The long-awaited Final Fantasy XIII (PS3, 360) will hit Japan in 2009, developer Square Enix reaffirmed at a dedicated invite-only event this weekend.

Following contradictory reports from numerous sources, the studio confirmed to Shacknews that all news stemming from the recent event was for the Japan only, including word that Final Fantasy XIII would arrive in 2009.

Though Square announced an Xbox 360 port of the one-time PlayStation 3 exclusive RPG at this year's E3, the studio has not yet started work on or even received the development kits for the port. A playable PS3 demo, meanwhile, is due out in March.

"We're making the PS3 version first, and then porting to the 360 later," director Motomu Toriyama stated in a video, according to GameSpot. "I'm telling them to not think about the Xbox 360 right now...We can think about it after the development kits... Read more

A playable demo of Square Enix's long-awaited RPG Final Fantasy XIII will arrive with the Blu-ray edition of the Final Fantasy VII-inspired CGI flick Advent Children next March, the studio has announced.

While a North American release for the Blu-ray disc and the accompanying demo have yet to be confirmed, Japan and North America share the same region coding for Blu-ray discs, meaning the movie itself will be playable on North American PS3s.

Though developers are able to lock out game content on a by-region basis, examples of region-locked PlayStation 3 games are extremely rare, as the bulk of downloadable PS3 demos and games will run on any PS3 worldwide with no issue.

In addition to the playable FF13 demo, the Blu-ray release of Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children will pack new trailers of Final Fantasy Versus XIII, which the company affirmed as a PlayStation 3 exclusive, and the now PSP-bound mobile FF13 game, Agito.

Acclaimed Japanese developer Square Enix has revealed that its much-anticipated RPG Final Fantasy XIII (PS3, 360) is being built on PCs, though contrary to reports from other outlets, this news does not necessarily confirm that FF13 will be released on PC.

Much like Capcom's MT Framework technology, Square's PC-based Crystal Tools engine lets the company easily develop for multiple platforms using the same toolset.

"[Final Fantasy XIII] is being built on PC, where it's actually functional," producer Yoshinori Kitase said Square Enix's E3 press conference, according to Nvidia's Nzone. "We're still focusing on making it work on PS3, so it's difficult to know how long the process of taking it to 360 will take."

Though the console editions of FF13 can run on Square's PC development units, this does not confirm that the title will be released for PC, especially as a full-fledged PC version would require additional testing and texture work to ensure... Read more

Here's the trailer for Final Fantasy XIII which Square Enix showed off during the Microsoft E3 2008 press conference. We'll have a better quality recording later.

Square today announced that former PlayStation 3 exclusive Final Fantasy 13 will also arrive on Xbox 360 when the game debuts.

The title was revealed in a trailer of in-game footage during Microsoft's E3 press briefing, prefaced by a request that the footage was not to be recorded or captured in any form.

"Available on Xbox 360 at launch in North America and Europe," the company concluded. "We believe that bringing the game to Xbox 360 will allow us to provide a game to even more fans in North America and Europe."

Previously released screenshots of the PlayStation 3 edition

No clue was offered as to when the title will be released.

Publisher Square Enix has dismissed reports that its action-RPG offshoot Final Fantasy Versus XIII (PS3) is on hold, claiming that development of the game is still on track.

"Reports that development for Final Fantasy Versus XIII is on hold are false," the company said in a statement reported by Eurogamer. "The truth of the situation is that when free, some staff from the Versus team have been helping with the XIII team on development of Final Fantasy XIII."

The statement directly contradicts yesterday's report from Japanese gaming magazine Famitsu, in which Final Fantasy XIII (PS3) lead designer Tetsuya Nomura said that the team behind Versus XIII were pulled from the project to help complete FF13.

"Development for both titles is continuing as originally scheduled," added Square Enix.

Set in the same universe as Final Fantasy XIII, Versus XIII is an action-RPG featuring completely different characters and story than its main series counterpart. The games were announced at E3 2006 alongside a third title, Final Fantasy Agito XIII, in development for mobile phones.

The team behind Square Enix's action-RPG offshoot Final Fantasy Versus XIII (PS3) has been pulled off the project to aid in the completion of the main series installment Final Fantasy XIII (PS3), Japanese gaming magazine Famitsu reports.

Going by a translation from gaming forum NeoGAF, Versus XIII will remain on hold until Final Fantasy XIII has wrapped. Both titles have suffered several delays since their announcement, and a firm release date has not yet been specified.

The latest edition of Square Enix's flagship RPG series, FF13 was unveiled at E3 2006 alongside Versus XIII and a third game, Final Fantasy Agito XIII, for mobile phones. The titles have yet to be demonstrated in playable form at any conferences.