Square Enix Europe has announced that Final Fantasy Tactics will be available for iPhone and iPod Touch on August 4, 2011. This strategy-RPG is one of the most anticipated “hardcore” games for Apple iOS. The original PlayStation version is my favorite game of all time, so I’m more than a little excited for this release.
That said, I’m probably going to wait for the iPad optimized version, which will be out later this month. Ah hell, I’m probably going to buy them both because I’m such a big FFT mark. As some of you know, I’ve sunk hundreds of hours into the iPhone and iPad versions of Civilization Revolution, but I’m pretty sure Final Fantasy Tactics will become my primary airplane game. I can’t wait!!!
Any of you planning to pick up FFT for your iPhone or iPod Touch?
Sad news hit early this morning from Japan when G-Mode announced that company founder Takeshi Miyaji passed away at age 45. Old-school gamers will remember Miyaji from his days at Game Arts, where he worked on the Silpheed, Gun Griffon, and Grandia games.
As a huge JRPG fan, I’m sad that a talented game creator that dazzled me for dozens of hours passed away at such a young age. I’m going to dig for my Grandia games and pop them in to remember Miyaji-san. If you enjoyed any of his games, please take some time out of your day to remember him.
I have a pretty full weekend of video editing, but I definitely want to play some Dragon Age II: Legacy and Bastion. I already beat Legacy once, but want to go through it more thoroughly and with some of my other Dragon Age II characters. I’m super psyched to jump into Bastion. On paper, the game should be right up my alley — a quirky action-RPG with a unique art style and tone. I’m positive I’ll love it.
For my second Comic Con 2011 giveaway, I have two windbreakers courtesy of Activision. One is for Spider-Man: Edge of Time and the other is for X-Men: Destiny. Both windbreakers are size-L and feature removable earbuds…because you need music when you’re breaking wind.
All you have to do is leave a comment saying why you want one of these windbreakers for a chance to win. Please note that this contest is only open to people with a U.S. mailing address. Good luck!
Today I’d like you to jot down all the games in your gaming backlog. This little exercise is as much for me as it is for you. There are always games that I mean to play, but put off due to life, love, work…
Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, the rumors of Brett Favre un-retiring (again), your thoughts on the U.S. debt ceiling, or Rey Mysterio being WWE Champion for 12 seconds, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.
It’s audience participation time (not really sure how this is different from any other day on the site)!!! Today I’d like you to jot down all the games in your gaming backlog. This little exercise is as much for me as it is for you. There are always games that I mean to play but put off due to life, love, work, etc. Hopefully writing them down will motivate me to finish them. I’m hoping that writing your backlog in the comments section will do the same for you too. Here’s my list.
Blue Dragon — It’s laughable that I haven’t played more of this game. I frickin’ love job systems!
Majin and the Forsaken Kingdom — This game wowed me at E3 2010 and I still haven’t finished it yet.
Enslaved: Odyssey to the West — Some of my friends love this game and some hate it. I need to see what the deal is. The little I’ve played seems really cool.
Pokemon Black — After playing almost 700 hours of Pokemon Pearl, my game clock in Black is still in double digits. I can no longer call myself a Pokemon Master. *sniff*
Final Fantasy XIII — I have a wee bit more to play. I’ve watched friends beat it, but I kind of want to do it on my own. It’s been so long that I’ll probably load a save file from a few chapters back just to get in the groove.
Of course new titles like Bastion and the Dragon Age II Legacy DLC will get in the way, but I’m determined to make it through this list before the year ends.
Now it’s your turn! What’s in your gaming backlog?
…let me know if you understand what the game is all about. I’m totally into Sound Shapes. It’s the PlayStation Vita game I’m looking forward to the most and it was in my top five games of E3 2011. That said, it’s really tough to “get” through screens and videos. One of my friends is working on the game and told me lots about it months ago, but it wasn’t until I got to play it myself that I understood Sound Shapes’ awesomeness.
Are you “getting” Sound Shapes? Or is it all a bunch of weird bells, whistles, and colors to you?
Looking for a funky puzzle-platformer with lots of half-naked men and women? Of course you are! That’s why you’re excited for the release of Catherine. If you’re longing for classic gaming on your Nintendo 3DS then Pac-Man and Galaga Dimensions will do you right. Normally I don’t include DLC in this weekly, but Dragon Age II Legacy is too awesome not to mention. I’m going to play the hell out of it this week. BioWare rules!
To make up for my time away from the site, I’m giving away a bunch of stuff I acquired during the show. The first Comic Con 2011 giveaway is for Ghost Recon Future Soldier VIP beta keys. My sexy friend from Red Storm gave me a bunch of them and now you can have one! All you have to do is leave a comment saying why you want one. Comments will (probably) not be judged. Whether you’re a Ghost Recon superfan or you simply want your pet monkey to have a cool dog tag, I will send you a beta key (while supplies last).
Please note that this giveaway is only open to people with a United States mailing address.
I had a great time at Comic Con 2011. It was lots of fun freelancing for secret company. It’s always enjoyable watching fellow geeks celebrate geek culture. There was lots of celebrity watching to do. And…
Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, the rolling camera bag of your dreams, Amir Khan’s drubbing of Zab Judah, or the passing of Amy Winehouse, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.
I had a great time at Comic Con 2011. It was lots of fun freelancing for secret company. It’s always enjoyable watching fellow geeks celebrate geek culture. There was lots of celebrity watching to do. And it was awesome hanging out with new and old friends from the videogame business. Unfortunately, my hotel was far away from the convention and it would have been difficult lugging my laptop around, so I didn’t get a chance to “hang out” with y’all. I missed you! Now onto some random thoughts on Comic Con 2011.
– The videogame panels I attended were fantastic. I loved watching hundreds — sometimes thousands — of fans cheer for games and game creators. Unlike DICE, GDC, and E3, Comic Con is open to the public. Watching “real people” mark out over seeing Altair in the Assassin’s Creed: Revelations trailer or geeking out over seeing Cliff Bleszinski was a treat for me. I’m hardly one of those “jaded videogame journalists”, but it was still refreshing, invigorating, and charming watching fans be fans.
– All that said, some of the Q&A sessions were painful. Some people asked moronic questions. Some people didn’t listen to the moderator’s instructions for the Q&A portion of the panel. Some people asked questions as if they were stoned, saying…one…word…every…five…seconds. Yeah, I realize that some people get nervous speaking in public and others are so excited to meet game creators, but there were times when I wanted to bash my head in with my monopod during Q&A.
– The kids loved the new footage from the upcoming Beavis & Butthead. I am so completely down for this. It will crack me up and transport me to a simpler time. Remind me to tell you about the “Summer of Beavis” some time.
– The buzz on comic-book movies was similar to the thoughts here. Most of the people I chatted with were amped for The Dark Knight Rises. Opinions were split on The Avengers trailer. The Spider-Man reboot received a ton of flak. Most of it was because a lot of people feel that it’s too soon for a reboot, but part of it was because some fans hate the new costume.
– During the Star Wars: Kinect panel, most of my friends in the videogame business had the same reaction: “Crap! Now I have to buy another Xbox 360.” It’s completely awesome and the noises it makes are giggle inducing. The Gears of War 3 limited edition looks cool, but isn’t nearly as charming as the R2D2 Xbox 360.
– A lot of my friends were dogging on the DC Universe reboot. I’m mostly looking forward to it. The biggest bummer for me is that Red Robin will not have his own book. I suppose the manly answer would have been being upset that Wonder Woman will no longer be showing off her legs in every panel.
– My party highlight was actually between parties. After Ignition’s fine shindig for El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron, I bumped into a bunch of pals from Future. Among them was the super sexy, super fun, and super cool Annette Cardwell. I drunkenly latched onto her for 11 minutes. Sorry Annette! (bsukenyan, I saw Carolyn too! It’s always great to see her…especially when there’s drinking involved.)
– My only party faux pas (that I remember) was spitting up a bunch of my Jack & Coke when a PR lady asked me, “Are you still dating Zoe Flower?” A text message to Canada was sent immediately after the incident.
– During the Street Fighter X Tekken panel, the kid behind me said, “LOL,” “GG,” and “IDK.” I wanted to slap him. After thinking about it for a few minutes, I wanted to slap his mother for letting her son speak in such an idiotic manner. Kids these days….
Here’s a cute commercial for The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D starring Robin Williams and his daughter Zelda. Considering Zelda Williams was named after a certain princess of Hyrule, the commercial is completely appropriate. Check it out and let me know what you think (please)!
