Square Enix has announced Final Fantasy XIV Online's next expansion, Shadowbringers.
The next chapter - scheduled to release in early summer/Q3 2019 - "will take players on new adventures to battle against the threats to the realm as they become Warriors of Darkness". There'll be an NPC "Trust" system where players will now be able to fight alongside familiar NPCs, a New Game+ feature so you can replay the main scenario stories, and a "World Visit System" that permits players to "travel to other servers on the same data center and interact with more players than ever before".
"The new expansion will bring an abundance of new content, including a new player race, multiple new jobs, an increased level cap up, sprawling new areas, adjustments to the battle system, as well as a variety of new battle, crafter and gatherer content," Square Enix said by way of a press release. "In addition to these core features, a number of new systems will be introduced with Shadowbringers."
Read more
Square Enix has teased an upcoming crossover for Monster Hunter World and Final Fantasy XIV.
Square Enix has lifted the 14-day time restriction on the Final Fantasy 14 free trial.
Sony Computer Entertainment has just announced the sale of its entire 9,520,000 pile of Square Enix shares to a company called SMBC Nikko Securities.
An income of nearly 4.8bn yen - around £28m - will be marked down in Sony's financial report for the year ending 31st March 2015. The exact sale price of the shares will be revealed tomorrow.
Confusingly, Sony's annual financial report for the year ending 31st March 2014 hasn't been revealed yet, but will be on 14th May. The forecast for the year ahead will include the sale of the shares.
Read more
Square Enix has shed its president and announced an "extraordinary loss" for this financial year.
Slow sales of its console games in the West are to blame, Square Enix said in a statement to investors today.
Outgoing boss Yoichi Wada had been in the job since 2000. He's been replaced by Yosuke Matsuda, formerly company president. Square Enix has made no mention of a new role for Wada.
Read more
The Final Fantasy 14 reboot and PS3 version that have been years in the making - and have a lot riding on them - finally arrive this end of 2013.
But how soon?
Now we now know that PC closed beta testing begins mid-February. So says a beta roadmap dug up on NeoGAF.
Read more
Another mistake like Final Fantasy 14 could destroy Square Enix, the man charged with saving the game has declared.
25 people are vying to be the first ever Final Fantasy super fan.
Final Fantasy 14 Online has been a long time coming on PS3. So far all the focus has been on the troubled PC version and how the relaunch, dubbed A Realm Reborn, will be all snazzy and great and look really lovely. And it does look like nice, whatever you think about it being too little too late.
Square Enix has released new gameplay footage from A Realm Reborn, its upcoming relaunch of troubled MMO Final Fantasy 14.
Rebuilding fans' trust in the Final Fantasy brand will take "a long time", following the damage done by the original and "failed" version of Final Fantasy 14, Square Enix has admitted.
The Version 2.0 overhaul of MMO Final Fantasy 14 will henceforth be known as Final Fantasy 14: A Realm Reborn.
MMO Final Fantasy 11 is the most profitable Final Fantasy game ever, Square Enix has announced.
Final Fantasy 14 Online didn't come out on PlayStation 3 in 2010 as once promised. Delays later, the console version has a prospective Q1 2013 release date.
Anyone who has an inactive Final Fantasy 14 account can return to the game for a 10-day free trial next month, publisher Square Enix has announced.
You can check out what's changed in Square's struggling MMO free of charge between 10th and 21st May, including the new job system, the Seventh Umbral Era content and a fresh dump of new gameplay due in the impending 1.22 update.
Meanwhile, Square is giving existing players a slap on the back for their loyalty.
Read more
Embattled Square Enix MMO Final Fantasy 14 is shrinking, with the developer announcing a series of server merges.
Monthly Final Fantasy 14 Online billing returns on 6th January 2012, Square Enix has announced.
Square Enix has hinted that the inevitable Final Fantasy 15 may ditch the series' turn-based roots in favour of action role-playing gameplay.
Final Fantasy XIV Online could eventually see a release on both the Xbox 360 and PlayStation Vita, developer Square Enix has revealed.
Square Enix has re-announced the PlayStation 3 version of MMO Final Fantasy 14.
An enormous update has just gone live for beleaguered MMO Final Fantasy XIV.
The mile-long changelog is too beefy to post in full here, but highlights in patch 1.19 include a number of new quests, dungeons and monsters.
You can also now rent a chocobo on a one-off basis or pick one up out-right to help you get around faster, or hop on an airship to travel between Eorzea's cities.
Read more
Struggling massively multiplayer online role-playing game Final Fantasy 14 has "greatly damaged" the brand, Square Enix has admitted.
Square Enix has no plans to follow Dragon Quest IX's lead and move the main Final Fantasy series onto handhelds.
Square Enix will announce a new large scale MMO sometime this financial year (April 2011 to end of March 2012).
Company boss Yoichi Wada announced the plan during a money talk translated by Andriasang.
He didn't say what the game would be nor when he would unveil it. Square Enix could be ready to talk at E3 in two weeks.
Read more
Big changes are in store for beleaguered MMO Final Fantasy XIV, according to the game's producer.
Square Enix is blaming a bad year on a "weak" console performance; the "continued delay in billing" for embattled MMO Final Fantasy XIV Online; the earthquake and tsunami that devastated Japan; and the write-off of goodwill - i.e. companies bought by the publisher now not being worth as much.
The new producer brought in to steady the sinking Final Fantasy XIV Online ship has detailed the internal issues that blighted the game's launch.
Publisher Square Enix brought Naoki Yoshida in to replace franchise veteran Hiromichi Tanaka late last year, following poor reviews and a disgruntled player base.
Speaking in an interview with Gamasutra, Yoshida highlighted two main issues behind the game's lacklustre launch: a lack of communication with the player base and insufficient support for the original development team.
Read more
Final Fantasy XI and XIV will be back online this week, after Square Enix shut the servers to conserve energy following the devastating earthquake that hit Japan earlier this month.
Japanese game company Square Enix has made massively multiplayer online role-playing games Final Fantasy XI and Final Fantasy XIV unavailable to play worldwide in an effort to conserve energy following last week's earthquake and tsunami.
Hotly anticipated science-fiction role-playing game Deus Ex: Human Revolution is delayed, Square Enix has announced.
A new patch for PC MMO Final Fantasy XIV is ready to go live, publisher Square Enix has announced.
According to the game's official site, the update will be available for download tomorrow, bringing with it new monsters, an improved user interface and a number of other tweaks. Here's the full list of what to expect:
New enemies, including notorious monsters
Read more
PlayStation 3 owners waiting for the release of MMORPG Final Fantasy XIV were dealt a blow this morning after Square Enix delayed the release of the game.
The first in a series of patches for Final Fantasy XIV has gone live, publisher Square Enix has announced.
The update makes a huge arrange of improvements to the much-maligned MMO, including tweaked skill points allocation, improved UI response time and a more accessible user interface. Have a look at the official website for full details.
Square's MMO came in for some heavy criticism upon release in September with the publisher having to extend the free month-long trial period while it worked on fixes for bugs and faulty gameplay.
Read more
Square Enix has extended the free trial of its embattled MMO Final Fantasy XIV for a second time.
Massively multiplayer role-playing game Final Fantasy XIV was slammed by critics and gamers upon its September release, but today, as Square Enix revealed a raft of updates designed to improve almost every aspect of the game, Final Fantasy XIV's creator reassured fans it understands their complaints and explained why the fantasy online game failed to meet expectations.
Undercooked MMO Final Fantasy XIV was the talking point of Square Enix's six-month money report yesterday. President Yoichi Wada was pressed hard by analysts wanting to know what on earth was going on.
Square Enix has extended the free trial of PC MMO Final Fantasy XIV because of "the current state of the game".
Codemasters' new racing game F1 2010 dethroned Halo: Reach to become the UK's best selling game last week.
An official Final Fantasy XIV controller exists and it's due out in Europe and North America on 30th September.
Square Enix has announced details of the new in-game currency launching with its forthcoming MMO, Final Fantasy XIV Online.
Before you can offload your hard-earned cash on subscriptions and security tokens you'll need to convert your currency of choice into Crysta, although there are other options to pay for your subscription.
Demonstrating complete disregard for currency conversion rates, 100 Crysta will set you back £1 or €1, depending on your location.
Read more
Square Enix has let testers know that the open beta for its MMO Final Fantasy XIV Online will end this Sunday.
According to the message, reproduced by FFIXVCore, the test will end at 5pm Pacific time - which is actually 1am on Monday morning in the UK, and 2am on mainland Europe.
Once the test is over, the beta test website will close, and it will no longer be possible to download the client.
Read more
Square Enix is restricting the availability of Final Fantasy XIV open beta codes because demand is proving too much for the game's servers.
The Japanese game company suggests you wait and try later.
"Due to heavy server traffic, we are continuing to experience Square Enix Account Management System congestion," reads a statement on the account page.
Read more
Update: Square Enix has said the Final Fantasy XIV Online beta will begin tomorrow morning at 2am GMT.
Get your registration code on the FFXIV website.
Original story: As many may already know, Square Enix has delayed the opening of the Final Fantasy XIV Online beta.
Read more
Square Enix has announced that the promised open beta for Final Fantasy XIV will begin tomorrow, 1st September, at 1pm BST / 2pm GMT / 7pm PDT.
People who were in on the recently completed closed beta are already being invited to download the new client, which takes in a number of tweaks and changes.
Final Fantasy XIV will be released for PC on 30th September, with a special edition granting early access on 22nd September.
Read more
Final Fantasy XIV game director Nobuaki Komoto has confirmed that his upcoming MMORPG curbs your experience points completely after 15 hours' play in a single week in the interest of balancing the game for people who can't play it all the time.
Square Enix has announced that its next MMO, Final Fantasy XIV, will go into open beta in early September.
This will follow the closure of the current closed beta test tomorrow, 25th August.
The news was made public on the game's official Twitter.
Read more
Square Enix has revealed that its new MMO Final Fantasy XIV Online will feature 18 character classes, or disciplines, at launch.
Update:Turns out that the 10th July start date for the beta test applies worldwide. It's been confirmed on the game's English Twitter.
Original story: Square Enix has announced that the closed beta test for its next MMO, Final Fantasy XIV Online, will begin this weekend in Japan.
The news appeared on the official Twitter feed for the game (thanks, Andriasang).
Read more
Square Enix has announced a worldwide 30th September release date for the PC version of its new MMO, Final Fantasy XIV Online.
Hiromichi Tanaka has told Eurogamer that the Final Fantasy XIV Online beta test "will be starting soon".
He - the producer of the game, and second-in-command at Square Enix - said the MMO was in alpha but on course for a 2010 release in all territories.
"We will do some final adjustments from the beta test and then we will have a launch in 2010," he confirmed.
Read more
Final Fantasy XIV Online creator and director Hiromichi Tanaka has told Eurogamer that a "closed" Xbox Live blocked the game from appearing on Xbox 360.
Final Fantasy XIV Online's producer Hiromichi Tanaka has said that there are currently "no plans" to bring Square Enix's next MMO to Xbox 360, although conversations with Microsoft are ongoing.
Square Enix has warned the Final Fantasy XI community of a possible "breach" of server security that may put accounts at risk.
There's a Final Fantasy XIV closed beta invite inside the PS3 Final Fantasy XIII box.
Rummage around near the manual and you'll find a code for the Square Enix Members website. Redeem and you'll be on a VIP list for the FFXIV closed beta. You'll also receive a special in-game item to use in the 14th Final Fantasy game.
Earlier this month, Square Enix told us that loyal FFXI players would be invited to a FFXIV closed alpha test on 11th March.
Read more
Square Enix used its VanaFest 2010 convention in Tokyo yesterday to announce the beginning of closed public testing for its next MMO, Final Fantasy XIV. It's not quite beta yet, however, rather the opening of alpha testing to players from the Final Fantasy XI fanbase.
Final Fantasy XIV Online beta sign-ups are open and all European and North American humans can apply.
You must be over 18 years-old to take part and can do so on the FFXIV website.
This beta test is for PC only and applications will be considered for each phase, so there's no need to reapply. "Details regarding recruitment for the PlayStation 3 version will be released at a later date," the website states.
Read more
The official Final Fantasy XIV site has details on two new player classes for the forthcoming Square Enix MMO: Gladiator and Pugilist.
Square Enix has announced a 12th November release date for the Ultimate Collection of Final Fantasy XI.
Final Fantasy XIV Online producer Hiromichi Tanaka has revealed that Square Enix is "in discussions" with Microsoft about an Xbox 360 version of the MMO. The hold-up, apparently, is being caused by Xbox Live.
Square Enix appears to be holding live demonstrations of Final Fantasy XIV Online at gamescom this week, as the first leaked in-game footage reveals.
Game Videos hosts the off-camera video (spotted by VG247), which shows a pretty girl/boy running round a field brandishing a bow.
He/she is joined by an armoured fighter who later stabs the dodos that the pair have been following. Combat is classic MMORPG, with definite rounds in which moves are made. It's very pretty, and complemented by equally accomplished animation.
Read more
Following this week's revelation that Square Enix's MMO Final Fantasy XIV won't use experience points or a levelling system, more detail on its character advancement and classes has come to light.
In a video interview published by Famitsu, Square Enix has revealed a few more details on its next MMO, Final Fantasy XIV - including the surprising revelation that it will not feature experience points or a levelling system.
Square Enix Europe - the new mother company of Square Enix and Eidos - has said that Final Fantasy XIV will be "one of the main attractions at gamescom 2009".
Update: As one probably should have expected (sorry), FFXIV Online is due out for PS3 and PC, not just PS3 - and will receive a "simultaneous global release with language support in Japanese, English, French and German". It's got FFIX and XI's director, Nobuaki Komoto, FFXII's art director and musician Nobuo Uematsu on it, too.
