Tetsuya Nomura was interviewed by Famitsu this week about Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep. He was also asked about the progress of future projects he was working on. Concerning Final Fantasy Versus XIII, Nomura said that "development is going well, however there is still more to be done".

"From the beginning, the character presentation on the world map was similar to FF* (the magazine has intentionally censored the asterisk parts), where you would see a very small Noctis running around. It was somewhat lacking and so it was altered to be more like FF*’s system.

* denotes a censored number by Famitsu"

Because of these alterations, Nomura is unsure whether it will be ready for this years E3 like he said back in October. He says he has to balance development with other titles he's working on and is currently discussing how they will proceed with producers.

Thanks to Cagalli for translating the interview.

Source: FF-Reunion

Square Enix has taken another opportunity to show off their partnership with Roen by bringing a new Final Fantasy Versus XIII costume to Jump Festa. The new outfit is for Noctis but we don't know when he's going to wear it or if it might possibly replace his existing one. See it in photos below.



Source: marshallalloc.blog90.fc2.com

I find it surprising that most of us forgot about Jump Festa this year. Even more surprising though is that a new Final Fantasy Versus XIII gameplay trailer has been shown there. Of course it was only a short trailer and it was shown in, you guessed it, Square Enix's infamous Closed Mega Theatre. I can't help but feel a little nostalgic at the moment.

The trailer begins with Noctis waiting on a highway and then being picked up by a car. It then speeds off. The entire trailer is in real time and apparently looks stunning (especially the lighting).

The tiny trailer ends with "Revelation will come next time". Let's hope we don't have to wait for the next trailer as long as we did for this one.

Source: Andriasang.com

I'm sure most of you were disappointed about the lack of Final Fantasy Versus XIII information from TGS last month considering they showed gameplay in private. Prepare to get a lot more disappointed because Nomura told Famitsu that they'll begin unveiling gameplay next E3. If they're ready that is.

The gameplay actually shown at TGS was only test footage comprised of untextured monsters and a city not going to be featured in the final game. This shows how early into development they still are. We can only hope after FFXIII is out, development picks up on Versus.

Source: 1up

The Tokyo Game Show began today and although we were told otherwise beforehand, Final Fantasy Versus XIII has made an appearance. Apparently after attendee's played either the Final Fantasy XIII or Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep demo at the Square Enix booth, they were treated with some gameplay footage of Final Fantasy Versus XIII in a private theatre. Apparently the footage is only of gameplay in the testing stages. Let's hope we get some more out of TGS soon.

Thanks to john tora volta for finding this.

Source: Ambelo

It's been a while but we have a small development update on Final Fantasy Versus XIII. Kitase, speaking to Kotaku at GamesCom last week, has said that the development of Final Fantasy Versus XIII is coming along "comparatively faster” than the development of Final Fantasy XIII.

Although several members of the Versus team were taken of the project temporarily to help with the development of FFXIII, Kitase says that the “knowledge and experience” from working on the main title will help ensure Versus is completed sooner. Concerning Final Fantasy XIII, Kitase also mentioned that character and enemy modelling is only taking a 1/3 of the time to finish compared to the when the project began. If this applies to Versus as well, we could maybe hope for a 2011 release. Don’t hold out on that though.

Source: Kotaku

A couple more details on the still elusive Final Fantasy Versus XIII have been confirmed and expanded apon in this months Famitsu.

The full names of both Noctis and Stella have been confirmed to be "Noctis Lucis Caelum"(meaning Light Night Sky), and Stella Nox Fleuret (meaning Star, darkness, latin). During the trailer shown at TGS, a scene in show in which Noctis and Stella discuss a special ability they both posess. This ability is to be able to "see light". It's not entirely clear what that's meant to mean at the moment, but Noctis tries to keep quite about it as Stella speaks of it openly, even asking how he aquired the ability.

Nomura also re-affirmed that Noctis is not a depressed emo, but hides his shyness by "acting cool". Stella is quiet the opposite, showing strong character as a reflection to her upbringing.

Nomura also mentions that you should "watch Noctis closely", as there will appear to be something different about him that he's hiding, although his friends can see through this.

Source: IGN

Famitsu.com has interviewed Final Fantasy Versus XIII director Tetsuya Nomura about all the projects he's involved and we have some specific details about Versus' main character. A couple of days ago we received information that the Prince was named Noctis. This has been confirmed by Nomura but apparently they will rarely be using this name in the game. They will be using his nickname "Noct" throughout the game. Thanks to our forum member Adria and her friend who translated it, we have some more details from this interview about his character.

Noct isn't an unsociable person but he is shy.
He usually smiles except for the party scene where he meets Stella. He tries to hide his shyness by acting in a calm, confident manner.
It's difficult to define his character. It's hard to tell what's really going on inside.

Source: Famitsu.com

Our forum member epsilon has once again provided us with a translated interview. This time the interview is from the latest issue of Dengeki Playstation who talked with Nomura during DKS3137. He re-confirms that Final Fantasy Versus XIII will be a worldwide Playstation 3 exclusive and clears up a few other facts.

There is a scene whereby the female lead (Skirt girl) looks at the painting. Is the painting important?
Nomura: The painting is something I wanted to include in the game. The scene is actually longer. After this scene, the 2 characters (Prince and Skirtgirl) will start their conversation. And they will disclose their names.

Will there be voices in the new trailer at TGS?
Nomura: We havent decide on the voice actor, therefore we will subtitle it instead. IF possible, we will use this way to screen the trailer at TGS.

Skirtgirl is the main female character? Is she the one who fought with the prince previously?
Nomura: Yes she is the main female character. If people have seen my work before, they will know that there is few description on the female characters. She is the first female character that will stand out from all previous Final Fantasy's.

Does that mean she is a rebel from the enemy side? Is she a very capable lady?
Nomura: I cant answer this in detail yet. But she is a very ladylike character. Not the humble type, more of a character that moves according to her beliefs.

The male characters that were disclosed previously, are they friends of prince?
Nomura: Yes. They are the side characters that move along with the prince. Always together type.

Will they appear right from the start of the game?
Nomura: Yes. They are the side characters that appear right at the start.

What sparked the co-operation with Roen?
Nomura: I notice that the western suit is not easy to design because of all the meticulous details. It is time consuming. We dont have so much time since we are developing both FF13 and FFv13 at the same time. As FFv13 design is based on reality, I decides to find a Fashion design company to do the outfit design.

Will there be many outfits for FFv13?
Nomura: The design of the outfit is still ongoing. The outfit disclosed in the new screenshots are already available from Roen.

Since this game is base on reality. What does it feel like to play?
Nomura: The characters live in a world based on Shinjuku (A district in Tokyo) But the appearance of the world is based on Italy. There will also be a lot of natural scenary in this game. FFv13 will have the usual feel of a Final Fantasy game. It feels like I am creating the FF7. The team im working with includes many members from the KH, FF7 and FF8 teams.

The fighting gameplay will be similar to KH?
Nomura: Even though it is base on KH, there will still be a different fighting system. And since this is a final fantasy game, the side characters are playable too.

[Playstation 3 Only World wide] appears at the end of the trailer
Nomura: As the director of FFv13, i have already stated that this game is [Playstation 3 Only World wide].

Back four days ago, we posted the new Famitsu scans with a few details concerning each of the games. Thanks to epsilon, we now have the full Final Fantasy Versus XIII Nomura interview translated. It includes a few small extra details and the confirmation from Nomura that we will hopefully be seeing the in-game engine scene from the scans at the Tokyo Game Show this October.

Click here to view the scene mentioned in this interview.

Speaking about the eyes, the main female lead can be seen to have violet coloured eyes. So does the prince. We had the initial impression that he had red coloured eyes. From the new images, his eyes are blue. Will he have blue eyes normally?

Normua: Yes. His eyes will only turn red at some special occasion. (Triggered by something)

As for the female lead, is it the same for her??

Normura: Surprisingly, she is a rather shy person. (laugh)

Can you explain what is happening in the scene from the images released?

Normura: The scene takes place at a party. This is the first time they have met each other. Initially, I wanted to make a scene that showed them introducing themselves. Even though we tried our best, we still cannot release their name to the public. Sorry. We will try to screen that scene at TGS if possible.

Are there other people in the room?

Normura: Actually, the rest of the party is downstairs. The Prince came upstairs to hide from the noise and crowd. Initially, he thought that there wouldn't be anyone on that floor, but he was surprised to see the female lead. (She is looking at the drawing hanging on the wall)

What is the painting about?

Normura: It is still a secret

What is the skeleton that is holding the painting?

Norumra: This country believe in a Shinigami (Death god). Based on the Fabula Nova Crystallis mythos.

The Prince's outfit is based on the design by the creative director of Roen. What is the reason for this co-operation?

Normura: This is to express the higher level of realism. If we based it on an actual real subject, it will feel more real.

What will happen to the the initial outfit?

Normura: Initially, we just designed this outfit based on the script to give a visual impression. That's it. As we create more scenes, the outfit will change. The car will have a new design too and the Prince will look like someone who goes to a high class pub.

You said it yourself! (laugh)

Normura: The game will have this dialogue too! (referring to prince going to pub)

Will the female lead say that?

Normura: She is a very polite girl. She will not say those things to someone who she's met for the first time. To express this characteristic, the way she speaks will have some prominent trait.

The team you are working with are excellent!

Normura: Yes, it is a very great team. I'm full of anticipation and the team spirit is very high!