It's a question we've heard time and time again. "Why is it called Final Fantasy if they've made 15 of them?!" The answer is quite simple. It WAS to be their final fantasy.
In 1987 Square Enix was on the verge of shutting their doors permanently. The company had not made one truly successful game title and was facing financial ruin. They then decided to give it one last shot before declaring bankruptcy. They named said game Final Fantasy, because it really was intended to be their final title as a company. However, as history has shown, things went a little bit better than the company had hoped, and the game become a smash hit almost overnight, single handedly bringing the company back from the brink. Fast forward a few decades and Final Fantasy is now one of the most recognizable franchises in the world.
Following the success of the latest instalment, the Massive Multiplayer Online (MMO) Final Fantasy XIV, Square Enix has announced the release date for the next (proper) Final Fantasy title, FFXV! Or at least, they've announced the release year, as it's now been confirmed that the game will miss 2015, and will instead launch at some point next year.
Big swords? Check. Effeminate men? Check. Shiny graphics? Double check. REAL TIME BATTLES?!
As for what we can expect from the game, Final Fantasy XV looks to tick all the usual Japanese role playing boxes. With gorgeously detailed graphics (in terms of characters, environment and enemies), an epic story, and a huge world to explore, there's bound to be dozens of hours of battling, levelling and questing goodness to be had here - and plenty of oversized swords to boot.
As far as gameplay goes, though, Square Enix have strayed from their classic turn based battle system for a more fluid, action based (read: terrible - Ed) fighting style. One of the main characters has an extremely large sword which doubles up as a kind of grappling hook, letting you either flee from the battle at a moment's notice, or retreat to higher ground for a tactical advantage. Still, time will tell how well the real time battle system holds up in the full game. Still, with sparkly graphics, and plenty of effort having gone into the game, it's safe to say Final Fantasy XV ticks all the boxes. As with many Japanese role playing games though, firm details are always few and far between until the game's practically launched (look at the drip feed of news we've had about Kingdom Hearts!) - and as we now know, there's still a long way to go until that happens. Until that day rolls around, why not check out the latest trailer and get a taste for the story yourself:
