FINAL FANTASY XII

Developer: Square Enix Co., Ltd.
Publisher: Square Enix, Inc.
Platform: PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system
Genre: RPG
Rating: RP (Rating Pending)
North American Release: TBD

The story of FINAL FANTASY XII takes place in a world called "Ivalice," in an age when magic was commonplace and airships plied the skies, crowding out the heavens. A world of many races, the humes, bangaa, viera and, of course, moogles, all call Ivalice home.

War was on the horizon. Seeking to strengthen its base of power, the great Archadian Empire had been invading and subjugating its neighboring kingdoms one by one. The small Kingdom of Dalmasca was one such kingdom.

When the occupying Archadian forces established a new consul in Dalmasca's Royal City of Rabanastre, it caught the attention of Vaan, an urchin living on the streets. To Vaan, the Empire was a hated enemy who had taken the life of his brother—his last surviving family member. Vaan hatched a plan to sneak into the castle housing the new consul and unburden him of one or two of his treasures. But before he would have the chance, Vaan got far more than he bargained for; a resistance movement of former Dalmascan soldiers rising up against the Archadian Empire was launching an assault! Amid the ensuing confusion that engulfed the castle, Vaan saw something he could scarcely believe. There, among the members of the resistance, was the figure of the sole remaining heir to the Dalmascan throne, the Princess Ashe, who'd been given up for missing...

Our story follows Vaan, Ashe, Vaan's friend Penelo, the sky pirate Balthier, his partner Fran and many more on an adventure through Ivalice that traces the mysteries behind the Archadian Empire's invasion. Since 1987, the FINAL FANTASY series has sold over 60 million units. FINAL FANTASY XII carries on the proud tradition, bringing new ideas to the series and innovation to the RPG genre.

FEATURES:

• Every aspect of the graphics brings color to the world of Ivalice—blues and oranges reminiscent of the Mediterranean evoke a landscape alive with a mix of European and Arabian imagery.
  
• Airships feature prominently in FINAL FANTASY XII. They come in all shapes and sizes—the main airship in this story is a medium-sized craft that measures over 1,000 feet from bow to stern. Airships are used for everything from the trading of goods to the waging of war.
  
• The story isn't all that's new—experience an evolved battle system with numerous features never before seen in the FINAL FANTASY series.
  1. ADB – Active Dimension Battle is a shift from ATB (Active Time Battle), lending more realism to the battle by allowing seamless switching between the field and the battle scene.
  2. Load time between the field and the battle scene that is unrelated to actual gameplay has been eliminated, ensuring smoother gaming.
  3. Besides time elements, such as the attack timing, the player can fully utilize the field geography in terms of differences in ground level, intricate terrain, places with low visibility and the like.
  4. Enemy monsters can also take advantage of the varied tactics that ADB offers, possessing
  sophisticated AI to ambush parties, back up their comrades and restore HP.
  
• Ivalice sounds better, too, with in-game events and movie scenes presented in Dolby Pro Logic II.

© 2005 SQUARE ENIX CO., LTD. All Rights Reserved. CHARACTER DESIGN: Akihiko Yoshida.
FINAL FANTASY is a registered trademark of Square Enix Co., Ltd.
Dolby, Pro Logic, and the double-D symbol are trademarks of Dolby Laboratories.

Character Profiles

Vaan
Age/Sex: 17/Male
Race: Hume
Bio: The lighthearted hero who lost both his parents and dreams of one day having his own airship. He sets out from his home in the heart of Dalmasca to become a sky pirate. He looks on the future with an air of hope.

Ashe
Age/Sex: 19/Female
Race: Hume
Bio: Her whereabouts since the Archadian invasion are unknown. The rightful heir to the Dalmascan throne, she also leads the resistance. She's tough, iron-willed and carries herself with dignity.

Fran
Age/Sex: Unknown/Female
Race: Viera
Bio: Balthier's devoted partner. A viera warrior, she is possessed of superior wisdom and stamina. Able to wield any weapon, she is as skilled with swords as she is with her bare hands. She also excels as an archer and plays an active part in maintaining the airship.

Balthier
Age/Sex: 22/Male
Race: Hume
Bio: Daring though he is, he relies greatly on his partner, Fran. He fights with firearms and commands his own airship. A man without a country, he nevertheless is a sky pirate with a code, stealing only from the wicked. He's a skilled mechanic who has a way with jokes and women.

Penelo
Age/Sex: 16/Female
Race: Hume
Bio: Penelo lives among the same bustling streets as her boyfriend, Vaan. She, too, lost her family in the war but still enthusiastically goes about making her living in the bazaar. Though a talented singer and dancer, she is no stranger to battle, having learned to fight from her brothers, who once belonged to an order of knights. She overcomes any obstacles in her way and exhibits strength of character in all she does.

Basch
Age/Sex: 36/Male
Race: Hume
Bio: A Dalmascan General who has been victorious in numerous battles, he is a hero with a strict sense of justice. Recruited from the ranks of the commoners, he enjoyed overwhelming popularity amongst the Dalmascans. However, during the arbitration ceremony with the Arcadian Empire, he murders the King of Dalmasca. Why would someone as loyal as him assassinate the king?

Development Team

Yasumi Matsuno is the producer of FINAL FANTASY XII, known for his work on such titles as Vagrant Story and FINAL FANTASY TACTICS. He first conceived the ideas for his current game eight years ago, and those ideas will finally be realized in FINAL FANTASY XII.

Hideo Minaba, art director for FINAL FANTASY V, FINAL FANTASY VI, FINAL FANTASY TACTICS, FINAL
FANTASY IX and FINAL FANTASY TACTICS ADVANCE, joins Yasumi Matsuno as a member of the FINAL
FANTASY XII team, bringing the imagery of the Mediterranean Sea to the world of FINAL FANTASY XII.

Akihiko Yoshida is the character and 3D map director for the project. He has collaborated with Yasumi Matsuno on some of his earlier projects such as Vagrant Story, FINAL FANTASY TACTICS and FINAL FANTASY TACTICS ADVANCE. For FINAL FANTASY XII he's taken the unusual approach of basing the CG character models on the ingame models—not the other way around.

Isamu Kamikokuryou was the lead background artist on FINAL FANTASY VIII and FINAL FANTASY X. He is the lead graphics designer on FINAL FANTASY XII.

The music of FINAL FANTASY XII will be a collaborative work of veteran series composer Nobuo Uematsu and the composer for FINAL FANTASY TACTICS and VAGRANT STORY, Hitoshi Sakimoto. They hope to bring something as yet unheard in FINAL FANTASY music to FINAL FANTASY XII.