Final Fantasy III release frenzies fans

Famitsu.com today reported extensively on the launch of the DS Lite edition of Square Enix's role-playing game Final Fantasy III. Although many other members of the Final Fantasy family have been updated and ported to other systems, this marks Final Fantasy III's first appearance on any system after it debuted on the Famicom (NES) 16 years ago.

According to Famitsu, the FF faithful began lining up at Tokyo's electronics stores in the wee hours of the morning. Yodobashi Akiba, a shop in the Akihabara district, had as many as 80 people camped out in front from 3 a.m. It's not that shortages of the game are expected, either; these diehards were instead hoping to snag one of the numbered, limited-edition Final Fantasy III Crystal Edition DS Lite bundles that also went on sale today. The bundle consists of a copy of the game and a special-edition Crystal White DS Lite, adorned with a design penned by the game's character designer, Akihiko Yoshida.

Lines for the bundles formed at all of Tokyo's major shopping hubs, Famitsu said. At the main branch of Yodobashi Camera, for example, the line was 155 strong at 7 a.m., three hours before opening. Lines also reached over 150 people at the aforementioned Yodobashi Akiba. Big Camera, another electronics megastore in the Ikebukuro neighborhood, had more than 100 waiting impatiently by opening time.

Many of the stores employed various strategies to keep mobbing to a minimum. Some opened their doors early or handed out numbered tickets so that customers couldn't lose their place in line. Stores dedicated cash registers--up to seven in some cases--specifically to service the hordes of Final Fantasy III customers. One store simply held a drawing for the privilege of purchasing the Crystal Edition DS Lite bundles. Anyone lined up by 10:30 a.m. was eligible to enter, and the winners were announced 30 minutes later.