Siliconera was able to chat with producer Ichiro Hazama regarding the history of Theatrhythm Final Fantasy , and it’s potential fate. Among some particularly neat tidbits (such as FFXIII-Versus DLC, when the game doesn’t even have a date yet), Hazama explains that since FFXIV is undergoing a major content update, music from it shouldn’t be included yet.

He also very proudly re-iterates that the game sold out in Japan, and hopes that it will be a staple Square-Enix franchise going forward. Dragon Quest, Kingdom Hearts, and Tomb Raider (!) are a few examples he cites as possible contiunations of the series.

[Siliconera]

It might also be tempting to entitle this post “Cliché Limit: orc holding man over chasm”. However, knowing that the fabled orc will be taking the center stage — rather than the villain role — in the upcoming RPG, Of Orcs and Men, may change one’s mind.

The following screenshots attempt to show the other side of the orc race — the side that you get to play against vicious human oppressors.

Read more… »

It seems like the bad news doesn’t stop coming this summer for the games industry. Today Activision announced that Radical Entertainment, best known for the Prototype series, has been shut down.

According to Activision, the layoffs only affect “approximately 89 employees or less than 1.5% of our global workforce.” I’m sure the employees at Radical are comforted with that figure.

Read more… »

Red 5  Studios revealed that their upcoming free-to-play MMO-style shooter, Firefall, already has over 500,000 registered members.  In order to prepare all those members for the game, the studio also revealed the minimum requirements.

According to the press release, “the 500,000 mark represents Red 5’s commitment to nurturing a flourishing community which stands behind its innovative approach to online gaming.”

Read more… »

Developer Might and Delight released a new trailer for their upcoming platformer, Pid. This one focuses on the various enemies and the strategy behind obliterating them. Inherently, they’re showing off how pretty the environments are. Pretty.

Pid follows the hero, Kurt, as he struggles to get off a planet full of evil robots and other baddies. Expect gravity defying puzzles and plenty of platforming goodness, set to release Summer 2012.

Historically, I’ve always found the LEGO games to be enjoyable, if shallow experiences. They weren’t exactly the most deep titles, but ultimately they got the job done, and were a blast to play with kids — beyond that, there’s not much more you can really expect out of them.

The newest LEGO iteration seeks to branch out and expand it’s scale, not only bringing back Batman and Robin, but introducing a heap of DC characters as well. LEGO Batman 2 keeps some franchise issues, but ultimately, it’s one of Traveller’s Tales’ best games yet.

Read more… »

Sidequest Studios will be bringing their RPG Rainbow Moon to the PlayStation Network on July 10th of this year. After two years in development, you’ll be able to get your hands on the game for $14.99. PlayStation Plus subscribers will get an extra 20% off, which drops the price down to $11.99.

I like strategy RPGs, and Rainbow Moon looks like it has some similarities to titles like Final Fantasy Tactics. Is anybody else interested in this?

[PlayStation Blog]

Sine Mora is a great game; I think we can all agree on that. That’s why it was such a surprise when it was announced that previously XBLA-exclusive game was coming to the PS Vita. Now, that announcement is joined by this one: Sine Mora is coming to PSN too.

With the game’s XBLA exclusivity period up, there’s nothing keeping the Grasshopper Manufacture and Digital Reality co-developed game from gracing the PS3 with it’s “dieselpunk shoot ‘em up” charms. The PS3 version does not have a release date other than a vague “soon.”

Update: Brain Candy is now reporting that the major issues have been fixed. Albeit, smaller issues remain that may still contribute to availability issues.

The above message came from the Brain Candy development team on Tuesday, in light of major issues around the availability of their new online squad tactics game, Fray. Fingers point to their database provider who supposedly short changed resources. As a result, gamers are reporting everything from sessions all of a sudden dropping off to not even being able to log in.

Fray is touted as a game that focuses on simultaneous turn-based squad tactics. With plenty of maps, game modes and three corporations (races) to choose from, the game aims to deliver faster paced and more in-depth action than that of traditional turn-based squad games. If only they could get it up and running.

Read more… »

Oh come on! After delay upon delay, it seems as if SEGA is now setting Anarchy Reigns up for a “Quarter 1 2013 release”. According to Platinum Games, they were left completely in the dark about this delay, as the international version is completely finished.

As always, the PS3 version will be region free (and it’s reported that the 360 version may be as well, but I’d check that), so you can import to your heart’s content. I think I may just do that.

[CVG]

Today the developer of the hit PSN games Flower and Journey, thatgamecompany announced that they’ve received $5.5 million in funding from Benchmark Capital.

With the new funding, the studio is now fully independent. And with their three-game deal with Sony completed, thatgamecompany is gearing up to make sure its games reach an even bigger audience.

Read more… »

Almost a full month after the release of Diablo III, the real-money auction house is finally live. For the past few weeks the in-game gold version was the only option for players to buy better gear.

The real-money auction house lets players use real currency to buy and sell in-game items. The currency earned for selling items can be converted to Battle.net credit or transferred to PayPal. However, know that to use the real-money auction house you will need an authenticator.

[Battle.net]