: Our worries may be without reason -- it seems Siliconera's initial story was the result of a mistranslation. According to dedicated fansite
Impress Group's recap of the fiscal meeting simply states that development of the White Engine is not stagnant. So, you may resume hoping for a late 2008 release. Apologies for passing on the errant information.
Original story: Square Enix held their yearly fiscal meeting today, where a few bombshells were dropped, the biggest of which being the increasing likelihood that Final Fantasy XIII might be delayed, perhaps even into 2009.
The problem, according to Square Enix, lies with the White Engine, the in-house engine that has been under development for some time on the PlayStation 3 and with which the game is being created.
Development on the engine itself is said to be moving at a very slow pace, which is what has been leading to the slow turnaround on Final Fantasy XIII.
If you are adept at Japanese, and can weed through a very long financial report, you can access it in its entirety here.
Source: Siliconera
Comments
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-2 karma
pixy misao 11.23.2007 at 11:55:03 PM
Neither FF13 nor MGS4 are enough to get everyone (including me) to buy a PS3, price drop or not. Personally FF12 will be the last FF game I will ever play.
+0 karma
sirsniffy 11.20.2007 at 08:51:59 AM
I honestly don't mind the delay, cause I don't know if I will have a PS3 by 2010.
+0 karma
solar_blitz 11.20.2007 at 01:16:19 AM
as long as the game comes out, it's aaaalllllll good.
+0 karma
thehawk 11.19.2007 at 10:19:51 PM
Even WITH the story update I expect a delayed FF13.
+0 karma
terpfen 11.19.2007 at 09:29:51 PM
"Apologies for the errant information."
So much for another piece of supporting "evidence" that the PS3 is a developer's nightmare.
+1 karma
gon 11.19.2007 at 07:33:10 PM
With the way DS software sells, I bet SE will do fine with its ds titles while development on the blockbusters is slow.
They also are publishing some tri ace games right? A little more cash in the pocket....
+0 karma
cainkid 11.19.2007 at 07:18:00 PM
despite my greatest hopes mduo, the PS3 isn't going anywhere. While they are losing their former steam, the system will be fine sitting in a gamecube-like position this generation in WORST CASE scenario. Likely they will be much better off then that even.
So the system will likely be selling strong when FF13 pops up.
+0 karma
rahvii 11.19.2007 at 06:34:05 PM
"It's unusual that such a big company has so few games for release. And that worries me, man."
Spect a lot more DS games to be announced soon from S-E, and some ohter ports for PSP, they wont have a dead year, i can bet on that.
+1 karma
mduo13 11.19.2007 at 06:34:04 PM
Interesting that S-E is having such trouble with the White Engine. Could be due to internal factors or it could be another case of "The PS3 is really hard to develop for" (seems to be a common mantra lately).
Everyone knows Square makes their name on really polished, high-calibur, genre-defining games, but putting out one game every four years is not the way to maintain a company. So it seems prudent that they're spreading their resources among different platforms, and making easier releases and ports - what with FFT on PSP, DQ9 and FFTA2 on DS, and whatever the heck they're making on the 360, they've got to pay for FF13 development somehow.
The question is whether FF13 will be one of those games like Resident Evil 4 on GameCube, where it's an excellent game that showcases the merits of a system, but is too little, too late to save it.
+0 karma
terpfen 11.19.2007 at 06:26:56 PM
"It's unusual that such a big company has so few games for release."
Not really, considering how many games have been pushed into 2008. There's a serious glut this Christmas.
+0 karma
solar_blitz 11.19.2007 at 05:33:10 PM
It's unusual that such a big company has so few games for release. And that worries me, man.
Well I wasn't expecting FF13 until a long while from now anyway. The more time they spend developing it, the more likely it is that the PS3 will get a price reduction (60 GB for me, no BC-less 40 GB).
+0 karma
eggmanimn 11.19.2007 at 03:59:27 PM
Yes, Last Remnant is for both 360 and PS3. Coming mid next year I think?
I'm actually quite excited for it.
+2 karma
kirin 11.19.2007 at 03:40:35 PM
Yeah, wait, did people originally think this was going to be out in 2008? I already own a PS3 and I was never that optimistic.
Also, windstar - isn't Last Remnant supposed to be multi-platform?
+2 karma
dapper swindler 11.19.2007 at 03:23:58 PM
And I don't mean to pick on PS3 for dangling an upcoming title in front of its userbase that we won't see for a long, long time. Every company does this.
+0 karma
dapper swindler 11.19.2007 at 03:19:08 PM
I would have been very surprised if this came out in 2008. I doubt it will even get here within 2009. It's just another smoke and mirrors title to give PS3 owners something to look forward to "right around the corner".
+0 karma
sirusd 11.19.2007 at 03:13:35 PM
I'm willing to bet that the "difficulty to code on" factor for the PS3 isn't really a driving force behind the problems. Afterall, it's been said over and over that coding on the PS3 is easier than it was on the PS2. It's just not as easy as the Xbox360.
I never heard many complaints about coding on the PS2...
+4 karma
windstar 11.19.2007 at 03:06:11 PM
Most of the report is pretty negative.
To highlight, SE isn't committing a release date for DQ9 now. Stating a 2008 release (but not when in 2008). Further, the development troubles and hurdles developing the White Engine.
To be fair, the White Engine is SE's first multi-purpose engine. It isn't intended to be used only for FF13 but also for other projects in SE. So while development is slow, it seems that it would pay off in the long run, with additional projects for the FF series. It's definitely possible that FF13 might not see a Japanese release until 2009. If its going to take that long, however, though, might as well prep it for a simultaneous release on both shores.
Some people are still hoping for FF13 to be a multi-console release. But it doesn't seem likely. Given the development time and hurdles that FF13 is going through, the budget might not be enough for to work on a port for the 360.
In the meantime, get set for lots of remakes from SE's library. Right now, SE seems focused on 360 and DS development. New DQ remakes will be hitting the DS this year and through early next year. Dragon Quest Swords will hit the Wii in early 2k8. Last Remnant is due out in March for a worldwide release on 360. And FF4 DS is due out later this year.
For the most part, SE's release list is pretty slim. Despite the company's merging, their release calender has either shrunk or remained the same. Which isn't good for a company that used to compete with each other, with a wide variety of games.
Oh and Tri-Ace games are coming to fill the gaps.
+0 karma
terpfen 11.19.2007 at 02:58:50 PM
"They haven't shown ANYTHING since it was announced."
Actually, they have.
+4 karma
thehawk 11.19.2007 at 02:36:49 PM
Well, Final Fantasy being delayed is pretty much a guarantee these days. I think FF fans are just beginning to expect a late, polished game every time.
+0 karma
dscuber9000 11.19.2007 at 02:36:44 PM
I could have told you that Final Fantasy XIII won't come for quite a while. They haven't shown ANYTHING since it was announced.
+0 karma
stormfeather 11.19.2007 at 02:18:20 PM
Oo, gotta wonder if the slow creation of the engine is related to the apparent difficulty of the PS3 to code for, or if it's unrelated...
+1 karma
cainkid 11.19.2007 at 02:07:36 PM
For people with the theory that FF13 is going to be multi-platform, this is good news.
+0 karma
joesteele 11.19.2007 at 01:47:48 PM
"As a PS3 owner this is welcomed news."
huh?
+0 karma
nabulsi 11.19.2007 at 01:41:01 PM
As a PS3 owner this is welcomed news.
digg this story!
