Since last year, many Square Enix fans have been giddy over the news of the upcoming Square Enix Party for 2007. Well, in case you're one of those fans and you need that one last thing to convince you to finally book tickets (and a flight) for the event, then this may be what you need: the schedule of activities of this year's Party.

According to Square Enix's official site, the event which will run from May 12 to May 13 will consist of contests, celebrations, and tributes to some of its game titles. As listed on its site, one of the focuses of the first day would be the performances of some theme song artists, as well as the appearance of a special, secret guest who will be there to promote Dragon Quest Monsters: Battle Road.

Then, on the second day, there will be a special stage set up for Dragon Quest Swords: The Masked Queen and the Tower of Mirrors which will host a "mixed screening and recording" of the game (according to Google Translate anyway...), which will be done while previously-unreleased images of the game are being shown at the same time. After that, there will also be a competition for Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker, where contestants will vie for the title of Monster Master. The best part is that members of the audience who cheered for the winner will also be receiving original merchandise as prizes. Later on, there will also be another panel which will feature the people behind the Square Enix monthly manga magazine, Shonen Gangan. The panelists will be speaking about a new Square Enix anime which will be launched this April on TV Tokyo.

If you think that's a lot, well it's only part of it, as while all of those are happening, the fifth year celebration for the Square Enix MMORPG Final Fantasy XIwill also be happening. Among the activities that will be part of the celebration will be cosplay contests, trivia contests, movie contests, fan art contests, panels, mini-concerts, chocobo races, and a "Live Quest", to name just a few.

Take note that these are only SOME of the many activities that are currently lined up for the Square Enix Party, and from the looks of it, it seems that the company behind some of the best games that we have ever played is doing its best to live up to its name, by throwing some of the best events that a fan could ever wish for.

For those who haven't booked a flight to Australia yet, then the people from Eminence Orchestra would like to remind you that you still have some time left to go ahead and do so. After all, one of the most popular video game orchestral performances is headed for Sydney and Melbourne in merely a week. That's right, in case you forgot, Eminence Symphony Orchestra's A Night in Fantasia 2007 - Symphonic Games Edition, will be making waves in the Land of the Koalas, via their proven musical talent as well as their skill in performing the music from video games that we know and love.

Set to make an appearance in Sydney on April 20 and 21, then in Melbourne on April 27, the 60-piece orchesrtra will be accompanied by a 30-piece choir and will be conducted by Philip Chu. Meanwhile, tunes that fans can look forward to will include classic video game themes from titles such as Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy XII, FF Tactics and the rest of the FF series, Chrono Trigger, Xenogears, Shadow of the Colossus, Tales of Legendia, Metal Gear Solid, WoW: The Burning Crusade, Super Mario Brothers and Legend of Zelda, to name just a few.

Those who want a seat for the show can either order their tickets online via TicketMaster, or those who will be seeing the Sydney performance can simply drop by the local Kinokuniya store.

Now, there's just one song request that I'd like to make... please, please, please play Radical Dreamers from Chrono Cross. Either that, or I'll be happy with whatever Chocobo theme that they put in there. So with the days ticking away until the performance begins, what song would you want to hear the Eminence folks play?

If you've always thought that working on the Square Enix staff would make your life perfect, then here's a bit of an eye-opener, courtesy of Square Enix's Richard Mark Honeywood.

Having worked as a translator, localization director, and programmer for the Japanese game-makers, Honeywood gave everyone who attended this year's Game Developers Conference an insider's view of the daily travails that the localization staff has to go through in order to deliver quality games to their international fans.

The first and main problem that they often have to deal with is the sheer complexity of many Square Enix games. According to Honeywood, making such complex titles takes a lot of time, of which there never seems to be enough of. Add that to the fact that the members of the localization team are "either artists or perfectionists," and you've got a time management issue to deal with.

Then there's the issue of money, or the lack of it. In order to conserve funds, members of the localization team will sometimes provide voices for minor roles (like, you know... slimes...), or head for Austria instead of Tokyo in bids to save money on airfare on lodging.

Honeywood also laments the fact that they don't have enough translators who can work with the Japanese script and translate it directly into FIGS (French, Italian, German, Spanish). This causes delays because the script has to be translated into English, before it can be translated into FIGS. They also have to deal with the language on the menus of the games, since there are times when the Japanese term on the menu is too long to be translated into English. In this case, Final Fantasy VIII was cited, where the Japanese words had to be replaced by icons.

Other issues were mentioned during Honeywood's talk, all of which would have been enough to faze ordinary mortals. However, one good thing that can be derived from all this is that it gets one to appreciate their games even more. After all, thinking about how much work, time, and love was put into making the game a possibility is enough to make one feel all warm and fuzzy.

After what seemed to have been a period of inactivity, NCsoft has made its appearance at the ongoing Game Developers Conference in San Francisco. This year, they proudly shared details about the upcoming MMORPG, Tabula Rasa. Over at the GDC, more details about this title were finally revealed.

Developed by Destination Games, this MMORPG will feature elements such as an integrated voice chat system (very handy for raids and instances as it won't require the player to install a separate program just to be able to chat with his teammates), PvPs which can be prompted by clans declaring war on each other, the option to temporarily join squads or permanently swear allegiance to clans, as well as a Character Cloning system which allows players to explore different character paths without having to start over.

Besides these, the game also promises a lot of leg room for the player. There will be several planets to explore, each with its own range of continents and regions. Also, players will be able to craft items for either personal use or trade.

And then there's the Battlefield Control Points. Now, one can remember that one of the selling points of Tabula Rasa is that the players themselves will effect the ultimate outcome of the game as they battle against the Bane and master the power (and language) of the Logos. Well, the Battlefield Control Points will apparently be playing a role in realizing this point of allowing players' actions to change the game: "entrenched positions on a given battlefield can change hands over the course of a battle and affect spawn points and missions of both enemy and friendly characters."

It all sounds very promising, and we're hoping to see if we'll be able to score a beta account for this title. So, while we wait for this game to be released by Fall of this year, here's some artwork and some screenies to enjoy for the moment.

More details, screenshots and artwork after the Jump!

Just recently, Penny Arcade's Mike Krahulik (a.k.a., Gabe) has written a scathing commentary in response to a story that was published by CNN. In his commentary, he expresses his dissatisfaction at the fact that, once again, a murder happens and it all gets blamed on the under-aged suspect's gaming habits, and not on other factors which may have shaped the individual into a killer.

For those who don't frequent CNN's site too often, the article in question discusses the recent rise of the number of incidents which involves homeless individuals being murdered by teenagers "for sport."

As a primary example of such an incident, CNN uses the story of the 49-year-old homeless man, Rex Baum, who was killed in 2004 after he was beaten to death by Nathan Moore, Luis Oyola, and Andrew Ihrcke. At the time of the incident, the killers were 15, 16, and 17 years old respectively. After Baum's body was discovered two days after he was killed, the police were able to track down the teens and question them about what they've done. According to police reports, the eldest answered that Baum apparently "reminded him of playing a violent video game."

That statement from Ihrcke may actually be enough to raise more than a few eyebrows within both the gaming and the legislative community. However, what caught Krahulik's attention was the fact that even though the original article continued to present more facts and examples, and also mentions several other theories on what may have been prompting minors to go on killing sprees, it is inevitable that many would stop reading at the point where video games are mentioned. As Krahulik laments:

These kids have given the media their angle and just like all the other cases where games are mentioned no one will ever look any further. No one will ask what their family life was like, what their parents were like, what the kid was like before all this happened. Games did it and that’s the end of the story ... I'm perfectly aware that the reality of the situation was somewhere between the two extremes. I know full well that violent games did not create this killer and I also know that his parents did not make him a murderer ... The sad truth is that the reality we're talking about here would probably never actually see the light of day. The media will tell the story they want to tell regardless and that story will be about violent games. The parents of these kids will be lucky to get two lines in an article about the crime. If they tell a reporter that their son hardly played games or that he was f***ed up long before they bought a Playstation do you really think that will make it into the final article? You'd never see that side of the story, not in a million years. [Bold format not in original text. - QJ]

However, all that has now changed, as the stepmother of one of the suspects (they did not mention which one) has bravely come out in the open to let everyone know the truth about these teens. Who would have known that the parent of a so-called "video game killer" can actually be a gamer herself? Who would have thought that she was a regular Penny Arcade reader? Who would have expected that she would choose to trust the folks of Penny Arcade with the truth instead of handing it over to the mainstream media?

We'll never be as eloquent as Tycho or Gabe, so click on the "Read" link below, read on, and brace yourselves for what a lot of people in politics would probably hate to hear.

Codemasters has just announced that it is currently celebrating the first year of its MMO game Rising Force Online. First launched in North America back in February 21, 2006, the game has undergone many changes and developments during its first 12-month run. Among these improvements, the most notable would be the release of the game's expansion Giga Final Part 1 back in July, which offered new battle dungeons as well as other high-level content to the players of RF Online.

The first expansion was then quickly followed by Giga Final Part 2 in September of last year, which opened up the Elan Plateau to players. Part 2 also allowed players to participate in Guild Vs. Guild combat for the first time.

In the meantime, now that RF Online is launching into its second year, the crew from Codemasters promises a whole parade of new content which should keep the Bellato, Cora, and Accretia populace happy and occupied, all the way until 2008.

At the moment, the Dutch prosecutor's office as well as four political parties in the Netherlands, are all up in arms against virtual pedophilia. Specifically, they are requesting to ban virtual sex with virtual minors within the realm of the MMORPG, Second Life. In fact, Jos Buschman of the Van Mesdag clinic in Groningen, has even gone as far as to say that the game is "by definition a school for pedophiles".

As a bit of a background before we move on, one has to be aware that since 2002, Dutch legislators have made virtual child pornography, or "Kinderporno", a criminal offense. Violators of this law may face a penalty of up to four years in prison or more, if they are proven guilty. The scope of this law includes "simulated" child pornography, and by "simulated", this could be anything from a convincing image of a child which was purely rendered digitally (no actual underaged model was used in the process, or it was not based on an actual child), to images or media which feature adults who perform or participate in lewd or sexual acts, while disguised as children.

While many have argued that these do not inflict actual harm on children and that it may even infringe on one's freedom of expression (as it is considered in the U.S.), the propagators of this law have argued back that such material, though it may be only simulated, may "encourage child molesters and, when shown to a child, may give the child the impression that the depicted acts are normal". (Quote, as taken from Wikipedia's entry on the subject.)

So, with that in mind, the Dutch government now wants a crackdown on child avatars in Second Life, who offer virtual sex services to other players for a fee. Faced with this issue, Linden Lab vice president of community development Robin Harper has noted that "if Second Life has evidence of child pornography or abuse that involves children in the real world, it will act to protect the child and notify the authorities". But what happens when all you've got are a bunch of adults who happen to have sexual preferences which they only act out online? Many have recently pointed out that in the game, all there is to find would be adults who happen to role-play as children, and many state that there can ONLY be adults within the game as you have to be of legal age to join the game in the first place.

At this time, many members of online communities are divided on whether or not this move is beneficial to everyone in the long run. One side states that possible child molesters should not be encouraged by the activities that they encounter online, while the other half believes that trying to prosecute people for their ideas which they explore via non-harmful means, instead of prosecuting them for what they actually carry out in real life, is unfair.

And so, as of February 21, a new company announces to the world that it's here, it exists, and it's more than ready to jump into the world of MMO development. We're talking about Heatwave Interactive. Spearheaded by two men who are no strangers to the industry, the company promises a new take on gaming. In other words, it wants everyone to know that it is "not just another MMO company".

At the helm of this new venture are Anthony Castoro and Donn Clendenon. Castoro has had formidable experience in the field of game development, and is known for his work in titles such as Ultima Online and Star Wars Galaxies, as well as his involvement with games like D&D Online and ArchLord (the last two being part of his stint with Codemasters). Clendenon, on the other hand, has a solid background in finance and is the founder of the World Gaming Corporation.

With these two figures leading this venture, Heatwave Interactive's mission is clear, and this mission - in the words of its founders - is "to create original games that unite the power of online gaming with the excitement of traditional single-player video games." Meanwhile, Clendenon also adds that "a vast opportunity exists for Heatwave which is dedicated to creating innovative character-based experiences."

So can this newcomer really accomplish what it set out to do, and reinvent the face of MMO gaming? We'll soon see.

The guys from Turbine and Codemasters have just announced that they will be launching the Stress Test for the MMORPG Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar very soon. Scheduled to begin on February 23, the event will last until February 26.

Raffle prizes. This is a great opportunity for interested players to try out the game before it goes into Open Beta, and on top of that, players who participate in the event (as well as closed beta players) will also have shots at winning prizes that the devs will be giving away. Participants will be entered into the raffle for one of the three NVIDIA GeForce 8800GTX video cards which are up for grabs.

Stress test. In any case, for those who may not be familiar with what a stress test is, it's basically a period when the devs will allow as many people as they could find to log in to the game servers at the same time. This is to test the server's capacity and see how it will perform under heavy loads. Those who will be participating in a stress test for the first time are advised to expect bad lags, bugs, and the occasional crash. Hopefully, though, the help provided by the participants will allow the devs to take care of whatever needs to be fixed before the game goes public.

Besides, despite the expected crashing and lagging, the guys behind LOTRO are trying their best to sweeten the deal, AND it's free. So, if you've got nothing to do on the dates we just mentioned, then just drop by Turbine's website and sign up for the event.

Vicious Cycle Software">Vicious Engine">Vicious Cycle Software Inc. has just introduced to the world its spankin' new game engine, which the company has lovingly dubbed as the "Vicious Engine". To promote its new middleware solution, Vicious Cycle has also launched the program "The Vicious Engine Rising Stars Program", which  basically aims to assist independent game makers and start-up companies in cross-platform development. According to Vicious Cycle Software's president, Eric Peterson,

There are great ideas out there just begging to be made into games, and the Rising Stars program was designed to be the catalyst for turning dreams into reality ... Aspiring developers will receive expert feedback, access to the Vicious Engine, as well as an inside track to getting their game published.

The company also goes on to explain that the program will not just assist game makers with the technical aspects, but that they will also receive important business support by introducing the fledgling devs to publishers. So, in a nutshell, participants in the Rising Stars Program can expect the following:

• Access to the Vicious Engine build for six months
• Online technical support for Vicious Engine
• Expert feedback during the development process
• Upon completion and approval of demo, connection to publishers

In the meantime, those who are interested in taking up Vicious on its offer can check out the Vicious webpage at www.ViciousEngine.com, while those who have questions about the program can send an email to risingstars@viciousengine.com.