New Final Fantasy Game Coming To Wii and DS

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New Final Fantasy Game Coming To Wii and DS

Posted by Soulskill on Wednesday October 1, 2008 @12:43PM from the sharing-fantasies dept.

Eurogamer reports on some good news for fans of the Final Fantasy series: a new game is in development for the Nintendo Wii and DS systems. "It's said to be titled Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Echoes of Time. ... the game will apparently be playable on both machines at once, thanks to the spiffing new Pollux engine. So, while whoever is the best negotiator/fighter/Wii owner is playing on the big screen, another lucky adventurer can wade in on the DS, presumably following around and summoning Ifrit on their elder siblings. This harks back to the series' origins on DS, with the first CC game enjoying the relative splendour of Gamecube/GBA link-up play."

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Image from the shonen jump by philspear · 2008-10-01 13:11 · Score: 1

http://www.gamekyo.com/Webmasters/Images/7383620081001_140251_0_big.jpg
The miis in the bottom right look pretty faked, but the rest looks okay. Of course, I won't hold my breath until we see some videos.
1. Re:Image from the shonen jump by AKAImBatman · 2008-10-01 13:33 · Score: 1
  
  I don't think those are Miis. I think they are in-game creations loosely based on Miis. That's probably why they look so funky, (Blue hair and all.)
  
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2. Re:Image from the shonen jump by pokerdad · 2008-10-01 15:32 · Score: 2, Funny
  
  I don't think those are Miis. I think they are in-game creations loosely based on Miis. That's probably why they look so funky, (Blue hair and all.)
  The fact the word Mii is written right on top of them makes me suspicious that at least one is a Mii.
3. Re:Image from the shonen jump by Malevolyn · 2008-10-01 17:43 · Score: 1
  
  "Mii" and "DS" are both in the text. Maybe some kind of DS version of Miis.
  
  </mostlikelystatingobvious>
  
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4. Re:Image from the shonen jump by KDR_11k · 2008-10-01 21:32 · Score: 1
  
  I read that you can download Miis to the DS, from that screenshot I'd say those are FF characters wearing cardboard cutout Mii masks.
  
  --
  Justice is the sheep getting arrested while an impartial judge declares the vote void.
5. Re:Image from the shonen jump by Chris+Mattern · 2008-10-01 22:34 · Score: 1
  
  That's how I read it. The complete blurb reads "Mii ga DS ni", which could be translated as "It's a Mii with a DS".
6. Re:Image from the shonen jump by Anonymous Coward · 2008-10-02 02:39 · Score: 0
  
  Pretty much, except you missed the question mark. I'd translate it on "Mii on a DS!?"
No more by bluefoxlucid · 2008-10-01 13:18 · Score: 1

Crystal Chronicles was okay, not awesome. My Life as a King was junk!

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1. Re:No more by Sabz5150 · 2008-10-01 13:29 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  Crystal Chronicles was good *IF* you had the necessary hardware to play the game the way it was meant to be played. This meant 4 GBAs and 4 link cables... not something the average gamer owned (even finding three friends with link cables was a task).
  Nintendo at times has this thing for insanely ridiculous hardware requirements for their console games, but if you manage to gather the hardware, it's definitely a worthy gaming experience.
  
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2. Re:No more by Anonymous Coward · 2008-10-01 13:35 · Score: 0
  
  I would guess that a Wii + 4 DSs would work a lot better since they all have wireless. 9 screens! Touch input! *Drool*
3. Re:No more by AKAImBatman · 2008-10-01 13:41 · Score: 2, Insightful
  
  This meant 4 GBAs and 4 link cables... not something the average gamer owned (even finding three friends with link cables was a task).
  So, it's a lot like Four Swords and Four Swords Adventures, then? Well, save for the fact that Adventures required four GameBoy Advances, four GameCube/GBA link cables, AND a copy of the GameCube game.
  Methinks the current (Nintendo DS) solution of downloading stubs of games over WiFi works a lot better than the hardware-junkie scheme Nintendo tried to sell before. One would have thought that after the four player cabling for the original GameBoy failed to take off, Nintendo would have learned about all this extra hardware. Guess not.
  
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  Javascript + Nintendo DSi = DSiCade
4. Re:No more by bluefoxlucid · 2008-10-01 13:45 · Score: 1
  
  The magical thing about the Wii: it's made specifically for this kind of thing. The DS just happens to be out there already, instead of 4 Wiimotes.
  
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5. Re:No more by AKAImBatman · 2008-10-01 13:52 · Score: 1
  
  I don't think it's entirely accidental that the Wii and the DS can communicate over WiFi. Nintendo liked the idea of the GCN/GBA cable. WiFi offered them the option of providing the same service without the extra hardware.
  
  --
  Javascript + Nintendo DSi = DSiCade
6. Re:No more by stoolpigeon · 2008-10-01 14:52 · Score: 1
  
  Actually, I heard that is 100% accidental. Something to do with tea, sponge-cake and a crazy party in the lab late one night.
  
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  It's hard to believe that's how Micronians are made. Why don't we see it right now by having you both kiss one another?
7. Re:No more by Anonymous Coward · 2008-10-01 17:08 · Score: 0
  
  But seriously -- who didn't have a GBA? During the height of its popularity, if you didn't have a GBA, you didn't deserve to call yourself a gamer. And link cables were what, $10?
8. Re:No more by blahplusplus · 2008-10-01 18:59 · Score: 5, Informative
  
  "Nintendo at times has this thing for insanely ridiculous hardware requirements for their console games, but if you manage to gather the hardware, it's definitely a worthy gaming experience."
  As an owner of crystal chronicles, it was a complete letdown even with mutiplayer. The game was too simplified and it wasn't final fantasy at all, not in the slightest. Everything about FF: CC was disjoint and disconnected. They had some wonderful graphics but the world did not cohere well at all, FF: CC is probably one of the craziest projects square has ever green lighted, I can't understand how they would make a different game for the gamecube and not a true final fantasy.
  FF: CC was originally some other game whom they grafted into the fold, I wish they had not named it FF:CC but they wanted free money and a lot of stupid people bought it on the name (as they knew)
  It was a dishonest thing IMHO. I thought they were seriously releasing an FF, when I played FF:CC I was like : WTF IS THIS?? that's what my reaction was... a crappy overly simplistic button mashing action game.
9. Re:No more by FornaxChemica · 2008-10-01 21:25 · Score: 1
  
  I can't understand how they would make a different game for the gamecube and not a true final fantasy
  Because they were partly owned by Sony?
  Anyway, since the Playstation, Square and Sony have enjoyed a fruitful business relationship like Square and Nintendo did back in the 8/16bit era. What came as a surprise is that they released a FF title for Nintendo at all. It wasn't so surprising the game turned out to be wholly different from a regular Final Fantasy and, ultimately, such an unpleasant experience (which I own too, sadly). At that point, that's just what you could expect. Square did not even bother to involve itself in the game's creation, it was a Game Designer Studio's project financed by Nintendo's Q fund.
  The only commitment from Square was to allow the use of the Final Fantasy brand name, to guarantee sales pretty much by fooling buyers on the nature and quality of the product. And indeed, when you look at it, that's the only Final Fantasy thing this game had: its title.
10. Re:No more by KDR_11k · 2008-10-01 21:34 · Score: 1
  
  Why Nintendo? This is Final Fantasy, Square-Enix makes these.
  
  --
  Justice is the sheep getting arrested while an impartial judge declares the vote void.
11. Re:No more by Valacosa · 2008-10-02 02:26 · Score: 2, Insightful
  
  I'm glad I'm not alone.
  
  I bought Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles, Ring of Fates and had the same "WTF is THIS?" reaction.
  
  The real-time combat isn't entirely unprecedented, Final Fantasy Adventure for the original Game Boy was like that. But FFA didn't have three companions with piss-poor AI, a broken magic system, bad voice acting, and an expectation that I use the stylus and control pad at the same time.
  
  I wish someone would port Final Fantasy 7 to the DS, rather than making another crappy FF:CC game.
  
  --
  "Live as if you'll die tomorrow." Ridiculous. You could die later today.
12. Re:No more by Anonymous Coward · 2008-10-02 03:20 · Score: 0
  
  Clearly you've never played Mystic Quest. THAT game was terrible. FF:CC was just trying something different that Sony couldn't get sue happy about. I thought it was meh, but I also had the common sense to realize it wasn't going to be a FF7 clone with androgynous whiney male leads and boss fights that god help you if you lose you have to go through another damn 10 minute FMV only to find out yes the boss is bad and you must win or a 10 minute FMV every damn time you cast a worthwhile spell(i.e. everything after FF7).
13. Re:No more by Reapy · 2008-10-02 03:46 · Score: 1
  
  Agreed. We had 2 gba's and i bought a link cable to try it out. Horrible game. The gameplay was reasonably fun when you got in the game, but in the meantime, as the second player, you basically fell asleep while the lead player handled moving around and all the out side of combat stuff. Epically boring. If the game was 2 player the whole way through, I could have liked it more, but I had better things to do with my time then wait for an opportunity to play the fun part of the game.
  That, and we kept getting large electric shocks while playing. Kept worrying we were going to ruin our gameboys.
14. Re:No more by Tetsujin · 2008-10-02 04:19 · Score: 1
  
  Methinks the current (Nintendo DS) solution of downloading stubs of games over WiFi works a lot better than the hardware-junkie scheme Nintendo tried to sell before.
  
  The only difference is the cables... The cables were needed 'cause neither the GBA or the 'Cube had wireless.
  
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15. Re:No more by LouisZepher · 2008-10-02 08:54 · Score: 1
  
  Square made Final Fantasy, Square-Enix ruined Final Fantasy. *coughs*
16. Re:No more by geminidomino · 2008-10-02 10:23 · Score: 1
  
  a crazy party in the lab late one night.
  Did their eyes behold an eerie sight?
17. Re:No more by geminidomino · 2008-10-02 10:25 · Score: 1
  
  Final fantasy adventure was actually the same story... Not a Final Fantasy game at all, just slapped the name on it to whore it out (too bad, because it was a good game in its own right. Same for the SaGa-turned-"Final Fantasy Legend" series).
18. Re:No more by Anonymous Coward · 2008-10-03 07:08 · Score: 0
  
  There was still the problem that even when you finally did manage to acquire 4 link cables, 4 GBAs, and 4 friends to play with, one person always got shafted having to carry around the stupid crystal. They should have left the moogle in multiplayer to carry the thing around. Would have made the game much better.
19. Re:No more by bluefoxlucid · 2008-10-03 14:24 · Score: 1
  
  No, I mean, the Wii targets massive parties. Not sitting in your basement by yourself playing Mario 64 or StarFox; not running a full 600 hour run for 100% completion of all side quests in Final Fantasy; but actually embracing, exploring, and enhancing the game play of Mario Party and Super Smash Bros. You might have 3 friends over, or you might have a 16 person tournament in Brawl; but the Wii's made for it.
  
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20. Re:No more by AKAImBatman · 2008-10-03 14:52 · Score: 1
  
  I think we're talking about the same thing. The GCN/GBA connectivity was a true party idea. Same with the 4-GBA linkup. Wifi opens up a huge field of cooperative and competitive play between those who have a console and those who have a handheld. And that's why I say that it's not entirely accidental that the Wii and DS can communicate. :)
  
  --
  Javascript + Nintendo DSi = DSiCade
What can I say? by Pollux · 2008-10-01 13:39 · Score: 5, Funny

The game will apparently be playable on both machines at once, thanks to the spiffing new Pollux engine.
What can I say? I strive to make the very best.
Re:Bailout has tax breaks for rum and wooden arrow by larry+bagina · 2008-10-01 14:04 · Score: 0, Offtopic

Jesus Fucking Christ.
Well, it turns out everyone who was predicting gloom and doom if the bailout wasn't passed was right. Not because the economy would die, but because an even worse bailout would pass instead.

--
Do you even lift?
These aren't the 'roids you're looking for.
What happened to... by Shados · 2008-10-01 14:49 · Score: 1

What happened to the OTHER crystal chronicle that was supposed to be on the Wii (no, not Life as a King, Im talking about The Crystal Bearers). It looked pretty cool, but no words of it.
1. Re:What happened to... by Sparton · 2008-10-01 15:22 · Score: 1
  
  From TFA:
  
  [Eurogamer understands] that the title is categorically not a replacement for FF: Crystal Bearers, which is still being released.
  I'd still take their word with a grain of salt, considering that Square Enix hasn't officially announced the title, but it looks like they're just working on multiple gamers for the same subseries.
Not that I want to offend anyone... by loupgarou21 · 2008-10-01 14:55 · Score: 5, Insightful

Yay!!! Beat that fucking horse, it might actually crawl an extra foot or two.
loupgarou21 bought a wii on speculation that the new controller would bring new, innovative games.
loupgarou21 is disappointed that the new games that take advantage of the new controller are crap, and all halfway decent games for the wii are just rehashing the same nintendo big sellers that have come out for the last 30 years, only they make you shake the the damned controller to do simple things that shouldn't require shaking a controller.
1. Re:Not that I want to offend anyone... by bigstrat2003 · 2008-10-01 15:41 · Score: 2, Interesting
  
  loupgarou21 has not played Metroid Prime 3: Corruption.
  
  --
  "16MB (fuck off, MiB fascists)" - The Mighty Buzzard
2. Re:Not that I want to offend anyone... by RogueyWon · 2008-10-01 21:15 · Score: 2, Informative
  
  But I have.
  And what loupgarou21 says holds perfectly true for it. It's not doing anything you couldn't do on a mouse and keyboard and if you play for more than 30 minutes at a time, it gets very uncomfortable. Plus the Metroid Prime gameplay has now been through 3 iterations with almost no changes (or significant graphical uplifts) and is now feeling very, very dated.
  To date, the only first party game for the Wii I've found that I actually genuinely like is Super Smash Bros Brawl, which has decent production values and doesn't actually use the motion sensing functions of the controller. The rest seem to have ranged from the fair-to-middling (Zelda, Mario Galaxy) to the downright awful (Mario Kart Wii - probably the worst "big title" game of 2008 so far on any platform, due to some really dodgy design decisions).
  Elsewhere, with a couple of notable exceptions (such as the decent ports of Okami and Resident Evil 4), the system does seem to be drowning under a tide of low-budget shovelware. I didn't pick up the Wii version myself, but from what I understand, the Wii version of Force Unleashed was even more disappointing than the 360 and PS3 versions (another good contender for biggest let-down of the year, on any of its many platforms), as it combined early-PS2 quality graphics with lightsabre mechanics that fell well short of the actual lightsabre control that people had been hoping for.
  Now, I freely admit I've not been a fan of the Wii concept from the very beginning. It does, however, feel like over the last 6 months or so, even some of the Nintendo faithful have become increasingly disillusioned by Nintendo's apparent acceptance of the popular concept that "casual" games are effectively "rushed, low quality" games. The novelty of the controller has worn off now and the Wii won't be the hot, trendy main-stream ticket this coming Christmas that it was last year. Decent games are desperately needed, whether or not they make use of motion sensing.
  Now, what's the article about?
  Oh yes, Crystal Chronicles. Didn't like the first one on the Gamecube, thought the recent DS version was kinda fun but not Earth-shattering, can't say I'll be camping out in line to pick up the new one. I used to be (and to some degree still am) a huge Square-Enix fanboy, but I've been getting a little worried of late. Final Fantasy XIII looks great, but it's taking a hell of a long time to appear. The Kingdom Hearts series appears to be stuck in some kind of limbo of uninspiring hand-held and mobile phone games. Infinite Undiscovery on the 360 is not even close to being as good as Blue Dragon and Lost Odyssey from Mistwalker. The lone bright spot among their recent releases has been Crisis Core, which was, I admit, very good indeed. Besides that, it appears that they've allowed too many side-projects and spin-off franchises to distract them from their core strengths.
3. Re:Not that I want to offend anyone... by FornaxChemica · 2008-10-01 21:30 · Score: 1
  
  loupgarou21 wrote:
  
  all halfway decent games for the wii are just rehashing the same nintendo big sellers that have come out for the last 30 years
  bigstrat2003 wrote:
  
  loupgarou21 has not played Metroid Prime 3: Corruption.
  Hmm, I think MP3 falls in the above-mentioned category.
4. Re:Not that I want to offend anyone... by aussie_a · 2008-10-02 01:22 · Score: 1
  
  aussie_a thought that the new controller would bring new, innovative games.
  aussie_a waited until those games were actually created.
  aussie_a is still waiting.
5. Re:Not that I want to offend anyone... by poot_rootbeer · 2008-10-02 02:20 · Score: 1
  
  loupgarou21 somehow got modded up to "+4 Insightful" for recapitulating the same anti-Wii garbage that's cluttered gamer blogs for two years now.
6. Re:Not that I want to offend anyone... by eagee · 2008-10-02 02:26 · Score: 1
  
  Well, I for one thought mario kart wii was a huge blast. My kids and I love it.
7. Re:Not that I want to offend anyone... by poot_rootbeer · 2008-10-02 02:32 · Score: 2, Interesting
  
  the only first party game for the Wii I've found that I actually genuinely like is Super Smash Bros Brawl, which has decent production values
  Really? My impression from playing SSBB was "the Smash Bros. gameplay has now been through 3 iterations with almost no changes (or significant graphical uplifts) and is now feeling very, very dated."
  (Mario Kart Wii - probably the worst "big title" game of 2008 so far on any platform, due to some really dodgy design decisions).
  And such as? I don't think the game is perfect -- course designs tend to be a little too much "on rails", rather than freely explorable like the N64 edition, and the Wii Wheel is uncomfortable to use -- but I find it to be one of the best games in the Mario Kart series, and one of the best games released for the Wii thus far.
  popular concept that "casual" games are effectively "rushed, low quality" games. The novelty of the controller has worn off now and the Wii won't be the hot, trendy main-stream ticket this coming Christmas that it was last year.
  People were saying that a year ago, too, and the Wii was still the hot item of the season.
  I will grant you that some circumstances have changed since this time last year -- more and more people who want Wiis have already found and bought them, and there is now an Xbox 360 model that costs even less than the Wii -- but I'm confident that the "novelty" of the system has not "worn off", and that it will likely still be the best-selling console this Christmas.
8. Re:Not that I want to offend anyone... by nappingcracker · 2008-10-02 03:06 · Score: 1
  
  I thought that the control system for MP3:C was very nice, and with some refinement I think that the Wii controls could really make for some great twitch shooters!
  
  I think playing fast shooters like Nexuiz or Q3 or UT or such would be a blast with that control scheme. I found it very fast to target things, if they sped up the spin / turn around capability when you point off screen, I think it would be the first scheme to contend with the mouse.
  
  Actually, I think Nexuiz would be a great game to port, Wii needs a few twitch games (and better online representation).
  
  --
  |plastic....or gasoline?|
9. Re:Not that I want to offend anyone... by RogueyWon · 2008-10-02 04:59 · Score: 2, Insightful
  
  The big problem I have with Mario Kart is that they have surgically excised both skill and fun from the game. There are too many racers on the track at once now... too many weapons being fired off constantly on every side. Moreover, the way the game penalises players for driving well by giving players behind them super-powered weapons that are impossible to evade means that the only way to win on 100cc setting is to deliberately drive badly until the second half of the final lap.
  Not my idea of fun. Double Dash wasn't perfect, but it was vastly better than this.
  Super Smash Brothers, on the other hand, added a fairly engaging storyline mode (which is a first for the series) and looked and sounded better than pretty much anything else on the Wii. Yes, some of the game mechanics feel a bit dated and the platforming sections occasionally feel rushed, but there is still the nucleus of a very good game in there.
10. Re:Not that I want to offend anyone... by Khyber · 2008-10-02 07:21 · Score: 1
  
  "Plus the Metroid Prime gameplay has now been through 3 iterations with almost no changes (or significant graphical uplifts) and is now feeling very, very dated."
  Well, there's only so many ways you can render Samus and keep it faithful...
  
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11. Re:Not that I want to offend anyone... by loupgarou21 · 2008-10-02 08:00 · Score: 1
  
  Thing is, I'm really not anti-Wii, I actually really like the console and have been messing around with the homebrew stuff a lot. I just wish that more thought went into making good, unique games for the console rather than trying to figure out how to integrate the motion sensing and pointing ability of the controller into what are basically the same games that came out for the previous Nintendo consoles.
  If you can't think of a good way to use that motion sensing as a part of the game, don't try to cram it in awkwardly, just give me a button instead.
12. Re:Not that I want to offend anyone... by bigstrat2003 · 2008-10-03 03:05 · Score: 1
  
  Moreover, the way the game penalises players for driving well by giving players behind them super-powered weapons that are impossible to evade...
  Er... you do realize that Mario Kart has been doing this since Mario Kart 64, at least, right? It's always been a viable strategy to drop back a bit and then pull ahead using good items at the last moment.
  
  --
  "16MB (fuck off, MiB fascists)" - The Mighty Buzzard
Square and Nintendo together again. by Skrapion · 2008-10-01 15:26 · Score: 3, Funny

Not that I'm a Final Fantasy fan anymore -- I grew out of that phase during Final Fantasy III/6j -- but I still feel obliged to say...
SUCK IT.

--
The details are trivial and useless; The reasons, as always, purely human ones.
1. Re:Square and Nintendo together again. by CronoCloud · 2008-10-01 17:04 · Score: 1
  
  From what I'm reading, they're doing games for all the platforms, besides the DS and Wii getting a couple of exclusives, the PS3 and PSP are getting a couple of exclusives themselves. The Xbox 360 is only getting one game though if memory serves me right.
2. Re:Square and Nintendo together again. by Renaissance+2K · 2008-10-01 22:03 · Score: 2, Informative
  
  That comic is old, and it's referencing the long period between the release of FF7 and FF10 where Nintendo vowed that Square would never release another game on their consoles.
  They took it rather personally when Square jumped ship to Sony for the release of Final Fantasy VII and then launched a massive anti-cartridge marketing campaign. Wouldn't you?
  As far as Xbox 360 games, Square-Enix has already released Project Sylpheed and Infinite Undiscovery on the console; both exclusives. The future releases of Last Remnant and Final Fantasy XIII share a release with the PS3. Yes, Final Fantasy XIII.
3. Re:Square and Nintendo together again. by CastrTroy · 2008-10-02 00:59 · Score: 1, Flamebait
  
  I grew out of final fantasy at FF VII. That was a truly terrible game. Firstly, the battles were completely drawn out so long as to make them excruciatingly painful. Seriously, 30 second cut scenes for each attack is not something I want to deal with. Secondly, the game was completely linear. They'd ask you a bunch of questions to make it seem like you had a choice, but eventually all answers lead to the same conclusion. Also, you didn't even have to wander around to figure out where to go. You pretty much followed a path throughout the entire game.
  
  --
  
  Anthropic principle: We see the universe the way it is because if it were different we would not be here to see it.
4. Re:Square and Nintendo together again. by SageinaRage · 2008-10-02 03:30 · Score: 1
  
  Other than the entirely optional long summons, which of these hasn't been true for any Final Fantasy?
5. Re:Square and Nintendo together again. by Anonymous Coward · 2008-10-02 04:01 · Score: 0
  
  Long summons weren't optional in FF7, and when they were finally made optional (in FF9?), using fast summon animations caused the summons to operate at half power (or less, depending on summon).
  The last good Final Fantasy was the first one, and it was only good for its day. Every one since has sucked. (FF2 has the terrible leveling system, FF3 had the terrible job system, FF4 kept on changing out characters and had the terrible ATB crap, FF5 repeated the terrible job system, FF6 was buggy as hell - to the point where Relm could actually corrupt the save files, and now we're up to FF7.)
6. Re:Square and Nintendo together again. by Nightspirit · 2008-10-02 12:17 · Score: 1
  
  I agree, it went downhill for me once VII came out.
7. Re:Square and Nintendo together again. by Skrapion · 2008-10-02 12:40 · Score: 1
  
  Agreed. I've heard (and even told) the same story from many different people, and the only major change in each story is which sequel disillusioned them, and their age.
  The games aren't getting worse; we're getting older and expecting more.
  
  --
  The details are trivial and useless; The reasons, as always, purely human ones.
Staying Alive by Anonymous Coward · 2008-10-01 20:24 · Score: 0

Gotta love the disco pirate.