The Last Story Message Board

The Last Story was released in North America by XSEED, after original publisher Nintendo decided to skip it. Nintendo's lack of interest turned out to be a boon for XSEED: today, Executive Vice President Ken Berry revealed that the RPG "has become our most successful title to date." XSEED declined to offer specific sales numbers.

In response to this success - and to the selling out of the original printing - XSEED is now shipping a standard edition that lacks the art book and special packaging from the original release. It's also cheaper, at a $29.99 MSRP. The MSRP on any remaining "premium" versions is now $40. If you need a cheap game to go with your Wii U, don't forget about the backward compatibility for stuff like this!

#thelaststory Remember how Nintendo wasn't going to release The Last Story in the United States, even though it's an awesome role-playing game and the Wii was barren for two whole years? Remember how XSEED came in and scored a publishing deal just by asking for the game late last year? More »

A portion of a 1up review...

The Last Story traces a path towards the future of a genre that almost disappeared during this generation. It gives familiar tales new life by portraying a tried and true cast of stock characters in a new, realistic way while also proving that Japan still has a few things to say about game design to a marketplace filled with titles who do so little to dare to feel different from each other.

Full review here

A portion of a Siliconera review...

Yes, there’s political intrigue, a healthy dose of fantasy and plenty of action, but there are also moments where our hero and his friends will do more than just the standard “save the world” quests.

Full review here

A portion of an MTV review...

If you find no use for the multiplayer, and can get past the occasionally choppy graphics, there's an enjoyable game here... especially if the only console you own is a Wii.

Full review here

A portion of an NWR review...

While my review may seem overly positive, the game’s small number of flaws are incredibly frustrating at times. That said, if you feel you can look past a few missed opportunities and a flawed but fun combat system, I can’t see why you wouldn’t enjoy The Last Story. Just don’t expect it to be as genre defining as previous Sakaguchi titles.

Full review here

This is a column by Kat Bailey dedicated to the analysis of the once beloved Japanese RPG sub-genre. Tune in every Wednesday for thoughts on white-haired villains, giant robots, Infinity+1 swords, and everything else the wonderful world of JRPGs has to offer.
When Hironobu Sakaguchi set out to make The Last Story, one of his main goals was to make something new. It was an approach that made him nervous.

"With this title, I felt strongly that as the creator of the game, I was laying myself bare, and I was anxious about how the customers would respond to my ideas," Sakaguchi said in an Iwata Asks feature released by Nintendo. "At the same time, there are certain unique things I want to do and express, and in the end, I don't think that my approach is mistaken."

In the end, Sakaguchi was indeed vindicated. The Last Story was met with solid reviews, and was praised in large part because of its creative battle system. All told, it's a nice story of a developer breaking out of its comfort zone to create a new and interesting game, and it's worth reading the full interview to see how The Last Story ultimately came out. I don't think it needs to be the whole story though.

It's in part because The Last Story incorporates so many new elements that I would like to see it adopted in some way by other RPG developers - especially strategy RPG developers. The Last Story can't really be pegged in any particular genre; but it does have a fair amount in common with strategy RPGs. It's not grid-based, or even turn-based, but it does place a premium on enemy placement, for example, by making it possible to knock out casters or other hazards using alternative methods.

A portion of an Escapist review...

The Last Story isn't perfect, but its engaging characters and strong gameplay are more than enough to carry it through any rough patches.

Full review here

#thelaststory I've been playing The Last Story, as you know. While researching (read: aimlessly Googling) the game earlier this week, I happened upon this old Iwata Asks interview from 2010. More »

The Last Story appears to flip the script on Dragon Quest. Where Square Enix's seminal RPG series normally seeks to tell new stories within familiar mechanical frameworks, Final Fantasy creator Hironobu Sakaguchi's latest effort offers a very (very) familiar narrative while experimenting wildly with its battle system.

The story is vintage Final Fantasy - a collection of traditional role-playing tropes set amid a world featuring an effective mix of medieval and steampunk elements. The hero Zael has a lot in common with the likes of Cloud and Cecil, and his infatuation with a runaway princess brings to mind Final Fantasy IX. There's even a flying fortress ala Balamb Garden from Final Fantasy VIII. For some, it will be charming (I'm in that camp), though others may find it distracting.

#thelaststory Lost among this week's barrage of awesome new video games is The Last Story, a role-playing game that's slipped pretty damn far under gamers' radars considering it was designed and directed by the man who created Final Fantasy. More »

Finally, after all the anticipation, petitioning, and weird fan campaigns, The Last Story arrives on Wii in North America today, published by XSEED. See why so many people were so anxious to get a chance to play it in this launch trailer.

A portion of a Dtoid review...

I am not glad that The Last Story is, ultimately, a sub-standard experience from a studio that is capable of so much better than this. If The Last Story is the Wii's swan song, it is a miserable dirge, full of regret and remorse.

Full review here

The official website for The Last Story is now ready for you to click and prod it all you want. There are some gorgeous wallpapers in there just ripe for the taking. There's also a bunch of story info, screes, art and more!

XSEED has announced an August 14 release date for Mistwalker's anticipated, petitioned-for Wii role-playing game, The Last Story.

All launch copies will include an art book; in addition to that, XSEED revealed the above soundtrack disc as a pre-order bonus from Amazon, GameStop and EB Canada. That's some deluxe treatment for what is sure to be one of the last big Wii games, and it seems to deserve the attention.

#thelaststory Wii action-role-playing game The Last Story will arrive on August 14, XSEED said today on its Twitter account. More »

- due out August 14, 2012
- pre-order at Amazon.com, EB Games Canada or GameStop for a bonus
- bonus is a soundtrack CD
- features seven tracks from the game's score
- limited edition features a softcover art book and custom packaging
- all 'launch copies' of Last Story will come in the limited edition format
- $50

#thelaststory Just listen to those grand inflections. This is the new trailer for The Last Story, an upcoming Wii RPG that will be out in the U.S. this summer. (Still no official release date yet.) As you can see, the characters are very English. It's almost as if this game was localized in Europe last year and still somehow took a year to get to the United States. Almost. More »

#randomencounters Nintendo has an annoying tendency to keep games all to themselves. Over the past few years, the Japanese company has sat on the rights to much-requested series like Mother, Fatal Frame, and Fire Emblem, stubbornly refusing to translate and ship them over to U.S. shores. More »