February 2, 2012August 23, 2012

PlayStation Blogcast 010: The Curious Case of Final Fantasy XIII-2

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This week, we tackle one of this winter’s biggest PS3 releases: Final Fantasy XIII-2. We invited IGN editor, renowned JRPG expert, and K-pop enthusiast Ryan Clements to give us his detailed analysis of a game that Square Enix has described as “exceed[ing] Final Fantasy XIII in every aspect.” Ryan wrote IGN’s FFXIII-2 review, so he was able to lead a deep and thought-provoking discussion of how Square Enix incorporated fan requests to make a nonlinear, exploration-focused RPG, how Eastern RPG design differs from Western RPG design, and much more. Definitely worth a listen!

We also reveal the new PSN game lineup for Tuesday, February 7th, serve up a new PSN Gem of the Week, and answer a slew of user questions related to PS Vita: the PSN launch-day game lineup, Bluetooth capabilities, and where to go to play it right now (hint!).

In other news…Woo-hoo! PlayStation Blogcast has hit the big 1-0! Frankly, I’m shocked: it feels like only yesterday that we were taking crash courses in Garage Band and cobbling together audio gear in order to get our long-promised podcast off the ground. And now, 11 weeks and 10 shows later, we’re in a regular weekly recording routine. It just goes to show that if you work hard, take your vitamins, and trust in Nick Suttner, anything is possible. Thanks to PlayStation.Blog readers for your support and feedback!

How’s our driving? We want your feedback, comments, questions, and suggestions, so leave ‘em in the comments below!

Action Items

-Twisted Metal community event in San Francisco tonight!
–Final Fantasy XIII-2 IGN review by Ryan Clements
-Vita Hill social clubs now open in eight US cities
–Soul Calibur V
–Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning (aka Jeff’s post-Skyrim obsession)

The Cast

Sid Shuman – PlayStation Sr. Social Media Specialist

Jeff Rubenstein – PlayStation Sr. Social Media Manager

Rey Gutierrez – PlayStation Sr. Social Media Specialist

Nick Suttner – PlayStation Sr. Product Evaluator

Ryan Clements – IGN Editor

Thanks to Cory Schmitz for our beautiful logo and Dormilón for our rad theme song and show music. Special thanks to Astro Gaming headsets for providing audio gear.

[Editor’s note: PSN game release dates are subject to change without notice. Game details are gathered from press releases from their individual publishers and/or ESRB rating descriptions.]

Comments are closed.

36 Comments

11 Author Replies

apoco_483
February 2, 2012 at 2:57 pm PST

Read the FFX13-2 review like forever ago. Though I’m also surprised i’m logged in during the maintenance here?
GroovyJooky
February 2, 2012 at 3:26 pm PST

sweet.
- Nick Suttner
  February 2, 2012 at 3:33 pm PST
  
  Miscellaneous note to anyone listening:
  Combat Wings: The Great Battles of WWII isn’t actually hitting next week, we were working from an outdated date.
  
  Carry on your regularly scheduled commenting!
- Sid Shuman
  February 3, 2012 at 11:14 am PST
  
  My bad folks, I feel like a big silly. Nick is right, Combat Wings doesn’t have a final release date yet.
station3fever
February 2, 2012 at 4:04 pm PST

Blogcast 10 & going strong, keep up the good work guys :) & don’t be shy go CRAZY lol
Logan22
February 2, 2012 at 7:55 pm PST

Since you asked, Batman Imposters is AWESOME!!!

Really took me by surprise and I’m not one to fall into FPS multiplayer death traps, but this game definitely has me hooked and I’m getting it Tuesday for sure> It comes before Shank 2 and all the other highly anticipated PSN titles you guys mentioned.

Just my 2 cents from the recent Beta :)

I also liked it much better than the Starhawk Beta and Non-working Twisted Metal demo lol. Did Twisted Metal get fixed yet?
- Sid Shuman
  February 3, 2012 at 11:15 am PST
  
  Glad to hear it! As for Twisted Metal, I’m hearing folks are having better luck right now…but we’ll keep you posted on @PlayStation on Twitter
Logan22
February 2, 2012 at 9:56 pm PST

Just sent my User Tip Sid
ZeroSection
February 2, 2012 at 10:07 pm PST

Any chance we’ll see a downloadable version of the blogcast for Android devices? I tried downloading it on my Kindle Fire and it wont download to my tablet. I have to load it into my amazon cloud drive to play the blogcast.
- Sid Shuman
  February 3, 2012 at 11:15 am PST
  
  Thanks for the heads-up here, we’ll have to look at a more comprehensive solution for Android!
DarkOne_PR
February 2, 2012 at 10:29 pm PST

GIVE ME FFvs13 NOW!!!!!!!! I could care less for the mediocre ff13 and its sister. :(
FF7 remake, FF6 remake, Xenogears remake and Legend of draggon remake… all man dream… but not equally right? :)
RydogV
February 2, 2012 at 10:35 pm PST

Good show fellas!! I too have tried the Gotham City Imposters Beta and it is wacky, zaney, FPS FUN FUN FUN. So definately give it a try…for $15 you will definately get some BANG…ZOFF…POW for your buck.

Also wanted to mention the Syndicate Demo available on PSN as well. Freakin’ Awesome…definately made my list of early 2012 “must have’s”. Great action (and interaction w/ co-op features) and loved the visual style. Also best shotgun I have ever seen in a shooter…belt-fed just like a LMG!

Playing the StarHawk beta as noob to the franchise and have the Twisted Metal Demo DL’d and hope to try soon.

PS: Thanks for answering my question about Vita-Hill SC’s on air…and it’s Rydog “Vee” not “Five” lol but honest mistake ;)

Anyway, great listening and keep up the good work. I will stop asking about Dust 514 because I know there isn’t a lot of info out there now…
- Sid Shuman
  February 3, 2012 at 11:17 am PST
  
  Glad to hear about Syndicate and Gotham City Imposters! I’ll check them both out ASAP. Thanks for the kind words…and sorry for flubbing your name :)
unbornsoldier
February 2, 2012 at 11:24 pm PST

every thursday i look forward to the blogcast,keep up the great work,the podcast is very informative,love the new releases for next week segment,overall great job on all the segments,very interesting to listen to,now on to the new releases!!its gonna be a very epic day on jan. 7th so many games i want but little money,if i had the money i would get day 1 the darkness 2,kingdoms of alamur,jak and daxter hd collection,shank and im already getting the simpsons arcarde for being a plus member :),its gonna be a hard toss up for me this day ill probably just get jak and daxter for 15 bux from the ps store or get both that and kingdoms of alamur or get the jak and daxter collection,it all depends on how much money i have left after paying rent etc……….this day will always be remembered as broke day lol its being a long time since i wanted to get almost all the releases of a particular day

side note:anybody that want to co op on syndicate etc………add me
- Sid Shuman
  February 3, 2012 at 11:18 am PST
  
  SO MANY GAMES!!!! Thanks for the kind words!
lisatsunami
February 3, 2012 at 1:28 am PST

Congrats on making it to 10. I guess you don’t know any women in the industry? I’d be interested in a woman’s perspective & origin story in this apparently nearly all-male business?

There’s no such thing as too much Vita (or Skyrim) coverage. After your podcast I ordered some accessories for my launch wi-fi Vita. Unfortunately there’s nothing in pink or purple yet so hopefully vendors (God forbid Sony ever discovers there are colors other than black) will soon realize that some Vita owners want pretty things.

Thanks for another fun & informative show, Quattro Amigos.
- Sid Shuman
  February 3, 2012 at 11:19 am PST
  
  I think your idea on getting a female guest in is killer and it’s something we’ll look to do ASAP. Glad to hear you like the Skyrim and Vita coverage. Thanks for your great feedback!
Viewtiful_Josh
February 3, 2012 at 2:03 am PST

Yes! This is going straight to my nano. :D
View_of_Toledo
February 3, 2012 at 2:08 am PST

Hey everyone,
Wanted to ask a question about emailing you guys with questions and answers to the weekly song at the end of the blogcast, if that’s alright. Friday, the 27th, I sent an email detailing a question about the UMD transfer process to vita and I guessed this past week’s song correctly! Nothing was emailed in reply. Is the right email to send stuff to blogcast(at)playstation(dot)sony(dot)com? Maybe there’s a proper syntax to follow that I did not? I’m not upset, I just want to do the right thing so one week I have a fair shot at winning something too!

Thanks in advance,
View_of_Toledo
- Nick Suttner
  February 3, 2012 at 10:46 am PST
  
  You’ve got the right one. We get a lot of questions and get to as many of them as we can, so please keep sending them!
  
  Same with the theme guesses, which you have a pretty decent chance at winning since we only get a few correct guesses each week. So again, please keep sending!
ProSoldier14
February 3, 2012 at 3:05 am PST

So is an official PlayStation app for mobile platforms sound like something that may be happening soon? It be cool to be to check what friends are online, your trophies, inbox messages, etc.
Kchow23
February 3, 2012 at 3:06 am PST

This episode was a great improvement over last weeks and I think most of my comments from last week were answered (Just like FFXII-2!) I thought that Ryan was a great guest and it just seems like you guys just need someone else to complement you guys because almost every episode that you guys get one it just feels like a well balanced episode (not to mention that this one was a little bit longer than an hour).
- Nick Suttner
  February 3, 2012 at 10:47 am PST
  
  Glad you enjoyed it, I was very happy with how this week turned out.
- Sid Shuman
  February 3, 2012 at 11:20 am PST
  
  When Nick is happy, you know it was a good show :D
ATLRoAcH
February 3, 2012 at 3:56 am PST

Hey guys thanks for answering my question about stero Bluetooth headphones for the Vita. I almost fell out of my chair when you said my name. It caught me by surprise. Lol
- Sid Shuman
  February 3, 2012 at 11:20 am PST
  
  Woo-hoo! Believe me, Bluetooth headphone support has been a big question for me as well.
DoninYair
February 3, 2012 at 5:21 am PST

I was sure Ryan was going to do the Roper Report jingle once he said “Lets begins…”

As always, great show. You guys are quickly becoming one of my favorite podcasts.

Keep up the awesome work.
- Sid Shuman
  February 3, 2012 at 11:21 am PST
  
  Glad to hear it! :) Who should we be looking at for future guest spots?
knifin_around-
February 3, 2012 at 9:12 am PST

Good Blogcast.
I was wondering what will darkness 2 cost when it hits psn store?
also is there any news if dead island will get a north america psn store release any time soon?
- Sid Shuman
  February 3, 2012 at 11:21 am PST
  
  Well, there’s a demo, but no clue if/when Darkness 2 will hit PSN as a full PS3 game. Stay tuned?
Logan22
February 3, 2012 at 10:18 am PST

Glad to hear that Easy mode lets you breeze through Catherine. I did not enjoy the puzzles in the demo but was really intrigued by the story (I’m a story guy too). Its now on my list of games to get/catch up to lol.
- Sid Shuman
  February 3, 2012 at 11:22 am PST
  
  Yeah, I’m more of a story man, too. I’m not smart enough to handle those puzzles!
Kchow23
February 3, 2012 at 11:30 am PST

@Sid The PS Blogcast could use some Giantbombing or some Jaffe!
Arjmand
February 3, 2012 at 11:42 am PST

Hey guys, great podcast! An improvement from other ones I must say. Just some feedback I wanna give

1) I was really happy that this one was over an hour, I would like to see more of this!

2) The tone of this one wasn’t as formal as the other blogcasts, which I liked. It wasn’t as crude as Beyond (BEYOND!), but it was refreshing seeing you guys loosen up a bit.

Just a quick question for you guys as well

1) What PlayStation 1 games would you LOVE to see get a reboot? I know I’d like to see a new Crash Bandicoot, PaRappa the Rapper (perhaps with move controls), Jet Moto, and Nightmare Creatures. What about you guys?

Keep up the great work!

– @SeenMachine
BlueBl1zzard
February 3, 2012 at 12:47 pm PST

Congrats guys on the 10th episode!!! Has it been 11 weeks already? Lets hope the next few weeks go by even faster so I can get my Vita!

But for my question,
I heard that the you now only have a total of 2 downloads (down from 5) for a game bought off of the Playstation Store. I buy quite a few PSP games and minis (and I plan on doing the same with PSVita games) off of the store using my PS3 because it’s faster, and then transfer them to my handheld. Does that count as my 2 downloads, or are you allowed 2 downloads for PS3’s, 2 downloads for PSP’s, and 2 for Vita’s?

P.S. I definitely think you should try to get Adam Sessler from G4 as a guest on the show
Logan22
February 3, 2012 at 1:14 pm PST

I got a good question you can answer here or on the next show: Does the Vita do “Background Downloads” like the PS3? That would be pretty huge and compliment the already great multi-tasking of the device.
Logan22
February 3, 2012 at 1:16 pm PST

Also, I think the last episode was the best one personally, as it now has me saving up what I can for the $800 Sony 3D headset :)

I wouldn’t be if otherwise.
knilkrad99999999
February 3, 2012 at 2:29 pm PST

when are you going to talk about the vita
ryanDm129
February 3, 2012 at 3:30 pm PST

whens the star hawk beta
tigerbait_
February 4, 2012 at 11:35 am PST

Luv the podcast u guys put out every week, thanx and keep them going. So now u guys need to get Colin Moriarty on the show.
eaglefan129
February 4, 2012 at 5:36 pm PST

I was thinking about downloading vita games early on the ps3. Do you recomend installing the game on the ps3? How does that work basically. Also can you confirm how much cheaper digital versions would be vs retail?
holdthat230
February 4, 2012 at 6:11 pm PST

Why is it that the PS Vita supports party chat and the PS3 does not?
tigerbait_
February 4, 2012 at 6:43 pm PST

@holdthat230 They said a few months ago that the PS3 can’t have party chat because of the way it gets it’s RAM or something. Sony’s president was the one who said it so u can count on never seeing it on the PS3.
m1ndsize
February 5, 2012 at 11:33 am PST

Hey everyone, fantastic podcast! I really enjoy listening to each episode.

I am currently living in the Boston Area and was wondering if anyone from the Blog had plans to attend PAX East. In time, I hope to get into the game industry and am looking to start making some connection.
oOoJayPoOo
February 6, 2012 at 4:06 pm PST

I heard another listener asking about how to clear some space on his PS3, so I thought I’d share this little tidbit of info with everyone in case they weren’t aware of it already…

User Tip:

If you buy any type of storage device or anything with a hard drive in it like a PS3 for example, it will say that it has a 120gb hard drive, like my PS3 for example, but in reality it actually has 111gb. It’s a good thing to keep in mind when buying a storage device, like a PS Vita Memory card :). (This is because a gigabyte is 1,073,741,824 bytes, but the companies that make them just say they are 1,000,000,000 bytes. So the consumers end up buying memory that isn’t really there :(…
Nates4Christ
February 7, 2012 at 11:20 am PST

Superb episode guys. I am going to download the demo of hoard and check it out now. I don’t play final fantasy but I enjoyed your talk about it.
iamhannah
February 7, 2012 at 12:27 pm PST

Will all PSN downloaded PSP games play on the Vita? If not is there a list of what titles will play on the Vita?