Post by: Pryopizm on April 24, 2006, 11:57:19 AM
Square Enix to Showcase All Encompassing Line-Up at E3 2006
- Entertainment Experiences to be Unveiled for All Platforms -
LOS ANGELES, April 24 /PRNewswire/ -- Square Enix, Inc., the publisher of Square Enix(TM) interactive entertainment products in North America, will have on display entertainment experiences for all platforms at this year's Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) to be held May 10-12 at the Los Angeles Convention Center in South Hall, Booth #746. Square Enix will hold a preview event and reveal special product announcements during its press briefing on Monday, May 8.
"E3 attendees will be immersed in Square Enix's most diverse line-up ever," said Daishiro Okada, President and COO, Square Enix, Inc. "We're evolving and growing, extending the Square Enix brand beyond video games to a variety of entertainment vehicles and a broader consumer base bridging the generation and gender gap. Our goal is to provide consumers with the most engaging and immersive entertainment experiences possible and we hope to give attendees at E3 a taste of what's to come."
Following is a partial list of entertainment products Square Enix will have on display:
The classic FINAL FANTASY games that premiered on the Super Nintendo(R) Entertainment System are now making their way to the Game Boy Advance! Hot on the heels of FINAL FANTASY IV ADVANCE (now available in stores), FINAL FANTASY V ADVANCE and FINAL FANTASY VI ADVANCE will soon be available to handheld gamers. However, these titles are more than simple ports -- every aspect of the games has been reviewed and enhanced. Additionally, a host of brand-new elements have been seamlessly merged with the original games, providing unexpected surprises for longtime fans. With new dungeons, new job classes, and other exciting features, both old-school players and newcomers can enjoy these genre-defining FINAL FANTASY titles in a portable format!
The magic of the FINAL FANTASY classics is returning to gamers' hands -- and soon the wait will be over.
FINAL FANTASY V ADVANCE & FINAL FANTASY VI ADVANCE will both be released 2006. These titles have not yet been rated by the ESRB.
In ages past, an island called Illusia floated at the center of the world. At the heart of the island towered an ancient, enormous tree that stretched up to the very heavens. For ages past, chaos and sorrow had engulfed the world until at last its salvation appeared in the form of a boy, a girl, and a holy sword. Time flowed on and peace returned. The sword and the tree remained, and they soon came to be known as the Sword of Mana and the Mana Tree. Followers of the Mana Tree returned to Illusia as the world started slowly but surely down the path to recovery.
More Magic with the Eight Spirits
The eight elemental spirits are a staple of the Mana series. These powerful allies aid you with healing and special status effects. They can also unleash fearsome magic upon your foes.
Cooperative or Competitive Gameplay for Up to Four Players
The greatest innovation of this installment of the Mana series is allowing four players to advance the story and solve quests together while maintaining the feel of an action RPG. Players' actions affect each other in a gameplay experience completely unlike previous action RPGS!
Children of Mana(TM) will be released 2006. This title has not yet been rated by the ESRB.
The latest game from the creative minds behind the 2005 RPG classic, Dragon Quest(TM) VIII: Journey of the Cursed King(TM), has arrived on the Nintendo DS. The hero of this brand-new action-adventure is a slime -- one of the most popular monsters from the Dragon Quest series. The game is set in the kingdom of Slimenia, a peaceful land that is suddenly invaded by a mysterious cartel called "the Plob," who then proceed to kidnap all the slimes in the capital city of Boingburg. Our protagonist, Rocket, is the only slime left behind, and must embark on a journey throughout Slimenia to save his friends and uncover the Plob's nefarious plot!
Bounce, Stretch, and Carry
The adventure stages consist of our hero bouncing and stretching, as well as carrying various objects on his head, while solving the mysteries behind each area, and rescuing his captured slime friends along the way. Simple, streamlined controls allow players of all ages and skill levels to take part in the action with ease.
Fierce Tank Battles
Each adventure stage culminates in Rocket hopping aboard a colossal slime-shaped war machine called the Schleiman Tank and battling it out with the enemy's Monster Tanks. Customize tanks by collecting a vast array of weapons and items. Call upon allies, each with their own individual personality and abilities, to aid in the heated tank battles. Even shoot your fellow slimes so they can infiltrate and sabotage the enemy's Monster Tank! Pit tanks against a friend's in exciting player-vs.-player action, using the Nintendo DS wireless multiplayer game feature!
DRAGON QUEST HEROES: ROCKET SLIME(TM) will be released 2006. This title has not yet been rated by the ESRB.
The only FINAL FANTASY that was never localized -- the third installment of the original series -- will finally reach North American shores! Lauded as "legendary" by the Japanese fan base, FINAL FANTASY III has been reborn, incorporating the latest in portable gaming technology. Using the features of the Nintendo DS to their fullest, FINAL FANTASY III features graphics that have been reworked and remodeled in 3D, while maintaining the mythical FINAL FANTASY look and feel.
This is the fans' chance to complete the circle. The legend of FINAL FANTASY III is reborn.
FINAL FANTASY III will be released 2006. This title has not yet been rated by the ESRB.
Post by: Arbok on April 24, 2006, 12:22:05 PM
However, am I the only one thinking "meh" in response to the Rocket Slime game? Hopefully some screens would be able to sizzle the concept better.
Post by: KnowsNothing on April 24, 2006, 12:25:28 PM
Also, no FFCC Rev. Perhaps they're still NDA'd, but they HAVE revealed it already, and I'd imagine that if it were coming out they'd list it. Maybe it won't make launch :frown;.
Post by: vudu on April 24, 2006, 12:41:21 PM
I've never really heard much about FFV. Why is this? I know it wasn't released in America on the SNES, but I believe the PS got a port of it quite some time ago. Is the game any good? People always talk about how great FFIV and FFVI are, but FFV always seems to get skipped over.
FFIII and Children of Mana both look great. However, the last few Mana games haven't been that hot, so we'll have to see how it actually plays.
Post by: Karl Castaneda #2 on April 24, 2006, 12:46:23 PM
Post by: Ian Sane on April 24, 2006, 12:58:00 PM
They re-release the other 2D games like a hundred times yet THIS is the one they remake in 3D. Of course my sprite bias is affecting my opinion a lot. A least we're getting FF3 in some form.
So are Final Fantasy V and VI being released seperately or together? I'm assuming they're seperate but it's a little unclear in the wording of the press release.
Post by: Caliban on April 24, 2006, 01:17:48 PM
Post by: Arbok on April 24, 2006, 01:20:15 PM
Quote
Originally posted by: Ian Sane
Is anyone else a little annoyed that we finally get Final Fantasy III but it's a new 3D version?
No, but in the best of both worlds you could just slap the original version on the new DS one as a extra without too much trouble.
Post by: AnyoneEB on April 24, 2006, 02:06:35 PM
QuoteAfter all, SD2 (Secret of Mana) and SD3 (both SNES) only supported three player multiplayer and this one supports four player! Color me unimpressed.
The greatest innovation of this installment of the Mana series is allowing four players to advance the story and solve quests together while maintaining the feel of an action RPG. Players' actions affect each other in a gameplay experience completely unlike previous action RPGS!
Post by: MysticGohan on April 24, 2006, 02:48:33 PM
Post by: Caliban on April 24, 2006, 03:43:17 PM
Post by: Nephilim on April 24, 2006, 04:10:17 PM
Square are busy working on there new MMORPG with there main FF team
Post by: Djunknown on April 24, 2006, 07:02:09 PM
Quote
I've never really heard much about FFV. Why is this? I know it wasn't released in America on the SNES, but I believe the PS got a port of it quite some time ago. Is the game any good? People always talk about how great FFIV and FFVI are, but FFV always seems to get skipped over.
Hmm... where to begin? The best way to describe FFV is the precursor to Final Fantasy Tactics/FFX-2. They game's selling point is the job class system. You have four characters in the game, but you can mix and match classes/abilities like the two titles I mentioned earlier. The story was ok, though I won't say anymore aside it involves crystals its been a while since I played.... Like FF II, American gamers don't talk about it that much since it didn't come out when gaming was simpler and our minds more impressionable...
Quote
According to Chris Kohler, Children of Mana isn't that great. Bummer, too, because it looked interesting in the screens.
I'd probably still buy it. I liked Secret of Mana, but Seiken Densetsu 3 is the pinnacle of the series. I can't sing its praises enough. Find more about it here. For some reason, Square(enix) hasn't recaptured that magic. Sword of Mana has some shades of SD3; it should really get a legitimate U.S release. What was I talking about? Oh yeah, Children of Mana, I still want it...
Yeah, FF:CC is suspiciously absent. 3rd parties are announcing Revolution support, maybe their NDA's expire at different times? Also remember the key phrase "a partial list of entertainment products Square Enix will have on display."
Post by: mantidor on April 24, 2006, 07:35:30 PM
And wasnt there a FF:CC for the DS? or am I confusing it with a rumor?
Post by: MaleficentOgre on April 24, 2006, 08:02:37 PM
Post by: Mario on April 24, 2006, 08:15:35 PM
Post by: Kairon on April 24, 2006, 08:17:30 PM
But even if they weren't, I suspect that I'd have to buy all of them on matter of principle to show my support for decent thrid party involvement on Nintendo systems. Color me fanboy.
~Carmine M. Red
Kairon@aol.com
Post by: IceCold on April 24, 2006, 08:34:36 PM
Post by: ruby_onix on April 25, 2006, 02:31:03 AM
Quote
Originally posted by: ArbokQuote
Originally posted by: Ian Sane
Is anyone else a little annoyed that we finally get Final Fantasy III but it's a new 3D version?
No, but in the best of both worlds you could just slap the original version on the new DS one as a extra without too much trouble.
Squenix can't port the original version of FF3 to anything. They tried and failed on both the Wonderswan and the PSone. They've said in some interviews that FF3 was programmed with some funky code that nobody at Squenix can understand, the guys who wrote it are all in different positions/jobs/retired now, and the original documentation is gibberish and/or incomplete. They said that building an entirely new game is literally easier and faster than trying to reverse-engineer the original game.
Post by: ruby_onix on April 25, 2006, 02:43:51 AM
BTW, here's some older FF5 and FF6 Advance pics, in their proper resolutions, compared to the SNES originals.
Post by: Ian Sane on April 25, 2006, 08:07:09 AM
That sucks. I imagine they could still use an NES emulator though so hopefully it'll be on the Rev download service. But then they still have to translate it so I guess it depends on how funky the code really is.
Post by: nitsu niflheim on April 25, 2006, 08:47:59 AM
Post by: KDR_11k on April 25, 2006, 09:49:10 AM
I've played 5, it's less story-heavy than the modern FFs and the gameplay seems to be better. The job system is much less confusing than that junction or sphere board crap, plus you can earn more jobs throughout the game.
Post by: nitsu niflheim on April 25, 2006, 10:30:57 AM
Post by: UltimatePartyBear on April 25, 2006, 10:31:53 AM
I can believe that the code is impossible to decypher. The overworld had some interesting differences from the previous games (that might be spoilers if I went into them here), and it was far above its predecessors graphically.
Post by: Bill Aurion on April 25, 2006, 11:15:52 AM
Oh my, Vaati has a cameo! =D
