Western FFXIII "finally completed"
Toriyama talks up enhancements.
Square Enix's Motomu Toriyama has said that work on the "overseas version" of Final Fantasy XIII is "finally completed" and apologised for "the long wait".
Game director Toriyama said that "features which were popular amongst gamers at our survey last summer have been enhanced even further" for the Western release.
"One of those features is characters' facial animations, which work as the core of any human drama. Their movements are completely synchronised with the English lines and, due to this, each scene in the game is truly spectacular.
"Another feature to be mentioned is FFXIII's new strategic battle system, Paradigm Shift. Just like the Japanese version, this system adds elements of real-time actions to the battle, which has been made almost over-the-top, so that the more you use the shift, the more exhilarating the combat becomes."
Toriyama also issued something of a plea to impatient fans. "Don't get distracted," he wrote. "You will see the truth when you hold it in your hands. Please be patient a little longer for the 'day of a battle against the fate'!"
Final Fantasy XIII launched on PS3 in Japan in December and quickly sold a bazillion copies, although our own impressions based on the Japanese version were a little mooted, Square Enix apparently having abandoned the boldness of FFXII in favour of a more conservative approach.
It's nothing if not spectacular though. Check out yesterday's launch trailer if you need convincing of that.
Final Fantasy XIII is due out for PS3 and Xbox 360 in Europe on 9th March.