Square Union

Ask The Last Remnant Director Your Questions

We've been given the opportunity to ask the director of The Last Remnant - Hiroshi Takai - some questions, so we thought that we'd reach out to the community and find out what you'd like to find out about the game. It doesn't matter if you think your question might be insignificant, no question is too big or too small. So, head over to the forums and post the questions you'd like to ask. Ask Your Questions

The Last Remnant Review

With Square Enix fans eagerly anticipating the release of Final Fantasy XIII, The Last Remnant comes at a good time for fans of the developer. This game is a completely new franchise and it was also developed using the Unreal 3 Engine; a first for the company. Speaking of first, it was also the first Square Enix game to have a simultaneous worldwide release, and it was directed by Hiroshi Takai. The question is, does The Last Remnant offer a good enough experience to tide us over until the release of Final Fantasy XIII? Read the Full Review to find out.

The Last Remnant Preview

When it was announced some time ago that Square Enix would be developing a completely new IP using the Unreal 3 Engine, interest across the globe was instantly gained. With Last Remnant's release imminent, we decided to take a look at this new title and give the lo-down on what to expect from the title which Yoichi Wada hopes would "become a cornerstone for their worldwide strategy". First off, the game is only being released initially for the Xbox 360, but it is scheduled to be released at a later date on both the Playstation 3 and PC. It also has a simultaneous release, and fans are hoping that this will become common practice for Square Enix titles. It is being directed by Hiroshi Takai (SaGa franchise, The Bouncer) and music is being provided by veteran composer Tsuyoshi Sekito. His pedigree is impressive, but it's his first real shot at a big Square Enix title, so it'll be interesting to see how the OST pans out. Click the jump for more.

Square Enix Venturing Into The US

It's been talked about for a while, but it looks like Square Enix are finally putting their money where their mouth is. Earlier this month it was announced that Square Enix would be publishing Supreme Commander 2 and now they've gone one step further by building a development studio stateside. Gamasutra has reported that they're planning to set up a studio in Los Angeles with the goal of developing new Western-centric IPs and it looks like quite an aggresive move for a company who has been trying to consolidate their finances in recent years. Will it work? Time will tell.

Square Enix Still Popular In Japan

Despite all the negative press that Square Enix have been getting from fans on Western Shores, Japanese gamers don't really seem anywhere near as concerned. Famitsu published a list of Japan's most anticipated games and Square Enix had a staggering 9 games from the list which had 15 titles. What's even more interesting is that two of the titles are appearing on the 360 (Star Ocean 4 and The Last Remnant), but even though the Xbox 360 still doesn't hold much weight in Japan, it seems to be peaking interest finally. Full list over the jump.

TGS 2008: Closed Mega Theatre Yet Again

Square Enix's layout for their booth at this year's Tokyo Game Show has been announced, and while it's interesting that both Pingu and Snoopy have got their own spaces, what's more important - and perhaps most disappointing - is that the Closed Mega Theatre is again make its return. Fans of Square Enix have got used to the Closed Mega Theatre in recent years, as Square Enix usually show previously unseen footage for an exclusive audience. The footage is then released sometimes up to 6 months later and to be honest, it's rather annoying. It does however hint that they have something worth showing, so perhaps we'll see more progress on both Final Fantasy XIII and Final Fantasy Versus XIII and you can expect there to be lots of speculation and mis-information floating around yet again, like there was after last year's Closed Mega Theatre at the Tokyo Game Show.

SquareSound Interviews Nobuo Uematsu

Earlier this year, SquareSound attended the Distant Worlds concert along with Michael Gluck (Piano Squall). While there, they had the opportunity to interview famed Video Game music composer Nobuo Uematsu and extremely notable conductor Arnie Roth. Throughout the interview, Uematsu revealed some interesting facts - notably that he hoped he would become a Professional Wrestler. To watch the full interview, check it out at the link below. Nobuo Uematsu Interview

Square Enix Have Their Offer Rejected

When Yoicha Wada proudly announced that Square Enix had been in talks with Tecmo about a takeover for a while, he made it seem like it was a done deal. Unfortunately, the new Tecmo president Yasuharu Kakihara didn't agree. Square Enix made an offer of $200m for Tecmo, but they have decided to reject the offer and will turn down any more advances that come from Square Enix. Instead, they have decided to pursue a prospective merger with Koei, the creators of the ever popular Dynasty Warriors franchise. Square Enix will be bitterly disappointed with this news, as they were hoping to gain more of a foothold in the western market. It looks like they will have to try something else though.

Sigma Harmonics Japanese Sales Fail To Inspire

With The World Ends With You prompting Yoichi Wada to suggest that games of this nature will be produced much less due to poor sales, Square Enix were probably hoping that their next new IP - Sigma Harmonics - would perform much better. Both fabled producer Yoshinori Kitase and respected musician Masashi Hamauzu were brought on to the staff, but even these two high profile names have failed to inspire the Japanese public to go out and purchase the game.

Cloud Voted 2nd Most Popular Gaming Character In Japan

Oricon Monitor Research have conducted a survey over 1000 individuals to decide who is the most popular gaming character in Japan. The group covered all demographics, with people chose from multiple ages groups, and each gender being equally represented. The character that came first is hardly surprising (Mario), but Cloud managed to coming in second place - beating both Yoshi, Solid Snake and Slime. The Chocobo was actually the second highest representative from the Final Fantasy franchise, finishing seventh.

Final Fantasy XIII Demo Playable At TGS 2008

Following the announcement at DKΣ3713 yesterday that the Final Fantasy XIII demo would be exclusively appearing on the Playstation 3 via Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Complete in March 2009, Square Enix have also announced that the demo will be playable by the media at this year's TGS. This is exciting news and hopefully the media enjoy playing the demo as much as they did playing the demo for Final Fantasy Dissidia.

Dissidia To Be Released December 2008

Final Fantasy Dissidia has been announced to have a release date of December 2008 in Japan, which points towards a Q1 release for North American audiences and perhaps a Q2 release for European games. Square Enix have been quite quiet on the Dissidia front quiet recently, so expect some more nes at the upcoming Japanese gaming shows.

Advent Children Complete Finally Gets A Release Date

After a long wait and numerous delays, Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Complete has finally received a release date from Square Enix. It was announced during the DKΣ3713 event, and it has been confirmed that the Blu-ray disc will come with a Final Fantasy XIII demo as part of the product.

Final Fantasy XIII Demo Confirmed

Square Enix have finally announced that a Final Fantasy XIII demo is on the way, and it will be exclusive to the Playstation 3 system. They announced at the DKσ3713 2008 private party, that the demo will come packed in with Advent Children Complete, which is going to be released during March of 2009.

Final Fantasy Versus XIII Jump Festa Trailer Leaked

The trailer that was meant to be shown at Jump Festa 2008 for Final Fantasy Versus XIII has been leaked by a mystery user via his Photobucket account. It contains never seen before footage, but the audio isn't actually audio from the trailer unfortunately. Click through to the source to view the video, enjoy!

E3 2008: Final Fantasy XIII Not Receiving Worldwide Release

So, Final Fantasy XIII is being released on the XBox 360 and the Playstation 3, but that isn't the case everywhere. Square Enix announced during their press conference that Japan wouldn't be seeing an XBox 360 version and their PS3 version would hit before the US and Europe see their versions. They then said that they would try to release the US and European versions as close as possible, suggesting that Europe will yet again see a Square Enix title 3rd in line.

E3 2008: Final Fantasy Versus XIII Still PS3 Exclusive

After the huge news that Final Fantasy XIII is going to be coming to the XBox 360, during their press conference, Square Enix announced that Final Fantasy Versus XIII would not be joining it. This isn't because they don't want it to though. Apparently it is being developed with an old engine which will no longer be used upon Final Fantasy Versus XIII's completion.

Final Fantasy XIII Confirmed For XBox 360

This announcement has been expected for quite some time in some circles and others hoped this day would never come. This announcement has caused mass confusion for some, but in general it is a good day for gamers. However, it is certainly not a good day for the gaming industry and it's an even worse day for Square Enix themselves.

Dissidia and Final Fantasy XIII Not At E3

Square Enix were quite strong with their comments regarding Final Fantasy XIII and its prospective appearance at E3 this year, but they have since released their official press release which shows the games that will be at this year's show. Oddly enough, Final Fantasy Dissidia, Final Fantasy XIII and Final Fantasy Versus XIII are all completely absent from the list. It seems as though Square Enix have done a complete u-turn from their old days, where they spammed information at every turn, with them now seemingly reluctant to release any information at all.

Dirge of Cerberus International Announced

In quite a surprise move, Square Enix recently announced that they would be releasing an "International" version of Final Fantasy VII: Dirge of Cerberus. This type of title is usually only reserved for games in the main series, but obviously they don't think people have suffered enough already.