Final Fantasy XIII 360 Version to Ship on 3 DVDs

After a Gamefly listing for Square Enix's upcoming PS3/360 RPG Final Fantasy XIII tipped off the gaming public that the much-debated RPG would be shipping on 3 discs for the Xbox 360 version, fanboys on both sides of the line went wild for probably the 10 millionth time over the game.

VG247 followed up with Square Enix, and was told that the game will indeed fill 3 dual-layer DVDs when it ships to North American and European retailers next month.

Depending on your view of disc-swapping, this could be good or bad news, or not news at all.

Some feel that disc-swapping is an out-dated work-around that should no longer need to exist in an increasingly lazy world, while other, more nostalgia-oriented gamers enjoy the opportunity to gauge their progress by how many discs they have finished. Still others don't see why this is a big deal either way.

I happen to personally fall in the third category. Many 360 RPGs - and, indeed many RPGs in even the last generation - required disc swaps. My feeling is, if they need to span multiple discs to fit the whole game in, shouldn't we just be happy that there is so much content? Is the physical act of swapping out discs really such a critical issue in the enjoyment of a game?

That said, I admit I enjoyed swapping the discs in Lost Odyssey because it gave me a sense of acheivement, while I hated the disc swapping in Star Ocean 4 because it felt like the developers just threw the swaps in wherever they felt like it (like in the middle of gameplay).

But honestly, either way, is it really a big deal? People will buy the game for whichever console they have, or whichever console they prefer. Disc swapping will have little, if anything to do with it.

Final Fantasy XIII will be available for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 on March 9, 2010 in North America and Europe. It is already available in Japan for PlayStation 3.

[Destructoid]
[VG247]

Not News: Watch a Pretty Japanese Girl Play Mario & Luigi RPG 3

This is most definitely not news, but when I saw this video of a rather attractive Japanese girl playing Mario & Luigi RPG 3, I thought I should share. You know, for the greater good and all that.

Oh, I guess it shows off some of the game's various DS functionality and gameplay. Y'know, if that's important to you.



Mario & Luigi RPG 3 will be available on Nintendo DS on February 11, 2009 in Japan.

Not News: Level 5 Says White Knight Story Will Come to North America Someday

In another round of Not News, Level 5 President Akihiro Hino told GameTrailers that the company's latest cooperative project with Sony, Shiro Kishi Monogatari: Inishie no Kodou, will likely see North American shores.

Well, his actual quote is, "Yes, it should be (localized for North America), but the launch date has not been determined yet."

...

So, uh, Shiro Kishi Monogatari will eventually make it's way to North America. Thanks for clearing that up, Captain Obvious.

Sony (or any other company) has yet to formally announce plans to bring the PS3 title to any region besides Japan at the moment, but c'mon, I don't think anyone doubted that the game would get localized. Hino failed to mention the one detail that would actually make this newsworthy: when? It's a mystery...

Shiro Kishi Monogatari: Inishie no Kodou is already available on PlayStation 3 in Japan. We'll keep you posted when a real North American release date is announced.

Not News: Tales of Character Ranking 2008

Those of you who voted (or are interested) in the Tales of Character Ranking that went on recently may be interested to see the results of the poll which were announced at this weekend's JumpFesta in Japan.

As a slight spoiler, the previous year's king has indeed been dethroned. Check below to see where your favorite character falls on the Top 50:

50. Sheena Fujibayashi (ToS)
49. Suzu Fujibayashi (ToP)
48. Mieu (ToA)
47. Natalia Luzu Kimlasca-Lanvaldear (ToA)
46. Chester Burklight (ToP)
45. Karol Capel (ToV)
44. Barbatos Geotia (ToD2)
43. Daos (ToP)
42. Ruca Milda (ToI)
41. Mao (ToR)
40. Senel Coolidge (ToL)
39. Jay (ToL)
38. Keele Zeibel (ToE)
37. Richter Abend (ToS2)
36. Kyle Dunamis (ToD2)
35. Arche Klein (ToP)
34. Genis Sage (ToS)
33. Farah Oersted (ToE)
32. Anise Tatlin (ToA)
31. Kanonno Earhart (ToW:RM2)
30. Flynn Scifo (ToV)
29. Celsius (N/A)
28. Ion (ToA)
27. Judith (ToV)
26. Chloe Valens (ToL)
25. Veigue Lungberg (ToR)
24. Shing Meteoryte (ToH)
23. Cless Alvein (ToP)
22. Presea Combatir (ToS)
21. Marta Lualdi (ToS2)
20. Judas (ToD2)
19. Mighty Kongman (Bruiser Khang) (ToD)
18. Sparda Belforma (ToI)
17. Estellise Sidos Heurassein (ToV)
16. Ridd (Reid) Hershel (ToE)
15. Colette Brunel (ToS)
14. Stan (Stahn) Aileron (ToD)
13. Asch (ToA)
12. Tear Grants (ToA)
11. Rita Mordio (ToV)
10. Emil Castagnier (ToS2)
09. Raven (ToV)
08. Zelos Wilder (ToS)
07. Kratos Aurion (ToS)
06. Guy Cecil (ToA)
05. Jade Curtiss (ToA)
04. Lloyd Irving (ToS)
03. Luke fon Fabre (ToA)
02. Leon Magus (ToD)
01. Yuri Lowell (ToV)

So there you have it: the 50 most popular Tales of characters. Personally, I'm surprised to see ToA's Luke rank so high on the list (Tear was much cooler). I was very pleasantly surprised to see all the ToV cast ranked so high, and Yuri even managed to knock Leon out of the way to take the number 1 spot! Judith (my vote) came in 27th, which I suppose isn't bad.

Where was your favorite character ranked?

Not News: Star Ocean 4 to Span 3 Discs, Will be Expensive

I don't think this is really news, but a few of you may be interested in the fact that tri-Ace and Square Enix's upcoming Xbox 360 RPG, Star Ocean 4: The Last Hope, will be shipping on 3 dual layer DVD-ROMs, tieing it with Blue Dragon for second most discs in a 360 game (with Lost Odyssey, weighing in at 4 discs, remaining the champion).

I personally never got why so many people get upset about changing discs. Really, is it that big of a deal? Though I suppose if you're going to install the entire game on your harddrive, it's going to eat up a healthy chunk of space (approximately 21GB, if my understanding is correct). I have a 120GB HDD, so it's really not a problem for me, but those 360 owners with 20 giggers might be feeling a bit annoyed. But remember, you don't have to install all three discs at once. Or even install it at all.

The other side of this news is that the price for the Japanese version of the game has been released, and is running for an MSRP of 8,925 yen after tax (roughly $90). Ouch.

For gamers on North American shores, this is nothing to worry about as most full retail games clock in at about $60, regardless of what they go for on the other side of the Pacific. For importers like me, however, that's a little painful on my wallet.

Star Ocean 4: The Last Hope will be available on Xbox 360 on February 19, 2009 in Japan, and on March 03, 2009 in North America. No European date has been announced yet.

Okay, you can complain below if you want.

Devil Survivor Boxart Revealed

Not really "news" per se, but for those of you interested, Dengeki has just released the boxart for Atlus' upcoming DS MegaTen SRPG, Megami Ibunroku: Devil Survivor.

Lots of red there. Yep.

...Aaaand, that's pretty much all I got.

Megami Ibunroku: Devil Survivor will be available on Nintendo DS in Japan on January 15, 2009. No word yet on a North American or European release.

P.S. Those cat-ear things on the main character's head still look ridiculous. Am I the only one that thinks this?

Not News: 3 RPG CMs

I know, you love to start your week off with a little bit of Japanese TV. But not too much. Maybe just a few seconds, y'know, to get things flowing. Don't worry, we've got you covered with 3 different Japanese RPG commercials, each a quick 15 seconds long.

What's that, you say? You're a hopeless fanboy and you won't even watch commercials for games on other consoles? No need to worry, as there is a commercial for each of the current consoles. Just skip those other commercials for those consoles that you hate, and pretend that we're catering only to you!

The Last Remnant (Xbox 360)


Rune Factory Frontier (Nintendo Wii)


Shiro Kishi Monogatari (PlayStation 3)


Sure, none of these commercials are particularly newsworthy, but that's why we're a blog! ;)