Some new screens have surfaced for the new WiiWare title from Square Enix.

Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: My Life as King takes up where the original Crystal Chronicles on GameCube left off, gamers will play Leo the Little King, a member of the Clavat-race with special powers called “The Architect”. This special power comes from the crystals and you will use them to build a new country in the barren lands. To use “The Architect” special powers, you must acquire skills found in dungeons and instead of exploring them yourself – you send mages and warriors to do the dirty work for you.

Storyline:

According to legend, a deserted town now serves as the lifeless reminder of a once powerful kingdom. The young son of an exiled king reaches this land after a long journey, finding only an abandoned castle – and a magic crystal. Though tarnished by years of neglect, the crystal has maintained its luminous glow and bestows upon the boy the power of architek, the ability to manifest memories into reality. With the help of loyal servants and audacious adventurers, the new king dutifully prepares to rebuild his people’s homeland in this new realm.

Features:

• Scenario created by Motomu Toriyama, the acclaimed director of the upcoming FINAL FANTASY XIII.
• Groundbreaking graphics optimized for the Wii enable players to journey through a world filled with memorable characters and architectural splendor.
• Rebuild a nation by building houses and shops, carefully considering the best interests of the citizens. If the player’s nation regains its former glory, the secrets of the land may be revealed.
• Enlist adventurers with varying levels, jobs and profiles to carry out dangerous missions in return for rewards.
• Be mindful of the passage of time, and plan each day accordingly in order to efficiently carry out construction efforts.

For more screens, click here.

Lovely scans of FFXIII are showing up on the net thanks to a user calling herself “BlankChocobo”. The scans in question are from her copy of Famitsu PS3 and contain all 27 pages of Final Fantasy XIII and Final Fantasy Versus XIII. Granted, some of these have circled the net in recent weeks, but this time there is little to no Japanese text running across the pictures.

To say that these are the best looking eye-candy I have seen since Clive Owen’s last Lancombe ad would be an understatement. I have posted a few of the scans below, but you can drool over all of them by clicking on the FFXIII link at the bottom of the post.

Thanks: FinalFantasy-XIII.net

Erroneous reports have been spread all over the Internet claiming that a Japanese magazine was reporting that Square Enix had promised Final Fantasy XIII would be released in 2008. This is, in fact, not correct, and Square Enix promised no such thing – they know better than to make a promise for something that has virtually no chance of happening.

The following was posted on Square Enix’s official website:

Although information regarding the release date of FINAL FANTASY XIII has been reported by certain videogame websites, Square Enix itself has yet to make an official statement on this topic. Any reports of a confirmed release date are erroneous and should be disregarded.

Square Enix will make an official announcement in the future concerning the release date when it has been determined.

Disappointing for FF fans? Sure. But they’ll be happy when they’re literally swimming in FFXIII games.

Square Enix have not seemed too keen on sending out too many screens for their Final Fantasy XIII and Final Fantasy Versus XIII titles, but thanks to the wonderful folks over at Shonen Weekly Jump – we have a full scan of both games. While we are still waiting for a release announcement and more “official” assets, these will have to do, and hopefully between now and sometime in 2009 when the game hits, we will get at least something to keep the fanboys and girls satisfied – me included.

Read the full article

Our readers seem to respond well to art, so we decided to throw some great Final Fantasy art your way. While browsing deviantART, this awesome Final Fantasy work of art appeared. The artist based this piece off the last Final Fantasy trailer that was released. We’ll definitely be keeping an eye on Ninjatic’s work in the future. If you’ve been following the debates around the net, you’d see that there’s definitely some mystery as to who this character actually is. Some believe he looks like Sasuke from Naruto.

Take a good look at the trailer above for Final Fantasy Versus XIII. Does this look like “M” rated material to you? Past Final Fantasy games have shown a minimal amount of blood, earning them “T for Teen” ratings. This trailer however suggests some more extreme violence and gore, particularly with the one soldier being impaled by a sword, which has sparked some questions about what ESRB rating the final game may receive. According to the ratings board, scenes containing “intense violence, blood and gore” can earn a game an “Mature” rating. If that were to happen, this would certainly be an interesting change for the same team behind Kingdom Hearts.

Via FFXII.net

Finally, some updated looks at Final Fantasy XIII are starting to surface. Although rumors have circled around to the contrary, Final Fantasy XIII is still currently listed as an official PS3 exclusive. As long as it remains a PS3 exclusive, Sony will benefit endlessly from the release. The above video contains primarily cut scenes, but the game is still looking good. It’s hard to believe that a franchise can keep going the way Final Fantasy does, but there seems to be no end in site. My belief is that strong writing has kept the franchise alive and well for all these years.

Hopefully you enjoy the above video. We’ll bring you updates on the game as soon as we receive anything.

Looking for a next-gen sequel for the popular Disney-Final Fantasy lovechild Kingdom Hearts? Well sorry to disappoint, though there is action on the Kingdom Hearts front as Square Enix, Co., Ltd. announced three new titles in the award-winning KINGDOM HEARTS series at the Tokyo Game Show 2007. Fans will now be able to take their favorite series with them with these new portable games; KINGDOM HEARTS 358/2 Days for the Nintendo DS, KINGDOM HEARTS Birth by Sleep for the PSP, and KINGDOM HEARTS coded for mobile phones.

Aside from all being side-story or prequel based, there is no official word on a true continuation of the Kingdom Hearts story so unless you love the portable consoles prepare to be a bit disappointed. Chain of Memories, the last portable addition to the series was a fun little card game so I’m anxious to see how these games turn out.

Currently these titles are only confirmed for release in Japan. Look for an announcement for other regions to follow. Read on for story details on each of these new titles. We can only hope that they get better translated titles before their inevitable English release. Read the full article

We over at Gaming Today have been slowly watching the rising number of signatures on this online petition to produce a re-make of Final Fantasy VII. The author of the petition has informed us that the petition has crossed the 20,000 signature mark, so he notified Square-Enix. Here’s their response (brace yourselves):

Thank you for contacting SQUARE ENIX Customer Support,

We hope this letter answers your questions.

Our parent company, SQUARE ENIX of Japan, has no current plans to create a sequel or remake to that particular title at this time. This is not to say that it will never happen, it’s just that their development teams are currently focusing on numerous other projects.

We hope this information has been of assistance.

Thanks,
Neil- SQUARE ENIX Customer Support
www.square-enix.com

I know: dang. On the plus side, it’s starting to look like they’re getting the message. They probably just seriously do have way too many projects on their table — including about five Final Fantasy games, not to mention another Kingdom Hearts title — to even consider taking on another one right now. Maybe wait until Final Fantasy XIII is out the door and then start hassling them again.

Sony has dealt with criticism from throughout the industry, and that trend is continuing. A Reuters story quotes Square Enix President Yoichi Wada as saying, “Sony first unveiled the PS3 as a mighty home electronics product. Then, after some badgering from game companies, it shifted the position of the console closer to a game machine … (the future of the PS3) would be tough if its marketing strategy is not straightened up.”

That’s a pretty hard lash from the president of a company developing one of the two major third-party PlayStation 3 exclusives, Final Fantasy XIII. Wada most certainly has a point, though, as the PlayStation 3 has yet to have a firm marketing plan put in place, leaving the average consumer wondering why exactly he should drop upwards of $500 on a PlayStation 3.

Reuters via Joystiq