If you missed the live presentation for Final Fantasy XVI's "Yes, You Can Pet the Torgal" panel at PAX East today, there's no need to worry. Square Enix has gone and uploaded the panel in full direct feed so you can watch it in the comfort of your own time. It's a good thing too because the earlier broadcast didn't go particularly well - cutting out at several instances during key gameplay showcases. During the panel, producer Naoki Yoshida and localization director Michael-Christopher Koji Fox covered a broad overview for the game, noting that FFXVI aims to resonate with both young and older players. To do this, the team has focused on the importance of narrative, characters, visuals and the battle system. Several videos were shown off to demonstrate these pillars, including a look at Eikons (summons) and the main characters - all using real time graphics. Several locations were also shown, detailing FFXVI's world of Valisthea. Once again, Yoshida noted that the locations seen in a walkthrough video are all real time places you can visit. Moving on, the panel also took a deeper look at the Eikons and their Dominants. Dominants are the keepers of the Eikons, or summons in

Square Enix is releasing the card-based RPG Voice of Cards Trilogy and Voice of Cards + DLC set starting today for PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch and PC via Steam. The Trilogy comes packed with all three titles from the Voice of Cards series including Voice of Cards: The Isle Dragon Roars, Voice of Cards: The Forsaken Maiden and Voice of Cards: The Beasts of Burden. There's also the game + DLC set available, which contains the three aforementioned titles and their downloadable content. Additionally, the Voice of Cards series is now available for smartphone platforms including iOS and Android. A free trial version which was also available as a Demo for console and PC platforms, Voice of Cards: The Isle Dragon Roars Chapter 0, is available for mobile devices. Chapter 0 serves as the prologue episode that reveals what happened on the day before the events of Voice of Cards: The Isle Dragon Roars. For more on the Voice of Cards series, including our reviews on all three games, check out our coverage here. A new trailer for the Trilogy can be viewed below. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WZzRO6kJ01E

Final Fantasy XI producer Akihiko Matsui will be stepping down from his role, to be replaced by director Yoji Fujito. This announcement came by way of the game's official website today, wherein Matsui shared his reflections on the project. Matsui started as a battle designer the company's first MMORPG before moving to the director's chair in 2010, ten years after he joined the project. After a stint as Final Fantasy XIV's lead combat system designer for the successful A Realm Reborn relaunch, he returned as a producer on Final Fantasy XI after Hiromichi Tanaka's departure until the present day. He is often seen on short broadcasts with director Fujito sharing information about monthly updates coming to the game. Of course it shouldn't be forgotten that Matsui's resume is quite impressive, even aside his long career leading Final Fantasy XI. Starting off as a battle designer for Final Fantasy IV back in 1991, he would come to work on other beloved 16-bit era RPGs like Final Fantasy V, Romancing SaGa 2, and a little game called Chrono Trigger which he also directed. Moving into the PlayStation, he also worked on the SaGa Frontier and as a game and systems designer on the

The Hatching-tide limited-time seasonal event returns to Final Fantasy XIV from March 27th through April 10th. Titled 'Eggy, Eggy, Stabby Fun!', a short scenario quest will be available in game. Limited time items from previous years' iterations of the event can also be purchased from the Online Store at a discount. Take a look at the event details below, and, while you're here, check out where to unlock new content in Patch 6.35, which released on March 7, 2023. This patch continues the Deep Dungeon series with Eureka Orthos, adds Lopporit tribal quests, a new Hildibrand chapter, and new stages for the Manderville Weapon enhancement quests and Splendorous crafting/gathering tools. "The season of eggs and whimsy is upon us, and Jihli Aliapoh is looking for an adventurer just like you to help make her dreams─and maybe even nightmares─a reality this year. Ready to take a stab at Hatching-tide?"(Artwork: Kodai Okamoto) Quest Get Along and Play Knife Location: Speak to Jihli Aliapoh @ Old Gridania Requires: Level 15, travel to Gridania. "You feel eyes upon you. And they're not just Jihli Aliapoh's."Start: March 27, 2023 @ 1:00 AM (PDT)Stop: April 10, 2023 @ 7:59 AM (PDT) Rewards Tonberry gear set:• Tonberry Head • Tonberry Body • Tonberry Hands •

A new patch is available for Forspoken on PlayStation 5, Steam and Epic Games Store, Square Enix announced today. A patch for the version on the Microsoft Store will be added at a later date. While there isn't much in the way of patch notes, the ones we do have focus on technical issues. The development team has gone ahead and fixed an issue where the game crashes in certain scenes or by certain actions. Additionally, they've covered various minor fixes. So there you have it. Forspoken is now available and if you're curious on how the game plays out, we've got you covered with our full review here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7soFJw2cbYw

The next edition of the on-going Final Fantasy XIV Letter from the Producer Live series is set to broadcast on March 31, Square Enix announced today. With a starting time currently scheduled for March 31 at 4AM PDT, fans can look forward to the first information on what's to come in Patch 6.4 - which will include the next high-end raid tier, addition to the main scenario and more. The broadcast will cover various parts of Patch 6.4 as well as miscellaneous updates. Do note that the presentation will be in Japanese with no translation save for the slides that will include English text. As always, we'll have our full summary ready to go, so stay tuned. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4CALXaPcN0

Team Ninja's Action RPG Stranger of Paradise Final Fantasy Origin is finally making its way over to Steam, Square Enix announced today. Having been available on other platforms including Epic Game Store for just shy of a year now, it's time for the rest of the PC user base to experience one of 2022's most interesting games. For those looking to buy the game elsewhere, it has also been discounted to a new permanent price. Additionally, a new trailer has been released, highlighting the main characters and "The Journey Ends". https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HYr9uqtCz3c Since its release, Stranger of Paradise Final Fantasy Origin has amassed a number of downloadable content expansions. The third and final season pass DLC arrived on January 27, following Trials of the Dragon King and Wanderer of the Rift. Titled Different Future, if features Jack’s repeat encounter with a mysterious Lufeinian, and none other than the Emperor, the main antagonist from Final Fantasy II. Stranger of Paradise Final Fantasy Origin is now available on PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, and the Epic Games Store.

In the most recent string of Square Enix’s already-packed release lineup, PARANORMASIGHT: The Seven Mysteries of Honjo is an exciting project to release in the current era. Visual novels are far from the once-popular medium they were years ago but as a huge fan of visual novels in general and given Square Enix’s history with the medium I was intrigued nonetheless. Excitingly enough, I was given early access to Paranormasight and after finishing the main story as well as its side content, I’m glad to say not only is it among the best of Square Enix’s recent releases but also a fresh and satisfying visual novel experience that both fans and newcomers to the genre can enjoy. Paranormasight is helmed by veteran director-writer Takanari Ishiyama, whose work on smaller projects such as Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings overshadows his long history of developing and writing a multitude of visual novels for the mobile medium. Needless to say, even if that has a negative connotation for you given the reputation of mobile entertainment in the modern era, fear not. What’s presented here is an incredibly tightly written visual novel paced excellently even with all its supernatural mystery trappings.  The story follows an ensemble

The original Theatrhythm Final Fantasy is a game that’s always been near and dear to my heart. Upon release I was captivated by the charming character design and the breadth of songs available that spanned the length of the Final Fantasy series available at the time. Then came Curtain Call and I got to experience the whimsical formula all over again, albeit with even more tracks to choose from including Final Fantasy XIV, which was just finding its feet at the time. Then came Theatrhythm Dragon Quest and even an arcade version of the Final Fantasy one. It seemed like Square Enix was keen on carving out their own little niche in this genre - even if those titles never left Japan. The latter came out in 2016 and after that? Well, there really was nothing. The Kingdom Hearts-themed Melody of Memory doesn’t really count as it’s a different format for the most part. The question then remained – was there till a place for the Theatrhythm series? Nearly a decade after the release of Curtain Call, the last proper “Theatrhythm Final Fantasy” title, we finally have our answer. Square Enix returned to the stage with an announcement last year heralding the

Theatrhythm Final Bar Line is shoring up its already impressive track list with even more goodies starting March 15. Joining the lineup are select tracks from The World Ends With You and NEO: The World Ends With You. These tracks include Twister, Calling, Someday, Your Ocean, Breaking Free, and World Is Yours. With over 385 songs at the base level, Theatrhythm Final Bar Line has a lot to offer not only fans of the Final Fantasy series but for folks interested in NieR, SaGa and now The World Ends With You, there's a good selection to pick at. For the full list of songs, check out our master list here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3uqW1EX5Ec8 Theatrhythm Final Bar Line is now available for PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch.