Final Fantasy XIII

Unreleased

Final Fantasy XIII (ファイナルファンタジーXIII, Fainaru Fantajī Sātīn) is an upcoming installment in the Final Fantasy series, and is the first of the series to be released on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. Unveiled at E3 2006, the game is the flagship of Square Enix's Fabula Nova Crystallis project. The game will run on Crystal Tools (formerly known as White Engine), a proprietary engine built for Square Enix's next-generation games. Though the game is set to be released in Japan in 2009, overseas releases will not be until at least May 2010.

Gameplay
The battle system has been described as "More tactical than Final Fantasy X, faster than X-2, and almost as seamless as XII". The enemies are visible in the field. When the player runs into them with the playable characters, the camera changes position and the battle menu pops up, marking the start of a battle. This makes the transition from exploration to battle nearly seamless.

In the battle, the player can control only one character, but that character can be switched anytime. The other party members act according to A.I.-settings. The Active Time Battle bar returns in the battle system, but this time it is divided into sections (different screenshots show three and five sections). Each command available to the battle party have a number next to the name indicating how many of these sections it will take up. This allows the player to input several commands per turn. The next turn comes up sooner if the ATB bar is only partially used.

The available commands vary from character to character, but series staples such as Attack, Fire, Blizzard and Cure make a return, along with new commands such as Launch, which will send the enemy flying into the air. The system how a character learns these commands is not yet revealed.

A new element called the Break bar is added to the battle, as well. It is specific to each enemy, and it depletes as the player performs attack combos marked by a percentage. Once the bar is empty, the word "break" flashes on the screen. The effects of this are still unexplained.

In early footage of the game, the battles included a minimap showing the position of the enemies as well as an indicator called the Overclock, but these elements have been removed from the new footage shown in the official global trailer visible at the official websites.

The Summoned
Summons return in this game as the Summoned, linked with the powers of the l'Cie. Revealed veteran summons include Shiva, Ifrit, Carbuncle and Siren, who all have a new, more futuristic design. The summons are used both in battle and as plot devices in cutscenes.

Setting
A long time ago, the Crystals and their preternatural servants, the fal'Cie, created a floating, utopian city in the atmosphere of a planet known as Pulse. The Crystals willed that the city be completely isolated from the crude and brutal wilderness below. Fulfilling their masters' wish, the fal'Cie commissioned machines to be the guardians of the citizens in their stead. Barriers were subsequently set up all around the city, and as such was the metropolis granted its befitting name: Cocoon. Having lived secluded from the outside world for many years, the citizens of Cocoon are now becoming anxious of what Pulse really holds. Recent contact with those from the world below has caused people to question one another and their ways of life. Wised up to the word on the street, the Holy Government of Cocoon have decreed a new edict: Any individuals suspected to be in contact with the world of Pulse are to be banished from the city unconditionally and cast into the harsh environment of the planet below.

In tandem with the increasing uneasiness among the citizens of Cocoon, the believers of destiny are now painting the gloomiest of futures: the downfall of the entire world. Belief has it that one of the Crystals residing on Pulse has sought a woman to destroy the world and its inhabitants. This woman goes by the codename Lightning. The fal'Cie force Lightning and her companions to do the Crystal's bidding, giving them the powers of the l'Cie.

According to director and scenario writer Motomu Toriyama, Final Fantasy XIII will not have a prominent main character. All playable characters will have equal importance in the plot (similar to Final Fantasy VI).

In summary, the storyline will focus on "those who resist the world," says Square-Enix President Yoichi Wada.

Characters
Information about the characters in the game has been sparse ever since its announcement back in 2006. However, nine prominent characters have appeared in various magazines and trailers, some of whom just recently in the trailer shown in the Closed Mega Theater at Jump Festa 2009.


 * Lightning (ライトニング Raitoningu) — Announced by Square Enix as the protagonist of the game, Lightning is deemed an adversary of humankind, having been chosen by the Crystals to bring about the end of the world. Codenamed Lightning, her true name remaining a mystery&#0151;even to her. It has been stated that the player will discover her true name some time during the game. A formidable and agile fighter, Lightning wields a sword that has the unique ability to transform into a semi-automatic gun if she so chooses. As seen in the trailers, she can also manipulate gravity, although the mechanism behind which still remains unknown.


 * Lightning previously served the Holy Government of Cocoon in the army. Interestingly, trailers show that she will be assisting in the rescuing of Oerba Dia Vanille from the claws of the Cocoon army. As for her relationship with the other main characters, it has been confirmed that she will team up with Snow Villiers in Team Nora.


 * Snow Villiers (スノウ・ヴィリアース Sunou Viriāsu) — Leader of Team Nora and a l'Cie, Snow Villiers is a sturdy man whose mannerism is reputed to resemble that of a cowboy. As seen in later trailers, Snow drives a motorcycle, which&#0151;quite out of the ordinary&#0151;is composed of the Shiva Sisters which is believable because of their mechanical appearence and wheels on each of their bodies. On his right forearm, there is a tattoo that implies his relationship with the fal'Cie. It has also been claimed that the tattoo is the source by which he performs magic. He fights with his fists.


 * Snow Villiers is the leader during the rescue of Oerba De Vanille, as seen in one of the later trailers. His motivations for rescuing her is however yet to be confirmed.


 * Oerba Dia Vanille (ヲルバ=ダイア・ヴァニラ Woruba Daia Vanira) — A young and spirited girl with autumn red hair tied up in pigtails, Vanille is a citizen of Pulse and ostensibly a subject of great interest to both the Holy Government and the resistance group led by Snow Villiers. She is a l'Cie, and carries a heavy burden she is not initially aware of herself. She wears a savannah-style outfit and wields a modernized bow.


 * In one scene in the trailer, she is seen standing on top of a cliff taking in the view of the wild nature of Pulse. In another scene, she is walking in a funeral procession, tailing the coffin while escorted by soldiers to a battle plane. It is unclear whose funeral this is. In a third scene, she is seen catching a disc, from which the summon Carbuncle appears.


 * Sazh Katzroy (サッズ・カッツロイ Sazzu Kattsuroi) — A middle-aged man with dark skin and afro hair. He owns a baby Chocobo that has been said to live in his hair. He is described as a gentle person who is easily reduced to tears. He appears in shots to be slightly cowardly, yet compassionate. He knows Lightning from their time serving the military of Cocoon. He is playable from the early stages of the game, and he fights with two pistols.


 * Gadot (ガド Gadou) — A member of Team Nora. A dark-skinned man with orange hair and green clothes was revealed in a trailer shown in the Closed Mega Theater at Jump Festa 2009. In the trailer, he uses a machine gun in battle.


 * Lebreau (レプロ Repuro) — A tattooed woman who has black hair tied in a ponytail and a butterfly tattoo on her shoulder. She was revealed in the trailer shown at Jump Festa 2009. She is also a member of Team Nora. She dresses in strange fashion, wearing short shorts and a tanktop like shirt with puffy sleeves. She uses a rifle in battle.


 * Maqui — A young blond man with goggles who was revealed in the trailer on display at Jump Festa 2009. He wears black and pink clothes and a pair of goggles. Like the two characters above, the youngster is a member of Team Nora.


 * A fifth member of Team Nora has been spoken of, though he or she has not yet been revealed.

Other characters
A woman with glasses and blonde hair reaching all the way down to her knees, appears to be situated in the higher echelon of the Holy Government. She is seen wielding a high-powered sniper rifle. In a scene in one of the released trailers, she is interrogating Vanille.

A man with hair tied up in a ponytail can be observed briefly in a scene in one of the trailers, where he is leading a group of Cocoon military officials. As of yet, there have been announced no details pertaining to this man.

Music
Masashi Hamauzu will be composing most of the music for Final Fantasy XIII. As for the game's main theme, however, Nobuo Uematsu has been hired on to compose it.

Development
It was revealed at E3 2008 that Final Fantasy XIII will be released on the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 3 in North America and Europe, but will remain a PlayStation 3 exclusive in Japan. The game will hit the shelves in Japan some time in 2009, followed by a later simultaneous release in North America and Europe on both platforms.

A demo version of Final Fantasy XIII will be released with Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Complete in Japan on April 16 exclusively for Playstation 3. Covering the opening prologue, the demo aims to familiarize players with Cocoon and the l'Cies. All of the named characters will be playable.

The staff behind Final Fantasy XIII are as follows:


 * Game Director & Scenario Writer: Motomu Toriyama
 * Character designer: Tetsuya Nomura
 * Art director: Isamu Kamikokuryo
 * Main programmer: Kazumi Kobayashi
 * Movie director: Eiji Fujii
 * Main theme: Nobuo Uematsu
 * Music Composer: Masashi Hamauzu
 * Game Producer: Yoshinori Kitase
 * Image Illustrator and Title Logo Designer: Yoshitaka Amano
 * Battle Designer: Toshiro Tsuchida
 * Weapon & Equipment Designer: Tetsu Tsukamoto

Trivia

 * The game was originally planned for the PlayStation 2, but was later moved to the PlayStation 3 after the development team discovered the power of the platform.