we played during a...
Almost four more hours with Square Enix's huge RPG sequel
Earlier in the year, after playing through a tailored demo designed specifically to showcase Final Fantasy 16’s combat systems, we described the action-heavy PS5 exclusive as a bonafide Game of the Year contender. With publisher Square Enix seemingly intent on showing as much of the sequel...
News Clive's Voice Actor in Final Fantasy 16 Thought He Was Going to Get Fired
"I was so scared"
Bristol-born actor Ben Starr is behind the voice of Clive Rosfield in Final Fantasy XVI, and the latest promotional video for the upcoming RPG is all about the main character. Producer Naoki Yoshida and localisation director Michael-Christopher Koji Fox sit down with Starr to discuss the game's protagonist, while also giving us...
News Final Fantasy 16 Gets an Absolutely Gorgeous Game Informer Cover
Hot stuff
Game Informer has snagged some really good looking covers over the years, but its freshly announced Final Fantasy XVI cover is an absolute beauty. The long-running magazine's next issue — number 356 — will feature a "deep dive into FFXVI’s world of Valisthea, its lore, its characters, and of course, its Eikons". Again though, that...
News Final Fantasy 16's Dog Companion May Be PS5's Best Good Boy Yet
Angelo, eat your heart out
Square Enix, it seems, intends to make Final Fantasy XVI as irresistible as possible to as many people as possible. Enter Torgal, the lovable canine gunning for the enviable position of "goodest good boy" on PS5. He's certainly a contender within the realm of Final Fantasy alone, where the nearest competition is VIII's...
News Final Fantasy 14 Patch 6.4 The Dark Throne Launches on PS5, PS4 Next Week
The story continues
The neverending forward march of Final Fantasy XIV continues (even if director Yoshi-P is currently obsessed with Zelda), with a trailer being released for the next chapter in the long-running MMO. The next patch, 6.4 - The Dark Throne, will set the stage for the next (as-yet-unannounced) major expansion and goes live next week,...
News Square Enix Wants to Release More Higher Quality Games, Starting with Final Fantasy 16
Japanese publisher has big ambitions
Square Enix tends to be unpredictable as a publisher. Take this year alone, for example: it released the highly promoted Forspoken to middling reviews, and then barely lifted a finger to advertise the critically acclaimed Octopath Traveler 2. Meanwhile, last year it dropped a ton of titles on Nintendo Switch,...
Random Final Fantasy 14's Yoshi-P Couldn't Stop Playing Zelda During PS5, PS4 MMO's Test Stream
Do not disturb
As we alluded to in our other article on the subject, the industry has been put on pause for The Legend of Zelda: Tears of Kingdom. And not even Final Fantasy 14 director Naoki Yoshida could put down his Nintendo Switch for a recent test stream, featuring the game’s v6.4 update. Any guesses for what he’s playing? Clearl
News Final Fantasy 16 Really Wants You to Know Its Action Combat Can Be Made Easy
Take it easy
The ongoing marketing campaign for Final Fantasy XVI has tried to make one particular point very clear: you don't have to be good at action games to enjoy the upcoming release. Despite going all-in on skill-based action combat, Square Enix is seemingly terrified of alienating potential players who may not like the idea of mastering...
News Final Fantasy 16 Refused Classification in Saudia Arabia
Square Enix "unwilling" to make necessary changes
Final Fantasy XVI will not be released in the Kingdom of Saudia Arabia, with the nation's official rating board (the General Commission for Audiovisual Media) refusing the eagerly-anticipated title classification. Apparently, this was due to publisher Square Enix's refusal to modify content for the...
News Final Fantasy 16's PS5 Console Bundle Can Be Pre-Ordered Now
Costs £539/$559
If you're in the market for a PS5 and are looking to pick Final Fantasy XVI up next month, you may want to combine the two purchases for the special console bundle releasing alongside the Square Enix RPG. Available for pre-order now is the previously announced Final Fantasy XVI PS5 console bundle, which packs in a PS5 download code...
News Forspoken Wants to Remind You It's Getting a Big Prequel DLC This Month
Enter the Frey
Out later this month on PS5, Forspoken: In Tanta We Trust promises more magical adventures for Frey Holland. The expansion releases on the 26th May, and places a heavy emphasis on dual characters. The DLC's story actually whisks Frey back in time, to a war that shaped the action RPG's fantasy world. You can catch a glimpse of In...
Gallery Final Fantasy 16 Artwork Is a Feast for the Eyes
All character art, Eikons, and more
Typical of the long-running series, Final Fantasy XVI has some downright gorgeous artwork behind it. In fact, it's so good that we've decided to gather it all on a single page for your perusal. Below, you'll find all of the officially released Final Fantasy XVI artwork so far, most of which has been beautifully...
