Last night, the Japanese Square Enix Members Twitter account (@SQEX_MEMBERS_JP) posted a short comment from Final Fantasy XIV Producer Hiromichi Tanaka regarding beta selection.  Tanaka was quoted as saying:

"Participants for the Windows beta test will be selected sequentially.  From the time the beta test begins, we will continue to slowly, but surely, add in players.

Those who haven't been selected, please don't be disappointed and start looking forward to your next chance!"

For now, players can try submitting their application through ZAM's Special Beta Recruitment, but whether you win or lose, chin up!  There are more opportunities on the horizon!

The Secret Bonus Stage at VanaFest2010 came and went before we knew it, but it is by far the one part of the show that I am most asked about.  It was a section of VanaFest that was meant as an exclusive for the attendees, and as such, we were explicitly told that no photos could be taken during the movie.

In addition, as many of you now know, they followed up the teaser for Final Fantasy XIV with the announcement that all event-goers would be entered into the beta test, beginning with the alpha version of the game.  At that point, the usually subdued Japanese crowd absolutely exploded into applause and cheers.  Luckily, many loyal Final Fantasy XI fans may get the chance for such celebration as the Official VanaFest2010 Site states:

"With the eagerly anticipated FINAL FANTASY XIV drawing ever nearer its beta test phase, we are excited to announce that we will be conducting a closed alpha test—exclusive to our loyal FINAL FANTASY XI users!

Those who have been selected as beta testers can expect to receive further information starting from Monday, March 1.

* The tester website is scheduled to go live on Thursday, March 11.Those who were not selected in this drawing, fear not, for there will be other opportunities to come. Be sure to stay tuned!"

So, don't worry!  There's still hope!  In the meantime, let's recap the exclusive video and see what the developers had to say after the show!

*Note: Pictures used in this article are from previous trailers.

** UPDATE: We regret to inform our community that the original article describing the trailer point by point has been removed at the request of Square Enix.

Those who have followed Final Fantasy XIV news from the beginning know that it has not always been such a hot topic outside of dedicated fan forums.  Even within those communities, some people were upset that Square Enix was not releasing information fast enough and others were simply disappointed with what they saw.  Japanese fans were no exception, as the upcoming MMO would rarely break out of the 20s on weekly Top-30 Anticipated Games lists.  

However, it looks like Valentine's Day (season?) has brought some new love for the developing title.  FFXIV has shot up considerably in both Famitsu and Dengeki, securing itself a very comfortable spot in the top 10.  Besides a few skeptics, many are anxiously anticipating the promised 2010 release, and if the developers are to be believed, they have continued to back that promise in every interview conducted thus far.  VanaFest2010 is also mere days ahead of us, and both the Japanese and English sites for the event are hinting at an FFXIV announcement for the "Super Secret Dodecatuple Bonus Stage."

However you feel about FFXIV, it has already been quite a ride.

Remember when Square Enix copyrighted Lord of Vermillion?  Forums were abuzz with rumors that it was FFXI-related -- perhaps a brand new expansion to enjoy!  While long ago it was confirmed to be a completely unrelated title, Dengeki Games has revealed there may have been a nugget of truth in our attempts at clairvoyance.  Lord of Vermillion 2 is set to receive a version update in March that will bring some popular FFXI characters into the game!

Recently, Sqaure Enix has taken to Facebook and Twitter in order to promote the upcoming VanaFest2010 in Tokyo.  There are fan pages and feeds in English, French and German that are dedicated to getting fans around the world the information they crave the second it's announced.

However, with considerably less fanfare, it seems that some key Square Enix employees in Japan have caught the Twitter bug as well.  President and CEO Yoichi Wada is signed up under @yoichiw and FFXI/FFXIV Producer Hiromichi Tanaka has grabbed @tanakahiromichi.

They are surprisingly casual with other Square Enix Twitterers and also many random users out there who comment to them.  However, don't expect any big leaks besides Tanaka's admission that he's hard at work on FFXIV.  This casual nature also led many people to wonder if these accounts were real.  Japanese media sites did some digging and vouched for them, but a lot of forum-goers were still skeptical.  What better way to confirm them today than with -- puppies!

As the buzz continues to grow around Final Fantasy XIV, Producer Hiromichi Tanaka is also increasingly finding himself the center of attention.  In this week's Famitsu, he was part of a feature on the 20 Most Anticipated Games & Game Creators of 2010.  Tanaka has been a part of Square Enix since 1983, but is now coming into the spotlight thanks to his work producing Final Fantasy XI, and of course, the upcoming Final Fantasy XIV.

In this interview he gives his opinions on the state and direction of the gaming industry and elaborates a little on plans for the Final Fantasy XIV beta test.

Also, as each creator who was interviewed did, Tanaka also showed off his (dare I say, mad) calligraphy skills.  He referenced the release of a brand new online world with 新天地 (shin-ten-chi) "new world", and wrote "Eorzea" in hiragana: えおるぜあ.  Don't forget that registered symbol!

Read on for the interview and discuss this in the ZAM forums!

An interview was released this week in the most recent issue of Dengeki Games.  It turned out to be a nice read, so I won't waste your time padding this intro.

Check it out below!

Discuss in the ZAM forums!

As we all know now, anxious Final Fantasy XIV fans can finally sign up for a chance to play the first closed beta version on PC.  Meanwhile, in Japan, people were lining up to get their hands on copies of Final Fantasy XIII, which was rumored to contain a chance to enter the upcoming Playstation 3 beta version.

So, how did that turn out?

Discuss this in the ZAM forums.

There is a picture circulating the Internet that apparently shows a portion of the "campaign code" slip that comes with early copies of Final Fantasy XIII.  From the parts that can be read, it seems to indicate that the code will grant a "secret item" as well as be involved in gaining access to upcoming beta tests.

Besides the fact that parts are cropped and blurry, there is not enough information to say anything is certain at this point.  Final Fantasy XIII will hit stores on Thursday, December 17th, so everything will come to light soon.

Starting December 14th, SQUARE ENIX MEMBERS will merge with the Square Enix Account system.  The move, which also combines logins for some other Japanese-only titles, will finally wrap up Square Enix online services into one neat and tidy area.  Also, it will allow them to launch their new online-based currency: Crysta.

Discuss this in the ZAM forums.