Tag: Square Enix - Page 9
News Final Fantasy 1-6 Pixel Remasters Rated for PS4
About time
It looks like Square Enix's Final Fantasy 'Pixel Remaster' games are coming to PS4 in the relatively near future. The remastered series, which refreshes Final Fantasy I through VI with updated visuals, is already available on PC and mobile, having first released back in 2021. Console ports have always seemed likely, and now, ESRB age...
News Actress Ella Balinska Anchors Massive Forspoken PS5 Showcase
Frey to go
There’s no sign of the Forspoken media barrage slowing, with Square Enix and Sony unrelenting with their promotion of the release ahead of its 24th January launch. This video, anchored by Frey actress Ella Balinska, is not shy on spoilers, so if you’ve already decided to pick up the title and want to go in fresh – well, maybe give...
News Final Fantasy 16 Is Officially the First Mainline Game to Be Rated Mature, 18+
A bloody tale of vengeance
Yep, it's official: Final Fantasy XVI will be the first mainline game in the long-running RPG series to be rated M for Mature in the US, and PEGI 18+ in Europe. Now that the title can be pre-ordered following its release date announcement at The Game Awards, we know that the age ratings are going to stick (not that there...
News Final Fantasy XVI Has a Dog Party Member Who You Can Command in Battle
Get 'em, Torgal
Final Fantasy XVI may not have party members in the more traditional sense, but playable character Clive can be joined in battle by certain allies throughout his adventures. It sounds like his humanoid teammates will come and go depending on the story, but one trusty companion will be by his side more often than not, apparently...
News Final Fantasy 16 Summons June 2023 Release Date, Another Superb Trailer
Finally
Well, we finally got it: the Final Fantasy XVI release date is here. The 22nd June, 2023 is the date to mark on your calendar, putting it just weeks behind the likes of Street Fighter 6 and Diablo 4. Next summer is officially taking the p*ss. Anyway, Final Fantasy XVI continues to look like a potential stunner. This new trailer's got more...
News Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake News Could Be Coming 'Soon'
Finally!
The awkwardly named Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake was announced back in May 2021 at a dedicated Dragon Quest event, and we've seen absolutely nothing of the project since. Its reveal trailer looked fantastic, with the reworked visuals breathing a whole new kind of life into the classic RPG, and so we've been patiently waiting on more news...
News Forspoken PS5 Demo Appears Ready for Release
PlayStation Japan tweets about it
Square Enix is ready to release a PS5 demo for Forspoken according to a now-deleted post from the official PlayStation Japan Twitter account. The text "demo announcement trailer" could very clearly be seen in the tweet, with official news of the pre-release tester expected at The Game Awards tonight. Alongside the...
News Square Enix Will Debut 11 Minutes of Forspoken PS5 Gameplay on Friday
More from the PS5 console exclusive
A Forspoken livestream featuring new gameplay footage has been revealed for this Friday, 9th December 2022. Lasting 11 minutes, proceedings begin at 6pm GMT /10am PT / 1pm ET on the official PlayStation YouTube channel. The PS5 console exclusive is currently slated to release on 24th January 2023. You can catch...
News Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII's PSP to PS5 Glow Up Is Outrageous
Fair play
Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII was a stunning PSP game when it first released on Sony’s handheld in 2007, but Square Enix has done an absolutely outstanding job remastering the release for PS5. While you’d expect a bump in quality on a cutting-edge new-gen console, you’ve got to respect how the company has upgraded virtually every...
Review Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Reunion (PS5) - A Fantastic Remaster of a Fun But Flawed RPG
That's Fair enough
Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII is a PSP exclusive spinoff from 2007 that's often remembered fondly through the tinted goggles of nostalgia. In truth, the original Crisis Core was a messy game when it first released, and it's only gotten worse with age. Much like Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children, the animated film that flanked...
News PowerWash Simulator Provides More Details on PS5, PS4 Versions Early Next Year
Hang in there
Back in September, we learned the cult-hit game PowerWash Simulator will indeed be coming to PS5 and PS4. However, the announcement stopped short of telling us exactly when we could join the fun. While we're still none the wiser, it looks like developer FuturLab is planning for a big update soon. In a statement on social media, the...
News Final Fantasy 16 Director Hosts 'Very Special' Live Presentation at The Game Awards
Release date incoming?
Well, it's all but confirmed now: Final Fantasy XVI is almost certainly going to be a headline act at The Game Awards next week. The fast-approaching event has confirmed that celebrated director Naoki Yoshida will be a guest host during the show, where he'll present a "very special live presentation". Rumours of Final...
News Final Fantasy 16 Given Brazilian Age Rating Amid Release Date Rumours
News could be just around the corner
Final Fantasy XVI has been handed a Brazilian age rating as speculation swirls of a release date announcement at The Game Awards next week. The JRPG has been deemed "not recommended for children under 16" due to "sexual content, sensitive issues, and violence". With the release window currently set for summer...
News Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Reunion File Size Is Halved on PS5 Compared to PS4
Compression tech strikes again
It doesn't always make a notable difference, but when the PS5's touted file compression tech comes into play like this, it's well worth pointing out. As reported by the ever-reliable PlayStation Game Size on Twitter, the file size for Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Reunion is actually halved on Sony's current-gen...
News Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Reunion's Launch Trailer Is Packed with Nostalgia
Those wings...
With the remaster just over a couple of weeks away, Square Enix has released a launch trailer for Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Reunion. It's got a bit of everything: CG scenes, in-game cutscenes, combat footage — a lot has been squeezed into this relatively short three-minute video. But the deciding ingredient here is undoubtedly...
Preview Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Reunion Is a Great Remaster of an Awkward 2007 Spinoff
Zack in action
Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Reunion is a really good remaster. We've played through the game's first three chapters on PS5 for the purposes of this preview, and we're confident in saying that Square Enix has done a fantastic job of bringing the PSP title up to speed. Character models and environmental assets are a massive step up,...
News Square and Enix Joined Forces 20 Years Ago Today
To create Square Enix, obviously
Square Enix, the juggernaut Japanese publisher that we all know today, was pretty much birthed on this date 20 whole years ago. As the name suggests, it was a merger between Square and Enix — two prominent gaming companies who, as our friends over at Time Extension point out, were actually rival businesses before...
News NieR 'Tease' Amounts to Absolutely Nothing
Well, there it is
Update: In hindsight, we really should have just waited a few minutes before posting about the NieR: Automata Fan Festival. The event is now live in Japan, and the NieR 'tease' posted to Twitter by Square Enix director and producer Yosuke Saito was not related to a new project. No, the black card was actually covering a slice of...
Rumour Final Fantasy 16 Release Date to Be Announced at The Game Awards in December
Geoff with the big one
A release date for Final Fantasy XVI could be announced at The Game Awards, according to a new report from Insider Gaming. Geoff Keighley's annual event takes place on the 8th December, and is set to play host to a range of announcements. The aforementioned report says that pre-orders for the action RPG will go live around the...
News Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Reunion Is Native 4K, 60fps on PS5, 30fps Only on PS4
Remaster's specs revealed
Square Enix has published the performance specs for Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Reunion, and you couldn't really ask for more — at least on PS5. The upcoming, impressively overhauled remaster will boast a native 4K resolution on Sony's current-gen system, while running at (a hopefully smooth) 60 frames-per-second. Very...
News Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Reveals How It's More Than a Remaster
Visuals, features, battle system all covered
Square Enix has posted a new Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Reunion trailer that compares many of the game's updated features and visuals to the PSP classic, revealing how it's "more than a remaster", according to the trailer's name. Catch it above ahead of the 13th December 2022 release date for PS5,...
News The Winter Soldier Joins Marvel's Avengers This Month
Plus Cloning Lab mission
The Winter Soldier will be added to Marvel's Avengers for free on 29th November 2022 as part of a big update for the game. Voiced by Scott Porter, he'll be given a new heroic mission chain "that sees the Avengers help him regain his confidence in his capacity for good and deal with the trauma inflicted on him by his...
News Gods Revel, Lands Tremble as Final Fantasy 14's Mammoth Patch 6.3 Is Revealed
Plenty of work to be done
Final Fantasy XIV continues to be one of the deepest rabbit holes a console player can lose themselves down, with the onslaught of content continuing in the next upcoming major patch, 6.3, entitled Gods Revel, Lands Tremble. Launching in early January 2023, Gods Revel, Lands Tremble will continue the MSQ and follow the...
News Forspoken Is a Modern PS5 Open World Game, Alright
With added magic cat petting
As the launch of Square Enix’s long-awaited Forspoken nears, the Japanese publisher is beginning to peel back the curtain on the PS5 console exclusive. This latest in its ongoing Deep Dive trailer series centres on the open world of Athia, and the various activities that it contains. TL;DW: it’s a modern open world...
Review Tactics Ogre: Reborn (PS5) - A Tale That Grew in the Telling
Sing to me of a time long past
Tactics Ogre: Reborn is a return to the golden age of isometric strategy RPGs, which, paradoxically, it helped to create. Building upon the rock solid foundations of 1995 Super Nintendo release Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together, and the 2011 PSP remake of the same name, Reborn, in turn, makes everything old new...
News New Valkyrie Elysium Update Adds More Modes, Difficulty Levels
Plus new Trophies
As announced at the end of September, Valkyrie Elysium has been updated on PS5, PS4 with new modes, Trophies, and an extra difficulty level. The patch is now live on both systems and weighs in at just under 1GB. Hilde's Vengeance is the biggest addition the update makes, which is a new mode where Hilde is the playable character...
News Final Fantasy 16 Is Exclusive to PS5 for Six Months, Sony Confirms
Finality fantasy
We've known since its reveal that Final Fantasy XVI will be a PS5 console exclusive when it first launches in summer 2023. However, we haven't been told how long that exclusivity period will actually be — until now. A new marketing montage from PlayStation features a glimpse of the upcoming action RPG, and as long as you don't...
News Final Fantasy 16 Has a Full New Game+ Mode, Story and Hardcore Difficulty Settings
Something for everyone
A new wave of Final Fantasy XVI interviews are doing the rounds, and some new details are well worth pointing out. In particular, Japanese publication 4Gamer has a lengthy article that confirms the existence of what sounds like an extensive New Game+ mode. Director Hiroshi Takai spills the beans, stating that after completing...
News Final Fantasy 16 Release Date Reveal Planned for This Year
Game is "about 95%" complete
Square Enix plans to announce the PS5 release date for Final Fantasy XVI at some point this year, game producer Naoki Yoshida has said. In an interview with Famitsu, Yoshida is asked whether a concrete date will be confirmed beyond the "Summer 2023" window, to which he says: "We plan to release the information again...
News Forspoken's Glitzy Magic Combat Has Untold Depth on PS5
Frey you're a firework
In some ways, Forspoken looks like the successor to inFAMOUS we’ll probably never get. That’s particularly apparent in this all-new trailer, which offers a deep-dive into the Square Enix console exclusive’s magic abilities. It’s deeper than you may expect: in addition different coloured powers, Frey can also initiate a...
News Symbiogenesis Isn't the Return of Parasite Eve, It's Just Square Enix Making NFTs
Oh, FFS
You know, we probably should have seen this coming. A couple of weeks ago, Square Enix registered a trademark for 'Symbiogenesis', and the eyes of Parasite Eve fans immediately lit up. Symbiogenesis is a scientific term that plays an important role in the series' story — it's basically when two organisms combine to create a new organism...
News Shakespearean Remake Tactics Ogre: Reborn Sets the Stage for a Strategy Epic
Sing to me of a time long past
The release of verbose strategy RPG Tactics Ogre: Reborn is right around the corner, with the remastered classic set to storm onto PS5, PS4 on 11th November. Square Enix set the scene for a narrative epic in a trailer showing off the game's expansive story. Tactics Ogre: Reborn is a remastered version of Tactics Ogre:...
News Gorgeous JRPG Octopath Traveler 2 Looks Stunning in New Trailer
Meet The Merchant & The Scholar
Octopath Traveler 2 is shaping up to be a real treat for JRPG fans in the new year, with its launch set for 24th February 2023. We got a new trailer today showing off two of the game's eight playable characters, Partitio the Merchant and Osvald the Scholar, along with the new Latent Powers battle mechanic. Continuing...
Review Star Ocean: The Divine Force (PS5) - Space Age JRPG Barely Takes Flight
One small step for man. One smaller step for JRPGs
After forty-five hours, a few smiles, and one or two frowns, we walked away from Star Ocean: The Divine Force with a shrug. It’s a middle-tier Japanese role playing game that at no point, ever, threatens to get promoted to top-tier status nor sink so low that it ends up sandwiched between...
News Japan Simply Isn't Enough Anymore as Square Enix Calls Global Market a 'Critical' Priority
Times have changed
This industry really has changed, hasn't it? It's no secret that the big Japanese publishers — Capcom, SEGA, Square Enix, etc. — are largely looking to the West these days, as their home nation seems to distance itself more and more from traditional console gaming (well, outside of Nintendo, at least). Whether it's enforcing...
News New Forspoken Trailer Is All About Magical Parkour
Ride the waves
Square Enix has released a new trailer for its upcoming PS5 console exclusive Forspoken that focuses entirely on how you'll navigate the open world of Athia using Frey's magical abilities. Governed by a stamina meter, you can dash through the air, ride a magical skateboard, and glide safely down to the ground. The game will be out for...
Round Up Star Ocean: The Divine Force Reviews Say It's Pretty Good
Perhaps better than we thought
The Star Ocean: The Divine Force review embargo lifted earlier today, and we do not have our own PS5 verdict to share with you. That's because we received access two days ago, which is quite clearly nowhere near long enough to finish a JRPG and then finalise some thoughts for a review. As such, we will share our...
News Stranger of Paradise's Gilgamesh Difficulty Will Test Your Skills and Reward You Appropriately
Chaos 2.0
Stranger of Paradise's Wanderer of the Rift DLC is now available, and it introduces a swathe of new content, most of which revolves around the titular wanderer himself, the interdimensional swordsman known as Gilgamesh. Along with new story content, enemies, gear, and the Blue Mage job class, Wanderer of the Rift will also introduce the...
News Star Ocean: The Divine Force Embraces the Cheese with Rocking Opening Movie
Shine on
This opening movie for Star Ocean: The Divine Force feels like it's from another era entirely, but we're actually enjoying how unashamedly cheesy it is. Featuring a song from long-time Japanese rocker HYDE, the video splices scenes from the game together in an attempt to get you hyped. Honestly, we're still not sure what to think of this...
News Final Fantasy 16 Development Now in the 'Home Stretch', on Schedule for Summer 2023
Finally fantasy
Final Fantasy XVI's development cycle has entered its final stages, Square Enix has confirmed. In a couple of newly released statements from producer Naoki Yoshida and director Hiroshi Takai, it's revealed that the team is now fully focused on final optimisations; polishing things up, debugging, and all that kind of stuff. It's...
News New Final Fantasy 16 Trailer Is Over 4 Minutes of World Building Goodness
Still on track for summer 2023
Yep, it's here! Final Fantasy XVI has an atmospheric new trailer, which places a heavy focus on the game's setting. It's largely made up of gameplay footage, and it goes without saying that the title continues to look fantastic in terms of presentation. There's also some particularly explosive combat shots near the...
News Final Fantasy 16's New Trailer Is Probably Dropping Today
It's a-Clive
So, we're supposed to be getting a new trailer for Final Fantasy XVI this month — producer Naoki Yoshida teased as much back in September. And now, it looks like said trailer could be dropping today — or at least, in the very near future. A full article based on this yet-to-be-seen video has been (we assume, mistakenly) published...
News NieR: Automata's Producer Threatened to Leave Square Enix in Order to Get the Game Made
Whatever it takes
NieR: Automata is a unique game, and while its combination of katana combat, philosophical musings on the nature of existence, and scantily-clad androids might not be to every taste, it certainly stands out amidst a sea of service games and multiplayer shooters. Getting the project greenlit couldn't have been easy, especially so...
News Gilgamesh Is Unleashed in Stranger of Paradise's Wanderer of the Rift DLC
Not all those who wander are lost
Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin has an expansion coming, it's called Wanderer of the Rift, and it looks like it's going to be as bizarre as the base game. It's due on 26th October, and we got a new trailer showing off the new content coming to the game. Wanderer of the Rift primarily concerns Gilgamesh,...
News Final Fantasy VII's Battle Royale Mobile Game Shuts Down Just Over a Year After Launch
Wow, who saw that coming?
Well that was a bit of a blunder, wasn't it? In its renewed efforts to milk everything Final Fantasy VII following the success of Final Fantasy VII Remake, Square Enix went full-on parody with the launch of Final Fantasy VII: The First Solider in November 2021 — a battle royale title exclusive to mobile devices. Surprise...
News Tactics Ogre: Reborn Lists Loads of Gameplay Updates and Improvements on PS5, PS4
Not just a remaster
Being a remaster of a classic strategy RPG, Tactics Ogre: Reborn could have easily just left everything as it once was. But Square Enix seems eager to improve on the original version, and has listed loads of adjustments that it's made to Reborn's gameplay systems. A lot of it is quality of life stuff — the kind of things that...
Review Valkyrie Elysium (PS5) - Quality Combat Elevates Drab Action RPG
Par for the Norse
There's something distinctly old school about Valkyrie Elysium, and we don't mean because it's part of a long-running franchise; a series that started with the turn-based JRPG Valkyrie Profile way back in 1999. This is a game with an almost PlayStation 2 style design philosophy, for better and worse, and what you're here for will...
News HD-2D Art Style on PS5, PS4 Must Wait as Tactics Ogre Reborn Team Turns It Down
Original style retained instead
The Square Enix team remastering Tactics Ogre for PS5, PS4 has revealed it had the chance to use the HD-2D art style made popular by titles like Octopath Traveler and Triangle Strategy. However, the developer decided not to change the visual style since it believes "really high-quality, awesome looking 2D
News Valkyrie Elysium Has Multiple Endings, Roughly 20 Hours Long, with More Content Coming
Odin be praised!
Valkyrie Elysium launches in just a few days, on 29th September, and we have gleaned some new information from the upcoming action RPG from the Famitsu review of the game via Noisy Pixel. Firstly, the title will take roughly 20 hours to complete, and secondly, the game will feature multiple endings, providing an incentive to double...
Mini Review The DioField Chronicle (PS5) - Dull Characters in an Intriguing Strategy RPG
Fleeting foxes
Its disjointed reveal trailer didn't exactly heighten our expectations, but we're happy to report that The DioField Chronicle has turned out reasonably well. It's a real-time strategy RPG topped off with some very pretty artwork and some effective gameplay design — but it's not without its (often obvious) flaws. Set against a...