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• The Final Fantasy Rule: Why the New Final Fantasy XIII Demo Matters, Even if You Hate the Series

  I’ve had to stop myself from doing something stupid many, many times in the past few weeks. Late at night, typically before bed while I’m enjoying that just-brushed-just-flossed feel of my teeth and that last drink of water, I’ve opened my laptop and gone to Play Asia, added an item to my cart, and made it all the way to the check out before stopping myself. What am I, an idiot? What kind of person would do this? I’ve slapped my own wrist, both literally and metaphorically, closed the computer, and waited for morning, when the sobering light of day inevitable reintroduces logic to my shoddy impulse control. Honestly. Spending eighty dollars on a demo of Final Fantasy XIII, a demo in a language I don’t even understand, is stupid. Very, very stupid. Yes, it comes with a nice new version of Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children, but even that little perk isn’t worth blowing two weeks worth of grocery money on an hour long sampling of a game that will be out before too long. The impulse is detestable. It is, however, an inevitable impulse, one that isn’t rooted in fanaticism. The allure of a new Final Fantasy, even just a taste of it, has less to do with fetishism and everything to do with wanting to see just what any given game console can do. Read More... Posted Apr 16 2009, 07:00 PM by John Constantine with | with 1 comment(s) Filed under: john constantine, final fantasy, square-enix, tetsuya nomura, final fantasy iv, final fantasy xiii, final fantasy x, final fantasy vii

• Dragon Quest X and the Wii Lifetime Equation

  It didn’t hit me until today just how long the Wii is going to stick around. Forget the fact that Nintendo have sold millions upon millions of consoles in record time or that the box continues to sell in vast quantities on a monthly basis. The real metric is Dragon Quest. Read More... Posted Apr 08 2009, 05:00 PM by John Constantine with | with 1 comment(s) Filed under: john constantine, nintendo, wii, square-enix, dragon quest, enix, yuji horii

• The All New Retro: Bust-a-Groove and Low-Poly Love

  I won’t deny it. My gaming tastes are a little unusual. Take my emulation aversion. Does a normal person spend months and months tracking down a rare and expensive cheat device so they can play an imported SNES game when they could download a ROM and SNES emulator in about ten seconds? No. This is not how a normal person behaves. As I slowly morph into something approximating an adult, I’ve been noticing another strange predilection in my gaming brain: a love of low-polygon graphics. Some games do not age with grace. Their mechanics, and especially their graphics, develop the distinct taste of vinegar when they used to be wine just five years before. Yet the games of the 32- and 64-bit era, games that I thought were repulsive even at the time, are starting to take on a strange allure. Read More... Posted Mar 31 2009, 08:00 PM by John Constantine with | with 1 comment(s) Filed under: john constantine, nintendo ds, mega man, katamari damacy, Playstation, square-enix, tomb raider, retro, final fantasy iv, sega saturn, Retro game challenge, nintendo 64, enix, tomb raider 3, bust-a-groove

• Screen Test: Blood of Bahamut

  Since its launch in 2004, Square-Enix has developed over thirty games for the Nintendo DS. Thirty. They haven’t made that many games for the Playstation 2, a system that’s existed for almost twice as long. Damn. Want to know the worst part? Approximately one tenth of their total output on the Nintendo DS is original IP. This would be troubling if it weren’t for the fact that one of those original games, namely The World Ends With You, is one of the best games made in the history of the publisher. I mean across Square, Enix, and Taito. TWEWY is that good. Blood of Bahamut, the forthcoming Nintendo DS original IP from S-E, is worth taking a look at solely because it’s something new. Convenient then that it also looks awesome. Read More... Posted Mar 24 2009, 04:00 PM by John Constantine with | with 1 comment(s) Filed under: john constantine, the world ends with you, nintendo ds, screen test, taito, square-enix, blood of bahamut

• Question of the Day: Valkyrie Profile and the Need for Voiced Dialogue

  My backlog is becoming untenable. There are games, games that I started months ago, sitting in a pile that appears to be growing of its own volition. Where the hell did that copy of Pro Evolution Soccer even come from and why is it sitting in the “to play” pile? No one in my home even likes soccer! The worst of the lot is Persona 4. Rather than hide myself away like some horrid realization of gamer stereotype, refusing to venture into the sun until the game is complete, I’ve been working through Persona since early December, taking it a bit at a time. It’s starting to drive me crazy. A few days ago, I fired it up for the first time since mid-February and was treated to one of its scarce animated cutscenes. Turns out that bear suit made a dude! Yeah, not a dude wearing a bear suit. The bear suit formed a dude inside of it. More startling than spontaneous dude generation was hearing the characters’ voices. I had forgotten they could talk you see. This is because, with very rare exceptions, I always turn off the voice acting in RPGs. Why? Because the voice acting is almost always terrible. Dragon Quest VIII’s British cast and Final Fantasy XII’s gang of breathy stoics are exceptions to the rule. Most of the time, you have to deal with screeching whiners who insist on naming every single thing they do and I’ll have none of it. Honestly though, I wonder why voice is considered a necessity in modern design. Read More... Posted Mar 19 2009, 07:00 PM by John Constantine with | with 3 comment(s) Filed under: legend of zelda, twilight princess, square-enix, dragon quest, persona, atlus, final fantasy xii, question of the day, persona 4, dragon quest viii, valkyrie profile, eiji aonumal john Constantine, covenant of the plume

• Roundtable Discussion: The Relevance of Japanese RPGs

  Roundtable Discussion takes the intrepid 61FPS blogging team and pits it against itself in the search for deeper truth. The moderator for today is Bob Mackey. This week’s conversation deals with the mythical and possibly endangered beast known as the Japanese RPG. The genre really seems to be suffering during this generation, for two major reasons: 1.) escalating development costs due to the new necessity of high-polygon, HD resources and 2.) developers’ inability to combat the most damning problems of the genre. Over the past few years, we’ve seen quite a few JRPGs hitting the shelves that feel half-finished at best; and even when a fully-realized JRPG comes along, I worry that the absolutely abysmal pacing the genre is infamous for will end up sucking all the fun out of what could be a fantastic game. To start us off, I have two basic questions: 1.) What does the genre need to do to become interesting again, and 2.) what do you think it will do? On a side note, the only RPGs I’ve been interested in lately have been ports of remakes of classics. Is this a sign that the genre is becoming antiquated and only accessible to those (admittedly, quite a few at this point) with an understanding of its unique grammar? Read More... Posted Feb 13 2009, 03:00 PM by Bob Mackey with | with 9 comment(s) Filed under: john constantine, final fantasy, rpg, japan, chrono trigger, cole stryker, square-enix, dragon quest, square, jrpg, bob mackey, mother, squaresoft, joe keiser, roundtable discussion

• Dragon Quest IV: Re-Reading the Chapters of the Chosen

  Keeping true to my reputation as the Fastest Gamer in the West, I'm still playing through Dragon Quest IV. I played the NES original, though I never finished it. I was put off by the fact a Dragon Warrior game had a story, and I just never got into it. I was a very dull child, as you can imagine. Dragon Quest IV's branching story isn't anything that would throw Stephen King into a jealous rage, but it's fun and ambitious, and I appreciate it very much. Jumping from the flat-rate story in Dragon Warrior III (“Save the world because your father fucked the mission up”) to a headstrong cast of warriors with their own thoughts and feelings just kind of knocked me for a loop back then. The Loto Saga was effectively over with Dragon Warrior III, and I had decided to be a pouting child about Square-Enix's decision to move on. Read More... Posted Feb 11 2009, 11:22 PM by Nadia Oxford with | with no comments Filed under: nintendo ds, rpg, nes, square-enix, 8-bit, retro, dragon warrior, nadia oxford, dragon quest iv, game stories, dragon quest iiii

• All the SaGa, A Fraction of the Time

  It hasn’t been easy, going this long without playing a single SaGa game. They’ve always been within reach and they’ve always been tantalizing. Every game in the series, with the exception of the Super Nintendo Romancing SaGas, has been released in English, and every one of those games has been gorgeous. But the beautiful graphics, art, and music, are apparently not unlike the vibrant coloring on dart frogs; they’re a warning, not an incentive to come and play. The SaGa series is probably the only franchise I’ve ever completely avoided based on reviews. When games are that widely reviled, it’s probably for a reason. The upcoming DS remake of SaGa 2 has me feeling a little reckless. I’m going to play that game when it comes out, because I’m curious, but before then, I feel I should build immunity to the poison. Now I just need to decide where to start. Lucky for me, Square-Enix just put out this video of clips from every single game in the series. It’s like looking at a menu. Read More... Posted Jan 20 2009, 04:00 PM by John Constantine with | with 1 comment(s) Filed under: john constantine, square-enix, super nintendo, square enix, saga 2, final fantasy legend, romancing saga, saga frontier

• Unwrapped: Dragon Quest IV

  Ahhh, Christmas. This is a nice time of year for a freelance writer. I’m going to ingest fermented liquids that take the edge off my passion for writing, and editors don’t feel like wading through my crazy letter soup to ball together the few sensible words that congealed in the broth. So I’m told “That’s enough, get outta here. Merry Christmas.” And I start blubbering about my little son Tim dying slowly of acidosis and rickets. Then I settle down and finally, finally get caught up on the games I was too busy writing about to actually sit and play. First task: Finish Chrono Trigger DS and set aside the five thousand hours that’s required to sweep through the “bonus” dungeons. I’ve not experienced them fully, but I’ve been made to understand that the quotation marks are richly deserved. I can’t wait to find out why. I hear it has something to do with a fetch quest! Boy oh boy! Second: break out and play Dragon Quest IV. Hell yes, Akira Toriyama double-feature. I’m an unapologetic fan girl and will remain thus until I drop my love for human-devouring dinosaurs bristling with spikes and unscientific add-ons. STATUS, 22/12/2008: I still think dinosaurs are rad. Associated love for Akira Toriyama: Stable. The original Dragon Quest III/Dragon Warrior III for the NES left an indelible impression on me; ask me sometime about the story I wrote that featured an original plot but lifted monsters straight from the game. On second thought, don’t. Read More... Posted Dec 22 2008, 09:03 PM by Nadia Oxford with | with no comments Filed under: nintendo ds, square-enix, 8-bit, retro, nostalgia, nadia oxford, christmas, dragon quest III, dragon warrior iv, dragon warrior III, dragon quest iv: chapters of the chosen

• Chrono Trigger Musical: A Lovelorn Frog

  It's not easy being green, amigos. Especially when you're valiant Mr Frog from Chrono Trigger, and you don't want to risk offending your beloved Queen Leanne with suggestions of romantic bogs and external fertilization. What do frogs naturally do when they're troubled and/or horny? They sing, of course. They sing their hearts out. They lament their fate (“Oh God, so slippery!”). In this animated Chrono Trigger musical, Frog does just that. He doesn't expand his throat though, so don't get too excited. Read More... Posted Dec 18 2008, 10:44 PM by Nadia Oxford with | with 1 comment(s) Filed under: rpg, chrono trigger, square-enix, nadia oxford, frog, musical

• Joe’s Top Ten Games of 2008 – Number One

  The official mandate has come down from the top—that it is December, and we all write about games, so we all have to pick some arbitrary number of them that we enjoyed above all others this year. I am taking on this task in the way of our forefathers, using their traditional number (10) and order (from great to most greatest). Games were chosen for this list using a highly scientific list of criteria, including but not limited to dopamine levels, blood alcohol content, tarot, and how badly I wanted a button making machine upon completion. This is my game of the year.   1. The World Ends With You This one surprised me too, but the more I thought about it, the more I couldn’t justify not putting this vast, strange, innovative and compelling portable game at the top of my list. There’s a lot to think about here, so let’s dive right in. The World Ends With You is, at its heart, about cacophony. It’s about the cacophony of urban living—too many people, too many sounds, too many thoughts and banal life stories. It’s about the cacophony of capitalism—too many constantly swirling brands and fads, too many “friendships” borne purely of what you buy and what you own. It’s a game about surviving the barrage, about blocking out the white noise to find your own value in the meaninglessness. The story follows the meaning. It’s about a teenager who endures the constant assault on his senses by keeping it all out, and the strange, surreal events of a fatal game that forces him to confront and engage in life. But most interesting is that the mechanics of the game also follow along, and yet are somehow workable. Read More... Posted Dec 16 2008, 02:00 PM by Joe Keiser with | with 1 comment(s) Filed under: the world ends with you, nintendo ds, square-enix, joe keiser, top 10, top 10 of 2008

• 10 Games Nadia Played In 2008 Instead Of Working: The World Ends With You

  If my organs don't randomly decide to leap out my mouth and run down the street before I finish my Top Ten Games for 2008, you'll come to notice that I have a lot of Nintendo DS games put down as personal favourites. Could it be that I ride the subway often enough to feel like the kin of the Morlock? Mmmmmaybe.     The World Ends With You was probably the nicest surprise of the year for me. I cared very little for the game when it was in its development stages: one gaggle of Kingdom Hearts fangirls is all it takes to forever spoil your appetite for Tetsuya Nomura. So when I accidentally found myself with the game for review purposes, I threw a sulk in the style of The World Ends With You's orange-haired protagonist. He even started the adventure with an inner monologue about how the world in general could descend into Hell for all he cared, waah waah, Linkin Park. I'm a sullen bitch who bites people on the ankle when they prove me wrong, but it was a joy to discover just how wrong I was about The World Ends With You. Read More... Posted Dec 11 2008, 01:35 AM by Nadia Oxford with | with 2 comment(s) Filed under: the world ends with you, nintendo ds, japan, square-enix, tetsuya nomura, kingdom hearts, nadia oxford, top 10, shibuya

• Brave New Wi-Fi World: Square-Enix Might Just Change the Way We Play Nintendo Games

  I was a little miffed when Square-Enix announced Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Echoes of Time. More Crystal Chronicles is certainly a good thing, especially when it’s new Crystal Chronicles that promises online and an opportunity to improve on Ring of Fates’ flaws (no story mode co-op is not cool, guys.) I was just sad because this meant the first Crystal Chronicles announced for Wii, The Crystal Bearers, looked even more likely like a candidate for the vaporware hall of fame. I’m getting over the sour grapes though. A game that can be played cooperatively on either a Wii or a DS is the connectivity dream realized, a grand delivery on the promise of Gamecube’s Crystal Chronicles and even Miyamoto and Toru Iwatani’s Pac-man Vs. Graphics be damned, this is the future of co-op. The news is already racing around the internet that Square-Enix might be giving Dragon Quest IX the Echoes of Time treatment. EGM’s classic rumor monger Quartermann says DQIX might hit both of Nintendo’s consoles, ensuring that it will sell a billion copies instead of just half a billion. If this turns out to be true, and both Echoes of Time and DQIX play well over Nintendo Wi-Fi, Nintendo’s sickly online strategy may finally have its first bonafide hook. Read More... Posted Dec 03 2008, 07:00 PM by John Constantine with | with 2 comment(s) Filed under: nintendo, nintendo ds, wii, final fantasy, animal crossing, square-enix, mario kart wii, dragon quest ix, new super mario bros, echoes of time, animal crossing wild world, animal crossing city folk, crystal bearers, new super mario bros 2, mario kart ds, crystal chronicles, ring of fates, pac-man vs

• China Trigger

  Most of you out there are probably playing Chrono Trigger DS--or at least you should be. I have to admit that I'm a total hypocrite, though; if I do play through Chrono Trigger again, it's not going to be for a while.  Listen, when you suffer through hours upon hours of Chrono's abysmal PSX port to unlock some pretty pedestrian bonus content, you need to take a little break.  I'll be at the five year mark around springtime, so please look forward to my coverage of Chrono Trigger DS in April 2009. Believe it or not, there are versions of Chrono far worse than the PSX port, which was like playing a beloved RPG while immersed in quicksand. Our industrious friends in China actually produced their own pirate Famicom version of the game, as they've done in the past with many other games that have no business being on an 8-bit platform.  Maybe this video will show you why: Diagnosis: adorable--in a "broken toy on a thrift store shelf" sort of way. Read More... Posted Dec 02 2008, 02:45 PM by Bob Mackey with | with 3 comment(s) Filed under: chrono trigger, square-enix, piracy, bob mackey, chrono trigger ds, bootleg

• ONST: Square-Enix’s Rad Original Non-Soundtracks

  When talking about the good ol’ Square-Enix days, back when most every game they published was either very good or at least interesting, it’s impossible not to note their stable of composers. Nobuo Uematsu, Yasunori Mitsuda, Yoko Shimomura, and a number of other remarkable musicians have received more international acclaim and love from listeners of their videogame soundtracks than most Japanese traditional musicians. You may have noticed that we ourselves have something of a penchant for these composers. It’s rare, however, to hear work by any of them that isn’t related to videogames. There’s Mitsuda’s Kirite, but even Uematsu’s lone solo album, the prog-as-hell Phantasmagoria, closes with an arrangement of Final Fantasy’s “Prologue”. Little did I know that Square-Enix themselves realized their musical masterminds needed broader creative outlets. The Square-Enix Official Bootleg series, launched back in 2006, is comprised of three EPs spotlighting totally original songs by S-E composers and they are uniformly awesome. Read More... Posted Nov 18 2008, 03:00 PM by John Constantine with | with 2 comment(s) Filed under: john constantine, final fantasy crystal chronicles, ost, final fantasy, yoko shimomura, square-enix, brian eno, yasunori mitsuda, itunes, kirite, air, phantasmagoria, square-enix official bootleg, in my own backyard, front mission, Ryo Yamazaki, Mitsuto Suzuki, Nobuo Uematsu, Kumi Tanioka

• Rock Star Designer Fallout: Team Ninja’s Post-Itagaki Future

  While the videogame-designer-as-rock-star phenomenon is still a growing factor across the game development landscape, it’s had a recognizable poster boy for close to a decade. The be-sun-spectacled Tomonobu Itagaki is gaming’s very own Noel Gallagher, a mouthy, arrogant source of great quotes with a spotty creative track record, but who’s inarguably responsible for a couple of masterpieces. He’s also a magnet for controversy. Even beyond his inflammatory comments about rival game franchises, namely Tekken and Devil May Cry, Itagaki has been at the center of multiple legal entanglements with his former publisher, Tecmo. First, it was charges of sexual harassment. Then, this past June, Itagaki quit Tecmo after shipping Ninja Gaiden 2 and immediately sued the publisher for not delivering on promised pay bonuses. This is the problem with the rock star designer phenomenon. In the aftermath of Itagaki’s departure from Tecmo, everyone in the industry was asking what’s next for Itagaki and what is his beleaguered publisher – Tecmo’s president resigned shortly after Itagaki left and they were nearly acquired by Square-Enix after that, before agreeing to merge with Koei – going to do without him. No one really asked what Team Ninja, the team that Itagaki founded, was going to do without their public face. How does a development team recover when their image, an identity that’s secured them a devoted audience more than the games they’ve made, has walked away? Read More... Posted Nov 03 2008, 05:00 PM by John Constantine with | with 2 comment(s) Filed under: john constantine, playstation 3, nintendo ds, microsoft, xbox 360, sony, Playstation, square-enix, ninja gaiden, dead or alive, koei, tecmo, tomonobu itagaki, ninja gaiden dragon sword, ninja gaiden 2

• The Weakest Link: Chrono Trigger and Chrono Cross

  Chrono Cross is the official sequel to Chrono Trigger, and I often wonder if it should have been. I really enjoyed Chono Cross: the graphics are beautiful, the music is stunning and the cast (even though it numbers in the trillions) is generally fun to hang with. As its own game, Chrono Cross is a Playstation must-have. As a sequel to Chrono Trigger, however, it's kind of off-colour. Following up Chrono Trigger with Chrono Cross is like eating a zuccini right after an ice cream cone. Both taste good, but for entirely different reasons that don't mix well. There stands an excellent chance that Chrono Trigger DS will hammer some hasty bridges between it and Chrono Cross, and I really wish it wouldn't. The Playstation re-release of Chrono Trigger (avoid avoid avoid) already established links between the two, so I fear it's too late. You may have noticed that I mouth off a lot about how the quality of game stories can stand to be closer to what you'd find in a book. I don't know if there has ever been an author who took over a beloved universe and promptly killed off its cast in the most half-assed manner possible in order to move in his roster, but if there is, I doubt he made any friends. Read More... Posted Oct 27 2008, 06:42 PM by Nadia Oxford with | with 6 comment(s) Filed under: nintendo ds, chrono trigger, Playstation, square-enix, chrono cross, nadia oxford, game story

• Up All Night: Power Blade

  Somewhere in upstate New York, on a chill night in April 1991, a television glows ominously in a family living room, illuminating the suburban setting in an uneasy, blue light. A boy sits before the television, knees tucked beneath him, with an NES pad in his hands. He is transfixed, his stare one that betrays nothing but a devoted concentration and perhaps a hint of desperation. This war against the despotic computer mainframe has gone on too long. It is taking its toll on his small mind. From upstairs comes a slow thumping, the sound of weary parental feet shuffling in the dark. A call rings out. “If I come down there and you’re still playing videogames, I’m going to throw that stupid box out the window.” A whisper. “Can’t talk. Final level.” “GO TO BED!” “No! No, I cannot go to bed! I must defeat these godless machines! I MUST STAY UP ALL NIGHT!” Yes, Friday’s Chiptune got me thinking about that true Up All Night classic, Power Blade. One of Guy Wearing Tank Top and Sweatpants’ last great hurrahs on the NES, Power Blade is, unlike some UAN candidates, a legitimately good game, chock full of tight platforming and robot murdering in the grand Mega Man tradition. It also has an interesting history: Power Blade actually started, as Kurt Kalata puts it, a literal Mega Man clone called Power Blazer. Read More... Posted Oct 27 2008, 06:30 PM by John Constantine with | with 1 comment(s) Filed under: john constantine, up all night, nes, taito, bad dudes, hg101, chiptune friday, mega man, square-enix, kurt kalata, power blade

• Cloud's Ghostly Face Says, "More Final Fantasy VII? Only I Know, Suckahs."

  We might be in for more Final Fantasy VII, and I'm kind of, uhhh, excited about the prospect, to be honest. Final Fantasy Union posted a pale picture of Cloud that has "Coming Soon" printed on it. What does this mean? It means the fangirls are peeing themselves with joy; we can surmise that much without going door-to-door. Less clear is whether or not this is a new Cloud-centric game, and if so, what kind? Everyone, including me, wants to believe that this will be the Final Fantasy VII remake that Square-Enix promised us is never coming, ever. Logic, which has been ruining mankind's fun since the dawn of time, states that this will be another game altogeter. Most likely another entry in the never-ending Final Fantasy VII Compilation. Final Fantasy Union speculates, Lord forbid, that this might be a sequel related to Dirge of Cerberus. Read More... Posted Oct 23 2008, 07:24 PM by Nadia Oxford with | with 5 comment(s) Filed under: square-enix, crisis core, final fantasy vii, nadia oxford, teaser, cloud, dirge of cerberus

• Trailer Review: Dragon Quest IX

  As October wears on and the fruits of game season, grand experiences like Dead Space and Fable 2, start to illuminate my living room with an incandescent and warming light, I find myself not looking forward, but back. 2008 has been, to date, a year overflowing with great games and even though it’s been less than a month since I finished it, I’m already looking back at Dragon Quest IV fondly. The characters, the leveling, the music; it was glorious. But, as it is with JRPGs, it will be a very long time before I ever attempt to complete that particularly glorious remake again. (If ever. Role-playing games are a steep time investment as is, a fact I’ve discussed many times in the past.) But this trailer, only recently presented in high-quality after its debut at Tokyo Game Show, fills me with hope for the future. Dragon Quest IX will be awesome. Oh yes, it will be so, so awesome. Read More... Posted Oct 20 2008, 06:00 PM by John Constantine with | with 1 comment(s) Filed under: john constantine, trailer review, square-enix, dragon quest, fable 2, dead space, yuuji horii, dragon quest iv, dragon quest ix

• Time For Terranigma! Right?

  Friends, join me in a round of "Let's Push Our Effin' Luck." The Virtual Console has done such a good job at not sucking for the past few weeks that it's only natural for me to raise my hopes and watch them get sheared. So, Nintendo. Square-Enix. Everyone. Time to stop starting and stopping like a nervous thoroughbred. It's time for commitment. It's time for Terranigma. When you were young, you probably played Soulblazer and/or Illusion of Gaia on the Super Nintendo. Both games provided Zelda-flavoured adventures that were nevertheless unique. Illusion of Gaia in particular still stands out in my mind for its mild hero, Will, a boy with telepathic powers who must jump-start Earth's stagnant evolution. Terranigma actually preceds Will's journey and Soulblazer story-wise, casting the player as Ark. Ark is cast out of his Eden-like villiage and tasked with beginning the very evolution that Will is later called upon to re-direct. Terranigma plays similarly to Illusion of Gaia, but it might seem unfamiliar because it never made it to North America. It did, however, see a release in Europe. So there's the beauty part: Terranigma already has an English translation waiting patiently for us. Read More... Posted Oct 14 2008, 06:54 PM by Nadia Oxford with | with 3 comment(s) Filed under: square-enix, retro, super nintendo, 16-bit, nadia oxford, virtual console, terranigma, illusion of gaia, soulblazer

• You Can't UNhear It: Time's Scar

  It's true; the Chrono Cross soundtrack is one of the most ass-kickingest collections of music to ever exist in our unworthy world. And the pinnacle of said soundtrack--at least, in my opinion--is the opening song, "Time's Scar;" Yasunori Mitsuda's stirring mix of wistfulness with a sense of urgency may be the highest point of his career. That's being said, I've probably heard the song hundreds of times in my life; and because I'm such a big fan of Time's Scar--and anything Mitsuda--something very minor about the recording of the song makes me cringe every time I hear it. Crank up your speakers to 11 and wait for the sound at 00:16. Did you hear that tiny little thump? It has haunted my dreams for the past decade. Read More... Posted Oct 13 2008, 11:00 AM by Bob Mackey with | with 6 comment(s) Filed under: ost, music, square-enix, chrono cross, yasunori mitsuda, bob mackey

• Square-Enix's Prez Sez: "Japan needs to be #1 in gaming again, homeslices."

  Square-Enix's President, Yoichi Wada, had a few things to say about Japan's lagging game industry at Tokyo Game Show 2008. Namely, "'Eeeeey man, this isn't cool!" and "Let's get off our asses and do something about it." I personally find it unfortunate that Japanese game development has been lagging behind North America and Europe. I want to see Japan's industry thrive for a couple of reasons. First, having grown up with the Nintendo, gaming (to me) will always feel like the domain of the Japanese. God knows America failed me for my fix of mushroom-jumping Italian plumbers, so pardon me for sleeping with the other side. Really though, there was something extra special about our elders being baffled by Japan's bizarre concepts. "Frog-men? Shape-changing leaves? What the hell is a 'Tanooki?'" Read More... Posted Oct 09 2008, 10:37 AM by Nadia Oxford with | with 2 comment(s) Filed under: nintendo, final fantasy, atari, square-enix, nadia oxford, dragonquest, game development, yoichi wada

• The 'Bout Time Report: Dragon Quest IX Gets a Release Date

  The Dragon Quest games have never been known for their timeliness; Dragon Quest VII in particular had a development time so troubled that when it eventually came out, the game had a sorry first-gen aesthetic in a world where both Vagrant Story and Chrono Cross existed. But according to Kotaku, the upcoming Dragon Quest IX finally has a release date--nearly two years after the shocking announcement that the game would be exclusive to the DS. In this case, the DQ team's lack of promptness won't affect them much--as if it ever did before. The passing of time has only seen millions more DS systems sold, which means that Square-Enix is well on their way towards taking over the world. The reveal of DQ on the DS two years ago was a bit of a surprise, but it actually made sense when you stopped to think about it. Dragon Quest was never a series that prided itself--or relied--on visuals; despite what a show-stopping blockbuster VIII ended up being. When it comes to the franchise in general, VIII was a definite deviation; all of the standard DQ trappings still existed, but they were dressed up in the trappings of a lavish late-gen PS2 game--and even more so in the renovated US version. As much as I'd love to see another game in the same vein as DQVIII--which felt like the only authentic RPG of that generation--the format of IX doesn't really matter. Even with a game as relatively ugly as the DS remake of DQIV, that same addictive DQ formula is present regardless of the graphics. Read More... Posted Oct 01 2008, 12:00 PM by Bob Mackey with | with no comments Filed under: ds, square-enix, dragon quest, bob mackey, dragon quest ix

• Oops, I Don't Like Super Mario RPG As Much As I Thought I Did

  My husband and I ended up playing something this weekend, after all: Ride the Happy Horsie. Er, I mean, Super Mario RPG. Rather, he played. I've just been watching. I had the game on the Super Nintendo, but I find it odd that watching the Virtual Console playthrough has not given me a nostalgic itch. He keeps offering to let me play and I keep shaking my head. By contrast, we were pushing each other like kids for the chance to play Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past. "MY TURN" "NO MY TURN" "NO NO NO!" I find that I'm remembering how so many parts of Super Mario RPG made me...well, weary. "Oh Jeez, Croco. This fight's boring. Oh man, the Kero Sewers. This was a pain to navigate. Oooh, the Forest Maze! This was cool! Oh Christ, stupid Moleville Mines. Snore." Read More... Posted Sep 22 2008, 07:16 PM by Nadia Oxford with | with 5 comment(s) Filed under: nintendo, square-enix, nadia oxford, super mario, super mario rpg, game writing, squaresoft, mary sue, geno

• The 61FPS Review: Dragon Quest IV – Chapters of the Chosen

  I’m not going to lie to you. Dragon Quest and I have history. It goes back some twenty years at this point, but our relationship today isn’t one based on nostalgia. Back in 2005, you could say that Dragon Quest and I were in, to put it delicately, an unhealthily codependent situation. Dragon Quest VIII had just come out in the United States, fresh faced and full of gorgeous cel-shaded graphics, newly minted menus and music, and voice work of unprecedented quality. But Dragon Quest has never had much clout on this side of the Pacific, and this was its first time going by its real name instead of Dragon Warrior. It needed someone, anyone to play it. Me, I was a recovering role-playing addict, coming off of a decade of Squaresoft devotion, trying my best to stay off the ability trees, the melodrama, and the menus. I lapsed occasionally into turn-based adventures to save the world. I’d been doing good up until that November, hadn’t touched a JRPG since Shadow Hearts: Covenant the previous winter, but I could feel myself weakening. I just wasn’t strong enough. So Dragon Quest VIII and I found each other at our weakest. Between November 15th and December 1st, I clocked just under ninety-six hours playing Dragon Quest VIII. Yeah, that’s right. Four days of my life. And I loved it. Each Dragon Quest, since the first game sprung from Yuuji Horii’s succulent brain in 1986, is an exercise in purity, a defining marquee in a genre known today for its decadence, bombast, and tedium. Dragon Quest is more often noted for its resistance to change rather than its consistent quality across the years. It’s true, Dragon Quest has remained, across its sequels, spin-offs, and numerous remakes, largely the same game it was two decades ago. The essential play – explore a large fantasy world, fight monsters in a first person perspective, collect items, talk to every single person you meet – has never changed in the core titles. But every iteration finds its elegant formula incrementally refined, and to great effect. Dragon Quest II introduced multi-character parties, III a job system that went on to become a genre staple, and so on and so forth. Dragon Quest IV: Chapters of the Chosen, a DS remake of a Playstation remake of the NES original, could be viewed as a step back from the lavishly produced (though still familiar) Dragon Quest VIII, a retreat meant to acclimate players to the series’ transition from home consoles to portables. Surprisingly, Chapters of the Chosen isn’t a retreat at all. It is instead a perfect model of the JRPG as Horii envisioned it, immediately accessible, streamlined from the menu-juggling, command-selecting rigor moral, and trimmed of the excess narrative fat that’s typified the genre since Hironobu Sakaguchi began emphasizing drama over play in Final Fantasy. Read More... Posted Sep 22 2008, 07:00 PM by John Constantine with | with 2 comment(s) Filed under: john constantine, nintendo ds, final fantasy, 61fps review, square-enix, hironobu sakaguchi, dragon quest, jrpg, yuuji horii

• Ten Reasons Why Secret of Mana Sucks

  Caution: Humor and Satire Within. I want to make two things abundantly clear. I love Super Nintendo-era Squaresoft. I love those games with a ferocious passion that transcends nostalgia. I am not being cute or silly when I say that Chrono Trigger changed my life. It did. Had I not played that game for the first time in December of 1996, I would have never kept writing, would have never been listening to the soundtrack which led to my getting up the courage to making a move on my first serious girlfriend, and a number of other causal ripples coming out of that formative experience. I also want to make it abundantly clear that I have very little time for baseless hating on anything, whether it be a human being, a flavor of lollipop, a book, or videogame. That said, Secret of Mana sucks and I hate it. I have tried. Lord knows I have tried to play, to beat, and to love that game. I have tried so damn hard. But the truth is inescapable. It sucks and it will always suck. Here’s why! Read More... Posted Sep 12 2008, 02:00 PM by John Constantine with | with 6 comment(s) Filed under: john constantine, top ten, chrono trigger, square-enix, virtual console, secret of mana

• Where Will You Go, Tecmo? What Will Happen to Our Love?

  This has been something of a tumultuous year for Tecmo. In the past twelve months, they’ve shipped just four games, three of which are Ninja Gaiden games. The fourth, Fatal Frame IV for Wii, wasn’t even developed in house (it was handled by Suda 51’s Grasshopper Manufacture.) None of these games were actually published by Tecmo, relying on companies as diverse as Eidos, Ubisoft, Microsoft, and Nintendo for distribution. In June, their public face and star designer, the outspoken, boozing womanizer Tomonobu Itagaki, quit the company days after Ninja Gaiden II released to middling reviews. In August, their president resigned and Square-Enix tried to take over the company. Today, Tecmo announced they’ll be the latest Japanese company to find refuge from shrinking domestic business by consolidating. Their new partner will be Koei. Tecmo, I’m worried about you. Times are tough for Japanese developers developing traditional games for home consoles. We’ve had wonderful times together and I’m still looking forward to Tecmo Bowl: Kickoff this fall. Remember all the good times we had with Tecmo Bowl? Yeah. Corporate mergers are a good thing for Japanese developers. Why, just look at previous successes! Read More... Posted Sep 04 2008, 06:00 PM by John Constantine with | with no comments Filed under: nintendo, microsoft, final fantasy, ubisoft, sega, square-enix, ninja gaiden, koei, dynasty warriors, tecmo, namco, eidos, tomonobu itagaki, fatal frame, Bandai, sammy, team ninja

• In My Fantasy World, There is a Final Fantasy VI Anime

  That's right. Back when I had a brief anime phase in college, which mysteriously coincided with a long sexual drought, I had strictly non-sexual fantasies of a Final Fantasy VI anime.  Two reasons: A.) Final Fantasy Unlimited was so bad that not even Japan wanted to see more of it, and B.) Final Fantasy VI's epic, operatic storyline that actually made sense (an important distinction) seemed perfectly tailored for serialized, animated fiction. Unfortunately, Square's forays into the world of non-interactive entertainment have been affronts to even the unholy god who allowed them to exist in this world to prolong the suffering of mankind. Thank whatever applicable deity for obsessed Japanese fans, who have the spirit and free time I lack to make my own dreams come true. Yes, it's essentially Full Metal Alchemist characters cosplaying as Final Fantasy VI characters and rotoscoped over previously-existing animation, but--damn it--a man can dream. Am I the only out there with such a far-off, adaptation-based wish? (This is where you respond and I feel better.) Related Links: Rockman Lucky Star TVTropes' "Woolseyisms" Posted Sep 03 2008, 10:00 PM by Bob Mackey with | with 4 comment(s) Filed under: final fantasy vi, square-enix, anime, bob mackey

• The Dividing RPG: Secret of Mana

  Squaresoft's Secret of Mana will be coming to Virtual Console this September, probably as Seiken Densetsu 2. It's probably a good thing Square-Enix didn't try to reshuffle the Mana titles when they came to America. Re-numbering Final Fantasy already requires more math than I want to do outside a school setting. (Yes, I was a dunce, and I still am according to expert testimony.) Secret of Mana's VC revival got people a-muttering on message boards and IRC. And I was shocked and appalled to learn that there are people out there who care not for Randi's pastel-coloured adventure to find a giant tree. They called it dated. They called it boring. They called it buggy, and "buggy" is actually being generous. By all programming logic, every copy of Secret of Mana should have imploded on the store shelves. I might be biased. Secret of Mana was my first RPG outside of the Dragon Warrior/DragonQuest series, so it wasn't too hard for me to be blown away by the harrowing story of an orphan who was fathered by a sword. Read More... Posted Sep 02 2008, 04:00 PM by Nadia Oxford with | with 8 comment(s) Filed under: snes, rpg, japan, square-enix, 16-bit, nostalgia, nadia oxford, virtual console, computer ai, seiken densetsu 3, seiken densetsu 2, secret of mana