Final Fantasy XIII

Pretty much everyone on the planet expected Square Enix to announce another Final Fantasy title at its E3 press conference this year, but few could have guessed it would announce three Final Fantasy of them that bear the moniker "XIII." The series is collectively being called Fabula Nova Crystallis (that's "the new tale of the crystal" to those of us not fluent in Latin) with two of the titles appearing on PS3 and one on mobile phones. The premiere title, simply known as Final Fantasy XIII, was the most talked about and had a wild (mostly real-time) trailer to back up the discussion.

Keep in mind, that Final Fantasy XIII is not a prequel or sequel to the other two FFXIII titles in the traditional sense. As Square Enix explained, the trio is linked through a common mythology but do not have any common characters, worlds, or stories. They all take place in the same universe, but aren't related to each other directly.

The video trailer of Final Fantasy XIII featured a futuristic world with a female protagonist who kicks some serious ass with a short sword-gun combo, similar in appearance to Squall's Gunblade from Final Fantasy VIII [Editor's Note: the video shown at Square Enix's conference was actually longer than the one shown at Sony's later in the day]. The video began with the woman soaring through a city and then followed her onto a train as she fought soldiers in a battle where she was clearly outnumbered. The train sequence ended with a giant mechanical scorpion monster attacking from above.

A collective gasp was heard in the audience when the movie went from what appeared to be pre-rendered footage to a full set of menus indicating that nearly everything we saw was made using the in-game engine. We were then taken through a series of environments ranging from futuristic cities to dense jungles. All of them were lushly detailed with plenty going on in both the character's immediate vicinity and in the background. Square Enix reps have told IGN that other than a few sequences, the majority of the demo is indeed real-time.

Everything we saw in the trailer pointed towards a title that leans heavily towards the action side of the RPG spectrum. The press release also described "intuitive controls" and an emphasis on real-time gameplay. Although much about Final Fantasy XIII is still up in the air, one thing is for sure -- this is one incredible looking game.


The video trailer for FFXIII shown at TGS was only remixed version of the E3 teaser. The movie kicked off in a speeding train much like the E3 teaser, but quickly shifted to other locations, such as a populated city.

The movie also illustrated how the heroine is able to move with accuracy and speed and highlighted a special device she uses that allows her to levitate when not moving and move faster than a normal human being. This might make sense in battles (the game still uses menu-driven combat and it's rumored that while making decisions on what to do, the action will slow down Matrix-style while waiting for your commands).

FFXIII's presentation ended in the same fashion as the E3 original: with our heroine squaring off against a giant monster. Hopefully, we'll know more details about how the game will play for real sometime in the near future.

From the footage shown at E³ 2006, battles in the game appear to be in real-time, similar to Final Fantasy XI and Final Fantasy XII, but without the colored target arcs linking player to target, as confirmed by Square Enix.

In a developer interview, Toriyama stated that the E³ trailer shows what is known as the 'Gravity Bomb', known as the spell 'Gravity' in previous games. Presumably, it refers to the electrical energy field that surrounds the young woman shown in the trailer. She can use it to defy gravity or to attack enemies/

In the upper right-hand corner of the battle screen, a circle-shaped gauge is visible. Once the number inside this circle and other conditions have been met, the protagonist can enter a so-called Overclock status. This status has a slow-motion effect, slowing down everyone but the player. It has been suggested that this Overclock system would replace the traditional limit break system found in previous Final Fantasy games. Overclock seems to resemble the Trance mode in Final Fantasy IX. Once Overclock is activated a number appears inside the meter and decreases, probably signifying the duration of the Overclock mode.

Summons were also revealed in Jump Festa, shown as part Mecha and are featured not only for battle support, as Toriyama states, "The treatment of summons beasts has changed quite a bit," he said, "The fact that the players can summon will not change, but what happens after that will be something totally different." The example he pointed to was Shiva and her transformation into a motorcycle. Toriyama hinted that Lightning may ride Shiva in battle.

Although the main focus of Final Fantasy XIII will be offline, producer Yoshinori Kitase has stated in the developer interview that players will also be able to take advantage of special online features

Battle system

Toriyama comments on Final Fantasy XIII's battle system, "Final Fantasy XIII took on the challenge of seeing how much of the battles in Final Fantasy VII Advent Children can be recreated in a game. The battles that were impossible to be presented in current Final Fantasy games were shown in Final Fantasy VII Advent Children. In reverse, Final Fantasy XIII will show how much of that can be represented in the game." Toshiro Tsuchida, creator of the Front Mission franchise and, previously, the battle director of Final Fantasy X, will return as the battle system director for the game. He has reaffirmed that random encounters will not return, whilst suggesting individual enemies may be given personalities and background stories. The battle system is somewhat of a timed-button input style. This system was made as a sequence for Final Fantasy X's overdrives where a series of buttons were displayed on the screen. When input in the right order, the amount of damage is at its fullest. It will also use Active Time Battle as seen in the screenshots in Official PlayStation Magazine's Issue 107 in August 2006.

Resident Evil 5 Revealed

Only six months after the release of the critically praised Resident Evil 4 onto GameCube, Capcom has already followed up with the first official details on Resident Evil 5, the next survival horror game in the latest issue of Famitsu. The surprise? It's not headed to GameCube, but PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. No more exclusivity for Nintendo, it seems.

Scans of the publication originated from website Game Front before their servers overloaded and message boards lurkers took over. The low quality of the scans means translation work hasn't made it's way out just yet, but while I slowly work through my Japanese-to-English dictionary, we already a vague idea of what to expect from the first screen shots.

Producer Jun Takeuchi of Street Fighter 2 and the Onimusha series is overseeing the project. Current speculation suggests the main character featured in the screens is none other than Resident Evil 1 and Code Veronica star Chris Redfield, but we can't confirm that just yet. It's already obvious Capcom's following in the successful footsteps of Resident Evil 4, with several in-game images clearly mimicking the game's over-the-shoulder action style.

What is surprising, however, is the game's bright atmosphere, a stark contrast to the dark, dreary environments usually found in Resident Evil games. There's even one screen shot where a blaring sun high up in the sky blocks the camera's view of several approaching enemies who happen to look suspiciously like zombies. Could we be seeing a return to classic form this time? Time will tell.

We'll be watching for an official announcement from Capcom soon. Expect more information on Resident Evil 5 (and likely other Capcom next-generation games) during the upcoming Japanese conferences from Microsoft and Sony.

Iraq- Champions Of Asia!

A second half Younis Mahmoud header gave Iraq a 1-0 victory over Saudi Arabia and the Asian Cup for the first time in the country’s history.

With the smoke from the fireworks that lit up the sky above the Gelora Bung Karno Stadium in Jakarta still lingering, it is a great time to take a quick look back at the good and bad points of the 2007 Asian Cup.

The Good

1 – The football

The conditions may not have been conducive to fast-paced thrilling football but entertainment-wise, the 2007 Asian Cup more than holds its own against the 2006 World Cup. There were some great goals and good games. Saudi Arabia’s quarter and semi-final against Uzebkistan and Japan respectively were as exciting and open as anything you will see this year.

2- The co-hosts

Malaysia apart, the tournament showed that South-east Asian nations have what it takes to compete with the best that the continent has to offer, though home advantage certainly helped.

Thailand disposed of Oman and lived with Australia for 80 minutes. Vietnam saw off Gulf Cup champs UAE and Indonesia shocked Bahrain and fought toe-to-toe with Saudi Arabia and South Korea. The challenge is to maintain the standards.

3 – Jakarta and Hanoi

The ones who watched their heroes in Indonesia and Vietnam created atmospheres that would be hard to match elsewhere. The sights and sounds of over 90,000 Indonesian fans cheering on their heroes will live long in the memory.

4- Media interest

Often, finding things to read about Asian football in the mainstream media has been an exercise in frustration. However, July has witnessed an explosion of reporting about the competition. It remains to be seen how long this lasts but at least, awareness of Asian football is at its highest ever level. Media facilities were pretty good too.

5 –Iraq

Iraq’s triumph was a fairy tale and a welcome boost to a troubled country.

The Bad

1 - Crowd Numbers

The big problem with the tournament has been the fact that the majority of games have been played in front of largely empty stadiums. It would be optimistic in the extreme to expect all games to be sold out but the fact that in the knockout stage, only the final was played in front of anything approaching a full house was disappointing.

Little has been said on this matter by the Asian Football Confederation or the respective national bodies but this should have been objective number one from day one. With the media taking Asian football to new audiences, the first thing on view was rows of empty seats – not a good advert for Asian football.

2- Play-acting

After the World Cup, patience with the fakers and time-wasters was already wearing thin and perhaps the antics at the Asian Cup will be the straw that broke the camel’s back. ‘Grass-rolling’ happens to some extent almost everywhere but certain west Asian nations are the worst.

The sight of Saudi goalkeeper Yasser Al Mosailem literally writhing on the ground in the semi-final against Japan after hardly being touched was embarrassing.

3 –Refereeing

Hardly exclusive to the Asian Cup. Perhaps it is a fact of life in major tournaments that the standard of officiating is questionable but some of the decision-making has been erratic. Uzbekistan’s disallowed goal in the quarter-final with Saudi Arabia was the worst and some of the cards handed out have been harsh to say the least.

Korea Defeat Japan To Take Third Place

Goalkeeper Lee Woon-jae was again the hero for a resilient South Korea team that defeated Japan 6-5 on penalties Saturday evening to take third place in the 2007 Asian Cup.

After 120 minutes of goalless action, in which Kang Min-soo was controversially sent off for Korea, the 2002 World Cup semi-finalists fought for almost an hour with ten men to enter extra time and penalties for the third time in six days.

The win means that Korea will qualify automatically for the 2011 Asian Cup.

It was a lively first half with both sides having chances. Korean corners caused problems for the Japanese defence and a Yeom Ki-hoon shot from outside the area fizzed just wide of the post.

Just before the break, Lee Woon-jae pulled off a super reflex save from Yuji Nakazawa who blasted the ball goalwards from a yard out.

Lee Chun-soo almost headed Korea in the lead ten minutes after the restart but saw his effort bounce overt the bar.

A minute later, Korea were down to ten men as defender Kang Min-soo was shown a second yellow card after a foul on Naohiro Takahara. It was a very harsh decision as contact seemed minimal.

Coach Pim Verbeek and two members of his coaching staff were also given marching orders for protesting the decision.

After 73 minutes, Korea’s goalkeeper was in action again, saving smartly from a shot from Naotake Hanyu who let fly from inside the area.

Korea defended with spirit and dedication as they entered a third extra-time in the space of six days. In extra-time Hanyu came the closest when his fierce shot was blocked on the line by substitute Kim Chi-gon after 116 minutes.

Two minutes later, Lee saved well from Hisato Sato.

Penalty shootout (Korea first)

1: Cho Jae-jin scored. Shunsuke Nakamura scored

2.Oh Beom-seok scored. Yasuhito Endo scored.

3: Lee Keun-ho scored. Yuki Abe scored.

4: Lee Ho scored. Yuichi Komano scored.

5: Kim Jin-kyu scored. Yuji Nakazawa scored.

6: Kim Chi-woo scored. Naotake Hanyu saved.

West Asian Final - Brazilian Style

Sunday’s Asian Cup final between Saudi Arabia and Iraq may be an all West Asian affair but the two men at the helm are both Brazilian.

Saudi boss Helio dos Anjos and Jorvan Vieira of Iraq will pit South American wits against each other at the Gelora Bung Karno Stadium in Jakarta and Vieira can’t wait.

“This is good for Brazil. It’s a very special moment – two Brazilian coaches in one final in Asia,” Vieira was quoted as saying by the AFC official site.

“Maybe it might also happen one day in the World Cup because there are so many Brazilian coaches training national teams, you never know.

“But this is the Asian Cup - the top of the top on the Asian continent - and to have two Brazilians coaching here is very important and a very powerful statement for us.”

“We have so many coaches in Brazil who could perhaps show better than me but they have not had the opportunity. We have good standards and a good school and we have proved it as five-time World Cup champions.

“And nobody expected that we would win the recent Copa America but we did it with a new generation, new players and new coach.It’s like a gold mine of football talent and the more you look, the more you will find.”

Asian Cup 3/4 Play-Off Preview: Japan - South Korea

What: Asian Cup 3/4/place play-off
Who: South Korea, Japan
When: Saturday, July 28, (12:35 GMT)
Where: Jaka Baring Stadium, Palembang, Sumatra

It is the game that no team wants to play, the dreaded third and fourth place play-off.

This game however, has something at stake. The winner will not have to qualify for the 2011 Asian Cup, though it is debatable if that is a good thing or not.

South Korea:

“The most terrible game in football,” said coach Pim Verbeek. The team always said it would return to Indonesia after the group stage but the expectation was that the capital Jakarta would be the venue, not the Sumatran city of Palembang.

The Taeguk Warriors must be tired. Two 120 minute-games in the past six days in gruelling conditions and heavy pitches have taken their toll and there are sure to be some new faces for the clash with the old enemy.

Korea failed to score in the knockout stage and found the target just three times in the competition as a whole. Japan’s defence is more generous than most – seven goals conceded so far.

Japan

The champions are also less than overjoyed about the clash.

Japan have been one of the most impressive teams of the tournament and have hit the back of the net 11 times so far. It won’t be easy to do so against a Korean defence that has only conceded three.

The 3-2 defeat in the semi-final against Saudi Arabia was the best game of the competition.

Osim has promised changes to the tired team that lost to Saudi Arabia.

Recent History

The two last met during the 2005 East Asian Cup when a Yuji Nakazawa goal gave Japan a 1-0 win in the Korean city of Daegu.

Need for Speed: ProStreet

Release Date:11/15/2007
ESRB Rating: Rating Pending
Genre: Racing
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Developer: Black Box

The limp charm of The Fast and the Furious has mercifully died, which is why the makers of Need for Speed are focusing their next game, ProStreet, on where they think racing will end up 10 years from now.

For starters, the game spotlights a car's ability to perform instead of its showiness (goodbye cheesy neon!), and that means you'll have to stack aftermarket parts onto your car to make it a winner. But you better take care of your ride -- instead of a magical autofix after each race, now your car will sop up damage until it can't go anymore. If you win a rough race, you'll earn money. But the question is: Will you spend it on improving the engine, or fixing the busted bumper that's barely attached?

In real street racing, zip-ties will hold a bumper steady, and that sort of money-saving shortcut is available in ProStreet. The realistic crashes add consequences to your actions -- the equivalent of Carbon's police, if you will. But with your car's health at stake, the game adds lots of tension and excitement: Are you going to risk a ruined fender -- and the cost to fix it -- for first place? Or is playing it safe, and finishing second, good enough?

The customizations aren't just eye-candy, either. Tweak your spoiler, and it'll affect the performance. Want more speed, more drag? Up to you. Think your car's perfect? Then upload the blueprint online, and some newbie sap can use your design -- but don't sweat him getting all the credit: Once you create a blueprint, your name stays with it.

So what's the point? You'll race on tracks, in iconic locations, in five different race types -- speed challenge (where you'll drive at hyper speed, and have to keep your car under control), drag, drift, and grip (circuit) racing. Once you beat the master at each of the disciplines, you'll be crowned Street King.

This is tip of the iceberg stuff, and if you want more, you're going to get it. Next week, we'll feature a full week of ProStreet content in an exclusive cover story, which will tell you just about everything you want to know about the game.