Nomura: Forget FF Versus XIII for now

Square Enix developer Tetsuya Nomura has told Final Fantasy fans anxiously awaiting news on the release of mysterious PlayStation 3 exclusive Versus XIII to forget about it for now.

The game will take more time than Type-0 and XIII-2, he explained to Japanese magazine Dengeki PlayStation (translated by Andriasang), because Square Enix is trying to do "a number of incredible things".

This is something he hopes players understood from the Japanese-exclusive trailer, released last week as part of a Square Enix Tokyo press conference.

Given Type-O and XIII-2 are slated for release this year, Nomura's comments suggest Versus XIII will launch during 2012 at the earliest. Our next update on the game will come at the earliest at E3, Nomura told Dengeki.

Little is known about the action-RPG, despite the fact it was first announced in 2006 alongside sister title Final Fantasy XIII.

The main character is a chap called Noctis Lucis Caelum. He's a prince, and is quoted as saying, "Fools set the rules in this world. Just take a look around. It's Undeniable." Cheer up, mate.

Noctis is said to have great physical ability and a secret power that only the royal family possesses. During combat commands for Magic, Item, Summon and EX-ARTS are available.

Combat is party based, granting players control over a maximum of three characters at a time. During early parts of the story the game will swap party members in and out for you. However, as you advance in the story, you'll be able to freely switch out members.

Interestingly, the game has a realtime event system that seamlessly transitions attacks and other gubbins into the flow of gameplay. Examples given include a plane crashing into the road and a beast attacking when Noctis reaches a bridge.

Development of this aspect of the game takes a long time, said Nomura.