Final Fantasy Versus XIII (ファイナルファンタジー ヴェルサスXIII, Fainaru Fantajī Verusasu Sātīn?) is an action role-playing game developed and published by Square Enix exclusively for the Sony PlayStation 3 video game console.[2] Alongside Final Fantasy XIII and Final Fantasy Agito XIII, the game is a part of the Fabula Nova Crystallis Final Fantasy XIII compilation. Unveiled at E3 2006, the game focuses on a mysterious protagonist who is the last heir of a dynasty ruling over the only remaining city to control crystals. Under unforeseen circumstances, he makes a stand against marauders seeking to take the crystal as their own. [3]

Final Fantasy Versus XIII; is, according to its developers, a wholly independent story unfolding with different characters and a different visual design. And, although it is set within the same Final Fantasy XIII universe, it is unrelated to any other entry within the compilation and is thus neither a sequel nor a prequel to any other entries in Fabula Nova Crystallis: Final Fantasy XIII.[4]

In Latin, "versus" can be the past participle of the verb "vertere" which means "to change direction." In English, it is a preposition which means "against, in opposition to."[5]

Unlike its Fabula Nova Crystallis counterpart - Final Fantasy XIII, there is scarce to no information surrounding the gameplay and battle system of Final Fantasy Versus XIII because no formal footage has been shown by Square Enix of the gameplay or within video game magazines.

Within recent Japanese gaming magazine interviews, Tetsuya Nomura has stated that Versus XIII's gameplay will be a realistic derivation of Kingdom Hearts battle system with some elements of a third-person shooter - similar to Square Enix's Dirge of Cerberus. Nomura has also stated that the game will stave off the light and magical aesthetic of his previous directorial games (i.e. Kingdom Hearts) and opt for a darker, bleaker world that is intended to counter previous Final Fantasy installments. In formulating a realistic world, Nomura has stated that he wants the characters to be "believable" and thus realistic. As a testament towards his desire for realism; in the PlayStation Premier trailer, in contrast to previous Final Fantasy titles, Versus XIII had a greater display of graphic violence with an instance of blood.[6]

Nomura has also stated in Dengeki PlayStation 2 magazine, that he aims to create previously unseen "tricky" battle sequences, reminiscent of the CGI film, Final Fantasy VII Advent Children.[3]



The protagonist of Final Fantasy Versus XIII is a dark bluish and silver haired man with crimson colored eyes. However, his eyes have been shown to change during battle and Tetsuya Nomura has confirmed that his eyes may even turn green upon incident.[9] It has also been confirmed that he is the last heir to the dynasty ruling over the last kingdom to control crystals and he attempts to protect his kingdom against marauders seeking to conquer the city and take the crystals by force. And, Nomura has also compared the protagonist's family to the modern-day mafia, or Yakuza.[10]

He wields multiple weapons as seen in both the E3 2006 and the PlayStation Premier trailers. The weapons he has ranges from swords, spears and lances. As seen through the trailers, he can induce them independently from his body, or telekinetically, and the protagonist has used them as a shield. Nomura has stated that each weapon will have a different usage and is not directly limited by normal standards of attack, some weapons will be usable as shields as seen through the trailers.[11] Teleportation is another skill that he has demonstrated in the trailers and it is unknown what role this skill may function in the gameplay or plot of the game.

Three characters, who appear to befriend the protagonist have been revealed in video game magazine, Famitsu. The first is a man with light brown hair and glasses who is seen wearing a suit and driving a car with the protagonist. And, the second character is a man with a scar on his left eye and dark brown hair. The third character is a blonde haired man carrying a shotgun, despite a ban on firearms in his country. Another character, a blonde girl who is an antagonist to the main character is described as an unfortunate enemy to the main protagonist. Famitsu and other sources have claimed that the two do not desire to fight each other, but are forced to.[12] She wields a rapier and is an enemy, though her allegiances are still suspect.[3]

Other revealed characters are the mysterious soldiers. These unknown warriors wear medieval-styled armor, but also carry assault rifles resembling modern automatic weapons. It is known that they are some of marauders trying to take the crystals as their own.[citation needed] Another character revealed is a new character wearing all white (a possibly symbolic contrast from the protagonist's darker clothing) introduced in the new trailer. The character is seen in protagonist's building near the castle as they both cast spells at each other, implying that they are enemies.[citation needed]

Another man, apparently older and dressed in a business suit, appears at the head of a table as a chairman during a meeting with several other men. Because he has the same eyes as the protagonist, it is speculated that the two are related.[citation needed]


[edit] Development
Development of Final Fantasy Versus XIII began two or three years prior to E3 2006 in conjuction with Final Fantasy XIII, after the PlayStation 3 Final Fantasy VII Technical Demo was completed.[13] Led by Tetsuya Nomura, the game was developed by the same team that previously worked on the Kingdom Hearts games as well as Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children. As with Final Fantasy XIII, development had initiated on the PlayStation 2 but was later migrated to the PlayStation 3 when the development team determined that the PlayStation 2's hardware would not suffice for the "visual expression" that the team had initially decided upon and the single DVD format would not be able to hold the storage requirements. As such, most of the development was restarted on the PlayStation 3.[14]

Also, the development team never considered the game to be another iteration within the Final Fantasy series due to the concept and thinking behind the game being impossible within a Final Fantasy XIV. Yoshinori Kitase clarified it as "type of adventure that we couldn't do in the numbered series."[15]

In early 2007, Square Enix had announced they had licensed Epic Games' Unreal Engine 3 for use in their future next generation titles, like The Last Remnant. Some speculated that Versus XIII would be developed using the Unreal Engine 3, however, Square Enix has stressed the White Engine - later renamed Crystal Tools would be used in Final Fantasy XIII and Final Fantasy Versus XIII in the Fabula Nova Crystallis compilation.[16] [17]

It was announced that Final Fantasy Versus XIII will use the motion-sensing capabilities of the PlayStation 3's SIXAXIS controller.[18] However, its use for the game remains to be revealed.