Is there any truth that there's a bitter rivalry between Square Enix icons Yoshinori Kitase and Tetsuya Nomura? Is this the reason why they're supposedly working on separate Final Fantasy Versus XIII games? What does he think of former boss Hironobu Sakaguchi's work with the Final Fantasy franchise? All the answers in the full article.

Square Enix and Enterbrain have published a must-have book for all Final Fantasy enthusiasts: the Final Fantasy 20th Anniversary History Book. The book contains a lot of details, images, and articles about all the Final Fantasy games released the past years. Check out the full article to find out more about this awesome book.

Famitsu sent questionnaires out to gamers and retailers in Japan to let them be heard, and decide which developers, video games, and industry figures did exceptionally well in 2007. Find the results at the full article.

Have you ever wondered what Hironobu Sakaguchi and his development team went through while they were developing the very first Final Fantasy RPG?

It wasn't a walk in the park, that's for sure. In a recent interview, Sakaguchi admitted that he and his team were off to a rocky start at the time. Sakaguchi has more of a story to tell after the jump!

Whether it's Turkey Day or Christmas, we feel the need to thank the greatest figures in video game history for their contributions that made gaming as fun as it is today. For decades, we've seen creative minds emerge and bring forward games that amaze the world, but they don't get much recognition. But now, we have enough time to list down some of the greatest geniuses behind phenomenal landmarks like Mario, Wolfenstein 3D, and even The Sims.

The debate on whether or not Square Enix should remake Final Fantasy VII has raged on for years, and everyone's anxious to get an answer as to whether it will materialize or remain a dream. Those who are for it are dying to see Cloud and the gang in next-gen glory while those who are against it are holding the PSX version sacred and are telling everyone to leave the game alone for fear of getting a bad rendition.

This article won't throw more fuel to that fiery topic. Instead, this one assumes that a remake will eventually come to be. The only questions are what the particulars will be and how it's going to be pulled off. While no single post will be able to cover such a broad subject, this blogger would like to offer an overview of possibilities using the general queries: what, who, where, when, and how. Let's start.

What: This is perhaps the trickiest question of them all. What do we want to be in the game content-wise? Do we want an exact reiteration of the original story where the events take place in the exact same way with the exact same dialogue or do we want it to be told in another perspective with the same context? Perhaps some more light on interesting people like Zack and Hojo's experiments? How about if we have the game re-told with Tifa or Red XIII narrating it in the manner that a witness recounts an experience? Think of the possibilities.

On a personal level, this blogger would love to have the game told in the exact same manner that made it the legend that it is today. However, it would be even more interesting for me if it's done in a way that we wouldn't be able to tell exactly what happens next in every sequence. The highlights shouldn't be changed, such as Sephiroth with flames in the background or Cloud riding his bike, but for the minor parts, Square Enix may have better ideas than before. In any case, it's their game, and we're the audience, so anything goes.

To read the rest of the Ws and H of remaking FF VII, just click on the Full Article.

We're barely three weeks away from what could be the world's biggest game expo after the E3 downsizing of 2007. Yup, it's an event most of us would love to be in: The Tokyo Game Show 2007!

It's no secret that TGS has always been the Far East's answer to E3 in terms of big announcements and sneak peeks of exciting projects. If there's a shindig that the big game publishers are saving their aces for, this one has to be it.

Here's a short list of just some of the stuff we expect to see. Feel free to add your own wishes at the comments, though, because we're sure you have some big ideas of your own:

1. An apparition of Final Fantasy XIII - Square Enix was mum on this big PlayStation 3 project in E3 and even in during GC 2007 in Germany. Could they be saving the best for the year's last huge show? They better be because we're all aching to see more than just screenshots. A new trailer and some details would be terrific.

2. More of Wii Fit - There's no doubt that the most anticipated release for the fastest-selling console in history is next year's exercise game Wii Fit and its accessory, the Balance Board. We saw a bit of this with Reggie Fils-Aime in E3 and we can expect a bit more for the Japanese crowd.

3. More Metal Gear Solid 4/ Metal Gear Online teasers - You know a big game is about to hit when its PR machine is getting noisier by the day. We've been seeing new MGS4 trailers from Santa Monica to Leipzig and it would be almost a travesty if its hometown Tokyo doesn't get one. Also, the multiplayer MGS Online is looking hot and we won't be surprised if there are more details soon.

4. A big Halo 3 showing - So maybe the Halo franchise isn't quite as big in Japan as it is here in the US, but with the TGS just a few days away from the big game's Japanese release, is there any reason why Microsoft should hold back? The game, as we all know, is already at gold status, so expect it to be shown off in full force.

More of our wishes and expectations after the jump!

It's no secret that most Final Fantasy fans want a FFVII remake. Checking out all corners of the internet will reveal how many rumors and myths there are about Square Enix secretly working on Cloud's shinier hair for the PS3.

Ever since the tech demo, passionate followers believed in their hearts that the remake will indeed come. Well, here's big man Tetsuya Nomura's take on the matter:

"It appears that there are often overseas rumors like 'Are you currently developing a VII remake?' My apologies, but we're absolutely not making [such a game]."

Yes, the FF character designer is talking here. FFVII director Yoshinori Kitase added that most people in FFXIII's development team are fans of the old game and want it remade. Is this some foreshadowing I see?

According to Nomura, the game originally had a character named Hot Blooded Detective Joe when creator Hironobu Sakaguchi wrote it. The story would've followed the main characters around throughout the story. It was scrapped later on when Nomura and Kitase entered the scene. Soon, the other elements came into place as they revised the plot to what it is now.

We've seen these happen before: Hideo Kojima was supposed to quit but he's still working on MGS 4, Shinji Mikami promised to be castrated if Resident Evil 4 ever ported to the PS2. Next thing we know, Squeenix announces FFVII remake is already far in production (with Joe in the cast) after the FFXIII games comes out.

Renowned game developer and Final Fantasy creator Hironobu Sakaguchi recently expressed his distaste for former Sony Computer Entertainment CEO Ken Kutaragi, criticized Microsoft's marketing strategy in Japan, and expressed no plans to make games for the Nintendo Wii as of yet.

The founder of, arguably, the most successful RPG franchise in history told Electronic Gaming Monthly that he didn't like Kutaragi and his creation, the Sony PlayStation 3. "The machine's architecture is tricky, and I don't like Ken Kutaragi," says Sakaguchi. He offered no explanation as to why he's no fan of the father of the PlayStation line of game systems.

When asked about Microsoft's Xbox 360, Sakaguchi said he found the games in the platform far superior to those of its rival's. Microsoft's problem, he says, is how to reach out to Japanese consumers. He said Gears of War is a great title but nobody knows what it's about. He then describe the Windows Vista commercial as a "terrible" one.

Next on the plate was Nintendo. Amazingly, Sakaguchi had a high regard for the Wii. He said "The system is intriguing, but right now, I have no plans on making a game for the Wii."

O snap. Just when we thought the whole Devil May Cry 4 exclusivity turnabout would be over, apparently, it could potentially be just the beginning. Turns out that DMC4 is just one of the three titles that Microsoft was aiming to bring on over to the 360. In his dreisechzig.net blog, MS Germany product manager Boris Schneider-Johne had posted a revealing post which sparked debates far and wide. Because we don't want any room for misinterpretation, we will replicate his blog post word-for-word here. It's ultimately your decision how you will regard this bit of info:

One down, two to go - 20. Mar. 2007 um 13:57 - Kategorien Xbox 360

1. Devil May Cry
2. Final Fantasy
3. Metal Gear Solid

You can check our Via link below to double check for yourself. So, does this mean they're going to bring FFXIII and MGS 4: Guns of the Patriots over? Before you some of you guys start exclaiming "all your Game are belong to us" statements, don't be too quick to judge. Schneider-Johne had updated his blog post due to lots of flammatory feedback across the interwebs. Here's his addendum, read it, and read it well:

((Yes, this is just a personal checklist of franchises that I and plenty of others would like to see on Xbox 360. In no way, shape or form is that an announcement list, an internal Microsoft shopping list, a "I know more than you do" list or something like that. Somebody in an english-language forum called this "a gloating employee" and he maybe is right. And I've seen suggestions that Grand Theft Auto and Tekken should be on this list too - so your mileage will inevitably vary.))

Got it? His "shopping list" does not confirm anything. In fact, we're not even sure if this counts as a rumor because there isn't really any sound basis for any form of open-ended speculation - he declared and stamped his foot down quite clearly already: in no way, shape, or form is it an announcement. We did tag it under "Opinions and Analysis" though. Because that's the brunt of the matter here.

If anything, this is not much different from Hironobu Sakaguchi expressing his interest in bringing Final Fantasy over to the 360. We'd also like to add that Hideo Kojima himself even expressed his own thoughts of bringing MGS to  the Wii. See? Developers do it all the time. Expressing one's interest in other consoles is normal. And just because someone is interested on something doesn't make that something automatically happen.