Final Fantasy XIV has been given a release date, at least for its PC version. The Square Enix MMORPG will be out worldwide on September 22, 2010 for the Windows PC platform.

Meanwhile, the PS3 version needs more work, and Square Enix has delayed its release until March 2011.

Final Fantasy XIV will have a monthly fee of $12.99 U.S., with additional fees for adding extra characters.

Final Fantasy XIV is now available for pre-order from Amazon at, offering a standard edition for $50 U.S. and a collector’s edition for $75. Amazon.ca also has the same offerings at the same prices in Canadian dollars.

Tom Chilton, lead designer for World of Warcraft, has talked about the possibility of removing the subscription fee. In an interview with PC Gamer, Chilton said that he can forsee a future in which charging a subscription fee no longer makes sense.

He explains that the change to a free World of Warcraft could happen if the game needs to stay competetive, even with Blizzard itself.

“If another game comes along and blows us away it may not make sense for us to have a subscription fee. Or even further down the line, when we have another MMO out.”

Of course, this is probably not a viable option at present. Blizzard’s hugely popular MMO takes a lot of time and energy to maintain, with Blizzard committing huge resources to supporting its player base.

A few new details about the PS3-exclusive Final Fantasy Versus XIII have emerged.

Perhaps most interesting is that Final Fantasy Versus XIII will have an open-world environment. After the linear gameplay of Final Fantasy XIII, this is very welcome. Players will be able to go anywhere in the game’s world, except for certain mountain areas which are reserved for later.

One of the cities in Versus XIII is modelled after the real-life Shinjuku, a dense commercial ward in Tokyo.

The game will feature objects found in the field that are subject to your destructive forces. Final Fantasy Versus XIII also put attention into modelling the sky. A physics engine is being applied to the clouds in order to render a realistic skyscape.

The game promises seamless battles. Certain large areas will require some loading, but for the most part the game aims to be seamless in all transitions. The game’s designers also claim that these will be the highest-quality battle scenes yet.

A few screenshots have been scanned in as well. These are all captured in real-time from the PS3 console, not pre-rendered.

As a bonus, we’ve also learned that in the PSP title Final Fantasy Agito XIII, chocobos and airships will appear offering travel around a world map in the way we’re used to with Final Fantasy games.

Final Fantasy XIV, the next MMO from Square Enix, has a new trailer video. A number of recognizable elements appear in this video, including some new versions of previous mobs we saw in Final Fantasy XI, including Gobbues and Treants.

Final Fantasy XIV is due later this year for PS3 and Windows PC platforms. A beta for the game will also go live shortly.

Snowblind Studios is hard at work on a new RPG based on J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings. The new game is called The Lord of the Rings: War in the North.

The game takes place in the northern areas of middle-earth, providing some background lore to go with the books and Lord of the Rings movies. The game will feature heavy character customization, upgradable skills and action-RPG gameplay including a co-op mode.

The game also promises to have dialogue in the style of Mass Effect, where options have effects later, as well as moral consequences for the characters.

The Lord of the Rings: War in the North is due out in 2011.

Square Enix has announced both Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest games for the Nintendo 3DS, as well as a new Chocobo Racing 3D game. But the most developed 3DS title announced is Kingdom Hearts 3D, an entirely new Kingdom Hearts game starring the characters Riku and Sora.

Altus has also announced that it will release some of its Shin Megami Tensei games on the Nintendo 3DS, including the original Shin Megami Tensei, as well as Devil Survivor and Persona. The Shin Megami Tensei series is very popular in Japan, after Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest.

Nintendo will also release Paper Mario 3DS for the new handheld, taking the series back to its roots with turn-based RPG battles. And, of course, a new Pokémon title is on the way for the 3DS as well.

Not quite an RPG in the traditional sense, but The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time will also be remade for the 3DS.

The original DS got some love, though — Golden Sun: Dark Dawn was announced for the Nintendo DS.

It looks like the Nintendo 3DS will be friendly to the RPG gamer. More on this new handheld as we get it.

A new trailer for Warhammer 40K has surfaced, as well as the finalized name for the game.

The MMORPG from Vigil will now be known as Warhammer 40K: Dark Millennium Online.

More details on the game are promised later this year.

Microsoft just had its E3 media briefing, and has unveiled Kinect, its controllerless control system for the Xbox 360.

Previously known as “Project Natal”, Kinect is a camera/microphone system for the Xbox 360 that’s capable of tracking full body movements. With Kinect, games can be controlled by voice and body movements, while simple vocal commands and hand gestures can now control menus and media on the Xbox 360.

No RPGs for the system yet, but we do have a number of other titles including a dance game and a Star Wars game. I wonder how RPG menus would work. I expect problems if developers all jump on the Kinect bandwagon at once, without thinking about how the controls will actually work for other genres than those already seen.

Kinect will be out on November 4, 2010. Microsoft also unveiled a smaller model of the Xbox 360 with a 250 GB drive and built-in WiFi, which ships today for $299 U.S.

Kinect for Xbox 360 unveiled at E3 | Xbox Living

A new video of Final Fantasy XIV released by Square Enix, staged as a top-secret break-in to get a look at the FF14 Beta. The video shows off the character creation process, and the wider range of customizations available to players. Have a look:

Final Fantasy XIV Online is due to hit the MMO scene on the PS3 and Windows platforms later this year.

Final Fantasy IX (FF9) is coming to the Sony PlayStation Network in North America. The game will be up on June 15 — that’s next Tuesday.

Final Fantasy IX was originally released in 2000 for the original Sony PlayStation. With the PlayStation Network, the game will now be playable on the PS3 and PSP systems.