BioShock™

As Eurogamer turns 20, we thought, you know what? It's not all about us. It's also about the developers, the people behind the virtual magic that inspired the creation of Eurogamer two decades ago. Without the developers, we wouldn't be here. And so, we thought we'd ask a few of them (20, in fact!) to pick the games that defined the last 20 years, and see what would come of it.

We approached a broad range of people, from top executives and legendary talent to tiny indies. We asked them to pick a game that defined the last 20 years, but left it up to them to interpret the question. It could be a game that defined the industry, that meant a lot to them professionally or personally, or is just a favourite.

We're delighted with the responses (thank you to everyone who contributed!). There's some fantastic insight here, super cool anecdotes and the odd surprising choice. We hope you enjoy it!

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The Last Remnant™

Remember The Last Remnant? Square Enix's role-playing game will soon be discontinued on PC nearly a decade after it came out.

In Europe, The Last Remnant will be delisted at 5pm UK time on 4th September, which means you have just over a week to grab it from Steam before it's scrubbed forever. Of course, if you already own the game you will be able to play as normal.

In its note on Steam, Square Enix failed to explain why The Last Remnant was being delisted on PC, but it did thank players.

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The Last Remnant™


Final Fantasy maker Square Enix has signed Epic's Unreal Engine 3 to make multiple unannounced games.


Square Enix signed on the bottom line after meeting with Epic Games Japan, the Gears of War developer's Japanese branch.


It is unclear which games this deal relates to, but quotes from Taka Kawasaki, territory manager of Epic Games Japan, suggest Square Enix Japan will make use of the tech.


"Many Western games have achieved great success with the Unreal Engine, and this milestone reflects the Japanese development community's trust in our technical prowess," he said.


"We can't wait to see how Square Enix fuses the power of Unreal Engine 3 with its beautiful characters, enthralling storylines and fantastic gameplay."


Square Enix Japan creates the Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest and Kingdom Hearts games.


Its studios in the West make Tomb Raider, Hitman, Kane & Lynch, Deus Ex, Thief and Legacy of Kain.


Hitman maker IO Interactive uses the new Glacier 2.0 engine, which is next-gen ready. Crystal Dynamics' CDC Engine is used for the upcoming Tomb Raider.


Details about the games using the Unreal Engine under this license agreement will be revealed by Square Enix, Epic said.


Square Enix Japan recently announced its next generation engine, Luminous Studio. Luminous Studio is said to be similar to Unreal Engine, and is DirectX 11 ready in anticipation of the transition to the next generation of consoles.


The deal with Epic suggests Unreal Engine 3 will be used in the short term by Square Enix.


Square Enix has form with Unreal. It used the tech to make role-playing game The Last Remnant in 2008.

Eurogamer


Square Enix has just announced Final Fantasy XI Ultimate Collection Abyssea Edition – a PC download that bundles its 2003 MMO and all associated content into a single purchase.


It's available for download on 16th May from Steam, Nexway and Metaboli.


As well as the core game, you'll get all four expansions: Rise of the Zilart, Chains of Promathia, Treasures of Aht Urhgan and Wings of the Goddess.


All add-on scenarios are included too, namely, A Crystalline Prophecy – Ode of Life Bestowing, A Moogle Kupo d'Etat – Evil in Small Doses, and A Shantotto Ascension – The Legend Torn, Her Empire Born.


Not only that but all additional battle areas are lumped in: Vision of Abyssea, Scars of Abyssea and Heroes of Abyssea.


Finally, all downloads come with a new in-game item called the Destrier Beret, which is apparently loaded with bonuses to help new players get started.


Final Fantasy XI Online originally launched on PC and PlayStation 2 back in 2003, with an Xbox 360 version following in 2006. Eurogamer's Rob Fahey dubbed it a "a beautiful, intriguing, mysterious and captivating experience" in his recent retrospective.

Eurogamer


Final Fantasy XI and XIV will be back online this week, after Square Enix shut the servers to conserve energy following the devastating earthquake that hit Japan earlier this month.


According to the official Final Fantasy XIV site, the servers will be back up on 25th March.


"Please be aware, however, that we may once again be required to suspend services in the event that the power situation worsens," the post explained.


Final Fantasy XI players will not be charged monthly fees during the April billing cycle to make up for the down time.


The publisher also took the time to highlight exactly how much power it saved during the outage.


"Operating the servers for these services makes up 11.6 per cent of the total power consumed by our Tokyo office (based on February 2011 records).


"We have shut down our air conditioning system (8.8 per cent) and enacted other power conservation measures, such as reducing lighting in our offices, to achieve over 10 per cent in energy usage reductions."


"We at the Square Enix group are trying to act in a proactive manner in order to provide support towards the relief and restoration efforts in the face of this unprecedented disaster while providing reliable service to our customers, and we thank you for your understanding and support."

Eurogamer


Japanese game company Square Enix has made massively multiplayer online role-playing games Final Fantasy XI and Final Fantasy XIV unavailable to play worldwide in an effort to conserve energy following last week's earthquake and tsunami.


The move follows Konami's decision to halt Metal Gear Online play.


Over the weekend the Japanese government asked householders to conserve energy in the hope it would help avoid power cuts across the nation.


Service on the two Final Fantasy MMORPGs was halted yesterday. The suspension is planned for at least a week. Final Fantasy XI's April service will be free as a result.


"Due to the continuous earthquakes occurring in the eastern regions of Japan since 11th March, the power companies in Japan have encouraged everyone to cooperate by conserving as much energy as possible as it is feared there will not be enough power supply," Square Enix said in a statement.


"Based on the current situation, we have decided to shut down the game servers temporarily, and therefore to suspend services of Final Fantasy XIV, Final Fantasy XI, and PlayOnline temporarily."

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