The game was developed by Dead or Alive's Team Ninja and Koei Tecmo and it has been confirmed the game uses adapted PlayStartion 4 hardware as it's core system, and uses a frame rate of 60 frames per second.
The cabinet was also unveiled revealing a single player cabinet with twin sticks with the PlayStation buttons on them. This is the second collaborative arcade machine to recently be released that is using non-traditional arcade controls mimicking their eventual console ports (see Pokken Tournament and it's Nintendo console styled control).
Sony Computer Entertainment Japan's President, Atsushi Morita, confirmed that he was in talks with Square Enix about a potential home console port, telling the crowd he really wanted to bring the game to the home user; however, Square Enix producer Ichiro Hazama confirmed the game will be arcade-exclusive for at least a year following it's release.
Dissidia Final Fantasy Arcade will go on location test as of April 17 and will launch in Japanese game centers this fall. The game will be testing at the following locations:
- April 17-19 (from 10:00 to 24:00):
- HEY (Akihabara, Tokyo)
- Sendai Leisurelan Ichibansho Store (Sendai, Miyagi)
- Nagoya Leisurelan Sasashima Store (Nagoya, Aichi)
- April 24-26 (from 10:00 to 24:00):
- Sega Ikebukuro GiGO (Ikebukuro, Tokyo)
- Round One Stadium Sennichimae Store (Sennichimae, Osaka)
- Taito Station Fukuoka Tenjin Store (Tenjin, Fukuoka)
Gameplay features were also revealed during the conference. Up to 3 single player cabinets link together to create one team, and it is a 3 vs 3 battle game - whether teams will be able to verse each other using an internet network or groups of 3 machines can link to each other in location is yet to be confirmed, however with features such as Chat and regular post-release updates, it makes more sense that it would utilise a network system.
The official website has also been updated with new gameplay information including a breakdown of all the screen information that the player will see while battling. These screen features include (*use the image at the bottom of the page for reference):
1. Playtime
2. Battle Log
3. Teammate Status
4. Player Status
5. HP
6. Target Line
7. Break Bonus
8. Mini-Map
9. Enemy Team Information
10. Chat Icon
Controls are the same across all characters, making it much easier to switch between characters, especially with such a huge line up of playable characters. According to Dissidia Final Fantasy Arcade director, Takeo Kujiraoka, the game currently has 50 playable characters with plans to release more follwing the release of the game in regular updates. Confirmed characters so far include Warrior of Light (Final Fantasy I), Onion Knight (Final Fantasy III), Terra Branford (Final Fantasy VI), Cloud Strife (Final Fantasy VII), Lightning (Final Fantasy XIII), and Y’Shtola (Final Fantasy XIV). Ramza Beoulve from Final Fantasy Tactics has been confirmed to be released as a playable character update post release.
Characters are also customizable in terms of their status, abilities, etc. and can be done with a dedicated smartphone app, so players can make changes without going to the arcade. This cross-platform feature using smart phones or smart devices is a trend that seems to increasing in Japan (see Taito's Wizrogue - Labyrinth of Wizardry game).
Other new details on gameplay includes attacks and abilities of characters and their teams. These include:
- HP Attacks: When a player attacks with an HP Attack, the amount of HP they can take off the enemy is displayed as the Break Bonus stat in the upper-right corner of the screen.
- Brave Attack: When a Brave Attack hits, it can sap away at the enemy’s own Break Bonus.
- Braves: Enemy Braves can also be stolen with a Brave Attack. Braves can be accumulated en masse with a Brave Break. If you manage to accrue all of an enemy’s Braves, you’ll get a bonus. That said, there’s a greater incentive to prioritize enemies with bigger Brave reserves. Brave Breaks are ideal to use after taking HP Attacks and can help stage big comebacks.
- EX Skills: A class of iconic support skills that players can use during battle, such as “Protect” for raising an ally's defense, "Slow" to make enemies move slower and provoking enemies to lock their targets elsewhere. Also includes character specific skills like Tina’s “Trance” and Cloud’s “Limit Break.”
- Summons Beasts: All members of a team share a Summon Gauge that can be built up. When it’s full, if all players join in the invocation, they can have a Summons Beast enter the fray as a temporary fourth teammate. Summons Beasts also have auto-abilities that will be continuously in effect while they’re out on the field, providing an added boon to team members. Hvaing this included in the battle gameplay will make a lot of FF fans very happy, as it is probably (in my humble opinion) one of the coolest things you get to do in the game series. Summons Beasts are selectable.
The game will be getting regular updates for additional characters, stages, summons, battle music, custom parts, balance refinements, and additional gameplay systems, to keep the game fresh and exciting for arcade players.
Incase these new details don't have you hyped already, check out the latest trailer to hit the internet. Released during the latest Letter from the Producer Live broadcast, Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn Producer and Director Naoki Yoshida, introduced a new trailer of the upcoming arcade title Dissidia Final Fantasy:
Not to mention this one too, which shows some more battle scenes from different characters, plus the Summons Beasts ability:
You can also check out the Dissidia Final Fantasy Arcade Official Website and all it's updates here.
