Plot

Samimista

For those who don't know, Kingsglaive was originally supposed to be Final Fantasy Versus XIII/XV's in-game prologue until the game's longtime creator and director, Tetsuya Nomura, was replaced with Hajime Tabata back in 2013.

That said, Kingsglaive was revised into a standalone film that transpires during the events of Final Fantasy XV's Chapter 0 and 1. It focuses on Regis Lucis Caelum CXIII (Sean Bean), the king of Lucis and the father of Noctis (Ray Chase).

Along with Final Fantasy XV, the central theme of Kingsglaive is the bond between father and son; and the great lengths a king will go to protect his heir. As the film's tagline is: "Everything for the future king."

The film opens up with Regis and Noctis visiting the Nox Fleuret family in Tenebrae. During their stay, Niflheim launches an attack on the kingdom in hopes to kill the Lucian royal family.

The Final Fantasy XV universe is set on Eos, a world similar to modern-day Earth, and is divided into multiple nations that once possessed magical crystals. Lucis, however, is the last remaining kingdom to have control over their crystal, which the Caelum dynasty uses to defend themselves from invaders by creating a magical barrier maintained by the king. This is explained in the first twelve minutes of the film with heavy narration from Lunafreya Nox Fleuret (Lena Headey).

The film then fast forwards to twelve years later, where King Regis commands his elite force of soldiers, the Kingsglaive, to protect Lucis from the Niflheim empire's plan to steal the kingdom's sacred crystal.

On paper, the plot may sound straightforward, however, I personally feel like it's too ambitious for its own good; too busy selling newcomers and fans alike with convoluted lore and world building to actually tell its own story. For a full length film, I feel like an hour and fifty minutes wasn't enough time to flesh out important characterization and subplots.

Kingsglaive, for instance, is compromised of immigrants from regions outside of Insomnia, who carry out their missions with pride. Even though, the elite force serves for King Regis, native Lucians are racist towards them. Throughout the film, there is an attempt to convey immigration conscription, but it falls flat. A decent amount of the film's runtime focuses on action setpieces that were fast-paced with disjointed editing.

I've been following Versus XIII/XV for well over a decade, so I was able to (mostly) understand what was going on. However, I've also read dozens of articles and watched hundreds of analysis videos throughout the years. For anyone else, Kingsglaive might appear to be a beautiful, confusing mess. And honestly, as much as I enjoyed this film, I get a headache from thinking about specific plotholes, the lack of characterization, and the poor editing.

Inquisitor_Lavellan

Given my partner already recapped the plot for those who already aren't familiar, I suppose there is very little to be added. Granted, I played Final Fantasy games in the past and as each entry has to start giving an explanation about their worlds somewhere. However, from an outsider perspective, it can be rather confusing to flesh out the factions and stuff like that and its very difficult to do it in like, five minutes of an opening. Its a very difficult position I suppose, since I happen to write fiction too, and exposition is something hard to pull without boring or confusing your audience.

I think the plot is fine for FF players that want some context before walking into the game they want to play, but like if some people who never played FF before in their lives or wants to watch this movie to be convinced - a really strange choice rather than just picking up a game and playing - probably should stay clear from it, since the ending is kind of crappy.

Characters

Samimista

The main protagonist is Nyx Ulric (Aaron Paul), an immigrant saved by King Regis as a teenager. Because of this, Nyx feels forever indebted to the royal family, and therefore is loyal to them. Personally, I liked Nyx but I found it annoying how the other Glaives like Libertus Ostium (Liam Mulvey) and Crowe Altius (Alexa Khan) would mock him for playing 'war hero' all the time. Yes, we get it; Nyx is the hero, but there's no need to constantly remind viewers this. Even though, Nyx is the Zack Fair of the film, I consider the character to be a fill-in for Noctis since well, Noctis was originally present during the Niflheim invasion back when it was actually in-game.

As for Libertus, I feel like the character was redeemed at the end, but I still didn't like his attitude throughout the film. Without going into spoilers, all of the Glaives, excluding Nyx and Crowe, aren't very likable. The reason why ties into what I said earlier about immigration conscription, but it's really hard to care about the minor characters.

Crowe I feel was wasted potential. Her design is easily the best in the XV universe (aside from Gentiana's) yet she had very little screentime. Judging from the film's trailers prior to release, I thought there was going to be a motorcycle chase, but there wasn't any. I personally feel like Crowe and Libertus' roles should have been reversed. It would have been more appropriate since Crowe is a take-charge kind of character with her personality.

I have a mixed opinion on Lunafreya. On one hand, I've grown to like her character due to her character design in Kingsglaive, as it looks a lot like Yoshitaka Amano's artwork of Terra Branford. Up until a month or two ago (because changes are always made with XV, I guess), Luna's in-game design was jarring. She looked like a fourteen year old Namine (Kingdom Hearts character for those who don't know) with plastic surgery gone wrong. I'm usually not one to complain about character designs, but I'm very relieved that Luna was tweaked to look more like her Kingsglaive counterpart.

But on the other hand, it's laughable how Square Enix said that Luna would shine in the film. I have no doubt that the character will be portrayed better in the actual game (I mean, we've seen her go against Leviathan, a giant sea serpent, in trailers), but I feel like it's embarrassing with her treatment in Kingsglaive. She constantly needs rescuing and causes nothing but even more trouble for the Glaives.

I understand that Luna is all about the inner strength and courage, but there's a scene where Nyx and Luna are on a highway chase, and Luna insists on driving, but Nyx doesn't allow her to do so. It just feels like no one lets her help with what's going on. The only time Luna really does 'shine' is when she manages to take things into her own hands by outwitting someone; but still, I feel like the female representation in this film is a joke.

Also, I'm really bothered how Luna's role in the XV universe isn't explained in the film. She's the youngest Oracle in history and is able to speak with gods. In the film, it's only mentioned that Luna is a Princess . . . Why wasn't this explained to the newcomers and casual fans?

That brings me to my next complaint. In the XV universe, Luna has an attendant named Gentiana. This character is nowhere to be seen or even mentioned in the film. I can understand not including her in for budget reasons (or whatever it may be), but are you telling me that the Princess/Pope somehow managed to leave her country unsupervised? And how did Luna even managed to travel all the way to Lucis without anyone noticing her?

So far, we really don't know much about Luna outside of her story role. We don't know what her hobbies are, who her friends are, and etc. She lives and breathes Noctis, and her duty about fulfilling destiny or whatever. I just think it's a shame that the film didn't give any hints on what her hobbies are, or anything like that. I mean, we already know a lot about Noctis and his bros, so what about Luna?

I'd like to think that we'll learn more about her character in-game, but well . . . I've always had a bad feeling about the character's fate -- even back when Luna was first introduced as Stella in 2008 . . . Take that as you will.

Regis hardly has any screentime. I personally feel that the film should've focused more on him and the actual peace treaty instead of Nyx and the Glaives; since y'know, the purpose is to show the bond between father and son. I do think Sean Bean was perfect casting for Regis, but, well, the casting gives away a major spoiler . . .

Then, we have Chancellor Ardyn Izunia (Darin De Paul) who serves for the Niflheim Empire. I honestly don't have much of an opinion on the character except that I'm hoping he won't be the main antagonist of the game. The reason why? I find it hard to take his character serious. Sure, his design is one of the best, but his character reminds me of Reno (Final Fantasy VII) and Axel (Kingdom Hearts). As in I can only see Ardyn as the anti-hero who eventually decides to help out Noctis and co.

Now, who I want to be the true villain of Final Fantasy XV?

Ravus Nox Fleuret (Trevor Devall) also known as the 'Hooded Man' from the Versus XIII era (and was in the 2013 XV trailer, for those who are wondering). I feel like my opinion is unpopular, but I actually like how Ravus was portrayed in Kingsglaive. He's whiny and cocky sure, but I feel like this leaves room for character development in the actual game. Him and Luna personally remind me of Milliardo and Relena Peacecraft from Mobile Suit Gundam Wing.

Inquisitor_Lavellan

The cast of characters was fine I suppose. Its a shame what happened to Nyx at the end though, as well as other characters that had so many potential in the game but ended up wasted.

One thing that stood out to me was the fact even though Luna wasn't necessarily the focus of the story - Nyx was - is whether or not its an omen that she won't be featured that much in the game itself.

Is it any surprise that as soon as Sean Bean was announced as Regis he ended up biting the dust at the hands of Glauca? I mean, I was expecting him to die anyways, but I hope that would have been in the game itself. Oh well..

Visual Effects

Samimista

I absolutely love the photorealistic style, and I hope it'll be used for Final Fantasy XVI. I'm one who usually prefers Eastern designs, but I feel like Square Enix nailed the realistic western faces in Kingsglaive. The in-game designs pale in comparison to the film designs, in my opinion. Especially with Lunafreya where the difference is like day and night.

Also, I love how the party scene between Noctis and Stella from Versus XIII was recreated between Nyx and Luna.

I was letdown by how the scene was executed, but sooo much nostalgia.

Dat Somnus track. Dat Yoshitaka Amano artwork. Dat Lucis aquarium.

There were a few other Versus XIII nods as well. Aside from the party scene, I really liked this one:

While I don't have any complaints about the actual visual effects, I am bothered by the editing.

The action setpieces are too fast paced and rely on too much close-ups to actually figure out what's going on. I could honestly barely see the action setpieces during the Niflheim invasion because there was hardly any lighting. The fade to black transitions throughout the film were egregious and amateur as it happened for nearly every scene.

Aside from that, there's visual homages and nods to Final Fantasy VII in the film, but it just screamed out advertisement for the upcoming remake. There wasn't any actual reason for any of them to appear in the film.

Inquisitor_Lavellan

While the story may be kind of lacking, there is no denying that the visuals are phenomenal. It looks really good up close and only the animation gives it away that it isn't live-action.

Soundtrack

Samimista

So, it should be noted that Final Fantasy XV's composer, Yoko Shimomura, only did the main theme for the film. Everything else was done by John Graham. I'll be honest to say, I really didn't pay attention to the soundtrack.

The only track that really stood out to me was Lunafreya's theme.

Even before the film released, I looped and set a specific scene in a trailer on repeat where Luna and Regis have been reunited after twelve years, and the song plays for a minute in the background. I'd even go far enough to say that it's the best Final Fantasy character theme in several years.

Inquisitor_Lavellan

The voice acting is superb. Lena Headay is easily recognizable, but manages to sound so much different than characters she usually plays. She should do voice acting more often in my opinion.

The music was decent enough, it was a standard fare of Hollywood action sequences that had some decent tracks. My favorite one was this:

Since I personally prefer movie soundtracks that feature ominous chanting ala One Winged Angel. Preferably in Latin and Greek.

Final Rating

Samimista

7/10 - I enjoyed Kingsglaive for what it was; however, I feel like it could've been handled differently. It's the best Final Fantasy film yet (which really isn't saying much), but I can understand why Kingsglaive has been receiving mixed opinions.

In fact, I'm not sure if it was smart to release this in theaters. The film is clearly catered towards the fans, and I can imagine anyone else being dragged to see this would be left confused, thinking that Kingsglaive was a waste of time to watch.

Personally, I feel like the anime Brotherhood (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fsVhwsUFaDE) is a better representation of the XV universe and unlike Kingsglaive, Brotherhood is coherent and actually fleshes out the characters.

So, yeah, if you decide to watch Kingsglaive, just think of it as eye porn; and you get to hear the voices of Sean Bean, Lena Headey, and Aaron Paul, who will not be reprising their roles in the actual game.

Considering Final Fantasy XV got delayed to November 29th, don't expect to read my review until mid December at earliest. I might not even start writing it until after the New Year since I would like to take my time playing due to the decade long wait, and all.

I thank you all for reading our review, and I'd like to thank Inquisitor_Lavellan for always being a pleasure to collaborate with.

Now, let's all take a moment to appreciate Nyx's fine booty.

Inquisitor_Lavellan

6/10 - Pretty decent movie for an average viewer and a must see for anyone excited for FF XV.

While my friend Sam is pretty hyped for the movie, despite the many, many, many delays it isn't so much the same with me. Despite not liking it very much, I do acknowledge its a good movie for what it is and its not a crowd pleaser.

Summary

Episode Duscae is straightforward. Early on with the road trip, Prompto wrecks the Regalia, the four-seat convertible that's presumably owned by the Caelum family. The Regalia is at Hammer Head getting repaired by its head mechanic named Cindy. Unfortunately, the repairs cost 25,000 gil...Money which Noctis does not currently have.

Coincidentally, the Duscae region has a bounty on Deadeye, a half-blind Behemoth who's been causing havoc, and the locals have put a price of 25,000 gil on the beast's head.

So what's the purpose in defeating Deadeye?

Characters

Honestly, I haven't laughed so much while playing a demo before. It felt like I actually was venturing alongside Noctis and his entourage. Not only were the strong relationships evident in writing, but with its subtlety in facial expressions.

One of my favorite scenes in Episode Duscae would be with Cindy. Once she repairs the Regalia, Noctis and his entourage hop in, ready to leave. While sitting in the backseat, Gladiolus mentions to Cindy how the next time he returns to Hammer Head, it won't be about repairs. Cindy, oblivious to what Gladiolus is implying, says that she'd have no problem upgrading the vehicle instead.In the background, Prompto is laughing after Gladio basically gets shot down.

Then, Prompto asks Cindy if it would be alright to call her anytime. She exclaims that her grandfather would love having someone to speak with. Afterwards, Noctis laughs and Prompto slouches over in rejection.

Besides that scene, there's amusing banter between the main characters.

Prompto: Wide open fields make me wanna run around.

Gladio: How about a foot race?

Noctis: How about acting your age?

Gladio: Afraid you're gonna lose?

Prompto: So, what would you want to be reborn as?

Gladiolus: Easy, I'd want to be me.

Prompto: Wow, what a cool answer!

Gladiolus: Heh, yeah, I know.

How I feel about the main characters so far...

Noctis: I just love how lazy Noctis is. It seems all he looks forward to is sleeping. Even the other characters joke about it. I kinda wonder why he's always so tired...Could it relate to his powers that allow Noctis to foresee death?

Prompto: Besides Noctis, Prompto has always been my favorite because he's a happy-go-lucky skirt chaser with a chip on his shoulder. It's unclear about his past except that he's a fugitive on the run and wields a firearm that's banned from the Lucis kingdom.

Prompto and Noctis met sometime in their school days. I hope to see a flashback about their meeting since I'd like to know how old they were.

Ignis: So, up until recently, I loathed Ignis since he was first unveiled during the Versus days. First off, his full name is Ignis Stupeo Scientia which sounds like the Ignorant Stupid Scientist. I don't know about you, but I don't know any scientists who are stupid. That sounds like an oxymoron.

I also find it odd how Noctis, Gladio and Prompto all get along great, and then you have Ignis who is rather distant. It's known that Ignis' Japanese voice actor is Mamoru Miyano who's known for voice acting villains and anti-heroes in anime. During a Versus XIII trailer in 2011, we're shown a scene where Noctis speaks to Ignis about revenge and Ignis is clearly biting his tongue.

Do you see where I'm coming from? Why I have loathed this character so much? It doesn't help either that Ignis wears glasses and speaks in a British accent. I still personally say that he will betray Noctis given an artwork contained in Duscae's ending, but I will speak about that in awhile.

Reading this you may wonder, "Why do you suddenly like Ignis? It's rather odd you now like him considering you believe that he will betray his childhood friend."

Well, I like Ignis because it's evident that he's overlooked and unappreciated by his friends. Ignis acts as a chauffeur and a cook, but does anyone ever thank him? No, not in the demo at the very least. I sense that tension is build up inside Ignis, yet he tries to act cool, emulating everyone else's mannerism. It's something I'd expect a strategist to do.

Not to mention, I find Ignis to be extremely attractive. Tall, dark haired and smart? Yes, please! I'd gladly offer Ignis some nice company. Even walking clichés need to be loved.

Gladiolus: Gladio has always been my least favorite character out of the entourage since the Versus days. For no particular reason, but so far, I just find him kinda boring. I mean, at the very least, he does seem somewhat egotistical and grumpy, but it's nothing to do with why I don't like him...Can't actually pinpoint on why I don't like him, honestly.

Voice Acting

This would probably be my biggest grip with Final Fantasy XV so far. Particularly with its English voiceover and Square Enix's localization approach.

For eight years, we've heard Noctis speak in Japanese. His voice sounds eloquent yet precise. How I'd imagine a young prince should speak. When we were introduced to Noctis' English counterpart during Jump Fiesta back in late December, I couldn't get into his voice. Noctis sounded like a Batman wannabe. Now, I like Batman just as much as everybody else, but really? Like we don't have enough deep, gravelly voices in video games? Not to mention how Noctis sounds similar to Gladiolus.

Anyways, after playing Episode Duscae, I now find Noctis to sound rather sexy...His voice makes me feel all warm and tingly inside. I'm not sure why, but Noctis sounds coherent and less Batman-like when bantering with his buddies. I'm not sure who his English voice actor is, but I think I have an idea on why Noctis has a deep voice. It could reflect his brash and cocky attitude...Something that I feel will backfire on him.

Then, we have Ignis who speaks in a fake English accent. Not even the Queen's stereotypical accent sounds anything like Ignis. Up until recently, I hated Ignis. For many reasons, but I will just say that his English accent just proves one of the many reasons why I disliked Ignis for years. He's a walking cliché. Granted, JRPGs are loaded with clichés, but Ignis definitely stands out compared to the other main characters.

Not to mention how the localization team has changed his dialogue. I only understand tibits of Japanese, but there is a big difference between "Are you okay, Noct?" in Japanese and "Careful, Highness!" in English. The Japanese dialogue seems more appropriate given how Ignis is Noctis' closest childhood friend. The English dialogue, on the other hand, portrays Ignis rather distant. Perhaps intentional since you should keep your friends close, but your enemies closer.

The voice I like in both Japanese and English is coincidentally the one that everybody else finds annoying; Prompto. I personally don't find him annoying, but rather energetic and lively. His voice suits his personality and appearance. I actually wanna cuddle with Prompto given how adorable he is...And maybe even kiss him.

Gameplay

When Final Fantasy Versus XIII was renamed Final Fantasy XV, it was announced that it would be the first action role-playing-game in the series' numbered titles, leaving veteran fans enraged and perplexed about the game's direction. It didn't help either how Hajime Tabata (Final Fantasy XV's director) wanted to make the game more casual for newcomers and wanted to eliminate complex combos.

With Final Fantasy XV, I do want to make it more casual. Of course the depth of the game is going to be there, but I want to make it so players can easily experience the satisfaction of the depth of the game.

I myself am not getting any younger. I don’t want to be frantically pushing buttons. I also want to utilize the intelligence of the hardware spec, and not have to go through too much hassle or trouble in order to execute moves.

This led to numerous fans believing that Final Fantasy XV's gameplay would be press A for awesome. I can, however, confirm that this is not the case. From what I have played, XV is a reminisce of Kingdom Hearts and Dark Souls.

Like, Kingdom Hearts, Episode Duscae is about strategy. You need to think about what kind of weapon would be suited to take down an enemy and where exactly would you attack this said enemy since it might have a weak spot. When you defeat an enemy, you gain experience points and possibly a bonus depending on how long it takes for you to defeat a certain enemy.

However, you do not level up automatically. This is where Final Fantasy XV is similar to Dark Souls. The only way you level up is by sleeping. In Episode Duscae's case, you can either sleep in a campsite or in a caravan. The latter requires you to pay 200 gil, but in exchange a 1.5x multiplier is added to your gained experience points.

Personally, I like how the leveling system works. Especially since sleep is a heavy motif in Final Fantasy XV. Not only that, but it correlates with reality. In order to function, you need sleep. Now, I haven't tried it yet, but according to Hajime Tabata sleep deprivation can affect Noctis and his entourage's health.

The way it works is, if you don't sleep for long periods, you don't get a negative status – rather it's the opposite. "Buffs" are statuses with positive effects, and you stop getting those. Basically, things like increased spirits or feeling good or other added bonuses stop getting applied if you don't sleep for long periods of time. Camping is one of the base features of XV. It's a world where time passes from morning to night, so in order to have Noctis and the others who inhabit it be more than just puppets, but living characters players can feel empathy towards, if you have them remain awake all the time, I thought it would be more effective if that was a bad thing.

Final Fantasy XV may be similar to Kingdom Hearts and Dark Souls, but it stands out on its own. When your health hits zero, you do not automatically die. Instead, you can no longer attack because you are exhausted and wounded. To emphasis on your critical state, the life bar becomes red and if you continue taking damage until you’re at zero again, it's over. However, in that time, your buddies can revive your health which allows you to fight once more.

The closest thing I could find to demonstrate the critical state.

While, spells are not available in Episode Duscae, MP is still very important. When you're in a battle or about to enter one, Noctis can warp to a higher ground and even hang from a metal tower. It's very useful to warp since it saves time from walking, but it's rather disappointing how you cannot warp outside of conflict. I hope this will be fixed in Final Fantasy XV because I would love to warp my way across a region.

Besides warping, Noctis can dodge. Something I'd suggest players to do when battling the gigantic Behemoth. But, just like warping, dodging requires MP. You can, however, jump without losing any MP. Though, it's nothing really special, in my opinion. You can jump on rocks and over parking poles, but you cannot jump on vehicles...I was hoping you could specifically jump into the bed of a truck just so I could hitch a ride.

Also, I do hope that the jump ability can be upgraded in the final product. Specifically to a high jump and maybe add aerial combos.

Though, I was quite pleased about an ability which was in Versus XIII. The ability is called Armiger. In order to use the said ability, you need to collect three Armiger Weapons that are scattered throughout the Duscae region. There's actually one more Armiger Weapon (making it four in total), but Noctis already has it (the Aqesior) equipped in the beginning of the demo.

To trigger Armiger with the PS4 controller, press L1 and R1. It should summon four swords that encircle Noctis to greatly enhance his battle capabilities...Does this ability sound awfully familiar to you?

Compared to...

Now besides Noctis, his buddies can execute special techniques. Prompto has Stasis Bullet where his bullet can freeze an enemy. Ignis has access to the Cure spell which he can use as many times to heal you and allies when damaged. Gladiolus has Brave Slash which greatly damages an enemy.

Graphics

Compared to the October's Active Time Report, Episode Duscae was definitely downgraded. Especially with the vegetation.

Gallery

It should be noted that Final Fantasy XV: Episode Duscae is ran on Luminous Engine 1.5. Hajime Tabata already confirmed that the final product will be running on Luminous Engine 2.0, so the graphics will obviously improve.

So my question is, did the October walkthrough feature a different built? Aliasing is certainly an issue, in my opinion.

Also, I would like to point out another problem. It was confirmed that Episode Duscae is 30 FPS (Frames Per Second), yet the framrate tends to drop when you least expect it? I'll admit, I'm one of the people who can't tell the difference between 30 and 60 FPS, but I could certainly see the framerate drop with this demo. It's hard not to notice.

Camera

Naturally, when I first gained control of Noctis, I tried to zoom in on his booty...Unfortunately, you cannot do so. As a firm believer and follower of the Bootyism religion, I am very disappointed in this. If you are gonna have hot men as the only main party members in your game, then please, let us ladies appreciate the sight, let us savor the glorious booty. I'm even willing to pay for a DLC where Noctis and his buddies wear nothing but speedos. So, Hajime Tabata, if you are reading this, then please stop being such a tease. Thank you.

But, besides that complaint which breaks my heart, I do highly suggest that the camera should be fixed. The camera is too close behind Noctis, making it impossible to see enemies that are approaching you and enemies that you're already attacking. Turning the camera's sensitivity to five helps a bit, but it's still severely limited.

Soundtrack

With the main menu featuring the night sky along with the moon, and an instrumental version of Somnus Nemoris being played in the background, it truly felt like I was reliving the Versus XIII days.

Besides indulging in nostalgia, I also enjoyed Yoko Shimomura's Chocobo Theme.

Given how Wiz's Chocobo Post is set in the country, Yoko did a great job with the harmonica and the acoustic guitar. It suits the idyllic nature that Noctis is overcome with.

Unfortunately, there aren't many new songs in the demo, but I do have one complaint. There's no music when you venture across the Duscae region. I hope that the finalized game will have music for each area. Just like Xenoblade did. Without music, walking seems awfully boring. Especially since you're walking for kilometers in complete silence.

Summon

Ending

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=olQJhSE2lr4

Episode Duscae's ending is depicts religious artwork. Many people were rather disappointed that the ending didn't reveal any computer-generated imagery, but Duscae's minute long ending revealed a lot, in my opinion.

I would like to share everyone a screenshot along with captions that someone included.

It illustrates summons that we will most likely stumble across in the final product. There is something that I would like to point out. Siren is usually perceived as a singing fairy in numerous Final Fantasy titles, but in Greek mythology, Siren is a mermaid who lures nearby sailors with her enchanting voice. Personally, I don't think this is farfetched. If anything, I would love to see this rendition of Siren. I could never understand why she was portrayed as a fairy for so long.

In the artwork, we see Etro blessing four men. Let's assume that these men are Noctis and his entourage. Noctis in the middle as a Jesus-like figure with Prompto and Gladiolus as his loyal disciples. Then, we see Ignis who's clearly in pain. Perhaps a Judas-like figure?

Anyways, I'm still confused about Final Fantasy XV's timeline, but it seems that Idola decimated Insomia during the peace treaty signing. With the Shakespeare influence, many fans, including myself, have speculated for years that Regis would die early on in the story...That seems very likely, unless if the radio was propaganda.

Personally, I believe Regis' death was foreshadowed since 2011's Versus XIII trailer.

Particularly with these two quotes

An act of love by the last king.

You're not fit to be king.

With the last quote, it was confirmed that Regis was not referring to Noctis. So who else could Regis be referring to? Well, in 2013's E3 trailer of Final Fantasy XV, we see a man who shares a striking similarity to Regis.

And this lookalike even received his own screenshot in the trailer.

Final Fantasy XV's Claudius?

Somewhat unrelated to the demo's ending, but since we're discussing Shakespeare, let's say Noctis and Stella/Luna are Hamlet and Ophelia. Granted, Romeo and Juliet is a more suitable comparison, but go along with it. We know Ophelia has a brother named Laertes.

Since 2008, we've seen Noctis' main rival (besides Stella/Luna, of course) to be a white-robed man. In 2013, we can clearly see that this white-robed man has blonde hair...Stella/Luna's brother, perhaps?

Which brings me to my next case. We have confirmation that Luna's full name is Lunafreya Nox Fleuret. With this, I almost accepted Lunafreya was Stella renamed, but I noticed something that would contradict previous information.

Last month, we were shown city concept art, one which depicts Noctis in his tuxedo from the Versus XIII days.

During Versus XIII, Roen originally designed Stella a black cocktail dress for the peace treaty where she meets Noctis for the first time. The production team, however, changed Stella's dress to be completely white. For a valid reason, in my opinion.

Hiromu Takahara originally wanted her dress to be black, but the production team changed the color to create a greater contrast with the black suit Noctis wears in the same scene.

In Duscae's artwork, Luna dons a blue sparkly dress. But, blue and black don't contrast each other. It's the opposite, actually. If Stella was renamed Luna, then wouldn't the white dress seem more appropriate? You know, given how the moon is white and shines in the night sky.

When Luna was first unveiled during 2014's Tokyo Game Show, a ring was clearly seen on her left hand. We've never seen Stella wore a ring before, but I would like to share an interesting tidbit from Nomura himself.

The only and most important adornment Noctis will use is a ring on his right hand and it’ll play a central role in the story of the game.

People thought the ring was scrapped because we've never actually seen it. In the demo's artwork, we can clearly see Luna carrying a ring.

This is probably what Luna wanted to give Noctis as inferred in the 2014's Tokyo Game Show trailer.

I believe Stella and Luna are sisters and that we will see both at the peace treaty. It seems Luna is clearly on Noctis' side and Stella is supposed to be his unfortunate enemy. Shortly after Luna gives Noctis the ring, she gets killed. Thus, Stella blames Noctis for her sister's death.

Also, there is something about the radio announcement that bothered me. Clearly, Noctis pronounced dead was a lie, but how come nobody at the Duscae region seemed to recognize the prince? I mean, the region is close to the Lucis Kingdom. Shouldn't someone have been able to recognize Noctis? It's not like he's incognito or anything.

Verdict

After nearly a decade, it's nice knowing that Final Fantasy XV is no longer vaporware. It's a game that actually exists. But, it's quite obvious that XV is not even close to completion with its development. Episode Duscae was released so Tabata could take fan input into consideration and implement changes into the final product.

I'm glad that Tabata cares about the Versus XIII fandom, but I do hope that he won't walk on pins and needles with the fans. It's one thing to change the camera and fix the framerate issues so fans can play Final Fantasy XV smoothly, but it's another thing when you rewrite the actual storyline just to please others, in my opinion.

Personally, I've had such a blast with Episode Duscae. It's only supposed to last fans three-four hours at most, yet I've already poured seventeen hours into the demo, and I'm still not even done. I intend to level up Noctis and his entourage to ninety-nine. Noctis is already at level fifty-two while his buddies are a level ahead, so it shouldn't take much longer.

I'm really excited to play Final Fantasy XV. Especially since I want to see if any scenes from Versus XIII are still intact. I've already decided that I'm gonna buy a PS4 collector's edition of Final Fantasy XV along with buying the inevitable PC version.

I already want to jump inside my television and join the boyband on a wild adventure. They seem like a really cool bunch, and I have a crush on almost everybody except Gladiolus...For a reason that's undetermined.

Overall, I'd rate Final Fantasy XV: Episode Duscae a 7/10. It's a fun demo, but it certainly has its flaws.

That said, expect my actual Final Fantasy XV review to come out at least one month/two months after the North America release. I intend on delving into a deeper analysis of the full game and thoroughly discuss specific spoilers.

Thanks for reading! Hopefully Final Fantasy XV will be released sometime in 2016.

And remember, when Lightning strikes, don't let it Noct you down.

For those who don't know, when Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain was announced, I did multiple blogs on here regarding speculation on how the game was unraveling to be. I'll be honest to say though, I was skeptical whether or not to review Ground Zeroes but, why not? Though, I will warn you, I will be discussing my thoughts regarding spoilers but, they will be marked in another section.

Summary

Ground Zeroes takes place shortly after the events of Peace Walker however, it also acts as a prologue to the upcoming Phantom Pain. In a similar manner to the Tanker Mission in Sons of Liberty. Paz is held for interrogation at Camp Omega that's on the southern tip of Cuba. So happens, Chico is captive nearby Paz's location since he went on a rescue mission in an attempt to save her. It's Big Boss' duty to solely infiltrate Camp Omega and reunite Paz and Chico together.

Characters

I'll be honest here, when Kiefer Sutherland was first announced as Big Boss, I was very disheartened. Especially since I thought for sure that the different voice actor would be a ruse. I still hope David Hayter will have a cameo in Phantom Pain but, you know what?

Now that I've played Ground Zeroes, I honestly Sutherland sounds very natural as Big Boss. He unfortunately doesn't have many lines but, I'm looking forward to hearing him more. There was already a Jack Bauer reference in Ground Zeroes as well!

Ever since Ground Zeroes was first announced, I've been very intrigued by Skull Face who many predicted to be Hot Coldman due to the similar outfit. However, (SPOILER ALERT) it seems unlikely since a cassette tape revealed that Skull Face is Hungarian. He seems to know Big Boss from the past so I believe he's a new character. Though, I wonder if Skull knew him during the Korean or Vietnam War? I mean, in the beginning of the main mission you can even hear two guards mention the Green Berets.

I'll be honest to say, while I'm intrigued by his enigma, I was extremely pissed off at Skull Face for something he did that will be elaborated in the Audio Tapes section of this review. Though, I will warn you that it will contain spoilers if you haven't beat or played Ground Zeroes yet.

Gameplay

Metal Gear has changed. It's not about cardboard boxes or rations anymore. It's about recharging health. Joke aside, I am sure we will see cardboard boxes in Phantom Pain as for rations, I don't think so since there's no need anymore? If you get shot, the screen will be splattered in blood. To be quite honest, I miss the life gauge.

I feel embarrassed to admit this as a Metal Gear fan but, I usually start off on Easy Mode for my first playthrough? Which sadly isn't in Ground Zeroes. You automatically start on Normal and can unlock Hard. Even on Normal, for my first few playthroughs, I struggled a lot.

The A.I. has a larger view cone and they even interact with one another. It's actually pretty cool since you can also eavesdrop on their conversations. But, it's annoying because there's so much soldiers. If you skip a cutscene, the soldiers won't be at the location that they originally were patrolling since it's real time.

There also is automatic save checkpoints? I'll be honest to say, I'm displease on how there's only a few. I prefer having the option to save manually. I've been trying to collect the XOF patches and keep getting eight out of nine? Well, the last two times, I've gotten the ninth and completed the main mission, it gets lost.

My favorite part of the gameplay however, would be driving! I absolutely am a terrible driver but, it's so much fun running over the enemies and getting into explosions! It sucks though because eventually, the guards catch up and will try to shoot your vehicle.

Graphics

I'm gonna be honest here and just flat out say it, so far I personally don't notice much of a difference between last and current gen's graphics. Maybe that's because this game was built for both generations but, I don't know. It looks somewhat better than Metal Gear Solid 4 but, the hair texture could of been improved.

I think it kinda looks weird when zoomed in? But, that six pack! He be working out.

It's also silly how Big Boss flails his arms when he jumps. I mean, is he a mime acting as a cheerleader or a bird? It just looks so weird seeing manly Big Boss flailing like a fangirl. Is he still excited on how he saw Kaz in a speedo during Peace Walker?

Soundtrack

Honestly, I barely could hear the background music. Maybe it's my television but, I thought it sound very muffled in the rain. I have played the side ops but, I really don't play attention to songs in Metal Gear unless if it's in an emotional cutscene.

I do however, like Alert Status Theme:

Sounds very Hans Zimmer-like? It reminds me of Introduce a Little Anarchy from The Dark Knight.

My favorite song from Ground Zeroes however would be the beautifully remastered, Heaven's Divide:

You have a Walkman in Ground Zeroes so you can change the music anytime. I think you gotta unlock some but, you start off with a few songs from Peace Walker.

Audio Tapes

If you haven't beat Ground Zeroes, I strongly advise you to disregard this section. It contains major spoilers. Like, Revolver Ocelot shaking his booty in front of Big Boss who gets a nose bleed from the glorious sight that would forever be implanted in his mind. I mean, who wouldn't pay to see that?

Speculation

Again, if you plan on or currently playing Ground Zeroes, I'd disregard this section...Unless if you maybe want to speculate on who has the finer booty: Solid Snake or Big Boss. Ah, who am I kidding! It's definitely Solid Snake. Especially in Sons of Liberty. My husbando!

Verdict

If you're new to the series and interested in Phantom Pain, you should pick this up just to get adjusted to the gameplay mechanics. If you are new to the series and want to delve into its history, I would not recommend starting out with Ground Zeroes. I'd implore you to start out with either the first or third installment in the Solid series.

That said, I'd rate this at a 7/10. While Ground Zeroes is the prologue to Phantom Pain, I find it very misleading and greedy of Konami to exclude a warning stating that it's not a full game. This is very confusing to the new fans and anybody who believes that Ground Zeroes is actually Metal Gear Solid V.

You can certainly get a lot out of Ground Zeroes but, it's basically an expensive demo. People have been complaining by the lack of gameplay regarding the main mission. I was very skeptical on this but, there's a lot of ways to play the main mission. Everybody's experience will be different.

Congratulations! You have managed to read this whole review....Unless if you cheated that is! Anyways, here is your reward:

Plot

Dragonborn_CT

The story is very well told, and grabs you right from the beginning. Elsa (Idina Menzel) and Anna (Kristen Bell) are the royal princesses of Arendelle, but on the day of Elsa's coronation as Queen, a dark secret is revealed to the world: that she can create snow and ice from thin air. As Elsa flees to the North Mountain to start a new life alone, she unknowingly unleashes a potentially harsh winter on the kingdom. Now Princess Anna, teaming up with mountain man Kristoff (Jonathan Groff), his trusty reindeer Sven, and living snowman Olaf (Josh Gad), must track the Snow Queen down if Arendelle is to be restored.

The plot's biggest strength is the chemistry between the two sisters and while. Sure Anna is pinning between two guys (the usual "Prince Charming" Hans and the ice-harvester Kristoff). The genius is that while the movie uses the same old message about true love that you seen a thousand times in everything else, it doesn't necessarily have to be of romantic nature. Its weak link is possibly Elsa's powers - there is precisely zero explanation given anywhere in the movie how she got these powers in the first place, she was simply born with them. Even if it's not a important plot point to the story, it feels strange given how ridiculously overpowered Elsa is (she can create life out of ice for crying out loud and if she can, by accident, set off an eternal winter to her own country, imagine what she can do to the country of her enemies).

Without wishing it to spoil it, there is a twist near the end of the movie which I gotta say caught me completely off-guard and upon closer inspection, it was subtly foreshadowed from the earlier in the movie (which is how a good twist should have being done) instead of being pulled out of nowhere (which is how bad twists are usually done).

Samimista

I cried so much from the beginning to end. Surprisingly, I enjoyed Frozen far much more than Tangled which I thought would be impossible. Ironically, the ending of Tangled mentioned Arendelle. In the movie, Rapunzel and Eugene are shown there for the honeymoon as an Easter egg.

Frozen is loosely based off of Hans Christian Andersen's The Snow Queen. There's even a prince named Hans in Frozen which could be a nod to the author. The central theme regarding the film is the power sisterly love which is quite surprising given Disney's cliché romance.

The kingdom of Arendelle is cursed into eternal winter by the Snow Queen, Elsa (Idina Menzel), who was born with cryokenesis. Unable to control her powers, Elsa decides to isolate herself from humanity to assure that nobody will get hurt. Her younger sister, Anna (Kristen Bell), sets out on a journey to break the curse alongside the mountaineer, Kristoff (Jonathan Groff), his reindeer Sven and the magical snowman, Olaf (Josh Gad).

Characters

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While I don't find Anna a bad protagonist by any stretch, I felt like the movie would have being better if Elsa was the protagonist instead who is a far more compelling and tragic character than Anna, at top of being very beautiful and possessing cool powers (pun intended). She serves as the antagonist - "villain" is too much of a strong word, as she is hardly any evil - and even then that is pushing it for most of the movie, but the movie focus largely on Anna is trying to help her sister rather than Elsa's inner turmoil. It really is an testament to Idina Menzel's portrayal of that role that even the writers changed their mind when they were originally planning on making Elsa a full-blown villain, but thanks to her actress, she is a much more sympathetic figure which is much better in this case.

Other than sisters, the other characters are great too. Kristoff, the ice harvester that accompanies Anna in her quest is a very likable character, despite coming off as anti-social aloner which in other circumstances, would have wasted the entire movie trying to teach him to connect with people, he helps Anna regardless and isn't afraid to speak his mind about Anna's mistakes in the movie. The little snow golem Olaf, who I was dreading to be the "annoying comic relief" from the trailers turns out to be alright. His comedic timing is very good, I did laugh at some of his jokes and he never comes off as obnoxious. Well, he got some laughter from the audience in my theater, so I suppose he fulfilled his purpose. The said can't unfortunately be said of the trolls that show up half-way through the movie, that while they don't necessarily drag the movie down, they do feel out of place, especially during their musical number. Personally I prefer silent sidekicks any time over the ones that actually talk.

Samimista

The main reason why I solely saw this movie was for Elsa who outshined Anna in my opinion. Both Elsa and Anna however, balance each other out. Elsa can be as fragile as a snowflake but, sharp as an icicle. I was a bit worried that Disney was going to make her one dimensional somehow though it seems they delivered. Anna is the youngest sister who's very naive. Though, she's the adventurous one. The two sisters balance each other out equally.

It seems many were hesitant on Olaf's character before Frozen's premiere. The character in my opinion provides comedy relief throughout this emotional journey. But even so, he doesn't speak that much. Besides Elsa, I really enjoyed Kristoff who provided logic and seemed to be the most realistic. Given that he's a hard worker from the middle class.

Visual Effects

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More often than not, ice and cold-based settings generated in computer animation are oft criticized as dull and lifeless in countless cartoons and video games. The artists should be commended in particular for making snow looking so damn realistic and life-like, instead of plastic. And those are just the environments bits, everything else looks breath-taking from Elsa's display of her ice powers and facial expressions from models.

Samimista

It seems that Disney keeps improving with the CGI. Everything looks very realistic. Especially the scenery. Elsa's castle is absolutely enchanting. The art style is very adorable as well with the eyes and bouncy hair. It reminisces Tangled very much.

Soundtrack

Dragonborn_CT

The music is hauntingly beautiful. Not just the songs sung by the characters, but the soundtrack behind it fits in, subtly heightening all of the drama and tension. Now the most powerful songs in the movie were Let It Go, the best one of piece as well as the scene of the movie (really that scene alone is worth the entire movie)and the reprise for First Time in Forever representing the hopelessness of Elsa's isolation not being enough to save Arendelle from her contrasting with Anna's hope that Elsa will be able to fix the problem and return to Arendelle really sells the scene.

All the songs from other characters don't come to the same level as Let It Go, and while they aren't bad themselves, some fall flat (the musical numbers from the comic relief characters in particular) just as "Love Is an Open Door" by Elsa and Prince Hans felt a tad forced. But, notoriously so, this is one the few Disney movies I've seen that I didn't miss a genuine villain song. You know the ones like "Be Prepared" or "Hellfire" where the villain establish his truly rotten nature - the film never needed one, which blows me away, since those are always my favorite type of songs in musicals. The voice acting is top notch as well, which should come to no surprise with Kristen Bell, I was really surprised how well she can sing so well.

Samimista

Let It Go would be the highlight of the film. Demi Lovato did a cover however, I think Idina Menzel's (Elsa) version was far more superior with emotion. For The First Time In Forever is a very energetic upbeat song that speaks about freedom from the castle along with the powerful sisterly bond.

Final Rating

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9/10 - While I would have preferred Elsa as the main heroine, whatever negative I may have it only comes off as a nitpick that doesn't detract at all from the amazing experience that was watching Frozen. I completely urge you to go watch this movie. It's really that good - a return to form for Disney, where everyone in the family will enjoy it . It has good humor, great characters, a very touching story, in the end, it's really about family than anything else... What the hell else you want?

Samimista

10/10 - Overall, this is an absolutely fantastic movie that I'd recommend to anyone of all ages. Frozen shows that Disney still has the magic touch. Never did I expect to enjoy this more than Tangled. It has the perfect balance between humor and emotion.

Last night, felt like an endless dream where I was reunited with my beloved true love. Seven years ago I laid eyes on her. Seven years ago at my first E3 to be exact. Final Fantasy Versus XIII appeared. The phoenix arose from the ashes to be reborn as Final Fantasy XV.

I was ten years old when Versus was first shown. Even then I was so excited and pleaded for my older brother to buy it for me. For awhile, I lost hope in Versus after the rumors it got cancelled but, since last year, there's been many hints my sweet love would find her way back to me. It seems not only did she, but, my childhood friend Kingdom Hearts III is now in development. Oh happy days indeed. It seems part of my April Fool's joke on here (http://www.comicvine.com/profile/samimista/blog/tetsuya-nomura-apologizes-on-kingdom-hearts-iii-an/90635/) came true.

For almost two hours I was trying so hard not to let out a squeal since everyone was asleep when I heard this news. Tears were rolling down, my throat was dry and I recall posting on here and hoping that I'd wake up tomorrow to this being reality. The one FF title I've been looking forward to in recent years, she's now finding our way home. In the hearts of those who truly love Final Fantasy.

In honor of my beloved title, I wrote a poem for Noctis,

Bleak as night

Bright as the heaven skies

Seven years for I have waited

For your cessation to end

As your manifestation began

Soar as the phoenix

For you arose from ashes

Day decays as night prevails

History rewrites itself

Our prince united with his kingdom

Ladies and gentlemen, the latest Phantom Pain trailer has finally been revealed at the opening of E3!

Ever since the HD Collection, Metal Gear has been on the Xbox so it's not exactly surprising that Phantom Pain will be on both next gen consoles but it's nice that almost everyone gets a chance to experience this journey! Let us ride away with Adamska! So, most of the trailer is very similar to Red Dead Redemption with the scenery along with the time and weather change. So glad Metal Gear continues to approve with these little features since it makes the series feel more realistic.

After the nine year coma Big Boss has become a fallen legend out for a race of revenge which happens to be the theme of Phantom Pain. Bear in mind the game will share many similarities to the novel Moby Dick that Hideo has been incorporating since he created the fake Swedish studio Moby Dick for the Spike VGAs last year. The trailer takes place in Afghanistan where Boss is set out to find Kaz who has been captured. I couldn't help but think of the original Metal Gear from 1987 with how Solid Snake rescued Grey Fox who was captured at the time. My heart was breaking when the slaves were shown in cages and how Big Boss was handing out diamonds. It's sad because slavery still exists in third world countries.

It seems Huey Emmerich is back as well along with Adamska. Personally, I love how Adamska (Revolver Ocelot/Liquid Ocelot/Shalashaska, for those who are wondering) looks up to Big Boss. Never liked Ocelot until Snake Eater when he was developed a lot more. There's new characters as well. Quiet is a sniper who's outfit is similar to Eva's yet reminisces of Sniper Wolf who's worth mentioning is the disciple of Big Boss. I'm unsure of my thoughts regarding Quiet since so far I'm getting a Eva/Sniper Wolf vibe. Eli is a young boy, Code Talker seems to be an elder and Skull Face seems to be the scarred man from the first Ground Zeroes with how he's with XOF? I was hoping to see more Ishmael in this trailer but, maybe we'll learn more of him soon. It would be interesting if the story's narrated in his POV given that Ishmael narrates Moby Dick.

Overall, I am so glad we got to see more footage. Truly, it's as if I keep falling deeper in love with the series with how it ages like fine wine over time. I got into the series back when Guns of Patriots was released due to my older brother and hope to go on this adventure with him. Seems like Sutherland will do a great job after all but still hope Hayter will have a cameo.

Right now though, I am very torn. As you all know, in February David Hayter asked a hypothetical poll on Twitter if the fans would be mad or not if his voice were to be replaced. In late March, it was confirmed he wouldn't be in Phantom Pain.Even so fans including myself refused to believe this and thought it was another marketing technique from Hideo who's known to be a notorious troll. The prediction was that Hayter would voice act Big Boss before the nine year coma and then Richard Doyle would takeover but, it seems that's wrong....

It's officially confirmed that Kiefer Sutherland will be voicing Big Boss and even performing motion captures to display more emotion. Phantom Pain's theme will be on revenge just like Moby Dick that's referenced throughout the trailers and even is a fake Swedish studios Hideo created for the VGAs.

I have nothing against the actor but, I don't like how Metal Gear is going Hollywood with celebrities. Before anyone says, yes I'm quite aware that a movie was announced in August of 2012 however, I think people are forgetting that Metal Gear has been in the movie studios quite a few times over the decade and hasn't happened so far. Matter of fact, in 2006 Hayter did write a screenplay for Metal Gear but it got denied. In my opinion besides Kojima he knows a lot about the series.

I don't think we'll see Solid Snake as he'd only be 11 - 12 in 1984 and it might be difficult for Hayter to pull off the pre-pubescent voice but, perhaps David (ironically Solid's real name as stated in MGS4 by Eva) will voice act Big Boss before the nine year coma which is Ground Zeroes that act as the prelude to Phantom Pain. It's basically what the Tanker Mission was to Metal Gear Solid 2.

Since the first Phantom Pain trailer, I've been very intrigued by Ishmael who Kiefer is also voice acting. I believe he's a figment of Big Boss's imagination. Bear in mind that Phantom Pain is a hallucination syndrome after the loss of an eye so it's possible.

No matter what, I'm always going to love and play Metal Gear as I love it for the story and characters but, it'll take time for this to sink in.

Thank you very much for reading this despite how short I feel this blog is (usually I'm very lengthy when it comes to Metal Gear) and when a new trailer is released you can bet I'll be blogging about it here. I really could of sworn we were supposed to see a trailer today unless if the pre-show is still going on or if that's saved for next week.

I usually don't post personal pictures on here but thought I'd share an amazing experience I had today with friends here. =D I went to a rescue animal farm and was able to play with a Siberian 8 weeks old tiger name Thunder. First time being up close to a tiger too. ^__^

The blonde haired girl wearing the green shirt was a volunteer or an employee if anyone's wondering. Definitely a place I'd like to go to again though. There was even the Fugitive Monkey/Mystery Monkey that was on the run in FL for four years who now resides where I was at.

I wasn't gonna make a blog of this but well, I'm just very happy that he actually answered. I'll let you see who it is for yourself.

That is right. I got a message from Solid Snake and Big Boss.

I've been a fan of Metal Gear Solid since 2008 and been an addict since. I don't usually post short blogs like this but well, right now I'm having a bit of a fangirling moment. =D

If you don't know, recently the President of Square Enix, Yoichi Wada stepped down due to how the company has been having financial problems for the past decade. Yosuke Matsuda is now the company's new head President and made Tetsuya Nomura release a public statement as Matsuda wants to reel in the veteran fans who've been growing tired of waiting for Kingdom Hearts III and Final Fantasy Versus XIII for many years.

The public is not aware of this but Geoff Keighley flew to Japan during the weekend to interview Tetsuya Nomura on this. It'll be on later tonight on Spike TV but if you don't believe me then I'd suggest checking this out; http://kotaku.com/5303473/tetsuya-nomura-apologizes-on-kingdom-hearts-iii-and-final-fantasy-versus-xiii Unfortunately, I am not able to post the actual screen shots as it would ruin the surprise that Matsuda has been saving to redeem Enix.

The reason why these two games have been on hold? It's been revealed that Gabe Newell is the second director behind Tetsuya Nomura. A lot of people have been teasing Mr. Newell as he has a phobia of the number '3'.

Little does everyone know, Gabe Newell cries himself at night about this. Secretly, Tetsuya Nomura has been taking Gabe Newell to a special rehabilitation center for those who've worked in the gaming industry. Matter of fact, rumors are Newell made friends with the man who created Superman 64 that's at this rehabilitation center.

What caused this phobia was years ago Nomura called up Newell on doing Kingdom Hearts III. It was actually supposed to come out in 2009 but has been on hold since Newell is feeling very overwhelmed that he'll let everyone down. He knows Kingdom Hearts III is highly demanded and belongs to a popular franchise but he's afraid he'll let everyone down. Tetsuya Nomura refuses to let Gabe quit so for a side project Nomura has Gabe creating Half-Life 2.5 mods for Versus XIII which has been on hold due to Kingdom Hearts III.

How do I know all of this? Ladies and gentlemen, haven't you ever wondered why I've been keeping up with Ground Zeroes and Phantom Pain? Don't you think it's odd how I post blogs of Metal Gear on a comic site? I'm not allowed to confess this but I cannot hold it anymore; I am Joakim Mogren.

That is right. I am not CG (Computer Graphics) and it hurts that people are speculating that I'm not human. Just because I have a deep love for cupcakes doesn't make me less human than you are. At E3, I shall announce to the world that I, Joakim Mogren, is Samimista of ComicVine with my buddies Tetsuya Nomura and Gabe Newell there to confirm Versus is now Final Fantasy XV and that Kingdom Hearts III will be out in 2014.