TGS 2008: Final Fantasy Agito XIII Trailer Impressions

Don't be agitated: Square Enix showed off a brief teaser of its upcoming role-playing game for the PSP.

TOKYO--More CGI goodness was on display today at Square Enix's remarkably dark Mega Theater on the TGS show floor. All three Final Fantasy XIII games were represented by trailers, including the PSP iteration, Final Fantasy Agito XIII. The trailer was remarkably similar to the one we'd already seen earlier this year, but in case we missed a detail or two, we thought we'd bring you a quick look at yet another promising game in the famed Final Fantasy series.

The trailer begins by showing us an enormous crystal lighting up as the famous Final Fantasy arpeggios set the stage for the coming drama. We then see imagery that is bound to give most viewers a chill: a Hitler-esque leader stands on a dais, calling out propaganda in a commanding speech to the legions of apparent soldiers ready to cater to his every wish. The placement of the leader and his subjects, as well as the scratchy, black-and-white visual style, hark back to the heyday of the Nazi regime, and it's chilling to see such imagery, even today.
In an even-more chilling twist, the buildings lining the street around the soldiers transform and then fly into the air. They are, in fact, enormous battleships, and they fly across the sky en masse, a terrifying sight to a peaceful nation. The view then changes, and we see a tall, thin spire rising into the air. The camera moves downward toward the crystal that we saw at the beginning of the trailer. The crystal cracks and shatters, and the camera pulls away to reveal its island residence. The entire isle then explodes, perhaps taking all of its residents with it.
But maybe there is a survivor after all. From chaos, a shrouded figure emerges and is soon surrounded by the regimented troops so ready to commit to their apparently evil cause. The troops aim, but our hero isn't a single renegade after all. As the camera rotates, we see that more caped silhouettes join the lone rebel, until there are a dozen or even more. The trailer also cut to something that we didn't see in many of the other trailers in Square Enix's shadowed theater: gameplay footage. Although there wasn't much, we did see that the game will let you command a party of four, and based on that footage, it seems that each party member is assigned one of the four face buttons.
And in a final gasp, the trailer informed us that Final Fantasy Agito XIII will be released for the PSP, but it indicated no release date. Of course, we'd rather show you the footage than describe it, but for now, it seems that there is plenty to look forward to where Agito XIII is concerned, and indeed, for all of the upcoming games in that crystal-themed collection. Keep your eyes open: We'll bring you more news as it becomes available.

By Kevin VanOrd, GameSpot