Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy 13 PC Release Date Announced

The PC version of Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII will launch on December 10, Square Enix announced today. Almost all of the DLC released for the console versions is also included in the PC package.

The game arrives later than expected, as it was originally supposed to be out by spring 2015.

According to the Lightning Returns page on Steam, the PC version does not support Dolby Digital sound. In addition, Square Enix notes that there are no changes to the story from the console version, which was originally released in North America for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in February 2014.

Some other specifics about the PC edition are listed below, as written by Square Enix.

• This version of the game includes some of the downloadable content released for the original.
• The bonus items originally awarded for having save data from previous games in the series will be awarded in this version regardless of whether there is suitable save data present or not.
• Includes no functionality linked to Square Enix Members or social networking sites.
• It is not possible to change the names assigned to chocobos, map markers, or schemata.

Square Enix also notes that the PC version of Lightning Returns supports frame rates of up to 60 FPS. In addition, the title offers "graphics options," but there is no word on what they are. We've followed up with Square Enix in an attempt to find out. Final Fantasy XIII's PC version launched in October 2014 with basically no graphics options whatsoever.

The game supports gamepads, and if you're using one, Square Enix recommends one that uses Xinput.

The game's minimum and recommends system requirements, as well as a list of all included DLC, is available below.

Minimum:

• OS: Windows XP SP2 or later
• Processor: 2GHz Dual Core CPU
• Memory: 1500 MB RAM
• Graphics: NVIDIA Geforce 8800GT / ATI Radeon HD 4770 VRAM 512MB or later
• DirectX: Version 9.0c
• Hard Drive: 22 GB available space
• Sound Card: Sound card compatible with DirectX 9.0c
• Additional Notes: Steam Cloud needs to be active in order to start this game.

Recommended:

• OS: Windows Vista/ 7/ 8
• Processor: Intel Core 2 Quad (2.66 GHz)/ AMD Phenom II X4 (2.8 GHz) processor
• Memory: 2 GB RAM
• Graphics: Nvidia Geforce GTX 460/ ATI Radeon HD 5770
• DirectX: Version 9.0c
• Hard Drive: 22 GB available space
• Sound Card: Sound card compatible with DirectX 9.0c

DLC:

• "Divine Wear" schemata
• "Moogle Lover" schemata
• "Ultimate Saviour" schemata
• "FFX-2 Yuna" schemata
• "FFVII Cloud" schemata
• "FFX Yuna" schemata
• "Tomb Raider" schemata
• "Shining Prince" schemata
• "Dark Samurai" schemata
• "Sohei Savior" schemata
• "Utsusemi" schemata
• "Art of War" schemata
• "Flower of Battle" schemata
• "Shogun" schemata

The only DLC from the console version not available is the FFVII Aerith schemata. Square Enix says there are "no plans" to ever release this.

When Lightning Returns launches on PC next month, the complete Final Fantasy XIII trilogy will be available for computers. Final Fantasy XIII was released for PC in October 2014, while XII-2 arrived in December of that year.

For more on Lightning Returns, check out GameSpot's review of the console version.