Square reveals Final Fantasy X-2

At a press conference in Akasaka, Tokyo, on Tuesday afternoon, Square gave an overview of its upcoming games, including the recently announced Final Fantasy X-2 and the Final Fantasy games coming to Nintendo's platforms.

A Nintendo official took to the stage and gave a speech regarding Square's collaborative effort with Nintendo to bring new games to the GameCube and Game Boy Advance, namely Final Fantasy Chronicle, Final Fantasy Tactics Advance, and Chocobo Land. Square did not show any footage of Final Fantasy Chronicle, although some footage of the game had been shown at a Nintendo event held at the same location several hours earlier. Final Fantasy Tactics Advance is slated for release on February 14, 2003, for 5,800 yen (about $46), which is a comparatively high price for a handheld game.

Square also introduced Final Fantasy X-2 for the PlayStation 2 at the event. This game is an action-oriented take on the FFX universe featuring a twin-pistol-toting Yuna in hot pants. It has a new battle system, and the interactive third-person scenes featured an excellently animated Yuna prancing around the landscape. The new screenshots of the game show Yuna climbing and jumping to traverse obstacles, which shows that the game's action elements may be reminiscent of Tomb Raider. The focus on Yuna isn't surprising, and she seems to have a keen following among FFX fans. Final Fantasy X-2 will be a big game for Square when it hits the stores next year in March.

Square also showed the slick "motion sketch" animated scenes from Unlimited Saga. The game is slated for release on December 19, 2002. At the end of the presentation, Square gave a sneak peek at the work being done on a PlayStation 2 role-playing game called Hanju Hero 3D. Few details were revealed about this future game.

The only mention of Final Fantasy XI came when Square played a video clip of Final Fantasy XI for Windows. However, the clip wasn't new, and it's been doing the rounds at the local Tokyo game stores.

Here's a full list of the games Square has coming up for release in Japan:

Final Fantasy I & II for the PlayStation; 3,800 yen ($30); October 31, 2002
Final Fantasy XI for Windows; November 17, 2002
Unlimited Saga for the PS2; 6,800 yen ($54), 8,800 yen ($70) for the Special Edition; December 19, 2002
Kingdom Hearts Final Mix for the PS2; 6,800 yen ($54), 8,800 yen ($70) for the Special Edition; December 26, 2002
Final Fantasy X-2 for the PS2; March 2003
Hanju Hero 3D for the PS2; release date to be announced
Chocobo Land for the GBA; 4,800 yen ($38); December 13, 2002
Final Fantasy Tactics Advance for the GBA; 5,800 yen ($46); February 14, 2003
Final Fantasy Chronicle for the GameCube; release date to be announced