News by Lindsay M.
Welcome to Digitally Downloaded’s weekly news feature, Catch-up coffee Monday. Each Monday we will bring you the best news from the previous week that you may have missed. Grab the biggest mug you’ve got, fill it with your favourite brew, and catch up with us (and our favourite news anchor, Dee Dee)!
Final Fantasy TCG finally crossing the ocean
It’s only taken a half-dozen years, but the time has finally come: the Final Fantasy Trading Card Game will be made available to North American consumers on October 28. The above video is the first in what will be a series where the basics of the game are explored via a tutorial with Taro Kageyama, the game’s creator. The game’s first set, Opus 1, will be available at launch. The cards cover the entire lifespan of Final Fantasy and feature art from the likes of Tetsuya Nomura, Yoshitaka Amano, and Akihiko Yoshida. Each of the 216 cards in Opus 1 will also have a premium foil version counterpart. For the rest of the limited information available — although this does include the game’s guide — visit the official website.
Sekai announces three new titles at Anime Weekend Atlanta
Sekai Project was busy this past weekend, announcing three new titles for PC. Project Lux (above), developed by Spicy Tails, is set in a future world where humans have cyberbrains. The story takes place during the trial of someone who creates the data needed for cyberbrains to interact with human emotion; Lux is the victim. The jury investigates by reliving Lux’s memories thanks to her brain’s data. If the future isn’t your thing, maybe you’ll prefer Falsetto Memories by Chrono Work Studios: the game follows a 19-year-old from a small village who wants to convince her best friend to follow her to the big city. Of course, things don’t happen as planned but may end up better than expected. The final title announced was Serment Contract with a Devil by NKTSTUDIO. The visual novel – dungeon crawler hybrid also borrow elements from dating sims and turn-based RPGs. The player takes over as on of four girls revived by a devil who insists upon a large amount of money as payment for his good deed.
Break into the house next door in Hello Neighbor
Now, we don’t normally condone breaking and entering — but that’s the name of the game in tinyBuild’s upcoming PC title, Hello Neighbor! The game is stealth horror, and has the player’s character sneaking into a neighbour’s home to learn what horrible secrets are hiding there. The AI is supposed to be incredibly smart and promises to learn from your movements so you cannot make them again. Do you like to sneak in through the front door? Before long there will be cameras installed there. If you prefer the more stealth option of climbing through a window, go ahead — but next time don’t be surprised if there’s a bear trap awaiting your tender foot and ankle.
Final Fantasy veteran leaves Square Enix
As of 30th September, I resigned Square Enix, the company I worked for 24 years.— 直良有祐 naora yusuke (@NaoraYusuke) October 1, 2016
For over two decades, Yusuke Naora has worked on Square Enix titles. His resume is one of the more impressive we’ve seen, with titles such as Chrono Trigger and Romancing SaGa: Minstrel Song under his belt. More importantly, he has served as a designer in some capacity for over a half-dozen Final Fantasy games ranging from field graphic designer for FF VI to art director for Final Fantasy X. His most recent roll was again as art director, this time for the upcoming Final Fantasy XV. Naora has decided it is time to move on; the announcement was made via Twitter on Saturday. The most poignant thing he mentions is that he has been blessed to see the ending of FFXV, his last game with Square Enix: “It was my last work, and it became the greatest ending.” Despite the sadness over his departure, we look forward to seeing what he does next!
Does any of this news tickle your fancy or make you steaming mad? Let us know in the comments! And meet us again next week for a new edition of Catch-up coffee Monday.
– Lindsay M.
News Editor
