Final Fantasy III fan art
The Ouya news just keeps rolling in. The $99 Android-based TV console just landed another launch partner and title, in Square Enix’s Final Fantasy III.
Back in March of this year, Square Enix released an Android port of Final Fantasy III. Nearly a year earlier, FF3 was ported to iOS, but it first premiered for American and European players on the Nintendo DS in 2006. But don’t be fooled: Final Fantasy III is an old game. In gaming terms, it’s ancient. It launched in Japan as a PC title waaaaay back in 1990, but didn’t debut on a TV-based console until it went up for sale on Nintendo’s Virtual Console service three years ago.
Why am I telling you this? So you’ll appreciate the significance of this bestselling, critically-acclaimed entry in the franchise coming to Ouya. Granted, it’s not hard to port an existing Android game over to the Android-based Ouya system. But it’s still a big deal, because it’s yet further proof that Ouya might just be a force to be reckoned with — and a game-changer for the console industry.
It is the 3D remake built for the Nintendo DS that Ouya’s getting — and both companies are claiming it’s getting a major high-def upgrade for the occasion. Not only will this be the best-looking version of FF3 ever released, it will also comply with Ouya’s requirement of a free-to-play component by offering a free demo. And yes, it will be a launch title for Ouya in March of next year.
Final Fantasy III was the first entry in the series to sell more than one million copies. It told the story of four orphans who become the wielders of crystal-based powers that spur them on to a mission to save the world from darkness.