A Christmas Miracle: Final Fantasy XIII Hits Japan December 17th

The release date of Square Enix’s next-gen masterpiece, Final Fantasy XIII, has been a hazy subject since the beginning of this generation.  Shunted rapidly from “next year” release date to “next year” release date, it seemed like release day would never come.  That is, until today.

Those who’ve been following the game are likely aware that Square Enix is holding a Final Fantasy XIII Premiere Party tonight in Japan; it had been long speculated that the release date would be revealed there.  And technically, it still will be; but that didn’t stop some intrepid internet sleuths from uncovering the announcement a few hours early.

Via some clever twiddling with a Japanese flash site promoting the game, hackers were able to bypass a countdown effect and cause the release date to uncover itself several hours before it was to be announced formally.  Obviously, the Party hasn’t started yet, so we can’t be entirely sure if this is true, but all things considered, the release date is essentially owed to us by now.  Will anybody be importing the game, or do you all plan to wait until the US release some time next year?

Source: FinalFantasyXIII.net