Namco, Enix and Squaresoft forms alliance for PlayOnline

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Jun 26, 2001

The well-known Japanese video game Company of Namco, Squaresoft, and Enix said last week that they are going to team up in online games and overseas distribution in hope that they would cut the rising development costs. These results in the three companies are going to take prime position and become one of the best in the online console gaming market.

Under the agreement, Namco and Enix will provide new online game titles and meanwhile, Squaresoft is preparing to roll out the online Final Fantasy XI PlayOnline. They are hoping to launch this by the end of this year, but details are not yet given.

The three companies aim to jointly set up a company to operate POL by the end of this year, but details have not been cemented yet. One company may seem strong, but with the three companies join together, they would be terribly strong in gaming market.

Enix president is considering releasing Dragon Quest online. Also, there would be totally a big number of users trying to access the online gaming, this is one of the problems that might cause crashing.This crashing risk is minimised; at least, they try to minimise it. According to my opinion, PlayOnline could attract more than 500000 users with just Final Fantasy name alone; however, getting users online with Playstation 2 machine is quite hard due to the economy. It is approximately $165 for the hard disk/modem for the Internet. Going on to the games. The most recent released game in PS2 is Escape From Monkey Island, just like the one on PC. This game is sold boomingly on PC and is assumed going to be sold as much on PS2. The game has many puzzles, however these are perfectly balanced, and are completely logical in Monkey Island’s stereotypical way. The game also lets the player experiment different things since dying or making a mistake is impossible..

The cartoon graphic is not the best, but they’re totally appropriate for the game’s atmosphere. The music and the funny voice acting in the game are great and awesome that beats all other PS2 games. It is also better control since it is easier to walk around in PS2 version. Do you remember that old Escape from Monkey Island 2 in PC? If you do, and if you look for something adventurous and full of hilarious humor, try this game.

For Playstation one, Sony CEA announces on 19th June the release of Disney's Atlantis: The Lost Empire. The game is available in conjunction with the release of Walt Disney’s animated feature film. (This way it attracts more people). The game’s genre is 3D action-platform. The players take on the role of Milo, a linguist and cartographer, whose ambition is to discover Atlantis.