Today, Square Enix president Youichi Wada revealed that the company has shipped 12.59 million copies of software (Square shippped 10.47 million copies and Enix 2.12 million) during the last fiscal year. Looking into the future, the Square Enix president mentioned that Final Fantasy XII will indeed be released in Japan sometime during the current fiscal year (as it has been included in this year's budget planning), whereas Dragon Quest VIII hasn't been included in this fiscal year's budget planning. Following Final Fantasy XI breaking even in Japan last December, the company is now readying its first PlayStation 2 and PC MMORPG for its North American launch. As stated repeatedly in previous interviews, Square Enix aims to further improve its profit ratio from currently 28% to 29%. The development line will also be a target of further increases in efficiency.
Final Fantasy XII for the PlayStation 2 has been in development at Square since early last year. Its development team is headed by producer Yasumi Matsuno and director Hiroyuki Itou. Dragon Quest VIII is being developed by the studio behind Dark Cloud and Dark Chronicle, Level 5. Series mastermind Yuuji Horii, character designer Akira Toriyama and composer Kouichi Sugiyama are all working on the PS2 title as well.
Brendan 2016-01-16 0 comments
Final Fantasy XIV's development team has responded to the tragic news surrounding the death of Sian Blake, the voice actor who brought to life Yugiri, an first NPC introduced in the later stages of A Realm Reborn. Blake took over for the role beginning with the Heavensward expansion. This week, the team behind Final Fantasy XIV spoke out for the...
Brendan 2016-01-15 0 comments
Preorders of IO Interactive's new Hitman game have been cancelled and the title has been transitioned from a full release to an episodic release schedule. Hitman, which had been scheduled for release in March, caused created a stir today when cancellation notices were sent out PS4 gamers who had preordered the title. After a few hours of confusion, IO Interactive...
More details are emerging on Final Fantasy XV's battle system and story locations, according to game developers who have taken to the official forums to answer fan questions. Answering a question about difficulty modes in Final Fantasy XV, Lead Game Designer Takizawa Masashi elaborated on the game's dual battle system and how it was influenced by Episode Duscae: The equivalent...