More shocking than the news about Russia

msmalls74 · 10 Aug 2008 at 13:26

Shamikebab said:
Surely you must be getting used to it by now

Well not if the game is ready, been out 6 months in Japan, and were just waiting for SE to squeeze FF13 on 9 dvds(joke) for the 360!

Psyk · 10 Aug 2008 at 14:36

The PS3 version won't necessarily be held back. The way I understand it, the Xbox 360 version won't be worked on until the japanese PS3 version is done. The port to the 360 will be done at the same time as the localisation process. As that takes a long time anyway, there may not be a delay at all.

Lovejoy! · 10 Aug 2008 at 14:38

people taking the title seriously

wannabedamned · 10 Aug 2008 at 15:44

Psyk said:
The port to the 360 will be done at the same time as the localisation process. As that takes a long time anyway, there may not be a delay at all.

Which is the opposite of what I've heard

360 version wont be worked on, until all PS3 localization is completed.

mmj_uk · 10 Aug 2008 at 15:54

WatchTower said:
People say get a PS2 and a 40Gb PS3 but surely this is like telling Wii owners that they can buy DVD players really cheap now so there's no need for DVD playback on the Wii. At the end of the day it's about being minimal. I already have a Wii 360 etc. With the 60gb model I won't need my PS2.

Well at the end of the day the 40GB run a lot cooler and more silent than the old 60GB models, so both PS3 gaming and watching Bluray's is a more pleasant experience.

Software emulation on the EU 60GB's is far from perfect and isn't a patch on a proper PS2 or the original US/JP hardware emulated models, so yeah a 40GB PS3/PS2 is actually a lot better in all areas than a 60GB PS3 and it's not like PS2's are that big now anyway, if storage space is your only concern though then 60GB PS3 wins no doubt.

Edz · 10 Aug 2008 at 22:41

Psyk said:
The PS3 version won't necessarily be held back. The way I understand it, the Xbox 360 version won't be worked on until the japanese PS3 version is done. The port to the 360 will be done at the same time as the localisation process. As that takes a long time anyway, there may not be a delay at all.

This was true at E3, but recently Square have stated that they don't even have the MS dev kits yet, and have indicated that there may be a delay for the PS3 waiting for the 360 version to be ready..

What I find hard to understand is why Versus isn't going to the 360 also? The only reason I can see is that Versus will only be released in Japan..

Psyk · 11 Aug 2008 at 00:59

Edz said:
This was true at E3, but recently Square have stated that they don't even have the MS dev kits yet, and have indicated that there may be a delay for the PS3 waiting for the 360 version to be ready..

What I find hard to understand is why Versus isn't going to the 360 also? The only reason I can see is that Versus will only be released in Japan..

I can assure you, Versus is not going to be Japan only. They consider Versus to be equal to FFXIII in the sense that they are both major releases for the company. Similar amounts of money being spent in producing them and stuff like that. They wouldn't make something that big Japan only in this day and age.

wannabedamned said:
Which is the opposite of what I've heard

360 version wont be worked on, until all PS3 localization is completed.

Do you have a source for that? I think a lot of this is down to people misinterpreting what they have been saying.

Edz · 11 Aug 2008 at 10:24

Psyk said:
I can assure you, Versus is not going to be Japan only. They consider Versus to be equal to FFXIII in the sense that they are both major releases for the company. Similar amounts of money being spent in producing them and stuff like that. They wouldn't make something that big Japan only in this day and age.

That's what I would have thought also, but then why is it still a PS3 exclusive?

Surely if MS were throwing money at Square then they would have tied up Versus when they got FF13? or if like Square have stated they want Final Fantasy to be available to a larger base then why leave Versus as an exclusive?

It seems a very strange decision either way, especially as they are both being developed at the same time. I wouldn't be suprised now if Versus arrives over here before FF13 especially with the news that delays are likely.

wannabedamned · 11 Aug 2008 at 12:33

Psyk said:
Do you have a source for that? I think a lot of this is down to people misinterpreting what they have been saying.

My Source

http://www.gameplayer.com.au/gp_documents/080725-FFXIII.aspx?catid=Features&Page=1

Key points

The following points were extracted from the often hesitant and uncomfortable duo:

* The decision to bring Final Fantasy XIII to Xbox 360 was only made recently.
* Work on the Xbox 360 version of the game would not begin until the PS3 version of the game was completed.
* That both versions of the game would require a period of localisation.

It was later revealed to us in an intimate hour long interview with the developer (that will appear in the next issue of Official PlayStation Magazine Australia on sale August 13th) that the game would not be ported to “other formats” until the localisation of the PS3 version was completed.

Now as to Microsoft’s claims that the game will release simultaneously alongside the PS3 version in English territories, well, unless they know that the English PS3 version will be held up until the Xbox 360 version is ready – which would suck balls – then that contradicts what Square Enix told us directly. And I’m betting they know better.

TheStig1 · 11 Aug 2008 at 12:47

and where does that say the ps3 version will be released in europe?
all it says is the 360 version will start after the ps3 version nothing about when released which has always been said
why would ms pay to get this game then let it be a ps3 exclusive for a year anyway

wannabedamned · 11 Aug 2008 at 12:53

the game would not be ported to “other formats” until the localisation of the PS3 version was completed.

which is what my conversation with Psyk is about.

Although I do get what you mean, Released. Hense you think they'll sit on the completed version till the 360 version is also ready?

TheStig1 · 11 Aug 2008 at 12:55

not released completed is what they always said
ps3 version localised then ported to 360 to save localising it twice and then released

wannabedamned · 11 Aug 2008 at 12:56

TheStig1 said:
not released completed is what they always said
ps3 version localised then ported to 360 to save localising it twice and then released

Yeah, I edited above after taking in what you actually said

Streeteh · 11 Aug 2008 at 12:58

I imagine microsoft know that winning over this particular exclusive will be fairly fruitless unless they pay squaresoft to hold back the release of the US/EU PS3 version. Final Fantasy has a huge level of hardcore fans many of which i could easily picture buying a PS3 if it meant getting the game a year, or even a few months earlier.

The PS3s game lineup is no longer looking so weak when compared to the 360 so a lot of people i know are already considering getting a PS3 anyway, being able to get FFXIII a bit earlier would probably be just the reason they need to push them into purchasing.

It's all speculation until the release dates are confirmed anyway.

TheStig1 · 11 Aug 2008 at 13:02

wannabedamned said:
which is what my conversation with Psyk is about.

Although I do get what you mean, Released. Hense you think they'll sit on the completed version till the 360 version is also ready?

yes because MS has paid for them to do just that
do you think they paid just for fun? they wanted to hurt Sony and the game being released in europe and US on PS3 one year before 360 is not going to do that
they wont localise it twice so it makes no sense to port to 360 until the PS3 version is done
and we are told its very easy to port from ps3 to 360 so makes even more sense

wannabedamned · 11 Aug 2008 at 13:05

To be honest, I didn't realise any money had changed hands. I thought it just made business sense for Square to release it on 360, Considering it dominates the western world.

Psyk · 11 Aug 2008 at 13:35

TheStig1 said:
not released completed is what they always said
ps3 version localised then ported to 360 to save localising it twice and then released

They wouldn't have to localise it twice. Most of the localisation process will apply to both versions. It's mostly translating the dialogue, casting voice actors and recording the voices. They would only have to do that once for both versions. There's no reason they couldn't be doing the localisation at the same time as the port.

It is a bit odd that Versus is still PS3 exclusive. They are using the same base tech (Crystal Tools) so presumably a lot of the work would already be done from the port of FFXIII. Although Crystal Tools were supposedly multiplatform anyway. I suspect they are more platform agnostic than multiplatform, but it's all just speculation because I don't suppose anyone outside of Square-Enix even knows what the Crystal Tools actually do.

Streeteh · 11 Aug 2008 at 13:39

Psyk said:
They wouldn't have to localise it twice.

Think you misread him mate:

TheStig1 said:
then ported to 360 to save localising it twice and then released

This is why the PS3 version will have to be delayed if they want to release both at the same time. The porting to 360 will not occur until the ps3 version has been localized, which means the EU/US PS3 version NEEDS to be finished before 360 development can start (or else they'll have to localize two identical games at the same time as well as porting it). It will be interesting to see if they do in fact delay the PS3 release, even though we know it'll be finished.

Psyk · 11 Aug 2008 at 13:43

wannabedamned said:
To be honest, I didn't realise any money had changed hands. I thought it just made business sense for Square to release it on 360, Considering it dominates the western world.

That's what I think too. People are just speculating that MS have paid them. I think the only situations where MS will pay for exclusive is where they agree to fund the development of a game on the condition that it is Xbox exclusive. SE is a massive company so they definitely don't need anyone's help to cover the costs of development.

Basically I don't think it would have made financial sense for Microsoft to offer up the amount of money that would convince a big company like SE to port FFXIII. It seems more likely to me that they made the decision based on the amount of money they'd make selling the Xbox 360 version.

Psyk · 11 Aug 2008 at 13:49

Streeteh said:
Think you misread him mate:

This is why the PS3 version will have to be delayed if they want to release both at the same time. The porting to 360 will not occur until the ps3 version has been localized, which means the EU/US PS3 version NEEDS to be finished before 360 development can start (or else they'll have to localize two identical games at the same time as well as porting it). It will be interesting to see if they do in fact delay the PS3 release, even though we know it'll be finished.

I didn't misread him, my point was they would not have to localise it twice anyway. Most of the localisation process is completely separate from technical details. All of the work on the localisation for the completed Japanese PS3 version would also be used on the Xbox 360 port still in development. The extra work needed to localise another version of the game is almost negligible, as it basically amounts to replacing text and audio data. Only very tiny amounts of programming, if any at all, would need to be done.

Really the question is, which will take longer, the porting or the localisation? If they take about the same amount of time, or the localisation takes longer then the PS3 version would not have to be delayed at all. If the port takes longer then maybe it would be if the two versions are to be released at the same time.