Top Five Final Fantasy Games of All-Time

Today marks the stateside release of Square-Enix's thirteenth numbered title in it's long-running RPG series with "Final Fantasy XIII."

Culminating for more than 20 years, the Final Fantasy series has been honored with making mages cool, Chocobo a household name (in gaming households) and level-up a term of endearment.

To honor the newest installment of the crowning achievement that is the Final Fantasy franchise, lets take a look at some of the best Final Fantasy games of all-time.

5. Final Fantasy X

Although the game suffered from not only linear gameplay, but an incredibly linear story it was a visual masterpiece on the Playstation 2 and continued the tradition of wonderfully crafted music by composer Nobuo Uematsu.

4. Final Fantasy IV

Originally unreleased in the United States, Final Fantasy IV has been hailed by many as the best Final Fantasy of the 2D days. Main protagonist Cecil showed gamers that multidimensional can exist in video games.

3. Final Fantasy IX

Having perhaps the best music in the series, Final Fantasy IX is proof that you can't judge a game by its abrupt departure in artistic design from a successful series. FFIX has an amazing story that spans a satisfyingly long journey.

2. Final Fantasy VII

Final Fantasy VII needs no introduction nor does the game's protagonist and antagonist. In one of the most amazing and unforgettable video games ever created, FFVII has the perfect blend of unrelentless RPG mayham and instant classic of a storyline. FFVII is near perfection in every way and is a stable in the video game canon.

1. Final Fantasy VIII

Final Fantasy VIII matched its predecessor in every way while exceeding it with slightly more engaging characters and a much better visual palette. FFVIII is quintessentially everything the series stands for with the most dynamic blend of gameplay and drama in any video game ever made.

Playstation 3 Glitch Resolved?

A new update on the official Playstation blog states that Sony's PS3 glitch blunder may be over for millions of upset PS3 owners.

The post in its entirety is below:

We are aware that the internal clock functionality in the PS3 units other than the slim model, recognized the year 2010 as a leap year. Having the internal clock date change from February 29 to March 1 (both GMT), we have verified that the symptoms are now resolved and that users are able to use their PS3 normally.

If the time displayed on the XMB is still incorrect, users are able to adjust time settings manually or via the internet. If we have new information, we will update you through the PlayStation.Blog or PlayStation.com.

We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.

No firmware update? It was just some stupid error with PS3 consoles thinking this is a leap year? How does that affect trophies or other game content?

It seems that Sony needs to release more of an explanation for it's blunder.

Playstationary: Millions of Older PS3 Models Suffering from Playstation 3 Calendar Glitch

Millions of Playstation 3 owners - myself included - were met with a peculiar and annoying "glitch" yesterday that has Sony panicking.

Owners of the non-slim versions of the Playstation 3 failed to connect to the Playstation Network preventing access to online content via the PS3 and also seems to affect games for off-line play.

Media outlets are suggesting that the glitch is somehow related to the date turnover from February to March and is affecting trophy information and possibly corrupting system information.

The console's date and time have reportedly been reset on many systems and the bug seems hit console regardless of connectivity to the internet or not suggesting an internal software error and not an external attack.

Jeff Rubenstein, social media manager with the Playstation Network, wrote on the official Playstation blog that Sony has identified the issue and are working to resolve it:

"Know that we have narrowed down the issue and have engineers working to restore service even as you read this. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause you, and genuinely appreciate your patience while we work to resolve this."

You can follow the status of Sony's resolution on their Twitter page.

PC World has pieced together a pretty concise list of what is known about the glitch thus far.

Playstation 3 owners should be mindful of their usage for the time being because I attempted to play "Bionic Commando: Rearmed" last evening and my full version was somehow reset to a demo mode and I later received a message saying the game was corrupted after I tried to relaunch the title.

Furthermore, I was unable to play "Assassin's Creed II" and re-directed to the XMB because of a trophy malfunction. 

UPDATE: Sony has confirmed that the malfunctions on older PS3 units are due to a "bug in the clock functionality incorporated in the system." They hope to resolve the issue within 24-hours according to Patrick Seybold, senior director of corporate communications and social media for Playstation wrote: 

"In the meantime, if you have a model other than the new slim PS3, we advise that you do not use your PS3 system, as doing so may result in errors in some functionality, such as recording obtained trophies, and not being able to restore certain data."

Video Game Freedom Reaches 100,000 Unique Hits

It took about 2 1/2 years, but Video Game Freedom has finally made it.

Today, VGF reached more than 100,000 unique hits!

Since its launch in October 2007 VGF has seen numerous transformations including multiple redesigns, renaming, rebranding as well as some experiments with podcasts, reviews, features and news.

Last October, VGF launched "VGF Magazine" as a print supplement to Video Game Freedom. The March issue of "VGF Magazine" will be active shortly and will feature a cover illustration by graphic design student Scott Daly.

You can view some of his work at scottdaly.com.

Here's to many more hits and with your help we might be able to break 1 million some day.

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves steals 10 awards at the 13th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards

2009 will soon be remembered of the year when everyone announced they were jumping aboard Nintendo's ship with both Microsoft and Sony announcing motion controllers.

However, it should also be considered the year of "Uncharted 2: Among Thieves."

Taking home a whooping 10 awards from last night's 13th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards hosted by the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences.

The Playstation 3 exclusive and follow-up to the 2007 action-adventure series swept every technical award the academy could provide as well as adventure game of the year and overall game of the year beating out "Assassin's Creed II," "Batman: Arkham Asylum" and "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2" in that category.

This is the second consecutive year a Playstation 3 exclusive title has won the overall game of the year award.

Developed by Naughty Dog, Uncharted 2's 10 awards is the most ever awarded to a single game with two more awards than last year's "Little Big Planet" and one more than "Half-life 2" which was awarded nine.

You can check out the winners of the 2009 VGF Awards in the next issue of VGF Magazine heading to MagCloud.com next month.

Check out the full list of winners from the 13th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards below:

Overall Game of the Year:

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves

Portable Game of the Year:

Scribblenauts

Casual Game of the Year:

Flower

Fighting Game of the Year:

Street Fighter IV

Racing Game of the Year:

Forza Motorsport 3

Sports Game of the Year:

FIFA Soccer 10

Role-playing/Massively Multiplayer of the Year:

Dragon Age: Origins

Action Game of the Year:

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2

Adventure Game of the Year:

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves

Strategy/Simulation Game of the Year:

Brutal Legend

Family Game of the Year:

The Beatles: Rock Band

Social Networking Game of the Year:

FarmVille

Outstanding Innovation in Gaming:

Scribblenauts

Outstanding Achievement in Game Direction:

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves

Outstanding Achievement in Game Design:

Batman: Arkham Asylum

Outstanding Achievement in Portable Game Design:

Scribblenauts

Outstanding Achievement in Character Performance:

Mark Hamill as The Joker in Batman: Arkham Asylum

Outstanding Achievement in Sound Design:

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves

Outstanding Achievement in Soundtrack:

Brutal Legend

Outstanding Achievement in Original Music Composition:

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves

Outstanding Achievement in Adapted Story:

Batman: Arkham Asylum

Outstanding Achievement in Original Story:

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves

Outstanding Achievement in Online Gameplay:

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2

Outstanding Achievement in Gameplay Engineering:

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves

Outstanding Achievement in Visual Engineering:

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves

Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction:

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves

Outstanding Achievement in Animation:

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves

Microsoft Xbox Consoles Losing Xbox LIVE Support

Xbox LIVE general manager Marc Witten made a surprising announcement today for gamers still clinging to their giant black box known as the original Microsoft Xbox.

As of April 15 - tax day - Microsoft will eliminate Xbox LIVE support for all Xbox games played on the Xbox and Xbox 360. Meaning the days of yore fragging on "Halo 2" will soon be a thing of the past.

In the posted press release, Witten said those still using the service on the Xbox will be notified of the change:

And as we look down the road, we’ll continue to evolve the service with features and experiences that harness the full power of Xbox 360.

No word on any other changes that are in-store of the 23 million strong community such as any mention of a free alternative outside of a Nintendo Wii or Sony Playstation 3.

However, by whipping the slate clean, this could make way for further Xbox LIVE integration for the NATAL this Fall:

I believe we’ll look back on 2010 as a landmark year in gaming and home entertainment, and I couldn’t be more excited about what we have in store with “Project Natal” and LIVE. The LIVE community is the driving force behind everything we do, and it’s because of the community that ground-breaking experiences on Xbox continue to be possible.

"Sonic the Hedgehog 4" racing to consoles this summer

Sega made a surprising announcement today that everyone's favorite fast-paced marsupial Sonic the Hedgehog is finally returning to where he belongs - in two-dimensions.

This summer "Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode 1" will launch on Nintendo Wii, Microsoft Xbox 360, Sony Playstation 3 consoles as well as one unnamed platform as a download-only game.

16 years after Sonic's last 2D appearance in "Sonic and Knuckles," the same gameplay full of spin dashes and rolling attacks will make its way into the all-new game returning to the Genesis-era.

Details will slowly be released at the game's official web site, but the mere title implies that this may be the first of many installments of the game.