Square Enix announces new MMORPG, Final Fantasy VII sequel

Japanese publisher Square Enix has revealed two new titles on its upcoming schedule - with the firm's next foray into the massively multiplayer market due for release in 2005, and a PS2 sequel to the classic Final Fantasy VII also in the pipeline.

Details of the new massively multiplayer title, called Fantasy Earth: Ring of Dominion, emerged when the firm put promotional leaflets for the game into the Japanese boxes for its new Final Fantasy XI expansion, Chains of Promathia.

Fantasy Earth is set for release on the PC - with no mention of a PlayStation 2 version anywhere to be found, unlike its stablemate FFXI - and is described by Square Enix as deviating from the normal MMORPG genre by adding action and strategy game elements to the mix.

Meanwhile, popular boy's weekly magazine Shonen Jump carried the first details of a new Final Fantasy VII spin-off in its latest issue, with Final Fantasy VII: Dirge of Cerberus set to be the first console sequel to the classic PlayStation RPG.

Set after the events of the forthcoming CG movie Final Fantasy VII Advent Children, Dirge of Cerberus stars Vincent Valentine, a mysterious character from the original game who is forced to take a stand against a group called the DGs who attack peaceful towns in Midgar.

Details about the game are thin on the ground, although we know that it's due for release in 2005, and the title appears at first glance to be a third person action game - with comparisons immediately being drawn with Capcom's Devil My Cry, although that might be more to do with Vincent's red coat and guns than anything else.