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[kamari-ice]

Square-Enix "pledges" to have a massive E3 showing, which includes "the long awaited" Final Fantasy XII, and the Final Fantasy VII compilation.

"Square Enix fans could be forgiven if they had given up hope in recent months. A complete information black-out, permeated by the odd patent application, had caused some to doubt the existence/continuation of several key franchises, with FFXII believed by some to have been canned for PlayStation 2.

Well, it’s not the case, you’ll no doubt be glad to hear. The RPG behemoth has revealed a partial E3 list, announcing what are undoubtedly some of the biggest games on the planet, including Final Fantasy XII and the long-awaited confirmation of a Final Fantasy VII update carrying the subtitle Dirge of Cerberus."

Game/DVD-UMD titles to be presented:

FINAL FANTASY® XII

FINAL FANTASY XII for the PlayStation®2 is the story of a world called Ivalice. Our tale begins in the Royal City of Rabanastre, against a backdrop of impending war. Rabanastre is the heart and capital of Dalmasca, a kingdom recently conquered by the neighboring Archadian Empire. The appointment of a new imperial consul gives the main character Vaan the chance he's been waiting for, but an unexpected turn of events puts Vaan and his friend Penelo alongside the sky pirate Balthier and his partner, Fran. Meanwhile, Princess Ashe, the sole surviving heir to the Dalmascan throne, struggles to restore freedom to her people. Return to an age when magic was commonplace and airships plied the skies, crowding out the heavens. Return to Ivalice. The release date for FINAL FANTASY XII will be announced at a later time. This title has not yet been rated by the ESRB.

FINAL FANTASY® VII ADVENT CHILDREN

This stunning CG sequel to the seminal 1997 PS one(TM) game console hit, FINAL FANTASY VII revisits the rich universe and memorable characters that gamers have never forgotten. The latest advancements in CG bring a visually stunning new look to the city of Midgar and its residents. Two years after the dramatic conclusion of FINAL FANTASY VII, the ruins of Midgar stand as a testament to the sacrifices that helped bring peace. However, the world will soon face a new menace. A mysterious illness is spreading fast. Old enemies are astir. And Cloud, who walked away from the life of a hero to live in solitude, must step forward yet again... FINAL FANTASY VII ADVENT CHILDREN is scheduled to ship in 2005.

FINAL FANTASY® VII Snowboarding

Experience the non-stop 3D action and speed of the popular FINAL FANTASY VII mini-game, FINAL FANTASY VII Snowboarding, on the go! Rack up points in "Score Attack" mode by dodging obstacles and catching balloons. Unlock intermediate and advanced downhill courses to put your skills to the test. Unlock the "Time Attack" mode to challenge your own speed records. Responsive controls and a new spin jump move are optimized for mobile play. This title is available in the U.S. only. Compatible Phones: Verizon Wireless / LG VX8000. Available now.

FINAL FANTASY® II

Now you can experience the excitement of the acclaimed FINAL FANTASY® II on your mobile phone! A long-lived peace is at an end. The emperor of Palamecia has called forth monsters from the underworld and begun his campaign for world conquest. A rebel army arose in the Kingdom of Fynn to thwart the emperor's plans, but the rebels' castle fell to an all-out assault by the empire. Four youths from Fynn also found themselves fleeing the imperial forces. They had lost their parents at the hands of the empire. But their escape wasn't over... North American compatible phones and launch date TBA.

FINAL FANTASY® XI

The top-selling MMORPG FINAL FANTASY XI is evolving yet again. With an ever-expanding online world and new and improved features, Vana'diel is now bigger and better than ever! Gamers can look forward to the continuing story in the Chains of Promathia expansion pack, explore new areas such as Al'Taieu and the Grand Palace of Hu'Xzoi, and engage in battles using new spells and abilities. In addition, never-before-seen items and equipment, new quests and new systems like guild points and Ballista rankings await players. FINAL FANTASY XI is the world's first and only cross-platform MMORPG (allowing PlayStation®2 and Windows® players to play together in the same world). Although technology has advanced, FINAL FANTASY XI has kept pace and continues to grow, developing brand-new gameplay features while delivering frequent updates to meet players' needs. FINAL FANTASY XI: Chains of Promathia is available now, with an ESRB rating of T (Teen).

DIRGE OF CERBERUS(TM) -FINAL FANTASY® VII

DIRGE of CERBERUS for the PlayStation®2 is the third installment in the COMPILATION OF FINAL FANTASY®VII. Taking place three years after the original PS one(TM) game console title, gamers follow Vincent Valentine's journey as he uncovers shocking truths never revealed in Midgar. Vincent is connected to recent attacks, and he may be the only one who can save this shattered world. When the world is engulfed in darkness, his gun will toll a dreadful dirge... The release date for DIRGE of CERBERUS will be announced at a later time. This title has not yet been rated by the ESRB. This title is not officially concept approved by Sony Computer Entertainment America.

Source:
https://spong.com/detail/news.asp?prid=8605

[Qjij_jijQ]

Nice.

... even though I'm only really looking foward to Final Fantasy XII

If only Vaan didn't look so...

[Faile]

The FFVII PS3 Tech demo is a work of great beauty and watching it reminded me of the first time I played FFVII. It's ace to watch. You can probably see it at gamespot.com. Also, the new FFVII:AC trailer is really really good too.

[kupoartist]

From what i've seen and read of Square-Enix @ E3 2005, it was a bit of a disappointment on some level.

Final Fantasy XII for instance, looks brilliant. I really recommend everyone watches the trailer because it's the first time I've actually got excited about FF in a long time... however, it's entirely CGI. No gameplay shown whatsoever, so we're left with little idea about how it's going to play. Plus, the "film-trailer academy reject" narrator makes me worry for the quality of voice acting that we'll get in the English version... which is a shame because the Japanese voices sound entirely pitch perfect. If only they gave us the option of Japanese voices...

Final Fantasy VII's various sequels and prequels largely weren't playable. Advent Children looks good, but I'm really not hyped about the silly sounding story. As for the much talked about FFVII Tech Demo, it's brilliant until you stop measuring it against the original intro and measure it up to the other games out next Gen (in which case it looks "as good as everything else" at absolute best). Also, it's very hard to get excited about it when no-one is talking about actually remaking the whole game - which let's face it - is just about 5x more interesting than an avalanche of mobile phone games and a Devil May Cry rip-off spin-off are ever going to be.

And then we're left with FFXI which is only interesting because it'll be the first Square-Enix game to appear on a Microsoft console... though frankly, considering how old it is, Square-Enix are treading very lightly in their new partnership...

[TtTackler]

Dirge of Cerebus was a no-show, which is really interesting. I guess they weren't really too happy with the way the gameplay was shaping up, which is the reason why the game was delayed awhile back. The game was playable at last year's E3. Kingdom Hearts 2 was basically Square's biggest hit this year at E3, besides the news of the two [three, with FF11] titles for X-Box..

[Soul Angel]

I've just recently seen the trailer for FFXII and it looks very promising, but its a shame they didn't show any in game play, so to give us an idea how it will play slightly.
Oh well it was still pretty good to see.

Other then that I haven't seen any other trailors to the other games let and the only trailers I've seen for the FFVII: Advent Children was some months ago, but I'm sure I'll check out some of the more recent ones soon when I get around to it.
But from what I saw of it, it was looking pretty good.