GamePlay Unlimited

Big news this morning, Square Enix has announced their plan to gain a majority stake in Tecmo. Square is planning to offer stakeholders a 30% premium over the closing price on August 28. Last week Tecmo president Yoshimi Yasuda left the company but the loss did not affect the talks says Sqaure president Yoichi Wada. According to a press release (via IGN ); "Wada addressed the possibility of synergy between the two companies. He noted that Tecmo has strong global titles, something that has attracted his attention for some time. He also noted that Square Enix is an RPG-focused company, and one wouldn't call action it's strongest field. Wada explained that with this in mind, he's hoping not for cooperative development but for the two firms to "inspire" one-another." Stay tuned for more information on this developing story at GamePlay Unlimited.

While most of you readers were sleeping, Microsoft, Square Enix, and Namco Bandai unveiled their lineup of RPGs in Japan. The games were unveiled by Takashi Sensui, general manager of the home and entertainment division at Microsoft. Among the games discussed were Infinite Undiscovery, Star Ocean: The Last Hope, The Last Remnant, Tales of Vesperia, Fable 2, and Mass Effect in Japan. Will this be the year the Xbox takes off in Japan? Only time will tell. The highlights of the event were the announcement that Square Enix's Last Remnant will be releasing on the Xbox 360 first this winter, with the PS3 to follow some time later. Also Enix's Infinite Undiscovery got a lunch date, United States on September 2, 2008, in Europe on September 5, 2008, and in Japan and Asia on September 11, 2008. A system bundle for Tales of Vesperia was announced for ¥37,800 (US $356) in Japan only. The game and bundle is set to release August 7th with a demo coming sometime this month, no word on whethe...