Montreal, Canada – Analekta, an independent classical record company in Canada, is thrilled to announce Angèle Dubeau with La Pietà newest album Game Music. Her 36th album was devoted to film music and topped the Canadian charts for the last 9 months; this new recording features unrivalled performances of strong and striking works from some of the most popular video games in the world. Never before has the realm of video game music been imbued with such virtuosity and originality.

“I have never placed limits on my choice of repertoire, and for this project, I reached toward a unique world that was creative and vibrant in its originality,” explains Angèle Dubeau, the violinist and artistic director of La Pietà. “In my quest to discover the gems of video game music, I listened to many works written and revisited by composers of great talent. Above all, I wanted to avoid distorting them, and my intention has been to preserve the form that initially won over video game aficionados while at the same time breathing new life into them.”

As Angèle did previously when she picked film music, she assembled works that were powerful and evocative enough to have a life of their own. The album features, works associated with famous games such as Tetris, Final Fantasy, Halo 3, Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell, Assassin’s Creed and Angry Birds, as well as others heard in Chrono Trigger, Heavy Rain and Secret of Mana. The album is available for digital download and can be purchased on CD starting October 23 in Canada and on October 30 in the US.

Additionally a free companion App has been released with trivia on video game music and clips from the album, it can be downloaded here.

Considered one of the most prominent violin virtuosos in Canada since she was 15, Angèle Dubeau has led a dazzling career in the great concert halls of the world. Her virtuosity and musicality have garnered many prizes over the years, and is one of the rare classical violinists in the world to have been awarded gold records. She has already sold over 500,000 albums in her career.

Driven by a constant desire to innovate, Angèle Dubeau founded La Pietà in 1997, an all-female string orchestra featuring some of Canada’s best musicians. From early on, the ensemble gained a solid reputation, playing Canada’s most prestigious venues and on television. The Los Angeles Times noted that “Dubeau is an exciting, dynamic fiddler…The performances were consistently robust and inquiring, taking nothing for granted…Dubeau’s well-drilled band played with agility, power, a nicely weighted sound and a fierce joy in the doing.”

To download the album on iTunes please go here.

The article Angèle Dubeau Debuts Newest Album, “Game Music” appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

Significant amounts of video game play have led to this short list of the top ten villains in video games. In Part 1 of this article series Porky Minch (Earthbound), Andrew Ryan (Bioshock), Nemesis (Resident Evil), Jubileus (Bayonetta), and Magus (Chrono Trigger) all made the list either because they are classics that are without a doubt some of the best characters, or just extremely awesome in their fighting techniques. Polls to vote on battle pairings between heroes and villains will be posted on the Toonari Post Facebook page every week, so don’t miss your chance to have your comments and opinions in an article! You can also comment on this article to leave your vote.

Kefka Palazzo (Final Fantasy VI)

Kefka Palazzo is the main antagonist in Final Fantasy VI, whose appearance is that of an outlandish clown. He first works as a General for Emperor Gestahl, and was the first human to be infused with “Magetik” which granted him the ability to use magic but drove him completely insane. He brainwashes Terra (one of the main protagonists), he poisons the water by the Castle Doma (thus killing pretty much everyone in the Castle), and then becomes god-like enough to wipe out any who refuse to worship him.

He eventually becomes powerful enough to destroy the world. Kefka is a humorous villain, which is seen in his first appearance where he makes the men dust the sand off his feet when they are in the desert, not to mention his random dialogue such as “son of a submariner.” However, Kefka is revealed to be much more complex at the end of the game when it is suggested that Kefka wants to destroy everything because everything in life is passing. The player also gets the feeling that he has never had love, hopes, or dream.

GLaDOS (Portal series)

GLaDOS, short for Genetic Life-form and Disk Operating System, is not human; she is in fact an extremely advanced computer with complete control of the Aperture Science Facility. She is first believed to be just a guide for the player, Chell, but later shows her true colors when she attempts to kill the player. She is very manipulative, constantly coming up with excuses for the player not to attempt to kill her or to escape. She is also good at coming up with witty insults against the player (especially in Portal 2), often commenting about how the player is evil, fat, and adopted.

In both games her main goal is to kill the player; that is, until Aperture is taken over by Wheatley. Then her goal becomes taking over Aperture again and destroying Wheatley. She even agrees to work with the player in Portal 2, but this doesn’t, by any means, make her any less of a villain. Once she regains control she quickly moves on to more human testing which will most likely end in many casualties. Overall, this is one video game villain where players will enjoy the villain’s insults and may regret killing her.

Ganondorf (Legend of Zelda series)

The King of the Gerudo, wielder the Triforce of Power, and an accomplished sorcerer and swordsmen; Ganondorf  – or Ganon in his ‘demon form’ – is another villain everyone probably fought against during their childhood. However, unlike most villains from childhood games, Ganondorf is never silly or lighthearted; if anything, he is rather terrifying. Unlike many video game villains who make their presence known immediately, Ganondorf prefers to work from the shadows, often manipulating other villains or even the heroes to do his bidding.

The majority of the time the player is not even aware if Ganondorf is present in the game until very late into the game. His appearance does vary in the different games and even sometimes over the course of the same game. He seems to have two specifically different forms ,one humanoid and one bestial, usually looking a bit like a large boar and known as Ganon. Overall, this is a villain players anxiously wait to see!

Bowser (Mario series)

The fire-breathing Koopa King and generally the main villain of the Mario video games series, Bowser is most likely the first video game boss most players ever fought against. In simply kidnapping Princess Peach and taking over the Mushroom Kingdom, Bowser’s motivations normally are for domination or to lure Mario into a trap. However, in the Super Mario Galaxy series, his plans get even more grandiose when he plans to recreate the universe and dominate it.

He takes a much different turn in the Mario RPGs, such as the Paper Mario series, and the Mario and Luigi series. In these games he is not the primary antagonist and even acts as a playable character or main character and is seen as more humorous. Often seen in these games as a buffoonish bully who has a softer side, Bowser is a playful villain everyone will enjoying fighting against or fighting as.

Dormin (Shadow of the Colossus)

A disembodied entity promises the player, Wander, that he can bring back a girl named Mono from the dead if he takes down sixteen colossuses. The colossuses are large majestic creatures, the majority of them being basically harmless, which causes the player wonder whether it is right to slay these creatures. Once the player has taken down all the colossuses, Dormin then proceeds to possess the player, which causes a platoon of soldiers that was trying to prevent the death of the colossuses to shoot the player with arrows and be stabbed through the chest.

The entire time the player never sees Mono awaken, making everything the player achieved in the game look as if it was for nothing. Only after the player is destroyed does the player see that Dormin actually kept his promise and Mono is brought back to life. Even though Wander doesn’t fight Dormin in a boss battle, it doesn’t negate the fact that he manipulates all the events that occur in Shadow of the Colossus.

Now that you have a taste of the top ten villains, go vote in the polls on our Facebook page or comment at the bottom of this article. The villain pairings are: Andrew Ryan v GlaDOS, Kefka v Ganondorf, Magus v Dormin, Nemesis v Jubileus, and Bowser v Porky. Don’t miss your chance to contribute!

Jordan Fisher contributed significantly to the writing and research of this article.

The article Top Ten Video Game Villains of All Time Part 2 appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

After the disappointment of Final Fantasy XIII and XIV, fans of the series have a new reason to look forward to future installments of the series. GameMaster UK reported earlier this week that a source has given them new information about Final Fantasy XV. Although the magazine was wrong initially about Final Fantasy XV’s unveiling, they insist that this time their information is the real deal.

Most notably, the source claims that this installment has been in production for over four years, including the concept planning and pre-production stages, and that it entered full production in January 2010. This was a month after the Japanese release of Final Fantasy XIII. Since then, a team of two hundred people has been hard at work developing the game. The game’s director, Hiroyuki Ito, also directed Final Fantasy VI, IX, and XII, some of the most acclaimed titles in the series.

The title is slated to be released on all major current platforms, although it is unclear if this includes the Wii. Previous current generation Final Fantasy games, like XIII and XIV, have been only been released for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and PC.

The game itself will be very different from XIII, moving away from familiar linear format and instead opting for an open world, reminiscent of the sprawling game environments in XII. The battle system will also be an evolution of XII’s. Now, though, players can target different body parts of the enemy, much like the Squaresoft classic Vagrant Story.

Fans of Western-style role playing games (WRPGs) will also enjoy it. Yoichi Wada, the president of Square Enix, has a vision of the game including more content than Elder Scrolls: Skyrim. Those still not excited will be pleased to know he also thinks the game could be more a bigger critical and commercial success than Final Fantasy VII.

As for cities (for the most part absent in XIII), they made the cut, and purportedly rival Assassin Creed’s enormous cities. It is not clear, however, if they will be continuous, sprawling environments or like XII’s: lots of small, divided sections that together make huge game areas.

Overall, the rumored XV sounds a lot like XII, what with its massive areas, only less linear. There would also definitely be plenty of guilds providing side quests, much like Elder Scrolls Travels games.

Is this all just wishful thinking, or could the next Final Fantasy really turn out like this?

If this source has his or her information in order, this game could be just what Square Enix needs. Many complained of XIII’s linearity, and, including spin-offs and side games, Final Fantasy XIV is the lowest rated Final Fantasy game on the game review aggregate site Gamerankings. Final Fantasy XV could not only remedy this recent drop in quality, but also bring in new fans due to its open world.

On the other hand, it addresses so many issues that previous games in the series have been criticized for that it could just be a fan’s wishful thinking. If it does turn out to be a hoax, hopefully it will at least gain enough attention to make Square Enix make a few changes to its flagship series.

More information is available here at Gameranx.

The article Will Final Fantasy XV Have an Open World? appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

The following is a list of games that will be released in June of 2012 with their respective dates and console releases. Some featured games looking to release in July 2012 is the new Kingdom Hearts, two Rhythm games, and a few ports of previously released games. As usual, the summer releases are generally slow in the gaming world, but every so often a few gems do come out from the woodwork.

Action

7/3- B-Units: Build It (Nintendo Wii, DS)

7/10- Ice Age Continental Drift Artic Games (PS3, Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii, DS, 3DS)

7/10- Rhythm Thief & the Emperor’s Treasure (Nintendo 3DS)

7/17- Heroes of Ruin (Nintendo 3DS)

7/24- Myst (Nintendo 3DS)

7/24- Prototype 2 (PC Port)

7/31- Kingdom Hearts 3D Dream Drop Distance (Nintendo 3DS)

‘Kingdom Hearts 3D Dream Drop Distance’ is another installment to the highly praised Kingdom Hearts series. New features Dream Drop Distance introduces are the option to switch between two protagonists (Sora and Riku), the option to recruit various spirits to fight alongside characters, and the introduction of new worlds to discover. Dream Drop Distance is looking to be a strong addition to the Kingdom Hearts franchise as well as breaching the series onto the 3DS.

RPG

7/3- Theatrhythm Final Fantasy (Nintendo 3DS)

7/31- Growlanser: Wayfarer of Time (Sony PSP)

7/31- The Last Story (Nintendo Wii)

7/31- Risen 2: Dark Waters (PS3, Xbox 360 Ports)

‘Theatrhythm Final Fantasy’ is considered the first Rhythm RPG game. Users play an ‘Elite Beat Agents’ styled rhythm game to the music from the various Final Fantasy series. The users are also given the option of choosing their favorite characters from the different Final Fantasy games as they play through various missions and campaigns.

Sports

7/3- Test Drive: Ferrari Racing Legends (PS3, Xbox 360)

7/10- NCAA Football 13 (PS3, Xbox 360)

7/24- Mi Coach by Adidas (PS3, Xbox 360)

‘Test Drive: Ferrari Racing Legends’ is another addition to the Test Drive series, but focuses on Ferraris this time around. With 52 different Ferraris, 36 circuits, and a Campaign mode that takes the gamer through the history of the Ferrari, Test Drive offers a racing game for Ferrari fans and looks to compete with the future racing game releases of Need For Speed Most Wanted and Forza Horizon.

Simulation

7/10- The Sims 3: Diesel Stuff Expansion (PC)

‘The Sims 3: Diesel Stuff’ is another one of the many expansions for The Sims 3 game. For this expansion players are given new clothing accessories and furniture from the company Diesel.

The article July Game Releases for 2012 appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

This year at Anime Boston the Dealer’s Room was packed with booths covering two large rooms. Almost anything you could think of, you could find there. QB plushies? Yup. Brightly colored Pokemon hats? In abundance. Strange Japanese-imported collectibles? You betcha. Here are some of the best deals we found this year in the Anime Boston Dealer’s Room.

Manga generally had the most dramatic deals. At Comicopia, if you bought two volumes you got 10% off, four volumes 15% off, and eight volumes 20% off (2-10%, 4-15%, 8-20%). However, New England Comics had a competitive ‘Buy two get 30% off’ deal going on, and Cheap Manga probably stole the show for manga deals. With them, a single manga was $5, five volumes were $20, and 30 volumes were $90 (that’s 1-$5, 5-$20, 30-$90).

Not too far off at the Anime Pavilion, eight volumes cost $60, 14 cost $100, and 45 cost $300 (8-$60, 14-$100, 45-$300). Not to mention Anime Pavilion’s selection consisted of less popular titles than Cheap Manga’s.

Other notable deals were to be found at New England Comics’ booth, where brand new Star Wars comic omnibuses were 60-80% off, making $25 volumes only $7. Each yaoi manga volume at NEC was $7, but if you bought five or more they were $5. Elsewhere you could find deals such as ‘Buy 1 get 2 free’, ‘All manga 20% off except new releases’, and ‘10% off yaoi’.

Also of note to those looking for manga, or looking to trade their manga away at the convention, is the swap meet. The swap meet took place in the evening on Friday and Saturday, and I was able to trade away three virtually valueless items I got in a grab bag for three volumes of manga. Overall the manga scene at the con felt a bit like a game of hot potato; pass that stuff on to the next person before you’re stuck with it for too long.

Figurines were also in abundance at the con, though only a few were on sale. World of Warcraft figurines were $40 each, but $70 if two were bought together. A set of four Walking Dead figures went for $75, and Ore no Imoto figurines were two for $65.

T-shirts could be found for $20 each, two for $36, and three for $48.

Funimation was also hocking their wares by the entrance gate, accompanied by a pair of Cat Planet Cuties mascots in eyecatching costumes, or the lack thereof… Most notable amongst the prices at their booth was a Blu-Ray collection of Evangelion for $20. The first season of Black Butler was $60, as was the new retelling of the Fullmetal Alchemist story Brotherhood. Hetalia films were $25 a pop, Excel Saga was there on Blu-Ray for $40, Baccano was available for $30, and Claymore would set you back $40.

Aftermarket retailers such as Anime Madness, Video Games New York, and Harrison’s Comics and Collectibles were nearby as well offering great deals on anime, music, and video games.

Video Games New York was selling a hacked Wii with emulators and homebrew apps for $150, alongside rare oldschool games (Final Fantasy Anthology for $25, Metal Gear Solid 1 complete with case and booklet for $40) and Japanese import and Japan-exclusive games for old and current consoles alike. New York Video Games was also selling unused Dreamcast consoles for $150, and their stock rotated daily as they brought new items up from their store in New York.

Harrison’s Comics and Collectibles from Salem, MA had a back wall all to themselves, with a huge, nerdgasm-worthy collection of old school N64, Genesis, Atari, Sega CD, NES, and SNES games. Starfox 64, Ridge Racer, Ninja Gaiden, Duck Hunt, you name it, they had it, many for single-digit prices. They also carried Japanese-imported music, anime, comics, and figurines.

Overall, the Dealer’s Room was a great place to get cheap manga, games, CCG cards, plushies, figurines, clothing, model kits, anime, hug pillows, collectible items, and some surprises. Many of the items on sale were direct-from-Japan imports. The best part of buying imported goods at the con is not only do you get to see and touch the item yourself before you buy it, but you also save a lot on shipping costs.

If you’re considering importing something online, you might want to hold off until your next local con to see if you can find it there and make sure it’s what you want. You may also want to wait to buy your manga at a convention, judging by the burning-down-the-house prices exhibited at many of the vendors’ stalls.

Image Courtesy of   http://www.animeboston.com

The article Anime Boston – Dealer’s Room Deals appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

The ‘Tales of’ series is considered one of the three RPG giants in Japan, along with Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy. Here in the States and Europe, though, it is a different story. Some may remember ‘Tales of Symphonia’ for the Gamecube, the most hyped ‘Tales of’ game this side of the earth, but other than that, there has been little else.

Few of the games have been translated, and many of those that have suffer either from bad localization or bad voice acting. ‘Tales of the Abyss 3DS’ does not have these problems. Instead, its main problem is the fact that it is six years old, having been released for the PS2 both in Japan and America, and this version is less of an update, than a simple port.

While parts of it may seem stale, on the whole, it is a fulfilling journey. Luckily, nothing that was present in the older version has been cut for this one, not even voice acting. The gameplay is that of a typical Japanese RPG, with a world map to explore. There are no random battles here; enemies are visible on the screen, and the player can avoid battles if they wish (or are fast enough to avoid contact).

Battles, though, are where the game really shines. The player and three other AI-controlled players move around in real time on a 3D battlefield. Although the player can issue them commands if they want, the AI is good enough that players need not focus their attention on what others are doing all the time.

Those that were frustrated in ‘Tales of Symphonia’, because they had to stay in a straight line and were not free to roam the battlefield, will find comfort here. At the press of a button, players can run around any which way they want in the area. Attacks and blocks are controlled by the face buttons.

The graphics have suffered a bit in the transition from PS2 to 3DS. The world map, which looked bad enough on the television, is even worse now, and characters and environments are jagged. The game also was clearly not meant for the 3DS, as the 3D feature seems more distracting than anything else while playing.

The story is what one would expect from a ‘Tales of’ game. It is formulaic, and at times silly, with some plot twists being obvious way before they are revealed, but it is enough to keep the player interested. Spoiled brat Luke Fon Fabre, a young man who suffers from the ultimate cliché, amnesia, finds himself outside the comforts of his aristocratic household with a mysterious woman. Along the way, others join the party as they begin to realize they are the only ones who can save the world.

Overall, the game is fun, but with over 45 hours of main story gameplay, it drags a lot. If you have played the original PS2 version, you may want to stay away, as there is nothing new to entice a buy.  If you have not, give it a try, but be warned it is dated in some areas.

8/10

The article Review: Tales of the Abyss 3DS appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

The music of Final Fantasy has become the life work of Japanese composer Uematsu Nobuo. Between Final Fantasy I – IX, Uematsu was the main creative force behind the music of the series, and he created benchmarks and broke ground that few other game series have lived up to musically. Here are the top ten most important musical moments in the Final Fantasy franchise.

10. Final Fantasy – Preludes and Victory Themes

Little connects the various worlds and stories of Final Fantasy games but one familiar recurrent element is the title screen music known as preludes, the battle music, and the victory fanfares. The preludes are always a form a light harp music of crystalline delicateness, winding up and down like the never-ending tale of the Final Fantasy worlds. The battle music is dark and exciting, reminding you of your struggle against whatever forces of evil are at work in that world.

The victory fanfare is, as one would expect, a cheerful horn-blast followed by a sort of marching melody. The value of these is that for a series with precious little to tie it together, these melodies provide the necessary familiarity for the player to stir up those feelings of anticipation and achievement from previous titles. Without them, it just wouldn’t be Final Fantasy.

9. Final Fantasy II – Overworld

An odd choice, perhaps, but the overworld theme for Final Fantasy II is where Uematsu began writing music based on elements of the story rather than simply the generic MIDI music of the original Final Fantasy. FFII is one of the first RPGs to have more than a perfunctory story, with dark undertones, twists, character deaths, and betrayal. It remains one of the few truly dark overworld themes within the series.

8. Final Fantasy V – Clash on the Big Bridge

A variation of this song (also known as Battle with Gilgamesh) also features in FFXII when fighting against Gilgamesh, the only truly recurring character in the Final Fantasy franchise. Gilgamesh travels through the Rift between Final Fantasy worlds, popping up in many of the games between V and XII.

As the only recurring character (“Cid” is a different person each time and chocobos aren’t really characters per se), he holds a special place in the heart of fans of the series. This music has become his theme, and is well suited to his somewhat goofy, bumbling personality.

7. Final Fantasy IV – Dreadful Fight

This song spans all the feelings you might have had while playing through the “dreadful fight” towards the end of FFIV–it’s energetic, intimidating, climactic, hopeful. Memorable music for a memorable battle, Uematsu’s work really speaks for itself here.

6. Final Fantasy VI – Dancing Mad

A piece fitting of Emerson, Lake, & Palmer (an influence, by Uematsu’s own admission), this sprawling, epic tune sets the mood for the final boss fight in Final Fantasy VI, one of the most highly regarded entries in the entire franchise. The opponent is Kefka, a psychotic jester-mage come god bent on destroying the world. One of the most familiar, memorable, and defining moments of the franchise, this music is a perfect fit for the four-part final battle against an unhinged god.

5. Final Fantasy VI – Aria di Mezzo Carattere

This song is part of a full, actual opera written for Final Fantasy VI by Uematsu. It has been performed live several times, with lyrics sung in Japanese, English, or Italian. This is one of the first songs written for a video game intended for live dramatic performance, and shows Uematsu’s seriousness about the music of Final Fantasy. The four-part opera scene in FFVI is one of the most iconic, memorable moments in Final Fantasy history, accompanied by some of Uematsu’s best work.

4. Final Fantasy VII – One Winged Angel

There’s a good chance this is the most epic final boss battle music there has ever been. Psychotic, megalomaniacal, and lumbering with power, this song plays all through the final boss fight of FFVII (in which, at one dramatic moment, a comet plows through each planet in the solar system and then lands on your team… wow). There are many reasons for the fervent group of Final Fantasy fans claiming FFVII is the best in the series; the epic final boss fight and its music is one of them.

3. Final Fantasy VIII – Liberi Fatali

This orchestrated opening cinematic was an awesome spectacle to those awaiting the sequel to FFVII. Square had clearly learned from their success with VII, and wanted to make the cinematic sequences look even better, and make the music even more powerful. While VII felt like an experiment into the third dimension, VIII and its music have a more self-certain air to them, which shows through in this composition.

2. Final Fantasy VII – Aerith’s Theme

A beautiful and tragic song for a beautiful and tragic character, this is one of the most memorable pieces of music from Final Fantasy VII. Aerith’s Theme is played at multiple points throughout the story, deepening the emotional connection between the player and the characters. This is a great example of Uematsu’s music truly enhancing the gaming experience in a way dialogue cannot.

1. Final Fantasy IV – Theme of Love

A wonderful piece of music to match the moving and layered story of Final Fantasy IV. One of the subplots of FFIV is the development of a love relationship between Rosa, the white mage, Cecil, the lead character (who undergoes a transformation from black knight to paladin), and his friend Cain, the dragoon.

Cain watches from a distance as the relationship between Rosa and Cecil develops, keeping his peace out of respect for his friend and shame for his actions during the game. Theme of Love serves as a leitmotif for this developing relationship throughout the game, and it is so well-loved that it is actually taught to children in Japanese elementary school music classes.

Image Courtesy of   http://www.flickr.com/photos/el_finco/

The article Final Fantasy: Uematsu Nobuo’s Most Important Compositions appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

At a time when entries into the Final Fantasy series are leaving fans disappointed, frustrated, or just apathetic, now might be the time to look back to the series’ roots, to the games that were able to build a 20+ year empire of Japanese RPGs in the first place.

Everyone has their opinions about VII, VIII, and IX, and most gamers out there are familiar with them. However, I-VI are games that you might not have played in a long time, if ever. With recent re-releases for modern platforms, such as the Nintendo DS and the iPhone, it might be time to rediscover where this series came from, and what made it great in the first place.

Final Fantasy

The game that saved Square. ‘Final Fantasy’ was the last hope of a floundering Japanese software company who left it up to their producer, Sakaguchi Hironobu, to save them from bankruptcy. This is the game that did the trick and made Square a powerhouse of JRPGs.

This first entry into the series founded the video game concept of a vast world, protected by a group of rag-tag adventurers, with noticeable use of elements from Dungeons & Dragons. Final Fantasy’s main rival at the time, Dragon Quest, on the other hand, featured a single hero and a less intuitive user interface, which might have led to FF’s initial superior popularity. This title is currently available on the Wii Virtual Console and for iOS.

Final Fantasy II

The second title in the series was never originally released outside of Japan until 2002 for the Playstation and is now available on the Playstation Network and iOS. This one comes highly recommended for its unique leveling system, which is based on how often a certain trait is used–if you use a sword most, your sword skills will go up; if you take a lot of damage, your health goes up.

Sound familiar? The wildly popular RPG Skyrim uses a similar system, and it adds a certain amount of personal customization to the leveling of your character. Final Fantasy II has a great story and is the first game in the series to feature Chocobos and the recurring character, Cid.

Final Fantasy III

First released outside of Japan in 2006 on the Nintendo DS, the original Famicon version is available through the Wii Virtual Console, and a port of the DS version is available with improved graphics for iOS. These first three games all feel like an intentional improvement on their predecessors, with a focus on character customization and control.

FFIII introduces the Job System, allowing players to customize their team of four Onion Knights with 23 different jobs, allowing 279,841 different party configurations to play through the game with. FFIII is a sort of archetypical Final Fantasy game, a touchstone for what “is” Final Fantasy.

Final Fantasy IV

A considerably modified and censored version known as Final Fantasy II was released for the SNES in North America in 1991, and various versions are now available for the Nintendo DS, the Wii Virtual Console, and the PSP. Final Fantasy IV is a dramatic tale with twists and turns, a few weird moments, superb music,  and a rotating, but memorable cast of characters with predetermined Jobs.

This is the first FF where story is more important than character customization, but the sense of exploration is maintained, as is the series’ notorious level of difficulty and level grinding, except in the American ‘EasyType’ version. In fact, this is the title that arguably pioneered story-driven RPGs on any console, so for fans of strong plots in games, this is a must-play.

Final Fantasy V

Customization makes an improved return in Final Fantasy V with the Job system, and the Active Time Battle system carries over from FFIV, with an additional visible gauge allowing players to see when their next opportunity for attack is coming up. In this sense, FFV is a good example of a Final Fantasy game taking the best elements of its predecessors and building on them.

Only in November of last year did FFV become available on the Playstation Network in North America, and there are no other current generation systems  for which this title is available, unfortunately. The favorite game of series creator Sakaguchi Hironobu until FFIX, this is a rare gem worth playing if you can get your hands on it.

Final Fantasy VI

The grand poobah of retro Final Fantasy games and considered one of the best video games of all time, this game was originally known as Final Fantasy III in North America. Final Fantasy VI is in some ways a proto-Final Fantasy VII, in that players can swap out characters from a large cast to form a party and equip “magicite” and “relics” to teach and customize abilities, similar to materia in VII.

This game is also the origin of Biggs and Wedge (who, similar to FFVII, die early on), a Limit Break system of sorts, Ultima Weapons, and others. FFVI was just released on the Playstation Network in North America in December 2011, and on the Wii Virtual Console in June 2011.

Judging from these old games, it seems that it was only recently that Square forgot how to use all the best elements of previous FF games to make a new one. I-VI paved the way for the series’ popularity. Yet, in recent entries to the main series, the keystones that made these games great seem to be all, but absent.

The next Final Fantasy should respect its roots beyond just sticking a Chocobo in one of the characters’ hair. Free exploration of a huge world map, fully customizable characters, a deep and gripping plot, and  bits of the best gameplay elements from each game–that’s what the next FF should look like if Squeenix wants to put its main series back on track.

Hopefully, the awesome Final Fantasy Type-0 for PSP will get a release outside of Japan, and the next console entry will look something like it as well.

The article Final Fantasy: A Retrospective appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

With the continued promotion of Final Fantasy XIII-2 (FFXIII-2) and the eventual launch at the end of January 2012, fans are wondering if this game will be any different than past iterations of Final Fantasy. Known for stunning graphics and unconventional storytelling, Square-Enix needs Final Fantasy XIII-2 to do really well on the American market or risk losing veteran fans completely.

Fans lament the disappointing venture of the last two Final Fantasy games to hit American consoles, Final Fantasy XII and Final Fantasy XIII respectively. A great deal of hype was amassed for the launch of both titles, with similar fan expectations of another epic 3 disc adventure. While both games were fairly lengthy, the feel of the games hadn’t changed very much from the last decade beforehand.

Final Fantasy XIII had the unfortunate habit of pushing you forward and nowhere else. One of the best elements for RPG fans is to earn their items, to build a newer better weapon or to find that extra sword in a town with cave full of monsters nearby. What Square-Enix had removed was the human role of the Role Playing Game and substituted it with purely cinematic cut scenes and character back story.

This isn’t entirely a bad thing but in a series as renowned as Final Fantasy, it stops the player from engaging their character, and from stepping into that character’s mighty and loveable shoes. What you were left with is a sympathetic character being played on a screen in a living room.

Early footage courtesy of Square-Enix does reveal some good changes to the game, most likely owing to fan complaints. Players from FFXIII were notoriously known for telling their friends to still support the game, saying that it would get better as they played when it was more likely that players just played for the sake of playing.

Many veteran fans remarked that previous generation console Final Fantasy games were great and engaging from the very onset of the game and required no break in time at all. This has been a primary concern for fans of the newest game and it is a strong argument against the Square-Enix series.

The general feel of the graphics is expected to be quite cinematic as usual, with a healthy helping of bright colors and fantastic shading. Whatever players may gripe about with each new game, Final Fantasy is sure to deliver on the eye candy. The visuals are something that SquareSoft and now Square-Enix do very well, with stunning textures and fantastical creatures that are out of this world but still familiar to fans. Ifrit by any other name would still be red, have two horns, claws and an affinity for fireballs.

Long time fans that have played any number of Final Fantasy games will recognize the Active Time battle system and the Paradigm Shift system, which is both a blessing and a curse. The issue stems from the repetitive game play that emerges at the onset of the game, leading to eventual stagnant button pressing that isn’t even close to interactive.

The feel of the combat system has changed very little from years past since veteran players have already been using character roles for support, fighter and healer on their own long before the labeling of the Paradigm Shift System. Giving it a title and streamlining the process for XIII helped, but it didn’t seem to be enough for veteran fans last time around. Will it be enough this time?

The game design doesn’t seem to have evolved a lot, which is also a mixed blessing.  Both characters and environments designed so far look to be classical Square-Enix fare with what is most likely linear storyline and wide training fields. The back-story for the cast of characters will be familiar to players from the first title with the hunt for Lightening being the focus that drives the game forward.

Hopefully, unlike another Final Fantasy game with a dash two at the end of the title (Final Fantasy X-2), these characters haven’t gone downhill. One of the newest playable elements is the use of a time travel component to change up the game, which if done well can elevate the game play.

Players from Final Fantasy VII (Cloud) and VIII (Laguna Loire) will find this feature reminiscent of those games, using playable flashback scenes to open up the storyline  further. History is apparently a major corner stone of this Final Fantasy game and fans will hopefully praise rather than curse this new gameplay facet.

Thus far trailers have revealed larger maps that aren’t linear and a combat system that is familiar, but, hopefully, will be different enough for players. The characters are vibrant, relatable and accompanied by stunning visuals that should at least continue the series decently.

Despite the ‘classic’ feel of the game with the addition of the new Time Travel feature, XIII-2 needs to have a good balance of high and low moments with slow and fast pace changes, otherwise the game will be another vapid freight train on a collision course with the end of the story.

The straight and narrow is not a fun line to walk. It’s more engaging to step off that line and than to find your way back later in the game, which Square-Enix hopefully will not ignore this time with XIII-2.

The article The Hopes, Dreams and Fears for Final Fantasy XIII-2 appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.