Most Recent: Articles

Square Enix officially announces a US release for Final Fantasy Explorers

Posted on July 31, 2015 by John Scalzo

US gamers first got wind of Square Enix’s Final Fantasy Explorers a little over a year ago, when the publisher filed a trademark application for the title. Available in Japan since last December, Square Enix announced yesterday that the game will make its North American debut in early 2016.

Final Fantasy Explorers is an action RPG for the 3DS that will give one-to-four players the chance to find the Grand Crystal and push back the hordes of monsters overtaking the land:

The world is on the brink of war over its reserves of crystals, the planet’s chief source of power. Players must band together to form an elite squad of Explorers on an island rich in crystals, braving hordes of monsters in hopes of conquering a newly discovered Grand Crystal – every Explorer’s dream.

Final Fantasy Explorers focuses on cooperative play with friends and utilizes a refined party system allowing Explorers to master over 20 new and familiar jobs—including Knight, Monk, Black Mage and White Mage—to defeat the realm’s mightiest monsters and even recruit them for battle. Players will have the ability to call upon the powers of eidolons like Ifrit and Bahamut, as well as transform into other legendary characters from the Final Fantasy series via the Trance feature.

Final Fantasy Explorers will be released on January 26, 2016.

Posted in 3DS, News | Tagged

“Dramatic changes” will be coming to the combat in Final Fantasy VII remake

Posted on July 31, 2015 by John Scalzo

finalfantasyvii-boxWe received hints of this at E3, but Square Enix isn’t planning to just give Final Fantasy VII a graphical makeover and call it a day. Speaking to Official PlayStation Magazine UK (via GamesRadar), Tetsuya Nomura said that “dramatic changes” will be made to the publisher’s most beloved RPG during development of the remake:

[G]ame director Tetsuya Nomura said that the team will be making “dramatic changes” to the game’s fights. “And of course, that being said we want to clarify: We’re not going to be changing it into a shooter or something like that. We are going to be bringing dramatic changes, but we want to make sure it’s still recognizable.”

If you are concerned about the game’s graphics, Nomura has suggested looking to Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children, because that’s what he’s going to do:

Nomura stated that the team will be looking to the movie – which Nomura also directed – for visual references and inspiration, but that he and his team “don’t intend on utilising the 3D models of Advent Children as is because, well, it’s a different technology, and it’s actually been almost ten years since Advent Children was first released.”

Square Enix’s Final Fantasy VII remake is likely still many years away and will launch “first” on the PS4. It’s widely assumed the remake will eventually be released for the PC and/or the Xbox One sometime afterwards.

Posted in News, PS4 | Tagged

Nintendo UK will send you random packages in the mail… let’s hope they skip the Bob-Ombs

Posted on July 31, 2015 by Holly Scalzo

nintendologo

Have you ever noticed all the ads for companies that offer a monthly (or weekly) subscription for a box of random goodies? If you watch TV regularly, you must have seen at least one of these commercials. They have them for makeup and beauty care products, dog treats/items, snacks, video games, razors, tea, candy, toys/collectibles, books, baby samples, and even multiple places that will send you recipes plus all the ingredients you need to cook that meal. There’s probably even a bunch that I don’t know about. Or don’t want to know about. It’s possibly a little out of control, but people love getting packages and random surprises, so I can see the appeal.

Now Nintendo UK is throwing its hat into the monthly subscription box ring. As an alternative to the popular Loot Crate, which sends out nerdy toys, collectibles, and clothes, Nintendo is set to launch their own box — the “N-Box” (which should really look into maybe having a different name) — which will offer Nintendo items and merchandise featuring iconic characters.

MCV is reporting that the N-Box “will feature toys, clothes and other merchandise inspired by and branded with Nintendo icons such as Mario, Zelda and Pokemon” and that the boxes “are expected to be available individually, with gamers also able to subscribe to a three-, six- or 12-month plan.”

The N-Box is expected to debut pretty soon, and for now will only be available for UK consumers. Yet another reason to be jealous of the UK.

Posted in 3DS, Etcetera, News, Wii U |

Electronic Arts CEO reiterates that next Battlefield game will launch in Fall 2016

Posted on July 30, 2015 by John Scalzo

EAlogoElectronic Arts delivered their quarterly financial report today, and Chief Executive Officer Andrew Wilson had a bit to say about the next Battlefield game.

Wilson, who never referred to the game as “Battlefield 5,” and instead only used “a new Battlefield experience” in his remarks, stated once again that it would be released in Fall 2016. This same game was previously mentioned in EA’s October 2014 financial report, and while its possible that it’s some kind of spinoff, that seems unlikely. Especially since developers at DICE confirmed the existence of the game to The New York Times all the way back in 2013.

But speaking of financial figures, Electronic Arts had a pretty good quarter. Executives from the company confirmed that EA recorded $693 million in sales this past Spring, which was well above their expected revenue of $640 million.

Posted in News, PC, PS4, Xbox One | Tagged

The “Official Story Trailer” for Lego Dimensions is absolutely bonkers

Posted on July 30, 2015 by John Scalzo

  • The Riddler riding a Balrog!
  • Gandalf riding a hoverboard!
  • Marty McFly fighting evil with “The Power of Love”!
  • The Batman from the Lego Batman games arguing with the Batman from The Lego Movie!

Ladies and gentlemen, the Lego Dimensions “Official Story Trailer” has it all! This absolutely ridiculous look at WB Games’s massive crossover project seems to includes everything that made TT Games’s previous Lego projects great. But if the official plot description is anything to go by, there’s a lot more insanity to come:

In the game, there is an ancient planet at the center of the Lego Multiverse inhabited by an evil mastermind, Lord Vortech. It is said that he who controls the Foundational Elements that this planet is built upon, controls all of the Multiverse. Lord Vortech has vowed to be that ruler, summoning characters from a variety of Lego worlds to help him find these building bricks of Lego civilization. Some have agreed, others have rebelled, and only the combined powers of the greatest Lego heroes can stop him.

Lego Dimensions will mix together 14 Lego worlds including DC Comics, The Lord of the Rings, The Wizard of Oz, Back to the Future, Scooby-Doo, Doctor Who, Jurassic World, Ghostbusters, The Simpsons, Portal, Lego Ninjago, Lego Chima, and The Lego Movie. WB Games will also add characters from Midway Arcade to the action, and if that means that I get to play as Lego Sub-Zero I will lose my freakin’ mind.

Lego Dimensions will be released for the PS3, PS4, Wii U, Xbox 360, and Xbox One on September 27.

Posted in News, PS3, PS4, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One | Tagged

Nintendo Download: Xeodrifter, Badland: Game of the Year Edition, more

Posted on July 30, 2015 by John Scalzo

nintendoeshop-header

Nintendo update the Nintendo eShop today with a trio of new games for the Wii U and another three for the 3DS. Though one can be played on both systems with a single purchase.

Yes, Nintendo is offering another Cross-Buy promotion with Rengeade Kid’s Xeodrifter. The Metroidvania-style Wii U game will offer players “mystery and adventure” as they “blast through alien landscapes, seek out valuable secrets, and defeat ancient guardians.” As a Cross-Buy title, purchasing Xeodrifter on the Wii U will also make the game available to download on the 3DS, and vice versa.

Also available this week is Badland: Game of the Year Edition, a high definition upgrade of the popular mobile game. The Game of the Year Edition of the side-scroller comes with “more than 15 hours of single-player levels” and a four-player local multiplayer mode.

More information on these titles, and a small handful of additional Wii U and 3DS games, can be found after the break. (more…)

Posted in 3DS, News, Wii U | Tagged

Blizzard will announce sixth World of Warcraft expansion at Gamescom 2015

Posted on July 30, 2015 by John Scalzo

metatop100-worldofwarcraftBlizzard has announced they will reveal the sixth expansion to World of Warcraft at this year’s Gamescom expo.

According to a post on Battle.net, the expansion will makes it worldwide debut as part of a presentation will take place on Thursday, August 6 at 12:00 PM (Eastern Time). If you’re not going to be in Cologne, Germany next week for the expo, don’t worry, Blizzard plans to livestream the entire event at BlizzGC.com.

Blizzard will host a second presentation during Gamescom on Sunday, August 9 at 11:00 AM (Eastern Time). This “World of Warcraft developer chat” will reveal more information about the MMO’s next expansion.

If you do find yourself in Cologne, Germany next week, Blizzard will have a booth at Gamescom in Hall 7.1 and they’re encouraging all their fans to stop by.

Posted in News, PC | Tagged ,

Comcept signs publishing deal with Fuze as Red Ash Kickstarter campaign struggles

Posted on July 30, 2015 by John Scalzo

redash-logoWith just three days to go, Comcept’s Kickstarter campaign for Red Ash: The Indelible Legend is struggling. The developer has only reached 60% of their $800,000 goal and things look bleak. However, a new development deal with Fuze Entertainment, a publisher based out of China, will allow Comcept to complete the game. Not only that, but the deal allows the team to also bring the game to the PS4 and Xbox One, in addition to the PC.

According to an update posted to the Kickstarter campaign, all money pledged towards Red Ash will go towards the development of additional content. While reaching their Kickstarter goal is far from a certainty, Comcept also said they will retain all franchise rights to Red Ash.

Comcept has also decided to go on the offensive and give their fans a small taste of Red Ash with a short mock-up demo. Instructions on how to download (and play) the demo can be found in a recent Kickstarter update.

Red Ash was pitched as a spiritual successor to Mega Man Legends by Comcept’s Keiji Inafune, and I’m sure fans are excited that the game is now assured to be completed.

Posted in News, PC, PS4, Xbox One | Tagged