Microsoft has released a version of Blue Dragon with English subtitles ... in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Korea and Singapore. That's not exactly helpful for US and European Xbox 360 owners who are yearning for the role-playing game from Mistwalker.

According to Siliconera, this release of the game features Japanese and Korean voice acting alongside English and Chinese subtitles. And though you might be thinking of importing the title, we should warn you that it's region locked, requiring a console from the area. We're not quite sure how Microsoft has defined (and subsequently locked) the regions, but Siliconera suggests that a Japanese Xbox 360 would work.

If you can wait, Blue Dragon will arrive in August for the US and September for Europe.

The sequel to the Xbox 360 Japanese RPG Blue Dragon may include online play. Speaking to Japanese website Gpara.com (translated by Eurogamer), Mistwalker producer Hironobu Sakaguchi said that they are in talks with Microsoft about developing a sequel and that, "specifics aren't finalised, but there's a possibility that it will be produced as an online title."

To what extent Sakaguchi is considering integrating online play is unknown; it could be anywhere from online trading to a full-blown MMO. It is pretty much assured Microsoft, with a minimal-at-best library of RPGs for the Xbox 360, will greenlight a sequel to the one title that has so far proven to be successful in Japan.

Blue Dragon will be arriving in North America August 15 and Europe in September.

A CVG report asserts that the Xbox 360's role-playing space opera, Mass Effect, has been "delayed" until the horrifyingly distant month of September. Of course, having never had an official release date to begin with, it seems exceedingly impatient to consider the game delayed just as its first potential release window is revealed. Though there have been hints pointing towards a May or June release, September would be the first month Microsoft and BioWare have openly committed to -- if indeed the report is wholly accurate.

We'd prefer a month that was sooner (like April), but it seems the utterly blinding level of light bouncing off all the shiny spaceships, futuristic weapons and revoltingly moist aliens in the game just isn't enough for BioWare to stop polishing. The only worrying aspect of such a September release is that it would be awfully close to the August arrival of Hironobu Sakaguchi's Blue Dragon. Having access to both time-consuming RPGs within 30 days could prove socially, economically and hygienically disastrous for fans of the genre.

Curiously, when asked for comment on the September date (which could specifically be for Europe), the Mass Effect publisher only offered, "Microsoft has not announced a release date for Mass Effect."

Update: "We have not made any official announcements regarding release timing for Mass Effect," adds Microsoft. "At this time, any information about the game's release date is purely rumor and speculation."

Joystiq contacted CVG for clarification. We were politely informed that the information originated from a Microsoft employee and that it has yet to be "officially" announced. In other words, we're waiting on that official announcement letting us know we have to wait until September for the game -- point being, we're waiting.

Having already released extra downloadable difficulty settings, Mistwalker and Microsoft have announced plans to release a random dungeon generator for Blue Dragon on April 27. The downloadable content is available in Japan only (no surprise, seeing as the full game is only available in Japan) and, according to a translation by Siliconera, will cost 300 MS points (¥444, US $3.75).

The value of the random dungeon generator is tantamount to its construction, and we don't know how well Mistwalker implemented the feature. For all we know, a faulty algorithm may lead to an entire wing of the dungeon being blocked off by an impassable Sarlacc Pit! Blue Dragon will be available August 15 in North America and September in Europe.

[Via Xbox 360 Fanboy]

Blue Dragon's universe is expanding rapidly, and Famitsu reports that an animated TV series is scheduled to air on Japan's TV Tokyo station in April. The Blue Dragon anime is in production at Studio Pierrot -- which has worked on the animated series of such hot properties as Power Stone, Naruto and Bleach -- and is directed by Yukihiro Matsushita, who previously directed the Star Ocean EX animation. Kluke, the female lead in Blue Dragon's main trio of adventurers, is voiced by Erino Hazuki (pictured), while Keiko Nemoto and Daisuke Namikawa provide the voices of group leader Shu and quiet boy Zero (respectively). Now how about some hype for the English-language release of Blue Dragon, Microsoft? We're dying out here.

The first wave of Xbox Live content for Mistwalker's wonderful Blue Dragon is set for Marketplace distribution as of 8pm tomorrow, Japanese time. The good news for Japanese Xbox Live users is that said content is free (¥0, US$0). The size of the downloads hasn't been confirmed as yet, but the downloadable data offers plenty of extra fun for Blue Dragon experts, providing Hard and Super modes of play for those who have already completed the game on its standard difficulty setting. Further content is expected in the weeks and months to come.

After its relative success in Japan, Mistwalker is hoping to expand Blue Dragon's potential in any/every direction possible while it moves forward with work on Blue Dragon 2. The smokers in the audience will be especially pleased to find a Blue Dragon Zippo lighter on sale via Bandai's LaLaBit Market net store during February and March, with the items scheduled for delivery in April. The lighters cost ¥10,500 (US$87) each -- a bit pricey, but then, they are going to become rare Zippos.

And there's other Mistwalker swag soon to go on sale at LaLaBit, as well, including snazzy Blue Dragon t-shirts and mugs. What we'd really like, though, is a genuine Blue Dragon flamethrower. (For toasting marshmallows.) That would be cool.

GameStop is now listing Blue Dragon for June 5. The online retailer's release date forecast, which should be considered a placeholder pending official confirmation, follows Game Informer's recent Blue Dragon cover story in which the GameStop-owned publication cited a summer release for Mistwalker's RPG.

There have been few updates regarding the Blue Dragon localization process, but we do know that the original game content will not be altered beyond text translation and English voice dubbing (replaceable with the original Japanese voice acting and English subtitles). The dubbing will also encompass the re-recording of several key songs. Instead of including exclusive content in the localization effort, global product manager Hees Kyung confirmed with Game Informer that downloadable content will have "a significant impact on post-release Blue Dragon around the world." Kyung declined to state specifics, but seemed to imply that future content would be episodic.

Blue Dragon was released in Japan on December 7, 2006.

1UP has again braved the bands of manga-fiending young'ns to investigate the happenings at this year's Jump Festa jumpoff. While all major Japanese publishers (and Microsoft) were present, Square Enix was reppin' in full force, offering playable versions of Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII (PSP), and Seiken Densetsu: Heroes of Mana and Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fates (both for DS). Trailers for additional titles were also on display (see embedded videos below).

In a private theater, Square Enix previewed more new footage from its upcoming 2007 lineup, including a glimpse at Final Fantasy Versus XIII (PS3). The montage concluded with a brief flash of an armored man, grimacing as he stood on what appeared to be a battlefield. The teaser shot was followed by the words: "And something new coming in 2007."

The first thing you should do when this sort of thing happens is somehow confirm that you're still in the same dimension you were in moments before. Examine newspapers, have a look in the mirror and make doubly sure that nobody is sporting an angry orangutan for a head. With that out of the way, you can return to the matter at hand -- there's an Xbox 360 game sitting in the fourth position of the weekly Japanese software sales chart. With a healthy 80,348 copies sold, it would appear that Microsoft's Blue Dragon is at least making some strides in the publisher's continuing battle against apathy in Japan.

Examining the other bits of the chart on GamesAreFun, it's easy to imagine some of the cheaper headlines that could have been used for this post. "Blue Dragon crushes Zelda in Japanese sales!" While Blue Dragon enters the chart in fourth place, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess has since slid down to 17th in its second week. Post-launch Wii shortages could be to blame, as Wario Ware: Smooth Moves also fails to make it past the 23rd spot. The fact that Tales of Destiny and Final Fantasy VI Advance wind up below Blue Dragon, however, could be seen as more reassuring.

Ah, but what about "Blue Dragon defeated by Pokemon?" In its tenth week, Pokemon Diamond occupies the third slot, with second and first place going to Sega's Yakuza 2 and Gundam SEED: Federation vs ZAFT II respectively. The install bases of the PS2 and DS make those games particularly tough opponents, so to snag fourth spot seems like a solid accomplishment. Keep an eye out for the infamous Japanese hardware sales later today to see how effective Blue Dragon is at shifting consoles.

This week, we've left this post a bit late in the (release) day so that we talk in the past tense and tell you how we bought a copy of Motorstorm for ¥5280 (which is about $45 in Digitiser's trademarked Earth Money), and how we can state with some confidence, having played the game for a grand total of 23 minutes, that it is, you know, quite good. And how we can bring you an exclusive Blurry Pic (after the break, courtesy of our Samsung keitai) of the new Blue Dragon... gachapon. And we can use italics in excess because this release day, dear readers, is over. Here are the other big games of the day. Of the day:

• Earth Defense Force 3 (where's the ant powder?; Xbox 360)
• Phantasy Star Universe (you're late, Sega; Xbox 360)
• World Soccer Winning Eleven X (you're late, Konami; Xbox 360)
• Chocobo to Mahou no Ehon (miraculous yellow chickens; DS)
• SNK Vs. Capcom Card Fighters DS (our Neo-Geo Pocket Colour is sent to the old folks' home; DS)
• Motorstorm (at least 23 minutes' worth of dirty pleasure; PS3)
• Pokemon Battle Revolution (gotta buy 'em all; Wii)

Blue Dragon is Microsoft's attempt to truly break into the Japanese console market. The Blue Dragon launch can be billed the REAL Xbox 360 launch day in Japan; at least, Microsoft hopes it is.

According to a confusing machine translation from GameSpot China, the Xbox 360 sold either 27,000 or 70,000 units to accommodate the release of Blue Dragon. If 70,000 is the correct number, an additional 43,000 units of Blue Dragon sold (which is the bulk of the Japanese owners who previously purchased an Xbox 360). In either case, this is certainly a nice boost for Microsoft.

If the 70,000 is the correct version of the translation, it would certainly be odd to see the Xbox 360 sitting at a solid #3 on Japan's weekly sales chart. Microsoft hopes to sell 200,000 copies of Blue Dragon in Japan, which means Microsoft hopes to have around 200,000 Xbox 360 units in Japanese households. While not impressive from the standpoint of, say, the DS -- Nintendo sells that many in two weeks -- Microsoft should enjoy the sales boost and the publicity that goes along with it.

Akira Toriyama, Nobuo Uematsu, Hironobu Sakaguchi: all three are famous names in Japan. And all three are closely associated with Blue Dragon, the Mistwalker Xbox 360 RPG that was released in Japan this morning. For an Xbox 360 title here in Japan, where the format has to date been failing spectacularly, Blue Dragon is set to become the system's most successful game by some distance.

Pre-orders for the Blue Dragon Xbox 360 hardware bundle sold out some weeks ago, while gamers queued for their copies in Akihabara this morning. We had no problem finding a copy of the game in Osaka today, however -- it's popular, but it's not unobtainable. Regardless, at this rate, Blue Dragon could still become a flagship series for Microsoft in Japan. No wonder Sakaguchi recently revealed plans for Blue Dragon 2...

Jump for more photos from this morning's in-store launch event at Akihabara's Yodobashi Camera.

It's getting really cold in Japan. Like, two pairs of socks cold. And as the outside gets colder, the inside gets warmer. Inevitably, we stay indoors more and play more games. This is the time of year when Thursdays become even more important to us. And today's shop for new games should be a particularly warming one.

Here's what we plan to pick up in Osaka's Den Den Town:

• Blue Dragon (the biggest Xbox 360 game in Japan to date -- a 3-DVD set that scored 37/40 in Famitsu)
• Ryu Ga Gotoku 2 (aka Yakuza 2 -- by orange-skinned Toshihiro Nagoshi; PS2)
• Ape Escape Racer (like Mario Kart, but with more monkeys and some disco balls; PSP)
• PaRappa the Rapper (Chop Chop Master Onion gets cut up and refried for the PSP)
• Power Pro Kun Pocket 9 (big-headed baseball from Konami; DS)