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While video game music is no longer simply the series of 'beeps' and 'boops' it was in the past, it has nonetheless remained one of game design's -- groan -- unsung heroes. This isn't lost on tune-focused Music4Games, and in a recent interview with Kingdom Hearts composer Yoko Shimomura, she spoke out on a number of topics, including her thoughts on creating music for the PlayStation 3.

According to Shimomura, who is responsible for the tunes we'll be humming along to in Square Enix's upcoming Final Fantasy Versus XIII for the PS3, composing on Sony's current platform is much less limiting than it was in previous generations. "With the PlayStation 2, sound production...was a constant battle with memory and limitations," she recalled, adding that "with the PlayStation 3, I'm expecting to have it sound the way I please, without limitations." It's encouraging to hear someone at any level talk about creating content on the PS3 that doesn't involve the words "difficult" or "costly." However, with Square Enix continuing to play coy with regards to when its decade of Final Fantasy will actually kick off, it may be some time before our ears ring with the fruits of Yoko Shimomura's musical labor.

We're not sure how he does it or how long it takes him, but animator and generally insane fight choreographer "Montyoum" has once again delved into the many unwritten volumes of fan fiction buried inside our minds and rendered each page in startling, over-the-top clarity. After allowing Samus and Master Chief to find love on the battlefield, Montyoum orchestrated a crossover between the elaborately endowed gals of Dead or Alive and a trio of Final Fantasy femme fatales, labeling the ludicrous result "Dead Fantasy."

Above you'll find the sequel, an even bigger display of absurd acrobatics, imaginative pummeling and blissful ignorance of the laws of physics. We love it.

[Thanks, dara hoy]

Square Enix has finally nailed down a firm US release date for its upcoming, dare we say original action-RPG for the DS, The World Ends With You. While Nintendo listed the game among its spring releases last month, the calender jockeys at Final Fantasy proper have announced that the game will make it to North American retail outlets on April 22.

Developed at the hands of Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories developer Jupiter, the game has certainly been on the minds of those of us partial to Nintendo's touchable handheld, as as well as those with a thing for big feet and Japanese culture. The World Ends With You is set within Tokyo's "trendiest youth culture center," Shibuya, and takes "major influences" from the area's cultural bearings, from food and music to fashion and design. It all sounds great, but honestly you had us at original.

You may remember last year's April issue of EGM particularly well, as it included the breaking news on a hot new title making its way onto the Nintendo Wii: Mushroom Kingdom Hearts. Then again, you might remember the chorus of angry Nintendo/Disney/Square Enix fanboys screaming when they realized that the announcement was one of EGM's annual April Fools' Day pranks. If you also smacked your head in realization when the initial excitement subsided, we've got great news for you (and this time, it's on the level).

JudgeSpear has lovingly crafted his take on the game-that-never-was, titling it Super Mario Fusion: Mushroom Kingdom Hearts. Much like the legit Square Enix franchise, Fusion features a dimension-hopping Mario, and worlds based off of other video game franchises, including Halo, Sonic, Doom, Castlevania, Ghouls and Ghosts, Mega Man, and a handful of other Nintendo titles. Using familiar controls similar to those of Super Mario World, and a new gunplay mechanic using Covenant weaponry, this programmer has created a Frankengame that is definitely worth checking out.

A demo for the game is available on his site. Sure, it's still a tad buggy, but it's free, and it's probably the only time you'll see Mario packin' heat. We hope.

Well, not all of it. This is more about the highlights, the big news of the year. The kind of stuff that we should look back to and highlight as being memorable in 2007. It's been one hell of a year; a roller coaster ride of hits and misses. So, grab your admission ticket, buckle yourself in and join us for this look back at the news of 2007.

Released on the Nintendo DS back in July, "Subarashiki Kono Sekai" saw the team behind Kingdom Hearts take a break from all that adorable fantasy nonsense to explore an entirely different... well, no. Setting the game in Shibuya, Tokyo ("the coolest district in Tokyo," it says here) pretty much guarantees a heavy presence of adorable fantasy nonsense. It's a good thing some of us are partial to that sort of thing, or Square Enix wouldn't have bothered to localize the game (otherwise known as "It's a Wondeful World") for the PAL market.

Set for release in Spring 2008, the newly redubbed "The World Ends With You" starts in a rather sinister fashion, reminiscent of other popular Japanese import, The Ring. It seems the lead chap, Neku, encounters a phone message ominously informing him that after seven days have passed, he'll cease to exist. Don't be too concerned, as he'll get out of the predicament thanks to "the coolest fashions, friends and fighting skills" Tokyo has to offer. And hey, if those friends and fighting skills don't work out, at least the guy will be fashionably late. Geddit?

We've asked Square Enix whether or not a US release is on the cards, though it's easy enough to import and play DS games from Europe should the answer be "no, and for the last time, stop sending us those chain letters."

Update: Square Enix has no announcements regarding a US release.

We love helping sick kids as much as the next staff of surly bloggers, but even our moral compass is being tested by this eBay listing for an incredible Keyblade replica. We'd like to say the best part is that 35% [Update: In their FAQ, the seller says 100%] of the funds raised are going to Child's Play. But alas, we're pretty sure that the best part is the above video from the listing that features one of our favorite things: Cosplayers who've just lost the game of Chicken they've been playing with e-infamy and insanity and have ended up splattered all over the internet. Happy holidays, kids.

Of all the images the video, we're especially terrified of Pikachu holding a sword. Because, you see, even if you're properly grounded and insulated against electricity -- he's still got a sword.

[Thanks everyone who sent this in.]

Disney/Square/Enix fans will be happy to know that three new Kingdom Hearts titles are on the way, as Square Enix announced brand new titles in development for the DS, PSP, and mobile phones at the 2007 Tokyo Game Show.

1UP reports that these will be three entirely different titles, although all three will share the theme of "time." Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep will be headed for the PlayStation Portable as a single-player action-RPG romp in the same vein as its PS2 brethren. Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days for the Nintendo DS is a full-3D game starring Roxas from KHII, and featuring simultaneous four-way multiplayer.

The final title, Kingdom Hearts: Coded, is being developed for mobile phones, and features the original Kingdom Hearts cast in a story that appears to take place in between the first and second PS2 games.

There's some great news for Kingdom Hearts fans and DS owners -- the handheld is indeed getting a KH game, and it's apparently not a follow-up to the GBA title. Details are sketchy out of TGS at the moment, but the game is going multi-version for multiple platforms (as rumored). It seems the DS exclusive, which is known as Kingdom Hearts 358/2 is the "darkest" of the bunch, according to IGN. Brief trailers for the DS title, as well as those for the PSP and mobile phones, were shown behind closed doors at the show, and no release dates have been mentioned as yet. The only other thing we know at this time is that the events in all games take place near those in Kingdom Hearts 2.

Way back in May, Square Enix's Tetsuya Nomura said the company faced a difficult decision about where to send the next Kingdom Hearts title. When faced with choosing between the DS, the PSP, and mobile phones for your multi-million dollar franchise, what's a company to do?

Clearly, they should make multiple games -- not just multiple versions -- and cover all the bases. Rumor has it that there are three different Kingdom Hearts games in the works: Kingdom Hearts for Playstation 3, Kingdom Hearts 0 for PSP, and Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories 2 for the DS, which we assume is a follow-up to the GBA title. As rumors go, this one seems pretty viable, and we anticipate confirmation within the next few days ... unless Square Enix has an entirely different game afoot when it comes to this franchise.

The latest issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly has once again provided some juicy rumors care of the Quartermann column. Q has added some kindling to rumorang fire of Okami for the Wii, suggesting that Capcom is already developing an upgraded port.

On the Square Enix front, rumor has it that Kingdom Hearts has a "series of prequels currently in-the-works for a number of consoles and handhelds." That would fall in line, at least partially, with what Tetsuya Nomura said back in May that the next KH game would not be KHIII but rather a spin-off for portables.

The third rumor presented is that "a popular studio" is working on an open-ended, Grand Theft Auto-style title based on Batman.

Role-playing game powerhouse Square Enix have put up a teaser site for an upcoming online merchandise store. Though we're not expecting software titles to be sold, figurines from Dragon Quest, Kingdom Hearts and Final Fantasy are likely (we saw a huge display of fine-crafted figures from those series at Tokyo Game Show last year) and probably clothing with various logos.

Our prediction for best-sellers? Anything with a Slime character on it: key chains, styluses, plush dolls, etc. Our prediction for worst-sellers? Anything sold with actual slime on it. Ew. No date has been given for the grand opening of the store.

[Via 1UP]

A short interview was conducted with some members of the Square Enix PR department by the folks over at RPGamer. While there isn't that much truly invigorating information, we thought it'd be nice to bring you up to speed on some of the anticipated titles that, we hope, make their way onto the PS3. Also of note are Square Enix's tentative plans for the PlayStation Store. Enticed? Summary below.

• The PS Store is too young to decide if content is worth posting, says Square Enix. Would we really want another version of a Final Fantasy game anyway? We'd love to see something like Einhander make its way onto the store, though ...
• The next Kingdom Hearts title (they didn't specify whether it would be the third main installment or another off-shoot title) will get announced at the Tokyo Game Show.
• Also not-yet-officially-announced is a special party hosted by Square Enix on June 26. It will take place at the PlayStation Store in San Fransisco. More details on that later.

We're fairly sure that the Kingdom Hearts announcement will be for an offshoot title for a handheld. Not sure why; just a gut reaction. As for the PS Store, while it is young, it will never get older if developers don't give it worthwhile titles. In fact, in our latest podcast, we sort of touched on the topic -- Japan is getting a ton of PS One titles and we've gotten none for the past couple of months. Surely this will change soon, Sony?