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Category: News

SE Members to merge with SE Accounts

26 November, 2009 (23:58) | News

Starting December 14th, people with Japanese Square Enix Members accounts will be required to either convert their information into a Square Enix Account or roll it into an existing SE Account.

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As most FFXI players are aware, if you want to secure your PlayOnline account with a security token, you must first register for a Square Enix Account.  These account are “region-locked” in that your SE Account region must match the region of the software you used to first create your FFXI/PlayOnline account.  These same security tokens and SE Accounts will be used in the future by people wanting to play FFXIV as well.

Currently, the site does not say that Japanese SE Members accounts will need to match up with a Japanese SE Account but it is highly probable that is the case.  For those people that use the SE Member site, take heart. All existing SE Member services, like the custom avatars and blog areas, will be available for people to use after they convert their accounts.

Along with the change to using SE Accounts, the Member Coins used to purchase various things like clothing for avatars or items from the SE e-STORE will turn into Square Enix Crysta.  People will be able to purchase the Crysta using a credit card online.  The Crysta then can be applied to any number of services linked to the SE Account system.

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The NA SE Members site doesn’t currently seem to have any information about required change overs on that end.  Perhaps after they see how things go with the Japanese accounts, they will do a similar conversion on NA accounts as well.

Net Cafes Hold Mercenary Camp Championship

26 November, 2009 (21:01) | News

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The Square Enix newsletter just landed in my inbox and it has some really interesting details about a tournament currently running in Japan. Players can go to one of many participating internet cafes around the country and take on the Serpent Generals in the Mercenary Camp BCNM.

First, you must find a participating location here. Once you arrive at the location, you login and head to the Stellar Fulcrum. Here, there will be an Event Moogle whom you can talk to and activate the BCNM. After completing the fight, snap a photo of your time, and fill out the form here.

ワールド名 – WORLD NAME
チーム名 – TEAM NAME
キャラクター名 – CHARACTER NAME
代表者お名前 – REAL NAME (person filling out the form on behalf of the party)
代表者フリガナ – NAME IN HIRAGANA (since they’re expecting names in kanji)
代表者連絡先 – ADDRESS
メールアドレス – E-MAIL
画像アップロード – PICTURE UPLOAD (only 1 is required)
その他 – COMMENTS

Only one player in the entire party needs to be at a net cafe, and the others can all tag along. I see nothing barring foreigners from participating barring the fact that one party member must live in Japan to be able to get to a net cafe. According to the contest ads, the entire team will win prizes!

So, let’s read on to see what you can win!

Read more »

FFXI Dogtags Official Announcement

10 September, 2009 (13:49) | News

And yea, it was said unto the people, “Let it be known throughout the land that Elmer totally called it.”

Just kidding… but it appears that Hiromichi Tanaka was being a little sly after all when he subtly sported a dogtag during his interview in Famitsu Wave. The Final Fantasy XI dogtag is now set to be the second product in the Final Fantasy XI Players Collection line. Orders will be taken beginning September 24th, so it is sure to make an appearance at the Tokyo Game Show as well.

As you can see, the tags come in three styles – Windurst, Bastok and San d’Oria. The buyer can have their character name and server carved into the back to “ensure complete exclusivity for its owner.”

In Japan, the price will come to a nice, round 10,000 yen including tax. The US price is reported to be $106.99.

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PlayOnline

STF & RMT: A Game of Cat and Mouse

7 September, 2009 (13:23) | News

Sage Sundi spoke recently at the CESA Developer’s Conference on the subject of RMT. Going into Final Fantasy XIV, Sundi explained the history of Final Fantasy XI and how they have been combating the varied methods RMT employ to disrupt the game. There were harsher than usual words spoken as well, with Sundi calling RMT “criminals” and saying they were not even considered legitimate users of the game.

Read more »

POL Died for Your Sins

3 September, 2009 (23:51) | News

At the recent CESA Developers Conference, Final Fantasy XI Global Online Producer Sage Sundi decided to stick up for us little guys and attack RMT with deadly semantics. At one point, Sundi was quoted as saying RMT “are not customers, but criminals,” a harsh assessment shared by many in the Final Fantasy XI community.

Unfortunately, now adventurers are faced with unexpected login difficulties with PlayOnline and complaints of POL-0206 errors are flying around. According to Square Enix, the cause remains under investigation, but is it possible Sundi has unwittingly brought the wrath of RMT down upon Vana’diel?

Check back later for more info on Sundi’s appearance at the CESA Developers Conference.

A Glimpse of the New FFXI Dogtags

31 August, 2009 (18:19) | News

tanakaIn the latest Famitsu Wave DVD, which just hit stores this weekend, Hiromichi Tanaka, the P-dawg himself, appears to be sporting a little bling. Throughout his one-on-one interview with Enterbrain CEO, Hamamura Hirokazu, a little silver necklace kept dangling over Tanaka’s shirt and glinting in the light.

There have been hints that Final Fantasy XI dogtags are in the works, such as this newsletter from July 31st, 2009. The shape definitely fits, and there appears to be a suspiciously fantasy-esque design on it.

The small magazine that comes with the Famitsu Wave DVD had some pictures, but the necklace was quite tiny. Cranking the old scanner to the max, the JP Button Digital Graphics Team has been able to obtain this evidence:

It resembles the Bastok logo and appears to have a blank area underneath for a player’s name. Could we have a winner?

Verified by Visa and JOGA

4 August, 2009 (14:52) | News

The sudden requirement for people with North American accounts to use Verified by Visa or MasterCard’s SecureCode has caused quite a stir in the community lately. There has been a lot of speculation as to why Square Enix would suddenly spring this on players.

One possible reason I’ve discovered today is something maybe people heard before but had forgotten about. Back in February in the Geekonomics blog on CNET Asia, the article author talks about JOGA’s support of Verified by Visa. Later Massively picked it up as well.

JOGA is the Japan Online Gaming Association. It is a relatively new industry association. Many of the association members are companies involved with the online gaming industry in Japan, like Webmoney and NCSoft. Square Enix does not appear to be a member at this time.

Back in January, JOGA made an announcement saying they were cooperating with VISA to create industry support for 3D Secure (in VISA’s case, Verified by Visa). They want to see 100% participation by companies that offer online games and services in Japan. At the time of the announcement, they said 60% of their association members were participating already with the Verified by Visa program. I decided to check The Tower of AION since I have a Japanese account. Sure enough, they require Verified by Visa or MasterCard’s SecureCode for people who opt to pay by credit card. While Square Enix is not currently a member, they might be trying to align themselves with the group’s standards. Perhaps they might even try to become a member of the association in the future.

So far the requirement is only on North American accounts. However, if they are trying to meet the standards set by JOGA, we might see changes for European and Japanese accounts in the future.

You can see the original announcement by JOGA in Japanese on their site here.

New FFXI Goods For Tokyo Game Show 2009!

31 July, 2009 (20:58) | Final Fantasy XI, News

Today, Square Enix sent out the Japanese version of the Final Fantasy XI newsletter. It has the typical update notes like what is coming up and what has been released recently. However, what caught my eye is the section about FFXI merchandise.

From the newsletter:

「TOKYO GAME SHOW 2009」ではファイナルファンタジーXI新グッズの発売を予定しておりますのでご期待ください! さらに、「ファイナルファンタジーXI プレイヤーズコレクション」第2弾「オリジナルドッグタグ」、新規「タルタル」グッズも現在製作進行中です!

What does it say?

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Comic-Con: Square Enix Brings Toys!

23 July, 2009 (13:10) | News

Comic-Con is almost ready to kick off down in San Diego, California, and Square Enix will be on-hand with a “surprising merchandise lineup.” Foreign gamers usually do not have direct access to the wide variety of toys and figurines available to Japanese fans, a small portion of which I showcased in a previous article. However, according to news reports, Square Enix appears ready to unload their doll collection on the hungry masses. Check out who is first on the list:

Prototypes Premiering at Comic Con: – FINAL FANTASY XI TRADING ARTS(R) mini set – FINAL FANTASY XIII PLAY ARTS(R) -KAI- – FRONT MISSION EVOLVED PLAY ARTS -KAI- – FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST PLAY ARTS -KAI- – FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST TRADING ARTS – KINGDOM HEARTS II PLAY ARTS Vol. 2 – RESIDENT EVIL 5 PLAY ARTS -KAI- Advance Sale Items: – DISSIDIA(TM) FINAL FANTASY TRADING ARTS (Cloud, Squall, Zidane, Tidus, Sephiroth) *Each sold separately – FINAL FANTASY XIII Silver Pendant (Lightning, l’Cie) *Each sold separately – FINAL FANTASY XIII Card Case (l’Cie) – KINGDOM HEARTS AVATAR MASCOT STRAP (Sora, Riku, Kairi, Roxas, Cloud)

ffxitradingarts

They appeared to feature some prototypes (pictured above) at the Japan Expo in France, so here’s hoping they have something new in store for California!

More Previews and Comments from The Star Onions

2 May, 2009 (13:40) | News


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Yesterday, 5 more song previews and comments were added to the special website for Sanctuary, the 2nd album from The Star Onions.

You can now listen to:
2. Flowers on the Battlefield
3. Xarcabard
8. Rapid Onslaught -Assault-
9. Distant Worlds
10. Griffons Never Die

Short comments were also added for these tracks.

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