In celebration of Final Fantasy’s 25th anniversary, Square Enix are putting a bunch of their Final Fantasy games on sale on the PlayStation Network in North America. The following titles will be discounted by 50% for the next two weeks:

• Dissidia 012 [duodecim] Final Fantasy (PSP)
• Dissidia Duodecim Prologus: Final Fantasy (PSP)
• Dissidia: Final Fantasy (PSP)
• Final Fantasy Tactics: War of Lions (PSP)
• Final Fantasy (PSOne Classics)
• Final Fantasy II (PSOne Classics)
• FINAL FANTASY IV: Complete Collection (PSP)
• Final Fantasy V (PSOne Classics)
• Final Fantasy VI (PSOne Classics)
• Final Fantasy VII (PSOne Classics)
• Final Fantasy VIII (PSOne Classics)
• Final Fantasy IX (PSOne Classics)

The post Final Fantasy Games Get 50% Discount On PlayStation Network For Two Weeks appeared first on Siliconera.

The image above is of a framed piece of artwork for Final Fantasy IV, created by long-time character illustrator, Yoshitaka Amano. It’s one of the rewards for 2011 being given away by the Square Enix program in North America, which gives you points in exchange for ing your Square Enix games.

Also on offer is a Square Enix license plate and other rewards that you can find at the link above, such as a blanket, a Hitman Absolution mouse pad and a Square Enix lanyard.

The post Framed Final Fantasy IV Art By Amano Is A Square Enix Reward appeared first on Siliconera.

Amazon has an all video games Gold Box today with Crysis 2 as the headlining product. Right now, PSP game Dissidia 012[duodecim]: Final Fantasy is on sale for $19.99. This deal goes on until all the copies are sold out or the clock strikes 10:00 AM.

After that, we're pretty sure Final Fantasy IV: The Complete Collection for PSP is next thanks to this clue from Amazon - "One of the greatest games of all time complete for your PSP." Rift and a Sonic the Hedgehog game likely to be Sonic Colors go on sale today too at 2PM and 6PM PST, respectively.

The post Lightning Fast Shoppers Can Get Dissidia 012 And Final Fantasy IV PSP On Sale appeared first on Siliconera.

The first thing I did when I received Final Fantasy IV: The Complete Collection was try the new Interlude storyline. This tale takes place after the events in Final Fantasy IV, but before Final Fantasy IV: The After Years. Cecil, now the King of Baron, hops on airship for Damacyan with Rosa and Cid. Edward rebuilt his castle and invited his friends for a coronation ceremony, but the reunion is short lived. The group breaks apart with Cecil and crew heading to Fabul.

Despite what Square Enix told us earlier, the Interlude storyline is far from 15 hours. I cleared it in roughly three hours, a fifth of that time. Since it's so short I don't want to spoil too much. There are some cameos of the new characters from Final Fantasy IV: The After Years, but unlike the sequel the Interlude is linear. You cannot explore the world or even use most of the gold you earn. Part of the challenge is item management while exploring dungeons since you're usually low on phoenix downs and Cecil (due to prolonged peace?) forgot how to cast Raise. The battle system in the Interlude is exactly like Final Fantasy IV. There are no band attacks or phases of the moon, but you do get to use different parties. While characters level up, you never get to see Palom, for example, cast Meteor even though he can if you level him up enough in Final Fantasy IV. One more thing about the Interlude.... Trapdoors are back.

After clearing the Interlude I jumped into Final Fantasy IV: The After Years. The sequel to Final Fantasy IV puts the spotlight on Cecil and Rosa's son Ceodore who just ed the Red Wings. His first task is to retrieve the Knight's Emblem from the cave where Cecil acquired the Rat's Tail almost two decades prior. Ceodore has to face most of this quest alone, but being gifted with White Magic from birth makes the intro dungeon a breeze.

Final Fantasy IV: The After Years has a modified battle system. Similar to Chrono Trigger, there are combination attacks called Bands. You need to search for these on your own by testing different commands (Fight, Magic, Peep, etc.) during a battle. Once you find a band you can select it from a menu as long as you have enough MP for the attack. Bands require two or more characters so there is a bit more wait time than a standard attack, but bands deal more damage and can exceed the 9999 damage limit in rare cases. The moon also plays a role in the game by boosting magic and weakening special attacks or vice-versa. By staying at an inn you can change the moon's phase to your advantage, a strategy that comes in handy when you have assigned party .

Almost every playable character from Final Fantasy IV returns in The After Years, a little bit older and a lot weaker. Cid still packs a punch in his golden years, but Rosa and Rydia forgot almost as many spells as Tellah. Square Enix added a handful of new characters like Yang's martial artist daughter, a scholar who throws gil, and a squad of ninja called the Eblan Four. Other characters like Luca, the little dwarf girl with the Calcabrina, are party in the after years. Each main character has their own episode to follow and after you complete Ceodore's tale most of them become available. In the original mobile phone version and on WiiWare, Final Fantasy IV: The After Years was sold in parts. Final Fantasy IV: The Complete Collection includes all of the episodes on UMD.

Since this is a sequel, you'll explore the same world and map from Final Fantasy IV. While it's neat to see what happens to the Blue Planet post-Zeromus, The After Years may be a little too familiar at times. You battle the same monsters and some of the dungeons are exactly the same. A few have been remixed so you explore different parts of the Mist Cave and walk through the Devil's Road (it's actually a dungeon with teleporting spots). Even though it feels a bit like fan service at times (perhaps most so with Kain's quest), the bite sized tales are neat to see since each character from Final Fantasy IV gets their turn in the spotlight.

At last we're at Final Fantasy IV. I played this last since its the most familiar of the three parts in the package. This version of Final Fantasy IV is based on the Game Boy Advance release. Dummied attacks from the localized Super Nintendo version like Cecil's dark wave are in and so are spells like protect. The extra dungeons with ultimate weapons from the GBA game are in too. However, the augment system and a few cutscenes from the Nintendo DS version of Final Fantasy IV are out. Square Enix touched up the translation again too, but the biggest change is without a question the graphics. Bullets, the game's developer, made all new sprites and spell effects (yeah for fire bubbles and Bahamut appearing from space). Everything is in sharp 2D with a few oddities like alligators, which were giant in other versions, tiny in comparison to other monsters on PSP.

With two games in one package Final Fantasy IV: The Complete Collection has plenty of content to keep RPG fans who don't know about intergalactic whale spaceships busy. Perhaps, only a smidge of new content for the die hard Final Fantasy IV fan that bought every episode of The After Years. Out of the two groups, I think the latter will enjoy Final Fantasy IV: The Complete Collection more.

The post Final Fantasy IV: The Complete Collection Playtest – From Cecil To Ceodore appeared first on Siliconera.

Period: The week of March 21st – March 27th (2011)

Top-seller: Dynasty Warriors 7 – 67,475 | Total Sales: 320,565

Nintendo 3DS sales: 50,710 | Total sales: 792,954

The biggest release in Japan during the week of March 21st – 27th was Final Fantasy IV: The Complete Collection, following shortly after the release of Dissidia 012. Square Enix’s packaging of their PSP Final Fantasy IV remake and its After Years sequel convinced 104,173 people to pick it up in its first week.

The next new release on the list was a Gundam game for the Nintendo 3DS, far below Final Fantasy IV’s numbers at the #3 position. Finally, the last notable release of the week was ClaDun 2, which sold 5,956 copies.

We also see the slight rise of games with long tails, such as Monster Hunter Portable 3rd, Pokémon Black/White, Donkey Kong Country Returns, Wii Party, Mario Kart Wii and New Super Mario Bros. Wii, all of which saw an increase in sales over the past week.

The top-20 chart for the week of March 21st – 27th is as follows:

Sales data obtained from 4Gamer and Media-Create.

The post This Week In Sales: A Double Dose Of Final Fantasy IV appeared first on Siliconera.

Final Fantasy IV: The Complete Collection may be another remake of Final Fantasy IV, but Takashi Tokita, the lead designer for the original game, created a new brand new story. The Interlude episode takes place between Final Fantasy IV and its sequel The After Years. During the 15 hour scenario, players will be able to make their own parties with characters that couldn't be paired together, a system that reminded me of the Game Boy Advance remake.

For Final Fantasy IV's interlude episode can you tell us more about why you wanted to focus on the restoration of Damacyan Castle?

Takashi Tokita, Director: It made sense as a natural flow that everyone in the party gathered back at Damacyan Castle one year later. By gathering together, it allowed players to create parties they couldn't make in the original story.

Can you give any more hints about the story in the Interlude?

It starts at Damacyan, but it goes to Fabul. There you will see some characters from The After Years. So, if you played The After Years you might get a kick out of seeing those the characters.

Will we see any new abilities for the characters of the Band system from Final Fantasy IV: The After Years?

The Band system is only the in The After Years because of that the Interlude uses the same system in the original game.

I noticed that Cecil was level 30, so will Palom perhaps be strong enough to cast Meteo?

There was peace for about a year so he's out of practice. [Laughs] We tweaked it in that way because we initially discussed the possibility of transferring save data from the original game to the Interlude then to The After Years. Because some people have played The After Years before we wanted to create a game where players can play freely and choose the story they wanted to play first.

Was it difficult to start working on a sequel to Final Fantasy IV many years after the original release?

When we were initially creating The After Years we were working on it at the same time as the Final Fantasy IV remake for the DS. Because they were going on at the same time there weren't any issues.

There were so many versions of Final Fantasy IV, which one is your favorite?

Hmm... because the first one was the original and if the first one wasn't fun none of the other ones would happen, the original one is my favorite.

In addition to Final Fantasy IV, Square Enix extended other Final Fantasy games, which other classic Final Fantasy would you like to extend?

I mainly worked on Final Fantasy IV. All of the other Final Fantasy titles had their own leads, so I can't really say. But, this is one of the things that makes each of the Final Fantasy titles unique and distinct.

Looking way back, what can you tell all of the fans of Final Fantasy IV about how the game has changed from the original plan?

When we first developed the game because of memory issues we had to cut everything to 1/4. The story structure didn't change, but a lot of the dialogue and little details had to be cut out. All of that is probably lost, we don't know where it is.

If you got a chance to remake Final Fantasy IV would you try to search for any of the data to add?

Similarly to movie editing, if you have good editing you have a good tempo for the movie. I think it was important that we did cut it to a fourth of the size because that is what created the proper pacing and tempo.

We switched topics to Tokita's other titles after talking about Final Fantasy IV and some of the revelations may surprise you. Here's a hint... Nanashi no Game. Final Fantasy IV: The Complete Collection makes its debut in Japan this week and is slated for April 22 in North America.

The post Final Fantasy IV Creator Discusses The "Interlude" Episode In The PSP Remake appeared first on Siliconera.

Hi Siliconera community,

Wow! In less than a week we tripled our initial goal and raised $3234 to aid Japan after the devastating earthquake. It's an amazing achievement. I wanted to start by saying a huge thanks to everyone for the donations, spreading the word, and the . THANK YOU! (*shouts so loud the neighbors can hear*)

Since we sured our goal and Japan could use the money sooner rather than later we decided to release the funds to the Red Cross early. We sent the money this morning after the supermoon set and the sun rose. To do this we had to end the fundraiser/raffle early too. Oh, and S. Jun we've got a prize pack for you including the autographed Dissidia: Final Fantasy figure. I'd like to think that everyone is a winner, especially the survivors in Japan who needed our help.

We encourage anyone who wants to donate to head to the Red Cross site or the CAG fundraiser at CheaGamer.Thanks so much for being a part of this. It warms my heart that as a community were able to do something great.

- Spencer & the Siliconera staff

The post Thanks So Much For ing Our Japan Disaster Relief Fund! appeared first on Siliconera.

Hey Siliconera community,

The situation in Japan, as I'm sure you are aware of, is heartbreaking and the staff at Siliconera would like to do something to assist relief efforts. We decided to put together a charity raffle with an awesome prize – a Cecil figure from Dissidia: Final Fantasy signed by Final Fantasy IV designer Takashi Tokita.

We'll be throwing other swag (t-shirts, maybe some games, and... a cape) inside a mystery box in the package too. I won't spoil these items; surprises are part of the fun! Yes, this time, we can ship the prize worldwide too. Since it's for a noble cause, we'll make the effort to get it out to you, wherever you are (It may take longer to reach some places than others, please understand!).

How do you win, and more importantly, help earthquake relief efforts? Donate through this magic button made by ChipIn! Each $5 donated equals one raffle ticket. In other words, donate $10 and you've got two chances to win. $15 for three, and so on. The more you donate the merrier.

All of the money collected will go to the Red Cross, specifically for earthquake and tsunami relief, when the fund closes. The drive starts now and ends on March 31.

Please, try to give back just a tiny bit :)

- Spencer & the Siliconera staff.

The post Siliconera Fund For The Japan Earthquake And Tsunami Relief Raffle appeared first on Siliconera.

Square Enix is bundling Final Fantasy IV: The Complete Collection with a couple of bonus items. North American copies include Final Fantasy IV cards with artwork from Yoshitaka Amano.

A Dissidia 012[duodecim]: Final Fantasy DLC code is in the package too for Cecil's "Knight of the Twin Moon" costume.

As we mentioned earlier, Final Fantasy IV: The Complete Collection has three stories – Final Fantasy IV, The After Years, and an all new Interlude episode that takes place in between. The PSP game lets players select either the original music composed by Nobuo Uematsu or rearranged songs. Square Enix also added three language options: Japanese, French, and English.

Final Fantasy IV: The Complete Collection comes out on April 19 in North America.

The post Final Fantasy IV: The Complete Collection Comes With Dissidia 012 DLC appeared first on Siliconera.

Final Fantasy IV: The Complete Collection has includes three games: Final Fantasy IV, Final Fantasy IV: The After Years, and a brand new Interlude episode. Through the main menu, players can choose any storyline to play as soon as they unwrap the PSP game.

So, you can start in the middle with the Interlude, try out The After Years, and then go back to the beginning of the Final Fantasy IV saga. The only exception is you must complete the first episode of The After Years to open the other episodes, which can be played in any order.

The options menu also lets players choose between the original music and rearranged soundtrack. You can also select the game's language from English, French or Japanese. The English translation is based on the Game Boy Advance version. Extra event scenes made for the Nintendo DS remake are not included in the game. This game does not have the augment system, which was made for Final Fantasy IV on the DS, either.

Final Fantasy IV: The Complete Collection uses unedited art based on the Japanese version, which means some enemies have slightly different sprites. The game has an art gallery with character and enemy art to unlock. While some of the pictures will be familiar to fans, Square Enix said there is some new artwork to see in The Complete Collection.

The post Little Factoids About Final Fantasy IV: The Complete Collection appeared first on Siliconera.

I got a sneak peek at Final Fantasy IV: The Complete Collection yesterday, which included a tiny bit of the "Interlude." This new storyline takes place one year after the events in Final Fantasy IV and connects the original game with Final Fantasy IV: The After Years.

Cid and Cecil race in their airships from Baron to the restored Damcyan Castle. Instead of corpses, the party is greeted with living guards. Palom, Porom, and Yang are already waiting in the throne room where Edward makes a speech.

Cecil and Rosa start out around level 30 in the Interlude. Enemies are said to be on par with the later episodes of The After Years. While combat was revised for the sequel, Final Fantasy IV's Interlude is based on the Super Nintendo version. That means no new abilities or Band system.

The "Interlude" is longer than the average episode in The After Years. According to Square Enix, the new scenario is about 15 hours long.

The post Final Fantasy IV: The Complete Collection’s Interlude Is 15 Hours Long appeared first on Siliconera.

Most of the screenshots from Final Fantasy IV: The Complete Collection look like this...

... snapshots from Cecil's story. The PSP remake also includes the first remake of Final Fantasy IV: The After Years. Each episode has a challenge dungeon to complete. Clear it and you'll be rewarded with rare items.

Square Enix gave the mobile phone sequel an overhaul. Band attacks, team attacks created by combining party member abilities, have the kind of flashy effects you'd expect to see in a Final Fantasy game.

The post Finally, A Look At The After Years Remake In Final Fantasy IV: The Complete Collection appeared first on Siliconera.

It appears as though all of Square Enix’s major PSP games are getting special edition releases in Europe. Following in the footsteps of Tactics Ogre: Let us Cling Together and The 3rd Birthday, Final Fantasy IV: Complete Collection will be available as a special edition, too.

The Final Fantasy IV: Complete Collection special edition will come in a special package, and will include a bunch of art cards (pictured above) along with the game, featuring artwork from both Final Fantasy IV and its sequel, The After Years.

Also included will be a special cleaning cloth decorated with a design of Cecil, and able content for Dissidia 012[duodecim]: Final Fantasy.

The special edition of Final Fantasy IV: Complete Collection will be in limited supply. You’ll either have to pre-order the game or pick up a launch copy if you want to grab it when the game releases on April 22nd in Europe.

The post Square Enix Give Final Fantasy IV: Complete Collection The Special Treatment In Europe appeared first on Siliconera.

Squished between scenes from the CG introduction for Final Fantasy IV: The After Years, Square Enix's latest trailer for Final Fantasy IV: The Complete Collection has a sliver of footage from the Interlude. This new episode takes place the newly restored Damcyan castle and connects the story between Final Fantasy IV and The After Years.

Skip to the 1:20 mark to see it, but don't blink its only a couple of seconds.

Cid, Rosa, Cecil, Yang, Palom, and Porom are present when Edward welcomes them to Damcyan. Rydia appears to be leaving the Feymarch since Asura asks where is she going. And the Mom Bomb will be avenged by the Father Bomb! You can see a glimpse of the Father Bomb transforming during a fight with Cecil, Rosa, Yang, and two Monks.

The post Fight Father Bomb In Final Fantasy IV: The Complete Collection’s Interlude Episode appeared first on Siliconera.

Famitsu has some details about the "Interlude" a new scenario that takes place after the events in Final Fantasy IV, but before Final Fantasy IV: The After Years. Takahashi Tokita, director of The After Years and one of the original designers on Final Fantasy IV, developed this additional episode.

Cecil, now the King of Baron and married to Rosa, comes into with a light that informs him about something. First seen in a dark room, is this a dream? Queen Rosa wakes up Cecil informing him Edward finished rebuilding Damcyan and everyone is heading there to celebrate. Rydia returns from the Feymarch for the reunion, Famitsu hints at other characters too, but doesn't specify who. Screenshots show the fire crystal flickering and Wedge, a member of the Red Wings who plays an important role in Final Fantasy IV: The After Years.

The post Final Fantasy IV: The Complete Collection’s Interlude Begins At Damcyan Castle appeared first on Siliconera.