Classic Final Fantasy games from the 8-bit and 16-bit era have been ported and remastered several times before. From the first PlayStation, to the GameBoy Advance, to the PSP, and then smartphones, each iteration takes a certain approach whether it be adding new features and content or an updated graphical style. With many of these platforms now receding into relative obscurity, the call for Square Enix to update and port these games to more current platforms has rang ever louder. Final Fantasy III, for example, has never released in 2D outside of Japan. Announced earlier this year, the first six Final Fantasy titles will be given the "Pixel Remaster" treatment, with the first three launching on July 28th, and the next three to launch later this year. Currently, these remasters are only announced for Steam and smartphones. What's interesting is that there are remasters that currently exist on these platforms, but are being phased out in favor of the Pixel Remasters - as if Square Enix is positioning them as definitive versions. But are they really? From what I've played between each of the first three Pixel Remasters, it seems like a grab bag of features from every version, which is bound

In the 65th Letter from the Producer Live taking place during the annual 14-hour broadcast, producer/director Naoki Yoshida shared information on Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker, its PC benchmark and various events coming to the game before year's end. Today's broadcast also featured special guests and NieR creators Yoko Taro and Yosuke Saito. Benchmark Available from July 11 at 12AM PST for PC download, the benchmark will let players see where their hardware stands while getting a glimpse of in-game assets and the character creator featuring male Viera. Square Enix has provided a trailer as well. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IkC1r0eJZ-c Endwalker Announcement Recap Endwalker will feature conclusion of the Hydaelyn and Zodiark saga. The main scenario will feature more scenes than previous expansions and more voiced scenes.Old Sharlayan will function similarly to to The Crystarium/Kugane/Ishgard. Radz-at-Han will be similar to Eulmore/Rhalgr's Reach/Idyllshire.Sage and Reaper will be added as new Jobs. Alphinaud and Zenos will take on these new jobs respectively.You'll be able to use Explorer Mode to revisit Endwalker dungeons later on, presumably after the expansion patch.Pandaemonium is the new 8-man raid, and will be released 2 weeks after the Endwalker launch. The Savage mode difficulty will come 4 weeks after launch.Myths of the Realm will be the 24-man alliance

"SaGa never dies. SaGa never ends. SaGa lives on." So proclaimed the E3 2019 trailer for Romancing SaGa 3's remaster and SaGa Scarlet Grace Ambitions, two titles that recently released as part of a revival of Square Enix's RPG franchise. Akitoshi Kawazu, creator of the SaGa series, has established a forward momentum where further remasters of titles in the franchise, as well as a new entry, seem imminent. Kawazu, Masanori Ichikawa (Romancing SaGa re;UniverSe), and Hiroyuki Miura (SaGa Frontier Remastered) had time for a few quick questions about their projects. While titles bearing the "SaGa" name are now in the double-digits, the plan wasn't always to create a franchise in the vein of Final Fantasy or Dragon Quest. Kawazu adds: "We didn’t have the intention of creating an underlying identity for the series, either. The only goal for each title was to create an RPG that was different from any that came before it." Many RPGs, including others from Square Enix, follow particular conventions including a linear scenario where you proceed from point A to B, or battle mechanics that are clearly described. SaGa games are more interested in letting a player explore it's world how players want, often by modular scenario design,

The most "TWEWY" experience I've ever had was probably eating at the Taco Bell in Shibuya. (Did you know they have fries? A Taco Bell with fries!) So, naturally, I feel well-qualified to report on the authenticity found within The World Ends with You and it's brand-new sequel NEO The Worlds Ends with You. They're games featuring trendy teens trapped in a supernatural "Reapers' Game" where they must play by the rules or face oblivion. While there's much at stake for our heroes, including the steak ramen in found in Dogenzaka, it's a game that invites you to gorge on the consumerist aspect of Shibuya's culture - to collect all the pins, to purchase all the stylish clothes, to devour endless amounts of hamburgers to permanently increase your HP all while you're one step away from certain doom. In fact, nearly everything about the game is treated as an item to collect - even tutorial information. The first game is much about growing up in an age of endless influence, but defining yourself on your own terms, rather than by the content you consume or the peer pressure exerted on you. It's also a game that released in 2007 and features flip

In the waning years of the last millennium, Squaresoft was high off of Final Fantasy VII’s monumental success, and unleashed a salvo of roleplaying games on Sony’s PlayStation console. They were wildly imaginative games that, despite not having the budget of a mainline Final Fantasy title, had a creative and technical mastery that deserved just as much attention.  The finish line at the end of the generation bought the “Summer of Adventure”: Chrono Cross, Vagrant Story, Threads of Fate, and Legend of Mana. Me, as a young teen, had the summer sprawled before me to delve into these new RPGs. I filled notebooks with information and light sketches of characters. I fell asleep in the dim glow of a tube TV with Nobuo Uematsu, Yasunori Mitsuda, or Yoko Shimomura at just the right volume to not disturb my parents. Halcyon days. Legend of Mana was an endless fascination. Admittedly, it's one of my favorite games ever. Rather than tell a typical story from start to finish, everything had a modular design. Stories told within this world - split up into individual events and scattered about - with the intention of you finding the next chapter rather than simply proceeding to it. You

There's already a sound theory crystallizing in the minds of Final Fantasy fans regarding the potential narrative beats in store for us when Stranger of Paradise Final Fantasy Origin launches sometime in 2022. Between possible hints in concept art and the expectation of a form of plot subversion downright native to series scribe Kazushige Nojima, some among us are buying into the notion that Jack, Origin's angry and macho hero, is either the knight Garland from the original Final Fantasy or that he becomes Chaos, that game's final boss, in some weird, timey-wimey, way. It's typical for us Square RPG diehards to see a reveal trailer and immediately attempt to piece together a fraction of the puzzle. It's less typical for a Square RPG reveal trailer to elicit such strong negative reactions and meme-centric rebuttals within seconds. Enter Team Ninja, the studio most recently renowned for its success with the Nioh franchise. Through Koei Tecmo, Team Ninja is spearheading development on Origin, playing in Square Enix's sandbox but bringing several of their own toys to the occasion. This is readily apparent on several levels, from the art style and texture work to the visceral animations and complex battle system. It also

Several months ago, Square Enix showed us the "expanded universe" as it were of Final Fantasy VII is still very much alive and well when they announced a slew of new titles to go along with it. First up, we had another version of Final Fantasy VII Remake to look forward to with Intergrade - an updated and perfected version of the game for PS5 along with a new bit of downloadable content featuring Yuffie. Next, a separate "remake" projects of sorts was revealed with Final Fantasy VII Ever Crisis. This title will feature retellings of the entire Compilation works spanning from Before Crisis all the way through Dirge of Cerberus. And finally, Square Enix revealed Final Fantasy VII The First Soldier - a battle royale taking place 30 years before the events of the original FFVII. Recently, the publisher held the game's closed beta test, giving a select few entry into the early beginnings of the game. I too had a chance to see what all the fuss was about thanks to an opportunity given to us by Square Enix. After getting everything set up on my Android phone (a Sony Xperia 5, just for the record), The First

I envy those who get to experience Final Fantasy VII Remake for the first time, I really do. This thought has been at the back of my head over the past few days as I've revisited the world of Midgar - the familiar faces of Cloud and friends a welcome sight after a year of absence, shined up and repackaged for the new generation under the Intergrade branding. This dangerous blend of nostalgia for Final Fantasy VII mixed with the call for new and improved content... it's overwhelming - in a good way. The PlayStation 5 isn't entertaining some basic port. No, Square Enix has pulled out all the stops to not only update the game's visuals, but craft some additional content as well. You've got the base game, of course, but also a lengthy bit of downloadable content featuring the young ninja and materia hunter Yuffie Kisaragi. Along with a new summon and VR content, there's plenty here for both returning fans and newcomers alike. So first let's take a look at the base game. Content wise it's unchanged from the PlayStation 4 version - to the point I slipped in my old save (after transferring it from the PS4 version)

Prelude Although I have the honor of publishing stuff here at the fabulous Nova Crystallis, I'm just one Square Enix fan among millions. Perhaps I'm a bit wordier than some — and that's not always a good thing! — but otherwise? Writers and readers alike, we all visit this website because we're perpetually thirsty for all things Square. But how did we reach this point? And indeed, what is it about Square Enix's catalog that's compelling enough to have triggered the creation of sites like Nova Crystallis in the first place? There's bound to be a story behind every fan's first encounter with these games, and I'd be willing to bet that many of us also have heartfelt stories about how the games have been here for us through thick and thin.Each and every story is worth telling. Why, then, am I sharing mine? Well, I suppose for starters I simply enjoy writing. I probably wouldn't be here at Nova Crystallis if I didn't! But this runs deeper than that. You see, I've seen people ridiculed all my life for loving fictional worlds. "Snap back to reality," they've been told. "Get more real friends." It's important to acknowledge reality and to take care

A year has come and gone since the launch of Final Fantasy VII Remake - it's almost a fever dream, in a way, who could have expected 2020 of all things to birth the release and revival of one of history's greatest RPGs. Certainly, it arrived in this world to great applause - from both us and others abroad. This arrival signaled the importance of Final Fantasy VII's continued legacy, one that remains incredibly active today and into the future. That future edges ever near with the release of Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade - an updated experience exclusively for PlayStation 5 that improves on the original in every way. Armed with 4K visuals and 60FPS action, this expanded and shined up take ramps up the experience with the addition of new content featuring fan-favorite character Yuffie Kisaragi. Under the banner of FF7R Episode INTERmission, Square Enix has provided us with an eyes-on, hands-off preview of what to expect when the game drops on June 10th. Check out our footage below: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2uX9cDHXqbw Overview Following the footsteps of Final Fantasy in the modern era, FF7R Episode INTERmission aims to expand the existing Final Fantasy VII Remake experience with a new adventure. It’s a solo mission this