Final Fantasy Forums

Welcome back to another installment of FFF Sims Lifestream, as narrated by yours truly, and streamed & directed by the same anonymous Californian resident from before. If you have just joined us, this is a special site feature where we run a social experiment using hapless virtual guinea pigs to see what happens when you re-enact Love Island or Big Brother or any similar reality TV show but with considerably more intelligent contestants.

Welcome to FFF Sims Lifestream, brought to you by a semi-regular Twitch stream and from an inconspicuous Californian home. The FFF Sims Lifestream is an auspicious social experiment using EA's The Sims 4 to see what fresh, fascinating new insights can be gained pertaining to the human condition, though personally I believe it will simply be an ominous confirmation of the fact that the human race is a mistake.

E3 season is upon us. For many, this is a momentous occasion. An annual ritual like no other. A period of sheer glee where we can bask in child-like wonder and speculate on what Santa Claus will bring come his next visit. Few companies inspire this essence of wondrous nirvana like Square Enix, a company with a history of igniting pure, unadulterated excitement while barely saying anything of substance. Square Enix can drive a fan crazy like few other major corporations can, besides maybe Apple. So unsurprisingly, when they announced in the run-up to this year's E3 that they have a press conference for the first time since 2015, auspiciously touting it "the next chapter is about to begin", expectations soared.

Let it go, let it goooooo

Microsoft held their E3 press conference this evening with a new trailer for Kingdom Hearts III part of Phil Spencer's lineup. The new world showcased in the trailer is the highly popular Frozen. To dispel with the professionalism for a moment, let it be known (if it is not abundantly clear already) that I absolutely adore the film and I will not let it go.

To 2019 and beyond!

Nearly six years after its initial announcement at E3 2013, Kingdom Hearts III finally has a confirmed release date of 29 January 2019, with Japan due to receive the game only a few days prior. This release date was confirmed by Tetsuya Nomura himself at a special orchestra concert in Los Angeles. The date, he apologetically acknowledged, is a little later than the 2018 window initially promised.

Welcome to a very special Birthweek event celebration!

We are pleased to announce that as a part of the magazine release, the recent Xenforo 2 launch, and Birthweek event, we wish to extend a one time giveaway that will be exclusive to Final Fantasy Forums members with 100+ posts!

Live streams are back on, better than ever! Streams is a popular feature for Xenforo 2, recently purchased from our owner, Lord Golbez. With this ability to record and broadcast in real time, we hope to encourage our members (and gamers) to continue exploring FFF and use our platform to keep members informed of their channels and any updates.

2018 is shaping up to be a great year for Final Fantasy Forums. We have welcomed plenty of new members, moved to a new forum system (ah, VB, we hardly miss you) and launched a magazine. And we're only halfway through the year.

On June 6th, Final Fantasy Forums will be twelve years old. We're almost to our angsty teen years. Time to celebrate with some fun competitions and activities.

The currently Japanese exclusive popular free-to-play mobile entry in the Star Ocean series of games is finally due to spread its wings and expand its presence beyond its home territories. Square Enix is apparently bringing Tri-Ace's Star Ocean: Anamnesis to western App stores for iOS and Android devices. True to the Star Ocean franchise, Anamnesis retains the familiar real-time 3D combat system and also promises co-op multiplayer battles on top of the freedom for players to choose the composition of their party squads using characters from across all mainline games.

The staff of Final Fantasy Forums are pleased to at last announce that Issue 1 of our very own magazine, 'Timber Maniacs', is finally live and ready to be accessed.

Final Fantasy fans are accustomed to waiting. At this very moment, you are likely all waiting for the elusive Final Fantasy VII Remake. Patiently waiting is part and parcel of our very existence. We live for the announcements, we live through the long waits and the many delays but typically the goods are finally delivered. In many respects, we are like a miniature Square-Enix. We announce an ambitious new project and after a protracted period of time we are pleased to present to you the final product, albeit with far fewer DLCs and season passes.

The Final Fantasy XV train chugs on unabated. At PAX East, Square Enix have laid out a roadmap, detailing what the four new DLC chapters for the game will entail, along with rough window estimates for when we can expect to see their release. In addition, future content updates will include the ability to transpose your created character in Comrades over to the base game to replace Noctis as the on-screen main protagonist.

The momentum for FFXV continues. Since its release in November 2016 the game has seen three DLC episodes and even an entire paid multiplayer expansion DLC. Now Square Enix are poised to continue support for the game with a fresh slate of DLC episodes in the pipeline and a second season pass. Originally three additional DLC episodes were in the cards, though it would now seem there will be a total of four, with Episode Ardyn due to kick things off.

If you're a raider and a Final Fantasy VI fan, Yoshi-P has decided to be extra kind to you in this next upcoming patch for Final Fantasy XIV. Patch 4.2: Rise of a New Sun will be live on the 30th January and it brings a plethora of FFVI fanservice when the next raid tier, Omega Sigmascape, is unlocked. Expect a good number of familiar enemies...a very familiar face and an equally familiar signature theme song to go with it.

If you held off on purchasing Final Fantasy XV in the event that a "complete" edition would eventually emerge, your patience will soon be rewarded. Square Enix have announced Final Fantasy XV Royal Edition, an update over the base game with over 20 add-ons and DLC. Interestingly, both the Royal Edition and Windows Edition will feature an expanded map of Insomnia with new enemies and sidequests, and even a first-person camera mode.

What you can expect to see from these two new versions of the game:

Gladiolus and Prompto have already had their own episodic DLC outings, and Ignis will not be too far behind. The last of the bros' character DLC episodes will be officially released on the 13th December, as unveiled by this week's Sony Paris Game Week live conference. For fans of Chrono Trigger, Xenogears, Xenosaga, Shadow Hearts and the upcoming Xenoblade Chronicles 2, famed composer Yasunori Mitsuda is on board for Episode Ignis's soundtrack.

There will be spoilers to come, so for anyone still yet to reach Chapter 9 of Final Fantasy XV, you may wish to divert your eyes elsewhere.

After yesterday's showcasing of Final Fantasy XV Windows Edition (essentially a 170GB-sized PC version of the game designed for 4k), today at Gamescom 2017 sees another announcement related to Noctis and his retinue. Meet Final Fantasy XV Pocket Edition, a smartphone game for iOS, Android and Windows 10 devices you never even knew you wanted!

In rather expected news, Square Enix have officially announced that the next installment in their Dragon Quest franchise will leave Japan to head for western shores sometime next year, under the moniker of Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age. No platforms have been announced for the western release.

An overview of the game was provided by Square Enix:

Last year's Final Fantasy XV will receive a multiplayer expansion entitled Comrades. Square Enix have freshly announced that worldwide closed beta tests for the expansion will take place from the 2nd August to 8th August. To be eligible for participation, you must have purchased a Season Pass for the game or the Digital Premium Edition, with an active PlayStation Plus or Xbox Live membership.

It will five years after Kingdom Hearts III was officially announced, but Sora and friends will return in 2018, confirms Square Enix. In the meantime, you can enjoy this new trailer of the game and the confirmation that Pixar's Toy Story will be one of the game's worlds. You're used to Tom Hanks voicing Woody, but have you ever heard Japanese Woody?

Square Enix have released the official trailer for the second paid DLC for last year's Final Fantasy XV. Episode Prompto is due on the 27th of this month and will naturally focus on Prompto in a more story-driven third-person shooter experience combined with light stealth elements. This DLC episode takes place following the events of Prompto falling off a Niflheim-bound train where terrible revelations await in a Magitek facility.

Naturally, the trailer will reveal spoiler elements, plus a certain supporting character who is about to make a very welcome return.